Beirut!

So I just returned from a 4-day excursion to Beirut with a large group of students from the program. We had a "mid-semester break" here that doesn't really seem so much "mid" as "close to the end", but whatever. We were free to do whatever we wanted for those few days, and it was nice to get a break from studying because I am uber-burnt out. We took a plane to get to Beirut, in order to avoid the hassle of Syrian transit visas, and somehow had a nicer plane for our 1-hour flight that we had for our 11-hour (or so) flight from America to Jordan. Go figure.

Beirut is a very beautiful city, but it's really a strange kind of beauty that can only come from the uniquely conflict-ridden past and cultural heritage of Lebanon. The civil war tore Beirut apart from 1975-1990, but it somehow didn't entirely lose its cosmopolitan character after so much destruction. The renovations are stunning, particularly in the downtown area, but for every elegant French-style restoration and charming garden there are also bombed-out buildings and piles of rubble elsewhere. Wherever you go, it is nearly impossible to forget that the beauty of Beirut is built on the scars of the past.

French influence is EVERYWHERE- and nearly everyone in the city speaks at least 3 languages (usually French, Arabic, and English), from what I can tell. I really didn't feel like I was in "The Middle East" the whole time I was there- there were malls, bars, clubs, cafes, and lots of Euro-style all over the place. Also, I got to wear sundresses during the day and fancy club clothing at night, which made me SO happy. I've been dressing like I'm freaking Amish most of the summer because Irbid is so conservative, and I didn't realize how much I missed dressing in fun things. It was amazing how much more I felt like me when I put on my ridiculous pink sunglasses. It brought to my attention the fact that I don't ever really feel pretty in Irbid. Which, of course, made it all the more difficult to return here on Saturday and put on my loose linen pants and elbow-length sleeves. And the kicker is that a lot of the Muslim girls here are actually very fashionable, with jeans and flats and cute (but modest) shirts, but because I'm an American I would likely attract even more unwanted attention if I wore similar clothing in Irbid. Damn the American media for projecting this whorish image of American women!

Okay, rant over. Yes, I got to wear pretty things and feel like pretty Katelyn in Beirut, so that was fabulous. Although the pretty heels I bought for nighttime were actually better to look at than to wear. We did a lot of walking, and my feet were very much unhappy with me. On the plus side, if you have enough drinks then you can't even feel the pain! Hahaha- I'm just kidding, Mom and Dad, I couldn't resist :) But there was a good selection of bars and clubs on the same street as our hotel, so that was convenient. The one bar was owned by a guy from L.A. and he gave us some free shots one night. I enjoy things that are free, especially because Beirut is so expensive. Honestly, though- for a number of reasons that I don't need to detail- the daytime wandering ended up being more fun than the nights out, in my opinion.

Really, in the daytime we didn't do much that was special. The first day we went to the American University in Beirut's "beach" (which was less of a beach and more of a large rocky area), and dd some sunning. I got out of the water after the revelation that it was teeming with jellyfish. I hate jellyfish. But the Mediterranean was pretty to look at. The other days were literally just spent wandering to random places around the city, and I really had a good time with that. I will admit, though, that one of my favorite things that I did in Beirut was something that I could have done anywhere in America: seeing Harry Potter 6!

The last night we were in the city, Anne and I were at a cafe discussing how we had no desire to go "out" that night and were really just wanting a chill activity. I almost did a happy dance when we came back to the hotel and were intercepted by Alice, who invited us to meet up with a couple of the others at the ABC Mall to see Harry Potter. BEST DECISION EVER. I had assumed that I wouldn't be able to see it until I got back to the States (and I still plan on going with you in the States after you finish Book 6, Benjammin'), so it was extremely exciting. And the subtitles were in French AND Arabic!

All in all, it was a good trip, but I didn't really do a lot of touristy things and I will need to get back to Lebanon in the near future. My next destination is Jerusalem from Thursday-Saturday, and I'm looking forward to seeing the Dome of the Rock there especially.

Oh, and pictures can be found here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2617577&id=12458491&l=6ff8863b91