DESCRIPTION OF THE SECTIONToday we went through the World Heritage listed Kadisha (saint/holy) valley, home to the Lebanese Maranite Order, a Xian sect who had retreated there after persecution in the 17th century. The valley is famous for its monasteries and hermitages. We also got a chance to see many terraces, both abandoned and still being used for agriculture. It's amazing seeing a steep mountain face one might only expect to find goats climbing on with ...

Today, the first day, was supposed to be the easiest, shortest on the walk but we ended up walking twice as far. This I make no complaints about because we went around Ehden Nature Reserve, the first of its kind in Lebanon. One of the group members helped to set it up and he is from Ehden so it was a pleasure to be guided by a local. He was obviously very passionate and knowledgable about the reserve and took us on a route that he learnt when he was 12 years old....

The Lebanon Mountain Trail is a string of calm rural villages busy with orchards, sweeping valleys, a sprinkle of shotgun shells, the occasional warble of Muslim prayer and the full set of Christian icons. If you have the knees and the boots for it, 440km of trail wiggles from the top to the bottom of this small but intricately rendered country. The following entries are a brief summary of the highlights of Sections 6 through 11 of the LMT. I did these over a six...

I was told this piece should be reworked after presenting it at the writing club. If I get time, I will use this for guidance.I have an uncle who is a glass artist. When I was a kid, I never really had much appreciation for his work but I used to love walking into his studio. This is not like any other studio I have seen. It had what I can only describe as a glass studio smell. Slightly acrid. But clean. The place always had a sense of calm. Three or four room...

I have been having some thoughts about aid work last week. I realised a couple of days ago that my main beef with it is it sometimes doesn't preserve existing human agency in recipients, or encourage that to thrive when there isn't enough of it displayed by aid recipients. Human agency: Human agency is the ability of people to control their own lives. Everyone has the capacity to exert control over the quality and nature of their own lives. It's my ...