Lebanon is a small country in the Middle East bordering with Syria and Israel and an a proximity to Cyprus. It is the historic home of the Phoenicians, a maritime culture which flourished for more than 2,000 years. It has some interesting tourist attraction such as the town Baalbek, located in Bekaa Valley, east of the Litani River. It is about 200 km east of the capital, Beirut. It is famous for its exquisitely detailed but monumentally scaled temple ruins of the Roman period, when Baalbek, known as Heliopolis was one of the largest sanctuaries in the Empire. Another attraction is Qadisha, one of the deepest and most beautiful valleys in Lebanon. It is a wonderful site, all the accumulated water from the smaller valleys flows into the Qadisha River, which runs through the valley towards Tripoli and the sea. The trees that are among the last survivors of the immense forests that lay across Mount Lebanon in ancient times are known as Cedars of God. Their timber was exploited by the Assyrians, Persians and Babylonians as well as the residents of Canaan-Phoenicia.