Temple of Eshmun, Lady Hester Stanhope and Saida (Sidon)

Last weekend we went on a trip to the south part of Lebanon. We had a lot of fun with our friends and saw many interesting things. First we went to the Phoenician Temple of Eshmun. In it's day it was a place of worship to the God of Healing. Believers felt that if they put their children in the sacred water there they would live healthy lives.  This temple was created when Astarte (a goddess otherwise known as Ishtar) saw a man (Eshmun) hunting in the nearby forest and fell for his beauty. She wouldn't stop pursuing him and so he basically killed himself. The grieving goddess took him to the heavens where he became the God of Healing. Unlike when Tim and I went looking at ruins in Greece, we found that we were the only ones at the Temple of Eshmun. We received a tour from the 10 year old boy of the caretaker who spoke a little English.

 Below is a picture of a part of a mosaic. Many of the mosaics from here are at the National Museum. I have been surprised with how many mosaics are here in Lebanon.

 Here are Janna and Delaney on the Astarte's Throne.

From there, we went in search of Lady Hester Stanhope's home just to the east. Lady Stanhope was quite the British socialite of her time (1776-1839). She traveled throughout the area and chose to end her days here. She was quite the adventurer and therefore, we went on quite an adventure to find her home. We went through a small town asking many people where we could find it. We had a hard time finding anyone who spoke French or English. There was only one sign. Finally, after traveling for a while, we stopped at a small snack shop in the middle of nowhere where it seemed to be popular place for Sunday picnicking. There we found a man who hopped on his scooter and we followed him.....into the middle of NOWHERE!

As we went up into the hills we passed a large family getting ready to eat where a little boy jumped out in front of the car. Philippe was able to stop the car in time and we moved on. Up through a few olive groves along the winding dirt road. Around a corner and there we were. Lady Stanhope's home. We wouldn't have found it without his help! We tried to give him money but he just left. Did I tell you it was in the middle of nowhere. What an adventure!

On our way back down to the town the family that we had passed was beckoning us to join them for their meal. This is very common of Lebanese people. Even if you don't speak the same language, you can eat a meal with anyone and always feel welcome.

From there, we went into Saida (Sidon). We went to the Crusader's Sea Castle and looked around.

We had a great deal of fun climbing around and taking pictures.

 Above, the light was shining through quite beautifully. As with many places we have been, I find myself looking up at the arching ceilings and being impressed with how they created them.

The picture above is interesting. I was wondering what these circles were in the walls all over this castle. Well, they were pillars from the Roman ruins nearby. Talk about reusing!

We then went on a walk through the ancient Souk (Market) of Saida. Since it was Sunday, not many of the stalls and shops were open but that was okay. It was still an adventure.

 I found it interesting that they hang clothing for sale on the electrical lines. As you can see, the ceilings of this labyrinth of walkways were made very similarly to the castle. I was also surprised at how many children were running around. There were so many homes within the souk. There were also two mosques, a few churches and an old palace. Alas, they were all closed. Just a reason to go there again!

 Below, are pictures in a pastry shop we found. Philippe had quite the friendship with the owner. When they saw each other they immediately hugged. After that he wouldn't stop giving us treats. I decided we needed to get some dessert for later. Since we had a little bit of a language barrier this was a problem. I pointed at something and asked what it was. He took this as "please give me some of that". Suffice to say, I ended up with a large plateful of treats. The baklava from there was incredible by the way!

This was part one of our trip. Soon, we will be posting about traveling down to Sour (Tyre).