Al-Janub, Part II

From my last post, my trip to the South might sound like it was a sad meditation on life in a war zone—and undoubtedly it was partially that—but it was also an eye-opener on how unexpectedly normal (if such a word can be said about anything) my stay was there.

Al-Janub, Part I

Two weeks ago, during the four day week-end for Aid Al-Adha (a major Muslim holiday), two friends, H. and K., and I were invited by a Lebanese acquaintance, Kh., to go on a two-day road trip in the South (Al-Janub), where he is originally from, down to the frontier with Israel*.

If you know a little about contemporary Lebanese history, "The South" is also known as "Hezbollah Land," a portion of Lebanon more or less outside of Lebanese government control and administrated by the Shi'a Party of God (literal translation of "Hezb-Allah"), and the site of the 2006 war with Israel. Depending on who I would talk to, the South was either someplace I absolutely needed to go or had to avoid at all costs. "You'll be kidnapped!" some said. "Hezbollah people are crazy, you can't go there as a foreigner!"

The Hezbollah flag.

In short, there was no way I could turn down an opportunity to see this for myself.

Façades of Beirut

I have been doing a lot of traveling around/sight-seeing in the past two weeks. My mother came to visit for a week, which was nice family time. I was finally reunited with my camera charger, which means one thing: this site can finally have visuals to satisfy you!, my ADD-prone brethren of the Millenial generation who avoid big blocks of text like the plague!

I also spent two days this past weekend on a road trip in the South of Lebanon. A lot to talk about there. And since I know you are all clearly dying to know what Hezbollah Land is like, the new blog header is a picture taken during that trip. Consider it a teaser of sorts.

In the meantime, here are some photos which are a good representation (in my humble opinion) of some of the diversity of the Beirut urban landscape. These might just be buildings, but I can't help but think they give an idea of the dynamics of the city, which I might discuss one day once I've mulled it over long enough to have something halfway decent to write about it.

The Wayward Orientalist

So, from the beginning I have been thinking about a catchy title for this blog, something that could sum up what I want to convey here, and, lacking inspiration, I had settled temporarily for the most obvious way to describe what I was going through: In Beirut.

I have been struggling with what I should write here. How do I sum up my experience? There are many clichés and easy generalizations to make about Beirut or Lebanon, and while they might contain a kernel of truth (which stereotype doesn’t?), I can’t help but bristle with annoyance when I hear “They” statements: