LebanonBlogs we like

  1. Israel at war (2006)

    Blog: World Travel Blog - 30 November 2009

    It all seemed so calm and distant in the woods outside the Kibbutz that none of us could have ever imagine what the months coming ahead would have for us. My routine seemed perfectly normal, I would wake up at 5:50 AM with just enough time to get dressed for my job [...]

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  2. Yann Tiersen!

    Blog: Half - 3 November 2009

    Bah! I love my job!! About three weeks ago, my boss called me to ask if I could conduct a phone interview in French. I said yes, to which she replied, “Wonderful! I just gave Yann Tiersen your cell phone number. He’ll be calling you at 7pm.” Me – In my head: WHAT?!? Yann Tiersen?? The Yann [...]

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  3. Sing-a-longs & Traffic Reports

    Blog: Half - 30 October 2009

    Normally when I take the bus to and from work every day, I bring along my iPod so I can listen to music or BBC Global News podcasts, to distract myself from the 1 hour+ journey. Or, if the mood strikes, I’ll listen to the bus radio, which normally blasts Arabic music the whole way [...]

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  4. Spooky Halloween around the world.

    Blog: another pin on the map - 28 October 2009

    Halloween traditions around the world.

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  5. Channeling Chinatown

    Blog: Half - 25 October 2009

    Okay, someone please explain this to me. Apparently, here in Beirut, nose jobs have become so popular that those who cannot afford them, or don’t even actually need them, can still opt to wear bandages across their nose…to fake a nose job. Yup. The newest trend to hit the Beirut fashion scene is the post-op nose [...]

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  6. NEW New Plan!

    Blog: Half - 23 October 2009

    Okay, so where to begin…Almost exactly 1 year ago the economic crisis stole my life. I was living it up in Madrid with amazing friends, teaching English, tour guiding for Sandeman’s New Madrid and working as the Program’s Coordinator for Club Ivy, helping Spanish students apply to study abroad in English speaking countries. Life was [...]

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  7. The Cedars of Lebanon - Tannourine Cedars Reserve - Video

    Blog: Heather on her travels - 18 October 2009

    If Lebanon is on your travel radar as a place to visit, you may not think of bringing your walking boots. Yet my video about the day I spent hiking in the Tannourine Cedar Forest Reserve will show you that this is one of the highlights of a visit to Lebanon, especially in the spring and early summer when [...]

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  8. Book review & Giveaway of Clean Breaks by Richard Hammond and Jeremy Smith

    Blog: Heather on her travels - 6 October 2009

    If you’ve ever travelled yet felt you didn’t quite get the best out of a place, then Clean Breaks, by Richard Hammond and Jeremy Smith, will open your eyes to a different way to travel. This book’s for anyone who had a packaged holiday experience or spent a long weekend ticking off the ‘must-see’ sights, only to [...]

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  9. Mezze memories in Lebanon

    Blog: Heather on her travels - 30 September 2009

    I love the Mezze style of meal where you can try a little of what you fancy instead of wishing you had ordered your friend’s meal. I like the congeniality of sharing food, passing it around, letting the conversation flow, taking your time over the meal. There’s the smooth hummus paste of chickpeas, garlic and [...]

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  10. A Guide to a Lad’s Weekend in Beirut

    Blog: An Englishman in Dubai - 27 September 2009

    It had been a long hot dusty Ramadan this summer and there was palpable excitement in Dubai as the Eid holiday approached. Nearly everyone I spoke to had some plans for going away or spending it with their families and the mood was really upbeat. Me and some of the lads took advantage of the new [...]

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  11. French Nails…Lebanese style

    Blog: Half - 23 September 2009

    “My new social environment in Beirut demanded that I be more feminine-looking. It demanded that girls look like girls and boys like boys. It demanded that I style my hair weekly at the hairdresser. Adorn my fingernails with bright polish. Speak softly and giggle often. Wear clothes that hugged my body, [...]

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  12. The fading charms of the Palmyra hotel in Baalbek - Lebanon

    Blog: Heather on her travels - 23 September 2009

    A review of the Palymyra Hotel in Baalbek, Lebanon, a charming relic of the past with Persian Carpets and antique furniture, now slightly fraying around the edges.

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  13. Beirut, how I love thee. Let me count the ways…

    Blog: Half - 9 September 2009

    About a week ago, my flatmate Cagil (pronounced ‘Chill’) and I were sitting out on her balcony, drinking wine, smoking cigarettes and listening to Fairuz belt out ‘Le Beirut.’ Complete bliss. As we sat there in our white plastic chairs, our feet propped up on the rusty steel railing, red wine dribbling down our chins [...]

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  14. Broccoli and Beers

    Blog: Half - 28 August 2009

    Today, it was 31 degrees Celsius, 86 Fahrenheit – HOT and HUMID.  But whatever, I’m in a good mood! It’s Friday! My internship with ‘Time Out Beirut’ is going really well and I may have found a new apartment (they’re tearing down our beautiful building to build a parking lot – sucks.). Right now, I’m reading [...]

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  15. I’m baaaack!

    Blog: Half - 15 August 2009

    Ha! I’m alive again my friends! Yesterday was my first Friday night out in 3 weeks! I have beaten the flu, finally eradicated all signs of food poisoning from my system and slept off the insane post-sickness fatigue inspired by both. Now to make up for lost time! Yesterday, I began the night by having a [...]

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  16. The Son of a Duck is a Floater…and other Arab proverbs

    Blog: Half - 14 August 2009

    Today was Omar’s last day in Arabic class. Ya haram! Quelle domage! Yet like me, he has fallen hopelessly in love with Beirut and is planning to come back in a month’s time. But also like me, he’s a free spirit whose plans change on a daily basis. So I’m crossing my fingers that he [...]

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  17. Burqini Fever!

    Blog: Half - 13 August 2009

    In my post on Sour, I included a photo of a young Muslim girl going swimming, covered and veiled – a concept completely foreign and interesting to me.  And you know how sometimes when you learn something new, it somehow seems to pop up everywhere??? So here’s what I’ve found out about Muslim swimwear, which [...]

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  18. Mountain Villages, Castles and Booza in the Shouf

    Blog: Half - 9 August 2009

    Ozge is leaving for Turkey on Tuesday! The beginning of the end. It seems that many of the people I’ve met here over the past couple of weeks are half & half’s like me, or political science students with a particular interest in the Middle East, here doing an internship – regardless, the one thing [...]

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  19. Arabic Lessons & Taxi Rides

    Blog: Half - 6 August 2009

    This morning I woke up at 9am. Shit. Late for class. Did the sniff test to see which of my clothes emitted the least detectable odor. Settled on jeans and a rumpled pink shirt. I need to do laundry… Decided to be an extra five minutes late and stopped at my favorite roadside stand for a [...]

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  20. Fashion Statements and Neon Polish

    Blog: Half - 3 August 2009

    I’m not what you would call a style-savy person. Part of me has always wanted to be one of those chill girls with a bright colored scarf wrapped around my head, baggy cargo pants, patchwork bag slung over my shoulder.   Part of me wants to be the chic girl – like Julie Delpy in Before [...]

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  21. Jbeil (aka Byblos)

    Blog: Half - 1 August 2009

    Yesterday, I was sick in bed all day with the flu. I guess that’s what I get for going on and on about how Friday is my lucky day. I jinxed myself. Damn. Knew it was too good to be true…But, don’t fret! I was feeling a bit more energized today and when Ozge and [...]

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  22. Saturday Guest Post: Café Younes in Beirut

    Blog: Atlas Parasite - 1 August 2009

    Submitted by: Colette Cavanagh Beirut, Lebanon When I’m not in class or at the apartment, I’m usually at cafés here in Beirut, studying and working. Cousin Stephen introduced me to this great place, right around the corner from the apartment called Café Younes, and it’s quickly becoming my regular spot. The coffee is delicious and an iced latte [...]Rating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)

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  23. WELCOME! Dinner at ‘Le Chef’

    Blog: Half - 29 July 2009

    So with Rue Gouraud in my mind, when Ozge invited me out to dinner tonight at the popular restaurant on Gouraud, ‘Le Chef,’ I couldn’t resist. Well, that and I heard that the food was fantastic and I am NEVER one to turn down good food. Charles joined us and as we arrived outside the restaurant, [...]

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  24. Gouraud: The Street and the General

    Blog: Half - 28 July 2009

    If you tell a taxi to take you to the Beirut neighborhood of Gemmazeh, they’ll drop you at the start of the Rue Gouraud – the main bar, restaurant and club packed street running through this noisy neighborhood, which somehow manages to be grungy and upscale chic at the same time. I love it! You [...]

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  25. Beirut #1!!

    Blog: Half - 27 July 2009

    First off, sorry for the break in posting – my laptop died!! So until a new one arrives, I’ll be spending long afternoons at internet cafes around Beirut adding old and new entries. I’m actually at a cafe right now, and my alotted time is about to expire, but quickly, before I go, just wanted [...]

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