Zahle

Zahle is a city in Lebanon's Beqaa Governorate, about 55 kilometers east of Beirut, sitting at the junction of Mount Lebanon and the Beqaa Valley at a mean elevation of 1,000 meters and seat of Beqaa Governorate. Founded in the eighteenth century as a small Christian settlement, it grew through trade to reach 5,000 inhabitants by 1820 and became the commercial center for the Beqaa and the main depot for the region's grain harvest. Current population estimates run from 100,000 to 150,000 in the city proper, with about 300,000 across the metropolitan area, and it is one of the largest predominantly Christian towns in Lebanon, with a Melkite Greek Catholic community the largest single religious group. Known as the Bride of the Beqaa and the City of Wine and Poetry, Zahle is noted for riverside dining, arak production and its annual Festival of the Vine each September.