We’re here!
Flying in, skimming over the Mediterranean, bit of orange haze in the air, apartment blocks, palm trees.
On the highway into town, billboards on either side of the freeway: one is Nasrullah, the head of Hezbollah, in a robe and turban; across from it is a man in a suit of the latest design from Paris.
The apartment is huge—maybe 1,000 square feet, three bedrooms, a balcony overlooking a quiet street and a hotel (The Mayflower) across the way. We are on the third floor, and use a small “lift” (holds three friendly people) that thankfully has an emergency call button. People are envious because we have so much space, are in a great shopping area, and have CENTRAL AIR CONDITIONING. The floors are gray marble, the walls freshly painted concrete, the furniture modern and all new. In fact everything is new—all the utensils, plates, broom, trash cans. They have even stocked the basics in the fridge and left a bag of essentials—soap, trash bags, matches, TP, cornflakes (!). There is a gas stove with 6 burners, a washer dryer, one full bath (incl. bidet)—shower has great water pressure YAY!--and two with toilet and sink. Cam better get here soon so we can justify all this space!
Downstairs we have a wonderful, smiling concierge named Mohammed—there at all hours. The building has no number, but a name (Shatila). The streets are, for the most part, not labeled either, or they may have names that change from block to block. Best to know landmarks to tell people the way. Traffic is rather thrilling, though the experienced can feel the flow and practice relatively safe pedestrianism. We are doing lots of walking. It is hot—40 ° C today (not sure exactly but body temp. is 37°…). But we hear that come September 1st it starts to cool down. The streets are surprisingly clean and also safe—women walk alone at night with no fear. And stores are open and people are out late—if you get invited to dinner it’s at 9 pm.
The school has kept both of us busy with orientation activities: meeting the 19 new teachers, meals out and at the school (GREAT FOOD!), including tonight on the rooftop with a sea view, walking tours, etc. They seem to be offering me (Kristine) a part-time job tutoring…I am considering it. I would be job sharing with another “trailing spouse,” amazingly also from Tacoma. She has a TESOL certificate and I keep pushing her as the more qualified, but they seem to think I can do the job as well. I do want to enroll in Arabic class, and the one at a French-speaking university sounds the most interesting. I may get to meet with the head of the UN Human Rights organization locally, too, and ask about jobs. The only thing that could possibly tempt me to do full-time is a UN position that fits. So I do want to check out that possibility. But English with little kids does sound really fun, too. And I have my wonderful RIFP colleagues to turn to for help on tutoring ideas! Please stay tuned…
It’s an incredible place. Beirut sits on 5,000 years of history. There are ruins galore to explore. Next weekend we go to a huge cave, where you can take a boat in at one end and a cable car to reach the other. We also go to the south of Lebanon to a farm in a disputed area where the Hezbollah are active. [Don’t worry—things are calm] We had to supply copies of our passports in advance so there would be no problem passing security checkpoints. We also were invited to a farmer’s market outside Beirut and a jazz club with an oud player, but those will have to wait. To say people are “resilient” seems so superficial—people have lived through so much. It makes them crazy and it makes them so very strong and deep. I feel so fortunate to meet them.
People speak Arabic as a first language but many also speak English or French. We have had no trouble getting around, except for getting quite lost the first day before we had a map and our bearings.
The women are stunningly beautiful. Maybe 30% wear headscarves. At the school, among the teachers there only two and both are new. The Elementary School principal remarked how wonderful it was to have scarved women teaching Arabic, as in the past this was forbidden at ACS. Now it is OK . And they are lovely—I am so glad to know them.
All for now!
Love,
Flying in, skimming over the Mediterranean, bit of orange haze in the air, apartment blocks, palm trees.
On the highway into town, billboards on either side of the freeway: one is Nasrullah, the head of Hezbollah, in a robe and turban; across from it is a man in a suit of the latest design from Paris.
The apartment is huge—maybe 1,000 square feet, three bedrooms, a balcony overlooking a quiet street and a hotel (The Mayflower) across the way. We are on the third floor, and use a small “lift” (holds three friendly people) that thankfully has an emergency call button. People are envious because we have so much space, are in a great shopping area, and have CENTRAL AIR CONDITIONING. The floors are gray marble, the walls freshly painted concrete, the furniture modern and all new. In fact everything is new—all the utensils, plates, broom, trash cans. They have even stocked the basics in the fridge and left a bag of essentials—soap, trash bags, matches, TP, cornflakes (!). There is a gas stove with 6 burners, a washer dryer, one full bath (incl. bidet)—shower has great water pressure YAY!--and two with toilet and sink. Cam better get here soon so we can justify all this space!
Downstairs we have a wonderful, smiling concierge named Mohammed—there at all hours. The building has no number, but a name (Shatila). The streets are, for the most part, not labeled either, or they may have names that change from block to block. Best to know landmarks to tell people the way. Traffic is rather thrilling, though the experienced can feel the flow and practice relatively safe pedestrianism. We are doing lots of walking. It is hot—40 ° C today (not sure exactly but body temp. is 37°…). But we hear that come September 1st it starts to cool down. The streets are surprisingly clean and also safe—women walk alone at night with no fear. And stores are open and people are out late—if you get invited to dinner it’s at 9 pm.
The school has kept both of us busy with orientation activities: meeting the 19 new teachers, meals out and at the school (GREAT FOOD!), including tonight on the rooftop with a sea view, walking tours, etc. They seem to be offering me (Kristine) a part-time job tutoring…I am considering it. I would be job sharing with another “trailing spouse,” amazingly also from Tacoma. She has a TESOL certificate and I keep pushing her as the more qualified, but they seem to think I can do the job as well. I do want to enroll in Arabic class, and the one at a French-speaking university sounds the most interesting. I may get to meet with the head of the UN Human Rights organization locally, too, and ask about jobs. The only thing that could possibly tempt me to do full-time is a UN position that fits. So I do want to check out that possibility. But English with little kids does sound really fun, too. And I have my wonderful RIFP colleagues to turn to for help on tutoring ideas! Please stay tuned…
It’s an incredible place. Beirut sits on 5,000 years of history. There are ruins galore to explore. Next weekend we go to a huge cave, where you can take a boat in at one end and a cable car to reach the other. We also go to the south of Lebanon to a farm in a disputed area where the Hezbollah are active. [Don’t worry—things are calm] We had to supply copies of our passports in advance so there would be no problem passing security checkpoints. We also were invited to a farmer’s market outside Beirut and a jazz club with an oud player, but those will have to wait. To say people are “resilient” seems so superficial—people have lived through so much. It makes them crazy and it makes them so very strong and deep. I feel so fortunate to meet them.
People speak Arabic as a first language but many also speak English or French. We have had no trouble getting around, except for getting quite lost the first day before we had a map and our bearings.
The women are stunningly beautiful. Maybe 30% wear headscarves. At the school, among the teachers there only two and both are new. The Elementary School principal remarked how wonderful it was to have scarved women teaching Arabic, as in the past this was forbidden at ACS. Now it is OK . And they are lovely—I am so glad to know them.
All for now!
Love,
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