Beirut (the city, not the drinking game)

Yes, I went to the actual city of Beirut. And no, I didn't play Beirut (otherwise known as beer pong) in Beirut. Enough said.

Beirut was definitely a worthwhile trip. It was refreshing to get out of Dubai, which is a place quite at odds with itself (shiny buildings vs. dust and sand everywhere; oppressive heat vs. hypothermia-inducing air conditioning; westerners wearing minimal clothing vs. Arabs covered head to toe--you get the idea).

Beirut smells like gasoline, and dust, and the city, with a hint of salt from the ocean, which frames its western and northern borders. It's got gorgeous buildings full of classic french architecture that are crumbling, or riddled with bullet holes. It's also got dull 70s-style cement block type buildings that look as if they were built in a hurry to withstand the turmoil that has transpired there.

Meanwhile, the American University of Beirut campus is gorgeous, full of cyprus and palm trees, right on the water. Below is a picture of their graduation ceremony set-up which was happening this past weekend.


The people were vibrant--happy to be back in their home country after a recent skirmish that shut down Beirut's airport and made people retreat into their homes and away from Lebanon--nothing new in the last few years. There are 10 million people living outside of Lebanon and only 4 million living inside, but people have been flooding back into the country for their summer holidays and to see their family members who have stayed.

There is a heavy french influence--gorgeous architecture, good food, sophisticated and well-dressed Lebanese people. A large percentage of the country is French-educated and Christian. It was amazing to see of tons of churches and mosques, even on the same block sometimes.

Of course, there were reminders of the latent tension--tanks in the streets anyone?:


But right down the street was this main square, with gorgeous cafés and great people watching:


But, bullet holes and partially abandoned buildings are reminders of what has happened in Beirut in recent times:


But with sights like this, it evens out really quickly:

What once was?

So, I was having a conversation with a fellow New yorker the other day, who also lives in Dubai, about how the UAE is only 30-something years old (since their independence from Britain) and Dubai as it is thought of now is really only around 15 years old, so basically, a lot of the original culture is all but lost, and frankly, most of the Emiratis don't like foreigners.

Case in point, an Emirati woman who sits next to me in the office. She dislikes me to the point where, at first, she just didn't acknowledge my existence. Now, it's graduated to her specifically saying hello to the girl who sits on the other side of me when she walks in, but not to me. And she only speaks Arabic. Loudly. Across my desk. All the time.

When I'm walking in the mall, it's not like in New York where people have mastered the twists and turns to avoid heavily bumping into people. Emiratis don't get out of the way. You are expected to avoid hitting them let alone touch their perfectly ironed abayas and dishdashas. Also, they cut you off while driving like it's going out style. But you're expected to swoop and swerve to accommodate them because after all, they were here first. Sidenote, I'm extremely glad I'm not Indian or African or any other race that Arabs deem below them, because as annoyed and disrespected as I feel sometimes, the way that those from Africa, India, and South Asia are treated would make your jaw drop.

Basically, my work nightmare is an example of a lot but not ALL Emiratis, according to some of my other Arab friends. They just don't really like all the hoopla and the immigration and the focus on all this crazy stuff that's going on here (individually rotating building floors?).

I snapped the photo below driving through the Jumeirah neighborhood, which was one of the first neighborhoods in which expats lived when Dubai was first starting to expand across the desert. This is a gorgeous mosque, and one of hundreds in the Jumeirah neighborhood.

If you are not Muslim, you cannot enter a mosque. However, there is one mosque, called Jumeirah Mosque, that Sheikh Mohammed, the guy who runs Dubai, decided to build so that other cultures and religions could enter to try to better understand the Islamic faith. This is one of the few construction projects here that I think of as useful, smart, and strategic.

Mission Accomplished

The glory that is high speed internet has graced my apartment building, FINALLY, and I sat in the internet office for an hour after work one day to get it connected.

I have to admit, not having the luxury of internet at my disposal at home was so painful, as many of you from my constant whining about it.

Well, whining is over, and posts will again resume now that my crankiness has subsided with this new development.

To represent this new era, below are pictures of the Dubai Sunrise and Sunset, from my balcony and at the beach--on the same day.

Sunrise over Dubai Free Zone (approx. 6:30 am):

Sunset, Jumeirah Beach (approx. 7:00pm)