Located about 40 kilometres ( 25 mi ) south of Beirut and 2 kilometres ( 1 @.@ 2 mi ) northeast of Sidon , the Eshmun Temple sit on the southern bank of the modern Awali river , previously referred to as Bostrenos or Asclepius fluvius in ancient text . Citrus groves , known as Bustan el @-@ Sheikh ( Arabic : بستان الشيخ , the grove of the Sheikh ) , occupy the ancient " sacred forests " of Asclepius and are a favorite summer picnic location for locals .