So it's been a few days. Here's what I have been up to: Saturday I walked down the mountain a. to see if I could and b. to see if I could find my way to Beirut. I walked down and it took me about half an hour and along the way was some pretty cool stuff, like doll that looks like Santa dressed as a Middle Easterner that just stands there and dances on the side of the road. I got to the bottom to what I thought was the highway, where I could catch a bus to Beirut, but I chickened out. I wasn't sure if it was the right place so I just took a rest and then got a cab back up to the University. So in Beirut there are taxis and taxi service. Taxis are taxis and they are expensive. Taxi Service is a shared taxi that goes along a route like a bus. However, unlike Rabat, which also had this, there is no way to tell which is which. In Rabat old white Mercedes are shared taxis and every other cab is just a taxi. Here the taxis and buses all have red license plates but the taxis are old Mercedes, new Mercedes, vans, Renaults, anything. And... taxis and buses here drive by and just honk. So you hear them honk and if you want to get it you just wave and they will stop and wait. Anyways, I asked if it was a shared taxi and he said, "What ever you like" and I said "ok". And he said "Where are you going?" "NDU" I said, then again I said "Is this taxi service?" "How ever you like." So I got in and said "How much?" "As you like." Which isn't really that helpful to hear. I pulled out 1000 L.L. and he said it's 2000 L.L. (which is like $1.33). That's how much a shared taxi is, he said. Which is true. But I don't know why he didn't just say that to begin with! I have taken taxis in a lot of places and I will tell you, I hate it when they don't have meters. I really don't like haggling with taxi drivers. I much prefer buses. It is always a set price and no one tries to rip you off.
Nothing else really that interesting happened Saturday. I finished a book I think, though. I've been reading a lot. Mostly detective novels. I finished Knots and Crosses. The first Inspector Rebus novel. Oh, I also got a SIM card for my cell phone Saturday, so if anyone wants to call that for any reason just let me know and I can send you the number.
Since it was a false start on Saturday, I decided I would try and go to Beirut again yesterday. This time I asked the security guard at the campus gate, who by the way, said he lived in St. Paul for a while and spoke urban slang English perfectly. He also said his name was Tony. So, I don't know, I'll probably talk to him again when I see him. He told me basically the same thing as everyone else so I decided I would walk down again and see if I ended up in the right place. It turned out that on Saturday I had been in the right spot! I had to walk down the on ramp to the highway, I followed some other guys, and there was a bus at the bottom going to Beirut. I got to Beirut and just wandered around and ended up at Martyr's Square, which has a big mosque and is one of the spots to see. Unfortunately everything was closed because it was Sunday, at least in the predominately Christian sections, which is where I mostly was I think. Just like the rest of the country Beirut itself has areas that are Christian, or Shia, or Sunni... etc. The Shiite area is in south Beirut and at some point I think I will try and check it out, since I was told it was ok. I would actually like to see some Hezbollah flags. Don't worry, though, I'll just check it out in broad daylight and quick. But really though, it was interesting in Beirut because unlike some other cities, Cairo, Rabat, Fez, no one bothered me. No one tried to get me to buy anything or tried to give me a tour expecting money. Nothing. I must either a. not stick out quite as much here because it's so cosmopolitan or b. the culture is different in that way. I liked it. One guy did say I think "Parlez vous francais?" But I wasn't sure. I looked at him like I didn't hear but he just went back to waiting for the bus. Oh well. There are a lot of South Asians in Lebanon I guess, so I saw a lot of people who could be Sri Lankan or Indian or Pakistani. I was told there is a sizable Sri Lankan community. Anyways, I walked around a lot and walked through an area that was definitely Christian and had at least one Armenian church. I found my way back to the bus and made it back to NDU without a problem. When I got back I had my first Shawarma of the summer. Let me tell you, it was so good. Pickles, chicken, french fries, tahina sauce, and salad in a pita. Perfection.
Then today I had work again. I did research again all day today. Reading articles and pulling out the relevant information. Tomorrow we are going to take a look at it and hopefully do some other stuff. It is good experience and its way better than making copies and stuff because I am actually working on something. But, hopefully I will have a varied routine. I also need to figure out where/when I'll be doing Arabic while I'm here.
Finally some other interesting things:
1. I learned that maids are not aloud to go to the beach. Crazy right? Neither are Syrians I guess. Why? I don't really know. Racism?
2. There is no absentee voting. Because most of the Lebanese living outside of Lebanon are Christian, so it would upset the delicate sectarian balance the country has after the civil war.
3. Along with Brazilian flags there are German flags, everywhere. Again, I don't know why. World Cup?
Alright, that's it for now.
Jake.
Nothing else really that interesting happened Saturday. I finished a book I think, though. I've been reading a lot. Mostly detective novels. I finished Knots and Crosses. The first Inspector Rebus novel. Oh, I also got a SIM card for my cell phone Saturday, so if anyone wants to call that for any reason just let me know and I can send you the number.
Since it was a false start on Saturday, I decided I would try and go to Beirut again yesterday. This time I asked the security guard at the campus gate, who by the way, said he lived in St. Paul for a while and spoke urban slang English perfectly. He also said his name was Tony. So, I don't know, I'll probably talk to him again when I see him. He told me basically the same thing as everyone else so I decided I would walk down again and see if I ended up in the right place. It turned out that on Saturday I had been in the right spot! I had to walk down the on ramp to the highway, I followed some other guys, and there was a bus at the bottom going to Beirut. I got to Beirut and just wandered around and ended up at Martyr's Square, which has a big mosque and is one of the spots to see. Unfortunately everything was closed because it was Sunday, at least in the predominately Christian sections, which is where I mostly was I think. Just like the rest of the country Beirut itself has areas that are Christian, or Shia, or Sunni... etc. The Shiite area is in south Beirut and at some point I think I will try and check it out, since I was told it was ok. I would actually like to see some Hezbollah flags. Don't worry, though, I'll just check it out in broad daylight and quick. But really though, it was interesting in Beirut because unlike some other cities, Cairo, Rabat, Fez, no one bothered me. No one tried to get me to buy anything or tried to give me a tour expecting money. Nothing. I must either a. not stick out quite as much here because it's so cosmopolitan or b. the culture is different in that way. I liked it. One guy did say I think "Parlez vous francais?" But I wasn't sure. I looked at him like I didn't hear but he just went back to waiting for the bus. Oh well. There are a lot of South Asians in Lebanon I guess, so I saw a lot of people who could be Sri Lankan or Indian or Pakistani. I was told there is a sizable Sri Lankan community. Anyways, I walked around a lot and walked through an area that was definitely Christian and had at least one Armenian church. I found my way back to the bus and made it back to NDU without a problem. When I got back I had my first Shawarma of the summer. Let me tell you, it was so good. Pickles, chicken, french fries, tahina sauce, and salad in a pita. Perfection.
Then today I had work again. I did research again all day today. Reading articles and pulling out the relevant information. Tomorrow we are going to take a look at it and hopefully do some other stuff. It is good experience and its way better than making copies and stuff because I am actually working on something. But, hopefully I will have a varied routine. I also need to figure out where/when I'll be doing Arabic while I'm here.
Finally some other interesting things:
1. I learned that maids are not aloud to go to the beach. Crazy right? Neither are Syrians I guess. Why? I don't really know. Racism?
2. There is no absentee voting. Because most of the Lebanese living outside of Lebanon are Christian, so it would upset the delicate sectarian balance the country has after the civil war.
3. Along with Brazilian flags there are German flags, everywhere. Again, I don't know why. World Cup?
Alright, that's it for now.
Jake.
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