A trip to the Jisr al-Hajar (Natural Bridge) in Faqra

// April 29th, 2010 // lebanon

Hey, it’s been a while, I’ve been hard at work over here. However, today I have a chance to rest, so I thought I might make another post and put up some pictures.

A hobby I used to follow closely before I came to Lebanon was rock climbing. While it’s possible to rock climb here, the rocky walls are very hard on the hands due to their sharp and rough formation.

Anyway, I was invited to go for a short climb in Faqra, but mainly for the sake of a nice trip and some relaxation. Faqra is the home of a few ancient Roman ruins, and several natural wonders, one being the Jisr al-Hajar, whose name literally translates to ‘stone bridge’. It is a large natural arch high in the mountains, carved into the rock by a river from higher in the mountains.

When winter comes around, the entire area gets covered with snow, it’s really amazing. I need to get some pictures of that next winter.

We stopped for a breakfast on the way up, where we ate a variety of Sajj (wraps with Arabic spices). We reached our destination and climbed for a while, but mainly sunbathed on the rocks. I gave up after a few climbs because my hands were getting cut to pieces by the sharp rock, but I got to enjoy a wonderful atmosphere, so no disappointments for me!

Once we were done, it was back down the mountain for us, but not before we stopped to eat some delicious manouche (meat spread on a thin dough base).

It was a great trip… I really should be spending more time exploring this country while I’m here, there is so much to see. I want to go to Baalbek, where there are huge stone pillars and temples (all Roman architecture). You wouldn’t believe how big they were if I told you, so stay tuned for an upcoming trip!

In the meantime, enjoy the photos I took