Posts Tagged ‘batroun’
The Balaa Sinkhole May 26th, 2011
A short while back I had the chance to visit another of the many natural wonders that Lebanon has to offer: the sinkhole known by various names including the Balaa Sinkhole (Ballou Balaa in Arabic), Baatara Sinkhole, and Three Bridges Chasm (Gouffre des Trois Ponts in French), or even the Batara Gorge Waterfall.
What is it? It is a natural sinkhole plunging 255 metres into the mountainside. It features three natural bridges, rising one above the other over a height of one hundred metres and overhanging the enormous mouth of the chasm. I was lucky enough to visit it during the snow melt, when a 100-metre waterfall drops behind the three bridges and into the sinkhole.
It was first discovered in 1952 and explored in 1962. You can find out more here and here.
That’s a couple down there on the middle bridge:
The snaking path of the river before it drops into the chasm below:
Some mini waterfalls, a little way up the river from the sinkhole:
The long drop:
A view of the three bridges:
Two perspectives from the middle bridge:
Below is a long-exposure shot I took as I was heading out. To give you an idea of the size of the chasm, those little red, white and blue dots to the right of the middle bridge are 3 people.
More coming soon!
Tags: baatara, balaa, balaa pothole, balaa sink hole, balou balaa, balou3 balaa, batroun, Beirut, cave, Gouffre des Trois Ponts, lebanon, mountain, nahr al joz, sinkhole, sport activities, tannourine, Three Bridges Chasm, waterfall
Posted in Travel/Urban | Comments (4)
Girl by the Window July 28th, 2010
I came across this picture in my archives. It was taken late last year in Lebanon when I was exploring abandoned houses in Batroun, Lebanon.
I lit my friend with an SB900 set up on the floor to camera right, and a distance away, with a hint of backlighting from the light bouncing off the cieling and wall beyond the window.
The picture would have perhaps benefited from a little softer lighting, but I still very much enjoyed the play of light.
More coming soon!
Tags: abandoned house, batroun, derelict house, girl, house, lebanon, portrait, ruin, window
Posted in Portraits | Comments (0)
Abandoned House in Baabdat December 6th, 2009
I came across another abandoned house in Lebanon. This time not far from our family house in Baabdat. This one is my mum’s find. She first came across it when on her way to a friend’s house for a visit.
On the day of my departure from Lebanon I felt I needed to get out of the house and do something other than pack, so I took my mum on a short trip to take some shots of the abandoned house.
Here are some of the resulting pictures.
The floor in each of the rooms to the left of the main door above had completely collapsed, leaving only a bare husk of a building. More about this below.
I liked the look and colour of the broken tiles.
I was struck by the rich blue of the door. The fact that the door opened onto a series of floor-less rooms made for an eerie experience.
I wonder how that scarf got there…
Unlike the abandoned house in Batroun (and see also here), this house had very few possessions left over by the previous inhabitants.
That’s not to say there weren’t any possessions at all which were left abandoned.
Here we have a rotting sofa:
Some bottles and containers:
And even a few coats left hanging on the wall behind the door:
Done exploring the inside of the house, I moved again outside to try and find different perspectives.
I liked the different kinds of stone the house was built of. The rich colour of the doors in these old Lebanese houses also called out to me.
Another aspect of old Lebanese houses that I love is the arches.
Not only had the floor in the top level of the house collapsed, but it seems the red-tile roof had collapsed as well.
I’m sure whatever could have been salvaged from it was.
The dead and dried creeping vine only added to the sense of neglect and loss.
This is a view into the lower level of the house, into which the upper floor had caved. The black of the walls suggest there might have been a fire at some point, which may account for some of the damage.
Next up, the Bangalore Wedding pictures you’ve all been waiting for!
Tags: abandoned house, arches, baabdat, batroun, coat, collapse, color, colour, door, lebanon, old house, photo, photography, pic, picture, red tile roof, ruin
Posted in Travel/Urban | Comments (0)
The Farm House November 30th, 2009
On my last trip to Lebanon, a friend gave me the chance to visit a 400-odd year old farm house which is currently being renovated in the hills above Batroun.
It’s a beautiful little structure that’s completely held together at the moment by wood beams and metal bars.
Take a tour below:
It was like walking through a dark metal forest.
The farmhouse is a single-story structure. The roof was accessible via a rickety ladder.
This is the old oven:
I had arrived to the farm land in late afternoon, just before sunset. Serendipitous really, as it allowed me to experiment a little with longer exposures and a flash.
They’re evidently quite serious about the renovation:
Before I leave you, I’d like to share something with you that completely blew me away: an experimental 360-degree panoramic music video. I could watch 360-degree panorama videos all day.
More pictures coming soon!
Tags: 360, 360 video, barrel, bars, batroun, construction, experimental video, farm, farm house, farmhouse, house, lebanon, oven, photo, photography, pic, picture, renovation, sunset, video
Posted in Travel/Urban | Comments (0)
Abandoned House in Batroun – Part II November 2nd, 2009
Carrying on from my previous post, here are some shots of some of the objects I found lying abandoned in the house.
I love the glimpses it affords into the lives of those who used to live in that beautiful house.
Next up, some shots from Bangalore, India – assuming I have the time to do so in the next 2 days!
Meanwhile. check out how incredibly empty the Dubai airport was when I was heading to the plane with my friends:
Tags: abandoned house, batroun, india, lebanese house, lebanon, photo, photography, pic, pics, ruin, traditional house
Posted in Travel/Urban | Comments (1)
Abandoned House in Batroun – Part I October 31st, 2009
So, as promised – Travel pictures from Lebanon and India!
After much thought I decided to start with shots from Lebanon – those of an abandoned house I came upon while wandering around Batroun.
So here goes. 
The wall was such a beautiful blue! And the ceiling! It was made of individual square panels of intricately carved wood. Check it out below!
Seems the house’s previous owner was a pharmacist…
As you can see, the house contained plenty of beautiful abandoned things. Shots of some of those will be coming up very very soon!
Until then, take care!
Tags: abandoned, abandoned house, batroun, house, india, lebanese house, lebanon, old house, photo, photography, pics, ruin, traditional house
Posted in Travel/Urban | Comments (4)
