A Real Human Being & A Real Hero

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Twin suicide attacks in Borj al Brajne claimed the lives of 44 people and injured more than 200, but in the aftermath of the tragedy one man has been credited with helping to save the lives of hundreds after he lost his own life tackling one of the bombers who was preparing to blow themselves up in the crowd. As crowds began to gather outside the mosque targeted by a suicide bomber, Adel Termos, a 32-year-old car mechanic and father of two, spotted a second bomber approaching and threw himself at him. The intervention forced the bomber to detonate his suicide vest and thus saving hundreds of lives. Termos, however, died in the blast.

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Marhaba Watan

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The sea to the left, the open sky above, and the exposed land ahead of us, we arrive to what is by far my favorite checkpoint in Lebanon. Just before you arrive to Batroun, stands a small checkpoint by the sea. Settled there is always a soldier dressed in his green army uniform. As we slow down and reach him, I open the window to the car and both my eldest son and I are waiting in anticipation  to say the 2 words that not only are quintessentially Lebanese, but carry so much love in them. As we stand to a halt, looking at him waiting for his nod of the head signaling us to carry on, we look at him and say “marhaba watan” (hello country).

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For the Love of Honey

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L’Atelier du Miel, located in Tabaris – Achrafieh, is solely dedicated to Lebanese honey and honey products. With their common passion for nature, craftsmanship and good taste, they produce pure honey with only natural methods. In its boutique, they share their passion for beekeeping by offering more than 30 different types of honey produced in Lebanon as well as a variety of honey-based products.

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Old Men and the Sea

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As the light starts to fill the sky and the warmth of the sun spreads on the Mediterranean Sea, a flicker of human shapes spread along the Cornish from a distance. Old men and some young ones too scatter along our beloved Cornish, one of the last democratic public spaces in Beirut, holding their fishing rods and their wicker baskets. There is nothing I love more in the morning than that little picturesque strip that has become a landmark of Beirut and its mix of people.

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When in Doubt, Sing

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Lebanese singer Samira Tawfik, original name Samira Ghastin Karimona, was born in 1937 and began her career singing in major theatre productions in Beirut at the age of 13. She worked in Jordanian radio in the 1960s, distinguishing herself from her peers by singing Bedouin songs, a style that she became known for throughout her career. Samira was introduced to the Egyptian musician Tawfiq Bayoumi who gave her stage name “Tawfiq” (Success) when he told her al-Tawfiq Min Allah (success will come with the blessing of God). She also starred in several films during the sixties and seventies. Her songs are still repeated and sang by the public until today, despite her absence from the artistic scene.

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The Eternal Sisters

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The Sisters or The Sisters Olive Trees of Noah are tucked away in the sleepy village of Bechealeh, in the North of Lebanon. They are a grove of sixteen olive trees, the oldest olive trees in the world, that have witnessed 5000 years of political unrest, plagues, diseases, varying climatic conditions and changing civilizations. The Sisters’ are said to be from an undocumented olive tree variety, an ancestor of the Balasi Ayrouni. They remain one of the great unresolved and virtually unexplored pre-Biblical mysteries; common folklore and a few Biblical Scholars believe that these are the trees from which the dove took the branch back to Noah when the deluge subsided.

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The Tanjara

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Because nothing says I love you like a warm wrapped tanjara straight from your mom’s stove, this post is dedicated to all the loving mothers in Lebanon and there are plenty of them out there. A Lebanese mom’s biggest fear is that you or your family might die of starvation. She will do absolutely everything to make sure that you and your family are well fed. Continue reading →