This country took the top three spots in my heart. Perhaps because of the time I visited it, the people I met and the experiences I took with me.
Beirut
After I completed my marathon in Cyprus, I took a 45 minute flight to Lebanon. Once I arrived in Beirut, I made my way to Hostel Beirut, where I immediately met someone from Greece and convinced him to head over to the protests happening by the parliament.
The first thing we did was to buy a Lebanese flag to show our support. Of course the streets were full of street vendors, protesters, police, reporters and very few tourists like my self.
I was surprised to see how peaceful these protests were. I had witnessed these kind of revolutions back home in Peru and they always turned violent.
Also, It was refreshing to see a lot of women and millennials protesting. Everyone seemed free to express themselves. My Greek friend and I observed for a couple hours then went our way around the city.
Powerful Street Art
After spending a couple hours with the protesters, we decided to explore the city, where we stumbled upon very unique spots and art wall murals. This kind of art is everywhere in Beirut. Street artists have freedom to express themselves without fear of prosecution. Some artists use the power of graffiti to reflect the problems that Lebanese society is still facing today.
Where is the evolution? The Rich feed on the Poor (Did you notice what is on the plate?)
We also found one of the most unique coffee mobile stands. One that has been set up on a scooter. It wasn’t the greatest coffee, I won’t lie :), however it was very cool to exchange some words with the owner.
Watch over the city from the “Egg”
I was very lucky to be in Lebanon during the Independence Day on November 22nd. Most of the city gathered around the Mohammad Al-Amin Mosque or Blue Mosque. The energy was incredible, everyone seemed happy and proud to be Lebanese. By this time, I had already made some Lebanese friends. This day specifically, Donna took me around and showed me the Egg, which used to be the biggest cinema in Lebanon in the late 1950’s. This egg shaped construction was sitting on top a building. We went as far up as we could but we didn’t climb all the way to the top of the Egg, since the last set of stairs did not seem safe enough. However we were high enough that views of the Blue mosque and the celebration were really great.
The “Egg” Watch over the city at the top of the “Egg” – https://www.beirut.com/l/32809
Baalbek
Lucky me I always bump into people that do their research. Back at the hostel, I had met a few people that seemed to fit my sense of curiosity, adventure and humor :). We were four: Vi, a very opiniated and curious, sometimes annoying, Malaysian guy, who at that moment was working as a Consultant for a financial institution in Dubai. Jaris, also known as the Greek god :D. He is a heart doctor back in Greece, also opiniated with a strong inclination towards social justice. Then there is Julian, a veterinarian from Netherlands, with a dark sense of humor. I would say sometimes he was out of line, but I didn’t care. He seemed a pretty nice guy. Finally, myself, a Peruvian living in Seattle. Not much to say about myself, but I guess I am combination of all the above.
I must admit that I enjoyed very much hanging out with them because every time we had discussion about any topic, everyone would bring a different perspective and this made the conversation so much interesting and challenging.
I was supposed to talk about Baalbek but I guess I got carried away. The reason I mentioned them was because if it weren’t for them I would have not gone to Baalbek nor would have gotten such a good time.
Baalbek, a hidden gem only 1.5 hours away from Beirut. Public vans leave from the Cola intersection to Baalbek almost every hour for about 10,000-12,000 Lebanese pounds. Unfortunately, most vans from Cola Station would not take us directly to Baalbek, so we had to transfer half way. The bus driver charged us half the fee then dropped us off with another van who charged us the other half.
Temple of Bacchus Temple of Jupiter
Tripoli
A day before my adventure to Baalbek, my new friend Jaris from Greece suggested we go to Byblos, a city that it was believed to be first occupied between 8800 and 7000 BC and continuously inhabited since 5000 BC, making it one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world.
On our way to Byblos, we accidentally missed the bus stop. We were under the impression that the bus would make a stop in the city, however we were supposed to let the driver know, so we could be dropped off in the middle of the highway. Once we realized we missed Byblos, someone in the bus told us we could go to Tripoli then take another bus back.
We finally arrived in Tripoli, by then we had already decided to stay and walk around the city. However, we were not ready for what we were about to hear. The same guy that talked to us in the bus, approached outside the Bus and said “Be careful in this city, It is full of extremists. If someone finds out that you are tourists you might get kidnapped.” We thanked him for the warning and parted ways.
We were perplexed, but after quick discussion with Jaris we decided to explore the city :). For sure these kinds of decisions might not fit everyone, nor I recommend them, however, our adventurous minds and confidence took over us.
We walked around the city for hours. Of course, eyes were on us most of the time. At some point I asked Jaris,
“Dude, I feel that everyone is looking at me”. He replied: “Are you serious dude? Have you seen everyone? You are the only one here wearing shorts and everyone else is wearing pants. And on top of that your shorts are PINK!” I replied: “Oh shit that’s right” and started laughing.
Once the sun started to set, we decided to go back to the bus station because we got a little scared :). Actually, we ran back for about 2 miles without stopping. Needless to say, this was one of the most exciting experiences of my life.
