The Jbeil Experience

I gaze at the expanse of the Mediterranean in front of me wondering if someone on the other side is staring back. The grey-green mountains of the rest of Lebanon line the horizon on my left, and in front of me, fishermen stand like statues on the rocks, waiting for a catch. The silence is broken only by the whispering wind, the waves lapping against the castle walls, the cry of gulls, and occasional bursts of Arabic music from the boat circling around the harbour.