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The Bekaa Valley and a Taste of Home

The Bekaa Valley and a Taste of Home

Last updated on: September 4, 2018 at 3:01 am by Suehaila Amen

The Bekaa Valley and a Taste of Home 2018-09-04T03:01:08-04:00 Suehaila Amen

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The Western Bekaa Region

This weekend was spent in the heart of the Bekaa Valley. An area rich in fertile soils and agricultural resources. The extraordinary views leave me breathless with each visit.

The beginning of its border is located approximately 32 km outside of Beirut and the vast area borders Syria, reaching across 120 km of Lebanon.

My mother hails from this region. Her village, Rafid, is located in the heart of the Bekaa valley.

Lebanon is a land where Prophet’s walked and were buried. According to some Christians, Jesus performed his first miracle of turning water into wine in Qana, Lebanon.

The magnificence of this tiny nation cannot be ignored. It is exquisite throughout. From its mountains to the valleys, each glorious view at every bend and pinnacle leaves you captivated.

A piece of Home

My next door neighbors from Dearborn Heights, Auntie Fay, along with her daughters Melissa and Sarah Hashem, arrived in Lebanon last week.

Having the opportunity to have a piece of home while here had me running for the Bekaa, where they are staying in their village of Ain El Tineh.

I am overwhelmed as I wind through the mountains to Ain El Tineh in the Western Bekaa. Every few kilometers, I stop to take in the extraordinary views of the valleys.

At times, simply stopping to breathe in the crisp air and revel in the grandeur of my homeland leaves me overwhelmed with emotion.

Arriving at Melissa’s parent’s home, I am greeted with warm hugs and the feeling of home.

Brought to tears, I realize how much I miss the Hashem family. One of my favorite routines is greeting Sarah each morning and afternoon with a, “Hello, my love. Have a beautiful day.”

Still adjusting

Settling in, we had the opportunity to catch up on news and my entire experience to date, which brings me some ease. It has been a rough week for me, emotionally.

Life here has certainly been eventful and with each new and crazy experience, I gain a deeper understanding of the culture here.

It is not always an understanding that I want or desire. I chalk those up to lessons being learned and try to wrap my head around the insanity of it and keep my sights set on the future.

There are so many things that continue to leave me boggled and frustrated. Lebanon is not an easy place to acclimate to. Talking these feelings through with Melissa gives me comfort.

She understands my views and expectations. Understanding my desire for a change and the relationship with my family, she listens and gives sound advice.

Her calm demeanor and lens of rationale and understanding help to ease my nerves.

I did not realize how badly I was missing my Michigan family until I hugged Melissa. Sharing my feelings and experiences with her felt as if a weight was lifted from my shoulders.

Friends who understand you in all your complexities are certainly a blessing.

My Baba and his sweethearts

My father, Mohsen, joins us in Ain El Tineh. Sarah’s sweetheart and Melissa’s buddy, dad makes the girls so happy with his visit.

I love how my father has a way of brightening the darkest of days. His laid-back demeanor and humility is a light that shines from him.

Yes, he drives me bonkers with his complaining and when he gets tired from not following the doctor’s directions or eats too much sugar, but his smile is food for my soul.

Since mom left back to Michigan, Dad has gone to the south of Lebanon to relax in the village. He calls me every day to check in and tell me that he misses me.

“Even though I drove you crazy and made you sick?” I ask. “You are my greatest headache, Suehaila and I love you,” he responds.

Live with kindness

Because my father is the amazing and caring man that he is, he calls me as I leave home for the 1.5-hour drive to the Bekaa and makes me promise to get his favorite neighbors a bouquet of flowers.

His caring manner with Sarah is so heart-warming. Dad and Sarah have a special connection. He makes sure to tell me the flowers are especially for her because he loves her so much.

Of course, I consult Google to find the nearest florist and get them fabulous arrangements.

I ask God to keep me kind and compassionate. Inshallah (God-willing) I can live in a way where I always think of others and how to keep them happy and smiling.

Qellaya

For lunch on Saturday, the Hashem’s, a few relatives, and my father and I headed to Qellaya in the West Bekaa. We decide on a restaurant that sits along the Litani River called Al Kahef (The Cave).

The Litani, a vital water resource in Lebanon, is the longest in Lebanon, stretching over 140 km. From the Bekaa to Tyr (Soor), it empties into the Mediterranean Sea and flows within the borders of Lebanon.

“And in the earth, there are tracts, side by side, and gardens of (different) grapes and corn-fields and palm trees, like and unlike, watered through one irrigation system, and We made some of them excel in taste than others. Verily, there are signs in this for a people who understand.” -Holy Quran, Chapter 13, Verse 4.

As we journeyed into the valley, a shepherd was making his way up the mountain with his flock. Blocking the pathway for us, we had to maneuver around them on the narrow road.

I was so afraid of hurting one and remained still as they flocked around my truck and got out of my way. Of course, I had to take pictures!

“There is not an animal (that lives) on the earth, nor a being that flies on its wings, but (forms part of) communities like you. Nothing have we omitted from the Book, and they (all) shall be gathered to their Lord in the end.” – Holy Qur’an, Chapter 6, Verse 38.

Families fill the restaurant, sitting along the Litani riverbank and having picnics. We call these kinds of places “sha’abi,” which means popular. Everyone is welcome.

Carefree and happy

It’s far from luxury, but the views and environment are exceptional. You can either order food from the restaurant, or rent space and bring your own food.

People placed their tables in the water, eating lunch as the cold Litani rushed over their feet. The weather was a scorching 99 degrees with 62% humidity.

Kids played and splashed in the water that is barely knee deep, squealing and laughing to their heart’s content.

As hookah pipes stood immersed in the cold stream, chairs bobbing along in the water, the scene was picturesque. My heart filled with joy as young girls in hijab played in the water, carefree and smiling, ear to ear.

I wish I could be that carefree! It made me wonder what life would be like for them if they lived outside the Arab or Muslim world.

Would they enjoy these summer moments without worry or concern in the way they can here? It was food for thought. I chewed on it for a while and decided to stay positive and not let the negativity of the world’s craziness creep in.

As we wrapped up lunch and headed back to the house, we enjoyed a cup of tea before dad would return to the south and I would go back to Ain El Tineh to stay the night with the Hashem family.

Mashghara

That evening, Melissa and I went to spend time with my dear friend, Fatima Cheikh-Jaffal and her family in the town of Mashghara. Fatima is an Economics Officer for the UN DP and Ministry and Finance in Lebanon.

A Michigander, Fatima moved here a decade ago with her family. Two of her children recently returned to the U.S. for university studies and her youngest, is still here in high school.

There are only a handful of people I can share the most intimate of emotions I deal with while transitioning to life in Lebanon. Fatima is one of them.

Having been through the same, she helps me to navigate the chaos.

She and her family were visiting her parent’s home in Machghara, a town of Muslims and Christians living harmoniously.

Famously known for the song, Amar Machghara (Moon of Machghara) by Lebanese legendary songstress, Fairuz, the village boasts approximately 7500 inhabitants throughout the year with another couple thousand during tourism seasons.

The views were phenomenal from the rooftop of Mezher and Jamiley (Awada) Cheikh’s home. You could see as far as Zahle and Baaloul, across the Bekaa, lights twinkled in the moonlight.

“And he has made subservient for you the night and the day and the sun and the moon, and the stars are made subservient by his commandment; most surely there are signs in this for a people who ponder.” – Holy Qur’an, Chapter 16, Verse 12

My love for Lebanon is reinforced and evident during these precious moments when it is just I and the landscape.

Grandiose in its views, words and photographs cannot adequately capture the splendor. You need to be standing there, at the moment, to understand the magnitude of its magnificence.

El Sama Qareebi (The Sky is Near)

Our conversation the night before brought us to discussing El Sama Qareebi (The Sky is Near). A restaurant my friend Haj Mohamad Taleb recommended I visit, it was just that, close to the sky. It is a piece of heaven carved within mountains.

Ain Az’Zarqa (The Blue Eye) is an area within the valley between the villages of Yohmor and Machghara.

These Sha’abi cafes border the Litani River and welcome all people to rent space or enjoy a meal.

Similar to Al-Kahef, this area is more populated, has multiple restaurants, pools, and public spaces, and is a far more coordinated effort by the municipality.

Surrounded by spectacular mountains, the views from the valley was incredible. Subhan’Allah (Glory be to God), the way the mountains serve as an armor protecting the space is awe-inspiring.

“And the Earth; we have spread it forth and made in it firm mountains and caused to grow in it every suitable thing.”- Holy Qur’an, Chapter 15, Verse 19.

Deep in the valley, the winding road is made for one car to travel on. As other cars are oncoming, it makes for a frightening and frantic moment.

Thankfully, we were lucky to easily travel on this winding and steep road.

Missing my family

Watching families enjoying time together made me ache for my own family.

The pains of missing my siblings run deep. I feel lost without them. They are my best friends and being far from them saddens me.

Accustomed to seeing them each day, video calls are able to fill a portion of the void. Yet, their hugs and kisses, as well as the snuggles from the children, leave me empty.

I am grateful to be living abroad in a technologically advanced age, though being in a nation where internet costs are among the highest in the world, you can only imagine my phone bill each month.

To see the smiles on the faces of the children and hear their “I miss you, Khalto Susu,” makes every penny worth it.

Inshallah (God-willing) I will be seeing them at the end of September for a couple of weeks. That should help us reconnect. I am sure that by the time I leave, they will be sick of me.

It has been 5 months since my last visit. I decided that next year I will visit every 3-4 months, without excuse. The family is a priority and I need to keep that a focus.

Rich in resources

Driving through the Bekaa, I love to see vendors sell their fruits and vegetable roadside. Sharing their bounty with passersby, they offer village tales and details of their land so you understand the riches you are receiving.

“And He it is Who spread the earth and placed mountains and streams in it and inserted in it two pairs of each kind of fruit. He covers the day with the night. Certainly, there are signs in these matters for a people who reflect.” Holy Qur’an, Chapter 13, verse 3.

God has given the Lebanese amazing agricultural opportunity. While the mountains serve as an armor of protection, the rivers and springs bring irrigation, promote fertile grounds and resources for sustenance and prosperity.

Loquats, mulberries, mangoes, prickly pears, figs, apricots, pomegranates, grapes, sour plums and juicy peaches, the fruits of summer in Lebanon are abundant and mouth-watering.

There are fruits unknown to my palette that leave me itching for the next season to roll around.

“And it is He who sends down rain from the sky, and We produce thereby the growth of all things. We produce from it greenery from which We produce grains arranged in layers. And from the palm trees – of its emerging fruit are clusters hanging low. And [We produce] gardens of grapevines and olives and pomegranates, similar yet varied. Look at [each of] its fruit when it yields and [at] it’s ripening. Indeed in that are signs for a people who believe.” Holy Qur’an, Chapter 9, Verse 99

May God bless the lands where our brothers and sisters live, giving them fertile soil, irrigation, bountiful harvest, sustenance and protection. I ask God to give His bounty to those in need and provide for families and children so they may grow, prosper, and benefit from the resources around them. Ameen.

An excerpt from Khalil Gibran Khalil’s “My Lebanon”

Let me tell you who are the children of my Lebanon…

They are farmers who would turn the fallow field into garden and grove. They are the shepherds who lead their flocks through the valleys to be fattened for your table meat and your woolens. They are the vine-pressers who press the grape to wine and boil it to syrup.

They are the parents who tend the nurseries, the mothers who spin the silken yarn. They are the husbands who harvest the wheat and the wives who gather the sheaves. They are the builders, the potters, the weavers and the bell-casters. They are the poets who pour their souls in new cups.

They are those who migrate with nothing but courage in their hearts and strength in their arms but who return with wealth in their hands and a wreath of glory upon their heads. They are victorious wherever they go and loved and respected wherever they settle. They are the ones born in huts but who died in palaces of learning.

These are the children of Lebanon; they are the lamps that cannot be snuffed by the wind and the salt which remains unspoiled through the ages. They are the ones who are steadily moving toward perfection, beauty, and truth.