Jbeil’s Priest House offers quiet retreat for religious visitors
MAAD, JBEIL: Many tourists headed to Lebanon are enthusiastic about getting a taste of the country’s sights as well as its [noisy] sounds, while a minority are actually looking for peace and quiet. One of their destinations might be the Priest’s House, or Beit al-Kahen, which is a spiritual “hostel” on the outskirts of the...
Jbeil reserve a rare success story in fire prevention
BENTAEL, JBEIL: Forest fires regularly ravage Lebanon. No steps are being taken to protect the country’s green spaces. Foreign development assistance is often ineffective. While these are accepted as truisms, there are also success stories on these fronts, such as the Bentael Nature Reserve in Jbeil, which has a clean record when it comes to...
Family tradition source of pride for Barbour jeweler
BEIRUT: Yousef Chakr is reluctant to talk about the local gold market, as he insists on getting the approval of the head of his union before talking to the media. In fact, he’s reluctant to give much away at all, at first refusing to divulge his own name. “If I could tell you my name...
Why is it called Karakoul al-Druze?
Shafic Mayassi, 25, store manager and chef “It started because of culture and the religion of people, the Druze. They built a police station at Rue Istiqlal and named it Karakoul, which means station.” Mohammad Othman, 34, shoe store owner “There used to be a police station here; the Druze lived around it. I think...
Greenpeace campaigns against fishing nets which are damaging Lebanon’s coast
AMSHEET: Environmental campaigner Greenpeace is taking to the seas to drum up support for the government’s attempts to control the use of fishing nets that are harming the country’s maritime ecosystem. The practice of seine fishing is coming under particular fire from Greenpeace, which says the nets that are used are depleting fish stocks and...
Minister signs agreement to conduct environment study
BEIRUT: An agreement to conduct a national study on the environment was signed Monday, nearly a decade after the last such report was produced. Environment Minister Mohammad Rahhal signed an agreement with the consulting firm ECODIT to produce the report, which he said would provide details about “air and water pollution and environmental damage that...
Louis Vuitton opens its first store in Lebanon
BEIRUT: The prestigious French fashion house Louis Vuitton has opened a branch in Downtown Beirut because it’s “almost bizarre” to not have a foothold in one of the Middle East’s leading fashion-conscious markets. Chairman and CEO Yves Carcelle was joined by Premier Saad Hariri for the opening ceremony on Thursday. The Beirut opening is Louis...
