Ever since I started writing on the blog, I’ve been criticizing most of the Ministry of Tourism videos and campaigns because they were bad, but things have improved drastically ever since the LiveLoveLebanon campaign was launched and the below 5-minute video is one of the best tourism videos, if not the best, we’ve had in Lebanon in the past 10 years!
Lebanon looks absolutely breathtaking in this unprecedented aerial footage. You will see the Phoenician Tyr port, Saida’s sea castle, the authentic Shouf, the heart of Beirut, the shores of Jbeil and Batroun, Keserwan’s stunning nature, Tripoli, Baalbeck, the majestic Cedars and others in this amazing video.
The whole thing is just perfect and makes you proud to be Lebanese.
Lebanon like you've never seen it before. Unless you're a bird.A breathtaking video by Rise Above Lebanon
Posted by Live Love Lebanon on Thursday, February 4, 2016
Thumbs up to the Ministry of Tourism, the team behind LiveLoveLebanon and RiseAboveLebanon!
nice movie, nice landscapes but the sad reality is that that’s all that’s left!
these same places Byblos, Deir el amar, Baalbeck, Cedars… these few spots that are filmed in every single video about Lebanon!
and if you look at their surroundings it’s a disaster, 80% of the country is a jungle of concrete, power lines, billboards and garbage.
and this movie does not make proud to be Lebanese! it makes me feel sad to see that this is all we have left and it should be a reminder to all of us to move our asses and start doing something about the daily destruction being made in Lebanon.
our coasts are invaded by illegal resorts, our mountains excavated, our cities overcrowded..
Did you see how beautiful Nahr Brahim/Chouen river looks in the video? go have a walk there and see the pile of garbage left by people on the river side…these same people who will share this video on their facebook page!
Well said my friend, unfortunately 🙁
Lea, thank you. Thank you! THANK YOU! That’s exactly what I was thinking about.
I couldn’t agree more. We live in a bubble proud of these few things we still have while our country is in a disastrous state from trash to rotten politicians to unemployment to bad infrastructure, the list goes on… This video makes me more ashamed of being Lebanese than I already am
You hit the nail on the head. My thoughts exactly, but then again, it’s all about how things appear to be in Lebanon 😉
Is there still anything of this left??? Mountains of garbage and toxic wastes… Is the beach truly as clean as it looks?? Is downtown beirut the same as they showed it?? Is this lebanon??? Or is it the lebanon we all want??? Beautiful country but needs work otnof infrastructure and just a brand ne system!! I hope this can be a wake up call and a step into a new system new faces new generation new ideas peace and love and art music festivals passion colors health and green eco friendly and alot more positives to come..
Start with yourselves – stop throwing garbage from your cars.
Should have also included:
– some shots of the cedars
– lavish beach resort parties
– winter sports/activites
– aerial view of some wineries/and related activities
Sad that you felt proud, when the same greeneries they are filming and promoting are currently massive waste dumps! The average citizen doesn’t have access to the landscapes; they are confined to the jammed polluted, overcrowded, archaic cities on the coast with limited transportation and deprived of access to the public sea.
Average citizen has no money to go nightclubbing and drinks with silicon filled chicks and get wasted with the cool kids. Average citizen can’t see the country from above if he’s struggling to keep a roof above his head OR not having enough for dinner for his family.
This is a BSed propaganda, that anyone who sets foot to this place will recognize how utterly he was misled by that commercial.
My friends, who came to visit from abroad, being politically correct, never shared their deception on the first week. They were intrigued with all the contrasts and exoticism this country offered. After a week or so, they were fed-up with the rude people, fake kindness, lawless driving, rip-offs, gold-diggers, shallowness, the overpriced/overrated services and goods, the military checkpoints everywhere they go, the trash sidewalks, the car jams …
When I was living overseas, I’ve always promoted my Lebanon to coworkers and friends. But unfortunately nostalgia can badly twist your feelings, to make you overlook the ills of this country. It made promote falsely what is truly a dumpster country with fucked-up, dangerous, neanderthalian people living in it. To my invitees no more Lebanon a beautiful place to stay, it’s an extreme adventure into rogue country filled with filth, arms and thugs; and the most fascinating part is its people who never woke up yet from the fairy tales of Paris or Swiss of the Mediterranean; imbeciles who are still voting for the same warlords with no ethics or credentials; people without a memory whom its absolutely difficult to make sense of the current events and correct it.
To prospective tourists, don’t visit this grimy place, risks are high, fights can erupt anytime; instead send your money through a relief fund, this way you can finance the upcoming war of shit in this place, grab yourself a beer and watch it unfold on tele instead.
“the rude people, fake kindness, lawless driving, rip-offs, gold-diggers, shallowness, the overpriced/overrated services and goods, the military checkpoints everywhere they go, the trash sidewalks, the car jams”
your views are extreme and unbalanced just as this video is.
Breathtaking indeed. But I am not so sure the timing is appropriate given the circumstances. Today Lebanon is at its dirtiest state ever with the garbage crisis. We say beauty is from within. This breathtaking video says a lot about our treasures but do the people really value those places. Do we really respect our God given nature . Sadly and obviously not. BEFORE sending out the invite with an outstanding outer package one needs to really work on the inside product. It’s core and inner values. It’s forgotten and abused BEirut BEauty. Far from Being PROUD
Totally agree Sandra
100% sandra! J’ai trouvé la video tres mal placee!
Lebanon like never seen before, Bravo my son you are a real Artist
I Love you Christian
I found the father !!
I misspelled mother wrong
Najib, I like you, I like your blog and what you do, but on this one … are you delusional?! Wake up and smell the trash, the thugs and the militias. Ayya tourism hayda? Who in their right mind would do “tourism” in Lebanon?
I am an expat and I eat and breathe Lebanon since the day I left. I have cancelled my planned trip this summer because I don’t feel like being blown up, kidnapped or robbed. I don’t feel like the rude, unwelcoming, aggressive and violent people on the roads. I don’t feel like being smashed by lunatic drivers in every corner in the country. I don’t feel like me and my kids spending 5 days sick in bed (happens EVERY goddamn trip). I don’t feel like the overzealous patriots defending and justifying all of the above and getting offended and taking things personal if an expat god forbid dares make an objective comment. Last but not least I don’t feel like wasting 2 weeks of precious/scarce vacation time on a non-vacation.
I am flying my family from Lebanon to here instead. As simple as that.
Sorry Najib … great initiative, but come back from Lala land. It’s about time we call it like it is, otherwise things will NEVER improve if we all continue to drool and revel in the videos above. Maybe if we all start calling it the shit hole that it is, one day we will get to a country whose everyday reality is this fairy tale in this video.
Regards.
To clarify the full picture … I am a grown man with 3 children and I watched this video with tears … I write out of deep pain and a sad, harsh reality.
Lebanon is over. It’s a lost dream. Enjoy whatever’s left of it, while it lasts.
Ummm let’s not get too emotional. Lebanon is an average country at best, with a few nice places scattered here and there. Beirut is a concrete monstrosity that’s far from being Paris of the East.
That’s what they should put in the MEA planes, and not their old-fashioned commercial ad nobody cares about, with that lame plastic surgeon.
Devastated by all the comments above. This is a beautiful video that actually shows what Lebanon’s all about . Don’t let whatever they said bring you down because people like that represent all the lost hope in this country, keep working and moving forward. Beirut will always be the Paris of the middle east and Lebanon was and always will be resilient to anyone who tries or has given up on it.
Cedars, Tripoli, wineries, potteries……
If ya’ll feel that bad, isn’t it time to try and change something? Lebanese people are either too optimistic or too pessimistic. And that’s just bad. I love the video. I hope people who didn’t wake up yet do soon.
This is probably one of the best tourism videos about Lebanon i have ever seen.
The funny part is that while watching it i wasnt even sure if this was really my country: the places filmed can only be visited by few of us knowing that the traffic jams are devastating, the transportation costs are pricey and of course our low incomes do not allow us to go paragliding, kitesurfing, off-roading or even swimming in these spots filmed.
And seriously guys, where did you manage to film trees and green spaces?! Tell me!
So yes, this must be quiet appealing for strangers who havent visited my home-country!
As a American with Lebanese roots, I Loved the video. Could have used some winter sport activities and some fine dining, night life pics,shopping pics and also pics of Jeitta. I wasn’t expecting the negative backlash, however,
At the same time, I can understand why people are so critical.
The positive images are giving outsiders a distorted picture of the “other” Lebanon they may discover upon their arrival.
Lebanon, does feel like a lost dream – how can a country recover from one of the worst civil wars we’ve seen in modern times. Today’s Lebanon is a direct effect of the war and destruction and a crippled society.
That’s a load of BS. It’s been 26 years since the civil war ended. It should no longer be used as an excuse.
The civil war never ended in peace, warlords/thugs and terrorist still run the government/country and Lebanon has never rebounded from the civil unrest as it continues to ignite at any given moment. The best days of Lebanon are pre-civil war and unfortunately, Lebanon will never see such days again.
Good film but not enough
This video is like someone trying to sell his horrible house ! He takes pictures of the places that worth looking at …hoping some half blind buyer will come and maybe take a shot on the house for a reason or another !
But unfortunately a buyer comes down to see the house. ..and get shocked how disgusting and smelly it is…and run back home to tell all his friends about how bad his experience was !
So are there beautiful spots in Lebanon? Definitely there is and they are off the charts !
But tourists pay to have a full experience, from the day they enter the country till they leave !
Here where all the horror starts !
Indeed, the best way to see Lebanon is from above;
ideally from the windows of a plane, on a one-way flight to somewhere far away.
Unfortunaltely this video is till missing all the winter scenery!!!!
Inno bas aam to2rot haki
Hayda proud of it– for what – in what he resemble us as Lebanese in the Indian music or what exactly —
Plastic generation
How old are you ?
I am of Lebanese descent and live in Australia, although I was born in New Zealand. I have travelled the world, and returned three times to Lebanon. I love Lebanon, and have found people who have left Lebanon want to return, and people who live in Lebanon want to leave. Lebanon is the nicest country in the world, and all Lebanese should be enhancing and improving this beautiful Country instead of complaining about it. If you don’t like living there then leave !!! ..But remember, you don’t know what treasure you have got until you have lost it.
Thank you wendy for your heart warming Words ! I can’t agree more .. God bless you and bless our beloved Country.
100%
I dislike that video for several reasons:
– It shows a Lebanon that no one will ever see. No one has wings to fly. And the places that were filmed are beautiful enough from the ground, no need to rise in the air. The images are kitch, do not evoke anything else than “splendour”, “pride”, “wow”… Whereas many of those places actually evoque deeper and much more complex feelings.
– On the contrary, it doesn’t show the Lebanon that no ones sees but that people could see. And NO, certainly NO, what is shown in the video is not “all that we have left”. Because it hides from view huges spans of the territory: The Bekaa (or barely), Hermel, Akkar, the Chouf, Denniyyeh,Tripoli, the South, the Jabal el-Cheikh area, the Anti-Lebanon mountains, the Litani valley, the Assi valley, Laqlouq, Tannourine, the Bisri valley, Jezzine, Sannine, etc. etc. etc. Actually, what I consider as the most incredible areas of Lebanon are missing in favor of “lots of greens, lots of sea, lots of sunset and lots of funfun”.
On the other hand, I do no share at all the pessimism and insults some have expressed in this thread. Lebanon is actually much more preserved than one would think. Most people live in parts of the land which have been extremly degraded. Somehow fortunately, they have concentrated in a relatively limited area, leaving much of the territory quite intact. Just hover above Lebanon on Google Earth (it’s free…) and you will realize that. So, yes, most people do live in concrete jungles and in garbage for the past 6 months, in places where nature seems lightyears away. But in reality, you don’t need much time to get to some of the most amazing places you can ever go to (none of which are in this video).
I was fortunate enough to have roadtripped the entire country from North to South and from East to West. And I can only encourage people to do the same. Get out of your concrete bubble! And go see the wealth Lebanon still has. Because if no one looks at it, then it will be much easier for ill-intentionned people to destroy it. Away from the public eye, the corrupt people that rule us can do whatever they want without anyone noticing. So, again, take your car and travel all over the country! Only then will you realise there is still much to love, care about and be amazed at in Lebanon.
Mabrouk we have a video, we still need a home.
Mnel ekher, sha3eb shater yi ne2 w bas. Those living abroad and spitting on Lebanon, stay where you are, we don’t need you here. The video is awesome, I have visited most of the places in the video myself, and most of them are better in real life than in the video. Lebnen janneh, with its problems bas janneh.
Also, we’ve always had kick ass tourism videos, this one is no different.
Not sure what I am supposed to be proud of.
Lebanon is only a tiny part of this world. The world is full of violence, corruption, inequality, trash and rude people. On the other hand, the world is full of beauty and kindness. Surprisingly, I found it also here! It is up to us to to make the difference wherever we live. It is up to us to make the best of where we are. To appreciate the good and strive to change what is bad in our own ways. No place is perfect! But be it in Lebanon or elsewhere I chose to hold on to what’s good!
I see a beautiful film, factual and real
I see great skill in photography
I see the wonders of the creation
I see the greatness of the creator
When God was reproached by the surrounding countries, that it’s not fair to put so much beauty in just one country.”, God Said, “But I also put in it the Lebanese to live in [and destroy] it !!!!!
This things makes me nowhere near proud. It’s all about showing just the right things to create an illusion.
It just continues that old trend of building and promoting things just for the image, and walling off and/or ignoring the rest of the country which constitutes the reality of most Lebanese.
This is exactly why I left Lebanon. Downtown feels like a theme park. The ruins and all that all look very nice but all the imperfections seems to be gone and the stench of urine surely does not permeate through my screen.
This is the same thing as ever, promoting a hollow image (well isn’t that what ads are about anyway) and taking advantage of people’s gullibility. Only this time they didn’t do anything stupid (like sexist stuff, etc.).
All those negative comments about “not being proud” ,”step back to reality” “ugliest place on earth” “don’t go there” and the disgrace that radiates from your words makes me feel sad and miserable because as Lebanese people we have failed to look at the other side of Lebanon, we have failed to be a part of the solution, we have failed to protect our holy land, our exquisite scenery, our captivating natural reserves. Yes, the garbage crisis really was a mess but at least we’re trying to solve it and just put in mind it is our fault that the garbage reached our precious rivers and seas. If we have tried our best during the crisis to look at the possibilities to minimize the damage then this wouldn’t have cost us that much hate. You know when a farmer wants to look out on the disease they look at the roots and not the shoots, so lets look at the roots of the problem ; we are the roots. So if take a new approach, and initiate a new life , then we would be able to restore Lebanon. Yes, its sad that this is whats left, but lets not disregard it as we count our country’s flaws, lets take care of it and lets encourage tourism so we move ahead. In my eyes, Lebanon is and always will be he most beautiful country on this earth; and it was my choice to look at it from a different lens.