Blogs from Beirut, Lebanon, Middle East - page 7

Beirut, the Paris of the Middle East, as it has been previously called seems to be reclaiming the title. The New York Times has ranked it #1 on its list of 44 places to visit in 2009 . What is it that makes this a must-see place? People walk around the streets with a bandage on their nose and bruised eyes as if it were trendy. Move over L.A.! Beirut is the new Silicon Valley of the World. You need one nanny for each child you have. The nanny usually wears a "nanny outfit." Also, you can be spotted in public without your nanny taking care of your child! Who will feed, carry, change the diapers of the baby?! The nanny only hands over the baby so that you or your girlfriend(s) get several photo opps. ... read more

Dix jours en famille De beaux cadeaux du ciel se préparent d'eux mêmes bien avant qu'on s'en préoccupe...Flash Back Nous sommes le 5 juillet, jour du départ, (il pleut des cordes), c'est un dimanche, nous sortons de la messe quand nous découvrons que St Nizier, notre parroisse lyonnaise, est jumelée avec l'église maronite St Elias dans la banlieue de Beirut. Le Liban nous parait bien loin, toute une mer nous en sépare! Nous décidons pourtant de laiser un message aux réponsables de cette association inter-paroissiale. Le coup de fil est vite passé, nous l'oublions sans nous douter que ce jumelage allait être pour nous l'occasion de d'une plongée dans la vie quotidienne d'une famille libannaise eu coeur plus large et plus profond que la mer méditerranée ! La famille Thomé nous reçoit donc, un peu l'improviste, ... read more

Boarding the plane to Beirut already gave me a glimpse of what the city would be like - fashionable people, young Lebanese children speaking in English or French, instead of Arabic. Women were dressed in sleeveless tops and skirts above the knee - attire that would be frowned upon in Cairo and/or would attract some unwanted attention. The fight to Beirut is short, only taking one hour. The city looks gorgeous when flying in because it is located on the Mediterranean Sea and the mountains are in the backdrop of the city’s skyline. Upon arrival, I was greeted by Hadi, whom I meet while he was visiting Cairo and a soon-to-be graduate of the American University of Beirut. Stepping out of the air conditioned airport I was immediately hit with Beirut’s humidity - it is definitely ... read more

I came alone in Beirut for work, taking a night flight 1:00 am from wonderfull Athens airport, runway full of green, red and yellow lights ar night. I was very anxious to check that Middle east AIR , and landscape was as what I had seen on TV for Beirut. But slightly, when in centre of city, I was thinking I was in any European city centre, but more hardcore on stone and modern constructions. Construction is a GREAT business here, since war demolitions are being covered soon by great tall modern buildings of wealth. Nice in photos, heartless as a feeling of total stone. What isolated me, was the fact of armied men in corners of the centre of the city. Military nation I said, but it serves some purpose, and probably is for good. ... read more

On our first full day in Beirut, Ryan woke up earlier than me (for seriously the first time that either of us can remember since we met over 5 years ago). He headed out to find an internet cafe but it was only 7:30am so the only thing open was Starbucks. He checked in with work and did some quick coding and then I met him about an hour later. We headed up next to the university for breakfast and had some wonderful scrambled egg thing with lamb in it, and some kind of grilled cheese thing (not a sandwich, grilled cheese fans, just the cheese). I am seriously loving the food here - it's all lamb and olive oil and cheese and yogurt and lots of vegetables and good bread. We walked around a bit ... read more