A group of photographers are being recognized for taking the best photos of the iconic fireworks display in the coastal city of Jounieh, Lebanon.
The fireworks celebrate the Jounieh International Festival, which aims to highlight the Mediterranean coastline.
The festival committee shared photos of the winners on Facebook. The winners are:
1st place: Bachir Mouawad
2nd place: Georges Samaha
3rd place: Georges Hanna
4th place: Carine Assaf
5th place: Jean Daoud
A beautiful timelapse posted on YouTube captured the sun setting from the coastal city of Jounieh, about 20 kilometers north of Beirut.
The camera angle overlooks a part of the Jounieh Bay and Mediterranean Sea from Harissa, and shows the sun slowly disappear behind the clouds.
WATCH: Beautiful timelapse captures sunset in Jounieh
Jounieh is known for its seaside resorts and bustling nightlife.
Once a quiet town, the coastal city has emerged as one of the most popular tourist destinations in Lebanon, according to Lebanon.com.
Many high-rise buildings, hotels and resorts are located in Jounieh, and upscale restaurants and stores are plentiful in shopping districts.
There are plenty of beautiful locations to watch the sunset in Lebanon — and Jounieh certainly ranks high on any list!
(JOUNIEH, LEBANON) — The Jounieh International Festival opened with a large fireworks show on Friday, featuring one of the largest fireworks displays in the Lebanon.
Watch the fireworks show below:
[youtube url=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNaspufLZTw” width=”500″ height=”300″]
View the full program of the Jounieh International Festival below:
[spiderpowa-pdf src=”https://lebaneseexaminer.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/JIF-2014-Program.pdf”]JIF-2014-Program
BEIRUT: The world’s “first floating island,” currently under construction and destined for Jounieh Bay, has been rejected by municipality officials as incompatible with the seaside resort town.
“There is no place for the island in Jounieh,” Mayor Antoine Frem told The Daily Star, adding that the municipality did not have the capacity to accommodate the island’s guests.
Frem said the Municipal Council had decided not to grant permission for the project, which was to launch in Jounieh in summer 2015
“A project of this caliber needs to be constructed in an area that does not have a dense population” Frem said, stressing that the project would require infrastructure and a large number of parking spaces.
The mayor also raised environmental concerns, pointing out that mechanisms for waste and sewage management had yet to be resolved.
The Daou family has been working on the world’s “first floating island” for 15 years. The family formed Beirut International Marine Industry and Commerce in 2003, and the company says the island will be ready in 2015.
Founder and Chairman Abdullah Daou told The Daily Star that the company received legal permission for the project from the municipality when Juan Hbeich was mayor of Jounieh, a year before Frem was elected.
After being elected in 2010, Frem revoked the prior administration’s approval and the file was returned to the Higher Commission for Urban Planning.
According to Daou, the chief of the commission, Elias Tawil, said that approval was revoked due to a decree issued by then-Prime Minister Saad Hariri ordering the cancellation of all construction permits issued before he took office.
“The Jounieh floating island company is not a part of any political conflict in Lebanon, and especially in Jounieh,” Daou said, urging Frem to have a serious look into the issue.
Nevertheless, Daou insisted that he was working in accordance with the law.
“We have legal permission to construct the floating island and we do not work unless [in line] with Lebanese law,” he said.
Daou hailed the impact of the floating island work on Lebanese economic and cultural values, extending an invitation to Frem to be a guest of the project. According to the company, Daou has spent 15 years developing the technology and holds patents in the innovative field.
Based on the Dhow-4 technology, the large structure with a main deck 1 to 2 meters above sea level will contain a sea resort, hotel, gym, nightclub, restaurant, sporting activities and much more, according to the company. The Jounieh Floating Island Resort is to be a five-star hotel with a surface area of 3,400 square meters, including 64 rooms, 80 cabins and a rooftop restaurant.
Source: The Daily Star
(BEIRUT, LEBANON) — The first floating island in the world was designed and is currently being created in Jounieh, Lebanon. Jounieh Floating Island Resort is the first floating island in the world based on the Dhow-4 technology. It is expected to be at sea in summer 2015.
The JFIR will be a five-star resort with a surface area of 3400 sqm, including 64 rooms, 80 cabins, a roof top restaurant, a sea side restaurant, a nightclub, and various sea-sport activities. They currently have 290 engineers, technicians, and administrators staffed on the project.
“I found that its true there are no rules and no theories to build floating islands, so I had to work 15 years to change the rules and that’s it, we have now an advanced engineering of the floating island were you can build resorts, naval basis, villas etc.,” said Dr. Abdullah Daou, the Founder of The Advanced Engineering of the Floating Island.
Watch the video below for more details:
[youtube url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWRSJO45sOA” width=”500″ height=”300″]
BEIRUT: Another season of long-anticipated concerts will kick off this summer, despite the political tension.
Neemat Frem, founder of Phellipolis, which sponsors the Jounieh International Festival, expressed the event organizers’ determination to hold the annual festival despite the fact that the security situation in the country remains uneasy.
The program for this year’s festival was announced at a press conference Tuesday and the line-up promises a few surprises.
“Every year it gets more difficult,” said Joe Beano, head of the festival’s marketing committee. “We have to take risks every time.”
Beano added that it had been more difficult to generate the required funding this year in comparison to previous editions of the festival, but said the support of several local banks and insurance companies had made it possible for the event to go ahead.
As in previous years, the festival will kick off with a fireworks display in Jounieh bay on June 27.
“It will be … synchronized with musical effects,” Beano revealed, adding that it would be “broadcast on several television channels.”
Unlike some other editions of the festival, this year’s line-up includes concerts and events catered to a wide range of musical tastes.
Elias Rahbani will conduct his orchestra on July 2, performing famous hits including “Diala,” “Endless Love” and “Love Words,” among others. A member of the legendary Rahbani family, he has written many songs for diva Fairuz and has also composed music for plays and television programs.
Aficionados of French music will be pleased to know that young French singer Zaz will come to Jounieh on July 3 to regale audiences with her greatest hits. Her talent was recently recognized with an award, presented by French musician Jean-Michel Jarre at the Grand Prix SACEM last November. Born Isabelle Geffroy, Zaz’s rich voice will immerse the audience in her joyful mood through songs including “Je Veux” and “On Ira.”
The concert that seems likely to be the biggest hit with local fans will be Imagine Dragons’ performance on July 7. The Grammy and AMA-winning American alternative rock band rose to fame with tunes such as “Radioactive” and “Demons.” They will be performing for one night only in Lebanon, amid their European tour.
On July 10, the stage of the Fouad Chehab Stadium will be invaded by the singing team behind the French version of “The Voice.”
The finalists of the show will interpret the tunes that made them famous in their third consecutive performance in Lebanon.
As in previous years, the organizers of the festival have also programmed many diverse activities into their festival schedule. Roads will be car-free and parades, carnivals and other events for children are scheduled to take place.
The Jounieh Festival aims to show that, unlike many of Lebanon’s summer festivals, the event is not only about concerts and performances, but also about making audiences discover or re-discover their city through social events.
The Jounieh International Festival runs from June 27 until July 10. For tickets, please call 01-999-666.
Source: The Daily Star
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