Lebanon is one of the most historically rich places on earth. Praised throughout the pages of the Bible, its mountains shelter monasteries older than many European countries. The slopes of Mount Lebanon preserve a Christianity that survived Islam, Ottoman rule, and civil war alike. The Qadisha Valley, where Maronite monks carved out a life of ascetic endurance, is evidence of a civilisation that learned long ago how to survive as a minority without surrendering itself. But Lebanon is also, unmistakably, a wounded nation lurching from crisis to crisis.