{"id":14865,"date":"2021-11-19T19:59:57","date_gmt":"2021-11-19T23:59:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/?p=14865"},"modified":"2021-11-19T19:59:57","modified_gmt":"2021-11-19T23:59:57","slug":"bcharreh-a-charming-village-in-mount-lebanon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/2021\/11\/19\/bcharreh-a-charming-village-in-mount-lebanon\/","title":{"rendered":"Bcharreh, a charming village in Mount-Lebanon!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/FinalBcharre.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-14867\" width=\"472\" height=\"169\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/FinalBcharre.jpg 705w, https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/FinalBcharre-300x108.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 472px) 85vw, 472px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>On June 19, 2021, Bambi&#8217;s two posts were about the beautiful Ehden village in Lebanon (in the Middle East). Thanks to her sister, Ms. Roula Douglas, Bambi was able to share some pictures and even videos from this beautiful village. However, in her first post, she made a mistake and showed a picture of Bcharreh instead of Ehden. She commented on her own post with the following words :): <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;<em>This is Bambi commenting on her own blog. To be very accurate, and in  order not to mislead her readers, she just learned from her sister that  those specific pictures were taken from the nearby village, called  Bcharreh, and not from Ehden per se. Luckily, both are located next to  each other in the Zgharta District region! So, Bambi\u2019s mistake could be  easily forgiven :). This being said, if you happen to be reading this post and you are from Bcharreh, please accept Bambi\u2019s apologies. One of  the future posts will be about the charming Bcharreh, count on her :)! &#8220;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Well, today, she would like to act on her older promise by devoting this post to feature the charm of Bcharreh. She hopes to do justice to its beauty&#8230; but from where to start? <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Perhaps first with the etymology, which is the field of studies of the origins of words and their change throughout history? Bcharreh is of Syriac origin: &#8220;<em>Beit Shary<\/em>&#8220;, which means &#8220;<em>to begin<\/em>&#8221; or &#8220;<em>strength and stabilit<\/em>y&#8221;, as per the blog below entitled &#8220;<em>Les plus beaux villages du Liban<\/em>&#8220;. According to this source, Bcharreh is a &#8220;<em>former Phoenician village where cedar wood  was exploited in antiquity<\/em>&#8221; .<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-wordpress wp-block-embed is-type-wp-embed is-provider-les-plus-beaux-villages-du-liban\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"fUTjSK1tQB\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.pbvliban.org\/village\/bcharre\/\">Bcharreh<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px);\" title=\"&#8220;Bcharreh&#8221; &#8212; Les Plus Beaux Villages du Liban\" src=\"http:\/\/www.pbvliban.org\/village\/bcharre\/embed\/#?secret=fUTjSK1tQB\" data-secret=\"fUTjSK1tQB\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>What about geography now? According to the same Lebanese reference above, &#8220;<em>Bcharre rises to 1400m in North Lebanon, in  the heart of a majestic and fierce nature. The village, with a rather  urban character, stands out above all for its exceptional natural  environment marked by the presence of two UNESCO World Heritage sites, namely the millennial forest of the Cedars of God and the Holy Valley of  Qadisha, home to meditation and asceticism since the beginning of the  Christian era<\/em>. <em>Several hermits still live today in the rocky slopes of the Qannoubine valley<\/em>&#8220;.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What can we do when we visit Bcharreh? So many exciting activities including a visit to the museum (<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gibran_Museum\">https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gibran_Museum<\/a>) of the great Lebanese-American philosopher\/writer\/visual artist Mr. <em>Gibran Khalil Gibran<\/em> (<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Kahlil_Gibran\">https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Kahlil_Gibran<\/a>). <\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"274\" height=\"379\" src=\"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/GibranKGibran.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-14891\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/GibranKGibran.jpg 274w, https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/GibranKGibran-217x300.jpg 217w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 274px) 85vw, 274px\" \/><figcaption>Mr. Gibran Khalil Gibran (1883-1931; birth place: Bcharreh, Lebanon. Death place: New York, USA). A picture taken from <em>Wikipedia<\/em>.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>If you are into spirituality, you will be well served in this piece of heaven (religious or spiritual tourism). If you are into winter sports, you will enjoy skiing and discovering the snow-covered mountains. Mind you, you can resort to this activity even late in the spring- early summer. You can be skiing and less than an hour later (OK minus any traffic :)) find yourself swimming in the Mediterranean sea!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"331\" src=\"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Bcharreh-Winter.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-14873\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Bcharreh-Winter.jpg 500w, https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Bcharreh-Winter-300x199.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 500px) 85vw, 500px\" \/><figcaption>Bcharreh under the snow. A picture taken from <em>Wikipedia<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"550\" height=\"365\" src=\"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/WadiQuadishaTripAdvisor.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-14875\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/WadiQuadishaTripAdvisor.jpg 550w, https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/WadiQuadishaTripAdvisor-300x199.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 550px) 85vw, 550px\" \/><figcaption>Wadi Kadisha [or the sacred valley]\/Bcharreh. A picture taken from <em>TripAdvisor<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;<em>Kadisha<\/em>&#8221; means &#8220;<em>Holy<\/em>&#8221; in Aramaic, which is the language Jesus spoke. This valley is simply SO beautiful. It is close to the &#8220;<em>Forest of the Cedars of God<\/em>&#8220;. So many civilizations used the timber (e.g., Temple of Solomon, shipbuilding, railways, etc.): The Phoenicians, Israelites, Egyptians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Romans, Arabs, Ottoman Empire or Turks, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"468\" height=\"351\" src=\"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Cedars.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-14904\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Cedars.jpg 468w, https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Cedars-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 468px) 85vw, 468px\" \/><figcaption>Cedars of God in Bcharreh, Lebanon. A picture taken from <em>Wikipedia<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Cedars2.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-14905\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Cedars2.jpg 300w, https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/Cedars2-150x150.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 85vw, 300px\" \/><figcaption>Cedars of God in Bcharreh, Lebanon. A picture taken from <em>TripAdvisor<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>To conclude this post, here is a very brief video called <em>Bcharreh<\/em> by drone. Bambi hopes you will enjoy it, along with the music. One of the songs is called <em>Almahaba<\/em> (or love)&#8211; of course a tribute to Mr. Gibran Khalil Gibran! The other is called <em>Bint el Shalabiya<\/em> by Fairuz (Bambi still did not have the time to complete learning how to play it on the guitar :). Hopefully soon!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe title=\"Bsharri by Drone  [4K] | \u0628\u0634\u0631\u064a\" width=\"840\" height=\"473\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/puegohlDaw8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8212;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Bambi&#8217;s older posts on Ehden located in the <em>Zgharta<\/em> district (North of Lebanon).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-wordpress wp-block-embed is-type-wp-embed is-provider-bambi-039-s-afkar\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"l43Mk8oNzz\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/2021\/06\/19\/lebanons-charm-discover-ehden\/\">Lebanon&#8217;s charm: Discover Ehden!<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px);\" title=\"&#8220;Lebanon&#8217;s charm: Discover Ehden!&#8221; &#8212; Bambi&#039;s Afkar\" src=\"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/2021\/06\/19\/lebanons-charm-discover-ehden\/embed\/#?secret=l43Mk8oNzz\" data-secret=\"l43Mk8oNzz\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-wordpress wp-block-embed is-type-wp-embed is-provider-bambi-039-s-afkar\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"hdXp5sDHfU\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/2021\/06\/19\/the-sunset-in-ehden-lebanon-through-the-eyes-of-ms-roula-azar-douglas\/\">The sunset in Ehden (Lebanon) through the eyes of Ms. Roula Azar-Douglas<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px);\" title=\"&#8220;The sunset in Ehden (Lebanon) through the eyes of Ms. Roula Azar-Douglas&#8221; &#8212; Bambi&#039;s Afkar\" src=\"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/2021\/06\/19\/the-sunset-in-ehden-lebanon-through-the-eyes-of-ms-roula-azar-douglas\/embed\/#?secret=hdXp5sDHfU\" data-secret=\"hdXp5sDHfU\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On June 19, 2021, Bambi&#8217;s two posts were about the beautiful Ehden village in Lebanon (in the Middle East). Thanks to her sister, Ms. Roula Douglas, Bambi was able to share some pictures and even [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14865"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14865"}],"version-history":[{"count":47,"href":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14865\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14918,"href":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14865\/revisions\/14918"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14865"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14865"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bambisafkar.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14865"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}