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On Saturday October 28, 2017, the Social Committee of the Romaïan Cultural Society organized its second trip for the year 2017, and its destination was the Akkar region, where it toured the towns of Menjez, Shadra, and Qobayat. The group visited prominent historical, religious, and cultural sites. The delegation, consisting of about eighty people, left the Achrafié area in Beirut in two modern, air-conditioned Pullman buses, and was accompanied by the President of the Association Dr. Negib Geahchan, the Chairman of the Social Committee Mr. Nicolas Mokbel, and members of the administrative committee, in addition to Reverend Archimandrite Seraphim (Bardawil) and Reverend Father Eid (Habib). The visiting group stopped in Madfoun Bridge area at the Bread House to have breakfast, then continued their journey directly to the town of Menjez.
The town of Menjez, in Akkar, was the first stage of the journey. Menjez is located near the Syrian border, on the bank of the River Kebir Jenubi. It contains ancient ruins and the Monastery of Our Lady of the Castle. The latter was built by Jesuits from black basalt stones and is today in the custody of the Maronite Church. The monastery overlooks the Kebir Jenubi River and the Syrian city of Tal Kalakh, and is surrounded by beautiful gardens and a small forest whose trees bear the names of their donors.
The group then moved to the town of Shadra, which is located near Wadi Khaled and is inhabited by a Romaïan majority. There are several churches in Shadra, including the Church of Notre Dame, the Church of the Prophet Elias, and the Church of the Holy Cross. Saint Elias Church is considered the newest and largest of these churches, disposing of a large square to receive visitors. After visiting Saint Elias, the delegation moved to the shrine of Saint James, Brother of the Lord, near the town of Shadra, where the monk Joseph resides and is involved in building a new monastery that includes a spacious church under construction.
The third phase of the trip was devoted to the town of Qobayat, which is inhabited by a Maronite majority and includes many urban, cultural and religious landmarks. The visit headed first to the famous Monastery of the Carmelite Fathers which houses, next to it, the Museum of Birds and Butterflies. Visitors spent a long time wandering in the museum, where they discovered many stuffed birds and animals collected from various regions of Lebanon, in addition to large collections of butterflies of various types and colors. After the museum, the delegation moved to the Church of Notre Dame el Ghassalé, which bears this old name because, in the past, the women of the town would gather on Saturdays at the waterwheel that crosses near the shrine to wash their clothes, so the shrine bore the name of Our Lady of the Washers for this reason. The modern church was built near this shrine and this waterwheel.
The trip ended, in its fourth phase, with a visit to the Monastery of Mar Shallita, which is located next to the town of Qobayat, in the archaeological area of Halusban. This monastery is surrounded by the famous Qobayat forests and the Ain el Sitt spring. The latter irrigates the orchards of this fertile area. The monastery was recently built over the ruins of an ancient Roman temple, whose ancient walls and large stones are still standing today. Mrs. Loris Kodeih sought to build this monastery in fulfillment of a vow she made to herself. Mrs Kodeih received our delegation and explained to its members, in detail, the history of erecting the monastery and the church.
At the end, the delegation moved to Diwan Al-Wadi Restaurant, also located in the Halusban area, where they took their lunch, which was, as planned by the Social Committee, highly delicious. Through their return to Beirut, all the participants expressed their appreciation of the organization and plan of the trip, hoping that the Social Committee would organize three similar trips annually, including, if possible, a trip outside Lebanon lasting two days or more.