Sunday\u2019s hike was in Ehmej, an area above Jbeil I\u2019ve driven through many times, but never hiked in, even though they\u2019ve developed a number of\u00a0hiking trails\u00a0<\/a>in the area.<\/p>\n The guide we got was slightly . . .\u00a0\u00a0disturbed, shall\u00a0\u00a0we say, of our seemingly lack of management over our children (we had 13 of them with us), who ran all over the mountain, did not listen to what she had to say about the local plant life, and instead engaged in loud snowball fights over that one little patch of snow we encountered on the way.<\/p>\n Those are just appearances; it is part of our Dutch child raising strategy. I think. Freedom creates a sense of boundaries. But the hike was quite beautiful. She (the guide) was going to show us what kind of animals lived in the mountains, but with our children, all wildlife had decided to migrate to more peaceful regions for the day; not even a field mouse in sight.<\/p>\n
![\"ehmej](\"http:\/\/www.ehmej.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/ehmej-6.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n| I loved the discussion around this tree. Someone’s son had climbed into the tree, way up high. \nMom: “Now that’s quite high enough, dear<\/em>.” \nDad: “Can’t you go any higher<\/em>?”<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n It didn’t matter. It was beautiful as it was. We did find quite a few hematites<\/span>; I did not know we had so much iron ore in the country, but apparently in the old days, it was one of our major export items. Even King Solomon knew about it, it seems, although I thought he was after our cedar wood.<\/p>\n Iron oxides occur\u00a0locally in the mountains and were some of the first iron ores to be exploited;\u00a0by the 7th century BC Lebanese iron was being exported to Babylon. Unfortunately iron smelting requires high temperatures and was a major factor in the deforestation<\/em>.<\/p>\n We do not export iron anymore; too expensive to smelt it all down. But the mountains were quite lovely.<\/p>\n My daughter, a fifth grader, is currently studying a unit on culture, and has discovered that in Lebanon they say (at least the internet does) that you can ski in the morning and swim in the afternoon. \u201cIs that true<\/em>?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n Well, if the climate would cooperate and there would be snow, and the traffic would cooperate as well, and you don\u2019t mind swimming in 18\u00b0C, then this claim is \u2013 in theory \u2013 accurate. But who would?<\/p>\n CONTINUE READING>>>>Click Here<\/a><\/p>\n |
![\"ehmej](\"http:\/\/www.ehmej.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/ehmej-4.jpg\")
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