We reported earlier this month under the headline, "Ehden: Here we are !" the interview by the President of the Zgharta Ehden Municipal Council, Gen Joseph Maarrawi, in the , An Nahar, newspaper concerning the alleged omission of Ehden in the Lebanese Ministry of Tourism's guides of Lebanon. As we said then, even a Facebook, group was created on the subject called, " The city of Ehden is not listed in the Official Tourist Map of Lebanon! WHY?"

Member of Parliament for Zgharta Zawie, Jawad Boulos, posted a message on the Group's Wall on 18th April 2008, saying,

"Hello all,
I have in front of me the official Lebanon Tourism Guide which I have obtained from the Ministry of Tourism. It turns out that Ehden is mentioned in the guide (page 23). Hotels and restaurants are also mentioned such as the Grand Hotel Abchi (page 69). The inserted map shows Ehden as a "site to visit" according to the legend on the map. It also mentions Qozhaya, Hawka and Nabh Mar Sarkis. It does not mention Zgharta which is not generally recognized as a tourist destination. There is also a brochure which is distributed to Tourism bureaux aboard. It is not a big brochure and only mentions the major tourist sites such as Baalbak, Jbeil, Tyre and Anjar. However there is a map printed on the first page which shows both Zgharta and Ehden. It would be great if someone could refer me to the map that does not mention Ehden so we can take necessary steps. Regards to all.Jawad Boulos

To date his request for further information has not been answered. Can our readers help? As we said ourselves at the time it is unclear what publication be it travel guide, map or whatever has omitted mention of Ehden.

Ehden's outdoor adventure company, Ehden Adventures, were busy last weekend with ninety students from the, Beirut Modern School (BMS).

The students were split in two groups, Elementary ( ages between 10 and 15) and Secondary (ages between 16 to 18), accompanied by their teachers. Over the two days they hiked in the Horsh Ehden Nature Reserve; explored the Salib Cave; Off Roaded along the Hmayna Track and Rappelled (abseiled) next to Bkoufa Lake. The students stayed at the Abchi Hotel, Ehden.

The company offered a special package to the School, including the activities, accommodation and food. For further information contact Ehden Adventures at info@ehdenadventures.com

The photograph shows the "brave" teachers having a break!
 

The Horsh Ehden Nature Reserve are upgrading the facilities at the rest area near the spring, Aain Al Na'asa.

There are nine trails in the Reserve, three of which converge towards the spring. Reports say that the new rest area is of a high standard.

The nine trails are listed, on the Full Story page, together with a larger version of the trail map.


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We feature some of the images which were on display at the Ehden 3000 Ski Exposition held by Europtima on Friday, 6th April at the Pierre Farshakh Hall, Municipal Theatre, Zgharta.

Before the presentation by the Directors of Europtima, Gaby and Ghassan Tayoun, visitors were able to view a large images of the propose development. The Director's explained the concept of the ski resort and sought to allays fears that it would have a harmful impact on the environment or impinge on Ehden's existing tourism industry. It was stressed that the development was not in competition with other enterprises in the Ehden; in fact, in their opinion, they said it would help to enable Ehden to offer an all year round tourist season, for the benefit of all the community.

Some 120 visitors attended, including the President of the Zgharta Ehden Municipal Council, Gen Joseph Maarrawi; members of the Council; stakeholders; environmentalists and general members of the public. There was a power-point presentation and afterwards an open discussion.

No time was given when construction would begin, as it seems that the final terms of the agreement to enable commencement have yet to be finalised.

Images of the displays can be seen on the Full Story page.
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Planning a trip to Zgharta Zawie, well here are some road maps just in case you get lost.

They can be seen from the website of Localiban.

Localiban, says it aims, "at initiating and reinforcing partnerships between local groups in Lebanon and those in France in the domains of technology and methodology of local development. More specifically, The objective of 'Localiban' is to create and develop a center of resources for local development and for decentralized cooperation."

Our friends at Ehden Adventures, have launched their website this weekend.

The outdoor adventure company was set up in April 2007 to tap into the outdoor enthusiasts market and to attract tourists to Ehden all year round.

Activities include hiking, rock climbing, abseiling (rappel),caving, snowshoeing, camping, "flying fox" (a cable fixed at both ends running through a pulley with a handle), "via ferrata" (a route between mountains traversed with two ropes to enable walkers and climbers of all climbing abilities to experience new vistas), climbing wall, mountain bikes (vtt), tours to Kornet al Sawda in 4x4 vehicles, offroad tours for all levels of experience.

The local guys who organise the activities are Chafic Ghazale, Jad Hachem and Marc Finianos.

For further information contact Ehden Adventures at info@ehdenadventures.com Their Face Book group is called Ehden Adventures, what else !

A story by a Lebanese Canadian of her return to Lebanon for an vacation after eleven years away, appears today on the Lebanese website, Ya Libnan. As it could be the story of anyone returning to their home village we have reproduced it on the Full Story page.


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The Lebanese Ministry of Tourism, launched 4 DVD's yesterday as part of its campaign to promote tourism. The DVD were directed by Lebanese producer and director, Fouad Khoury.

What will be interesting to know is Ehden included ! Has anyone seen them ? Or are we getting paranoid !

The Lebanese newspapers, The Daily Star, and Aliwaa, reported on the launch, whose articles can be read on the Full Story page.
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A campaign seems to be under way to protest against the alleged omission of Ehden in the Lebanese Ministry of Tourism's guides of Lebanon. Having been interviewed in the Lebanese national newspaper, An Nahar, the President of the Zgharta Ehden Municipal Council, Gen Joseph Maarrawi, has been interviewed on the official Lebanese National Radio on the same subject.

Even on the social networking website, Facebook, a group has been created, " The city of Ehden is not listed in the Official Tourist Map of Lebanon! WHY?" by Antoine Yammine.

The newspaper report of, An Nahar, can be read from here. The Minister of Information, the supervising ministry for the Lebanese National Radio, is Minister Ghazi Aridi. The Minister of Tourism is Minister Joseph Sarkis. Both Ministers are still serving in the Lebanese Cabinet.

As far as we can ascertain there has been no explanation or reply by the Ministry of Tourism to President Maarrawi's assertions . It is not clear if Ehden has been omitted in a series of travel guides or mention is not made in any one particular travel guide of Lebanon.

The Ministry of Tourism's website, www.destinationationlebanon.com has three downloadable brochures: Hidden Lebanon; Nature Reserve - Horsh Ehden; Regional Promenade - North Lebanon - Zgharta, which includes Ehden and the other villages.

We question the effectiveness in the long run of such "megaphone diplomacy," something the President has done before when he criticised alleged cuts in Central Government funding to his Council and Union for last year.

It is our policy to offer the right of reply.

The photograph is from the Galleria taken during the 2005 Winter Ehdeniyat.

The Lebanese website, iloubnan.info featured late last year, the Horsh Ehden, in an article concerning Lebanon's natural environment.

The article is reproduced in the Full Story page.
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The Lebanese TV channel, LBC, featured Kfarsghab in a programme, which can be see from below

The Union of Zgharta Zawie Municipal Councils, have published an tourist guide in Arabic, English and French, which is mentioned in today's issue of the Lebanese national newspaper, An Nahar.

The article can be read from here.

Editor's Note: The Lebanese Government's website, www.destinationlebanon.com has a PDF guide of Zgharta Zawie. Although the guide does not contain photographs, it contains: street maps and places of interest. The guide in PDF form can be downloaded from here.