Lebanese surfers catch waves
A small surfer community south of Beirut, Lebanon, not only has dreams of seeing Lebanon represented in international competition, but is also interested in preserving the environment.
JIYEH, Lebanon — Along the Mediterranean coastline south of Beirut, in the small farming village of Jiyeh, a group of surfers are taking a break from a life that in their country tends to revolve around politics tied to religion and a region at war.
Ali Elamin, 31, founder and owner of the surfing school Surf Lebanon, is a Lebanese-American who mostly grew up in California. In 2011, he returned to the place of his Middle Eastern roots and a year later jump-started the surfing community.
