The Beqaa Valley, also transliterated as Bekaa, Biqâ, and Becaa and known in classical antiquity as Coele-Syria, is a fertile valley in eastern Lebanon. It is Lebanon's most important farming region. Industry also flourishes in Beqaa, especially that related to agriculture.
The village of Majdal Anjar
Zahlé, the capital of the Beqaa Governorate
The Temple of Bacchus in Baalbek
Municipal garden of Qabb Ilyas
A rain shadow is an area of significantly reduced rainfall behind a mountainous region, on the side facing away from prevailing winds, known as its leeward side.
Effect of a rain shadow
The Tibetan Plateau (center), perhaps the best example of a rain shadow. Rainfalls from the southern South Asian monsoon do not make it far past the Himalayas (seen by the snow line at the bottom), leading to an arid climate on the leeward (north) side of the mountain range and the desertification of the Tarim Basin (top).
The Atlas mountains' (top) rain shadow effect makes the Sahara even drier.
The mountain ranges on the eastern side of Madagascar provide a rain shadow for the country's western portion.