Picnic on the Beach in Sour

Beaches of Sour. Behind that hill is Israel

It’s been a busy weekend. On Saturday I drove 80 kilometers up north, Sunday took me 90 kilometers down south, to Tyre (Sour). To the Deep South, you could almost say, because some 10 kilometers further, and you’re in Israel.



Sour in the background. What's galloping in our direction?

Even though it’s not that far really, getting there is really a feat. When going up north - although all of it high way - it’s the urban area of north Beirut and Jounieh that slows traffic down. But when going down south, there’s only bits and pieces of a highway. The highway sort of stops halfway. First in Saida, then it picks up again after town, and suddenly halfway between Saida and Sour, the highway is closed off. It seems a guy with a plantation does not like the idea of the highway continuing through his land, but I heard that like sixth-hand, so I don’t know if that’s true. And in Saida you have to swirl around some 99 roundabouts.

It's a horse! And a dog running after it. Wait! That's one of ours!

But it’s worth it. The beaches of Sour are wide and long and clean and public and empty. Most beaches in Lebanon posses some of these characteristics, but never all five at the same time. I’m not quite sure why there is no garbage. I think the sea current dumps it on land somewhere else. Probably Beirut. Or maybe the garbage landfill is not on the seaside, unlike the ones in Beirut and Sidon. What on earth are you thinking when you decide to make a garbage dump on the seaside? In Tripoli they’ve got quite a hand of it too. But in Sour, clean beaches. At least the part on which we had our picnic.

No picnic is complete with the strawberry tarts and chocolate eclairs of Paul's.

The beaches of Tyre are located on the south side of the city. The city has created the Tyre Beach Nature Reserve, an 8 square kilometer coastline protection zone. Halfway a Palestinian camp borders on the Mediterranean Sea. The northern portion of the reserve is open to the public for swimming. It seems these beaches are not only unique because they are so wide, but also because there are freshwater springs on the beaches (or right near it), which were used in ancient times as a water source.

There's that horse again. Oh no, it's a different one.

A friend brought a particular ferocious dog. So ferocious in fact that – whenever we organize picnics – other friends want to know in advance whether ‘she is taking that dog with her’. I think sometimes they organize picnics in secret, to make sure she doesn’t show up with that dog. Hahaha, that’s funny. Are you reading this, A? But then again, I cannot say anything, because I have dogs too, which I drag to every picnic. Now that the old bearded collie has gone blind and deaf, he doesn’t like to go outdoors very much anymore, and I am just stuck with that mutt I found on the road some years ago.



Another 'three-some' this time on a bike.



But on the beaches of Sour, nobody cares, because they come with their own dogs, and horses, and motorcycles and what not. A lovely day, and everyone got severely burnt, because after all, it isn’t summer yet, so nobody thought to bring the sunscreen.



Water was a little 'fresh', shall we say? Only the kids were willing to swim.



And now I need to recover from the weekend. Too bad I’ve got to show up for work.