The house that should replace all buildings in Lebanon

German architect Rolf Disch built the home, called Heliotrope, to follow the sun throughout the day. The structure features triple panes of thermally insulated glass to strike a balance between letting light in and keeping the house cooler inside. 

Your top three most annoying things about Lebanon [Survey]

According to a recent survey, published on August 15 in The New York Post, the most annoying thing in New York is people who block subway doors. The Post carried out the survey with 300 residents to find out what they don’t like about the city. The rest of the top 10 is as follows:

2. Tourists

3. Cabdrivers on cell phones

4. Drivers who block the box

5. Panhandlers

6. Hipsters

7. Bike delivery guys

8. Film shoots that take over the street

9. Street fairs

10. Tip jars everywhere

Here's an idea...how about a survey to find out the most annoying things in Lebanon?

Choose your top three most annoying things in Lebanon. If this post gets enough replies, I’ll compile the data and share the final list. If you don’t live in Lebanon but have visited the place before, you can still take part in this survey.

My top choices:

1. Electricity shortages

2. Internet bandwidth, plans and pricing structure

3. Traffic

My Ramadan wish list

This is will be my first Ramadan in Lebanon in 8 years. To celebrate this momentous occasion, I decided to create a wish list for the month. 

This Ramadan….

• May Arab countries’ hearts soften and allow Palestinians and Watheeqa holders to enter their ‘sacred’ land.
• May Arab countries unite over serious issues, not just BlackBerry banning.
• May Gaza get peace and electricity.
• May Beirut get electricity all day. 
• May the humidity decides it’s time to vacation outside Lebanon.
• May the fireworks in Lebanon wait till Eid.
• May traffic have mercy on us.
• May stores not hike Vimto and grocery prices.
• May women show less skin (only during Ramadan).
• May ‘True Blood’ episodes show less soft-core porn (again, only during Ramadan).
• May people not tag me with Ramadan pictures on Facebook.
• May Twitter be extra entertaining.
• May people have more patience.
• May people thank more and whine less.
• May my family, friends and tweeps be always happy and healthy.

Blessed Ramadan everyone.

Majestic Lebanese art

In the Middle East, Lebanon has always been the center of attraction when it comes to art.

I pass by my favorite exhibition every day and thought I’d share pictures of some of the fine art the country has to offer.

The below collection is currently on permanent display in Beirut and other areas. It has been there since May 2010. Unfortunately, the new collection is expected to arrive only when the next circus is in town. The clowns artists are already hard at work retouching their wrinkles with Photoshop.

If you are in Lebanon and want to visit the gallery, no need to take a cab. Just look to your right and to your left. For your convenience, the gallery is sometimes hanging above you on what seems to be, a laundry rope. Entrance is free.  

Kudos to the exhibition organizers for setting up the gallery in record time. I went to bed one night and the next morning, the  exquisite paintings were vomited all over Lebanon.  Sadly, the artists are always short of cash. They could only afford to pay the thugs organizers to set up the exhibition but not to take the glorious canvas down, lucky for you. 

This post is sponsored by Lebanon Tourism. 

P.S. At the risk of sounding negative, Lebanon is indeed the place to visit if you are an art lover.

  

[Photos] Tweetup

I had the pleasure of meeting few tweeps from Lebanon yesterday. It was my first tweetup and I honestly didn’t know what to expect.

I have to say, Lebanese tweeps are the coolest since Homer said “Do’h!”

The attendees were:

@FunkyOzzi @abzzyy @beshr @aymanitani @Jennhaddad @bahaafe @DanyAwad @meinlebanon @beirutdriveby @PascalAssaf @wael_nabbout @RaafatHamze @AssaadTh @marriamb @GeorgeZamroud @Shanty2 @NaLoves @LaraZankoul and @bigsamDUBAI

Thank you all for a great evening and special thanks goes to @FunkyOzzi (who I forgot to mention on Twitter last night) for organizing the amazing tweetup and @DanyAwad for suggesting it.

I recommend you follow all of them. Most of them are bloggers as well. I suggest you read their blogs. You won’t be disappointed.

I look forward to meeting all of you again soon.

P.S. I learned yesterday that there’s a Facebook page called LebTweetups. If you haven’t visited it yet, go ahead and do it now. 

Taking advantage of tourists

I went to ABC Mall Achrafieh this morning to have breakfast with my cousin. After breakfast, we decided to hit the shops.

While browsing inside one of the shops, a Saudi women walked into the store. Naturally, the saleswoman ignored my cousin and I to attend to the ‘khaliji’ lady.

Items in the store had no price tags for some reason.

“How much is this piece?” asked the lady. Saleswoman replied without checking the pricelist:
“$600.”

Shocked, the Saudi lady put the piece back.

“And how much is this one? Saudi lady asked again.

Lowering her price, and again without checking the pricelist, the saleswoman replied “$500.”

Saudi woman looked at us, smiled, and put the piece back on the rack.

Right then, she decided to give the saleswoman a piece of her mind.

Imagine a Saudi Julia Roberts in that infamous Pretty Woman scene…

“You just lost a customer.”

“We have the same collection back home and it’s half the price. You still have this notion that because I’m from Saudi, it’s ok to rip me off. When will you learn not to take advantage of tourists? It’s my fault I chose to spend my shopping money in Lebanon. Let your items collect dust on your rack.”

Kudos to the Saudi woman. Other retailers, take note. 

If you don’t like it, leave

A common phrase uttered by those with an average IQ of 50. I’ve heard/read it many times by imbeciles who can’t engage in a rational conversation.  Not a day goes by without someone posting this phrase on the comments section on Arabian Business.

They barf: “Don’t criticize. If you don’t like it, leave.”

Retards.

Lately, it’s been heard a lot in Lebanon. You see, Lebanon has solved all of its political, social and economical issues (get the sarcasm?)and now the people are focused on one single problem: the right for Palestinians to be humans. Or as media would put it: the right for Palestinians to work.

Social security? Well, I never.

How dare Palestinians get any civil rights in Lebanon? How dare they major or work in medicine, journalism or law? The blasphemy!

Yes, we will take their $50,000+ tuition fee but to have the choice of what to study? like human beings?  Na-ah!

Yes, they can spend a fortune buying houses and register them in their Lebanese wives’ names, but for their children to inherit those houses? Ain’t gonna happen!

And “ If you don’t like it, leave.”

Well Mr. Imbecile, allow me to paste an excerpt from an article published in the Daily Star titled: ‘Lebanon wins if Palestinians are granted the right to work’. 

More than 90 percent of Palestinian refugees spend all their income in Lebanon contributing directly to the Lebanese economy. Allowing them to work will, it is estimated by the International Labor Organization, double this figure and dramatically spur growth. Current financial benefits to the Lebanon economy from her Palestinian guests include the following: 

As a large percentage of Lebanese continue to leave the country for study and employment, this creates serious gaps in Lebanon’s economy as well as a steady demand for skilled and unskilled labor in the Lebanese labor market. Palestinians refugees are willing and able to fill this chasm. Yet the economic benefits of full and legal participation by Palestinian refugees in the Lebanese labor market have been willfully underestimated through political resistance to granting them basic rights.Granting Palestinians the right to work will not take Lebanese jobs. 

In stark contrast to the non-Palestinian work force, Palestinians represent a numerically modest fraction and pose no threat to job opportunities for Lebanese employees. Indeed, granting the right to work which includes improving the work conditions and safeguards for the Palestinians currently working in the so-called “informal sector” (i.e., illegal employment or black market rendering them potentially liable for exploitation, dismissal, fines and/or jail) will also benefit Lebanese who are forced to compete against below minimum wages earners who are non-Lebanese. 

Another interesting article (Arabic) worth reading was published in Al Awda Magazine, titled 'The Palestinian in Lebanon 2010'. Thanks to @Ammouni for sharing the link. 

The above post is based on my personal life and the unfairness I endure as a Palestinian in Lebanon. Even as half Lebanese, I don’t get any rights in Lebanon. I soon plan to write a post on the horror of being a Palestinian in the Arab world. Stay tuned.

Blogging community raises awareness against racism in Lebanon

An interesting post from the Independence ’05 blog is buzzing all over my Twitter timeline today. The subject is racism.

In brief, a tourist was denied entrance to the Beiruf Club in Lebanon because she was black. You can read the rest of the article here.

Appalling, disgusting, shameful  are some of the words that come to mind after reading the post. We are a nation that gets enraged when Lebanese are discriminated against in international media and Hollywood movies. Little does the world know, in our country, there are a bunch of assholes who are no better than prejudiced Hollywood writers.

I am not generalizing. In fact, the reaction of the Lebanese blogging community and Twitteratis prove that not all condone such despicable acts.

Over lunch, I shared the post with some relatives and they also had some racism related stories to tell.

A family member informed us that in one of the resorts in Northern Lebanon – The Palma to name and shame – the management forbids “colored people” not only from swimming in the ocean, but from dipping their feet in the water.

Shocked and infuriated, the family member approached the manager of the resort and told him: “do you think we have cleaner feet because we are Lebanese?”

Expectedly, she received a standard 'resort policy' PR response.

So, to the pricks of Beiruf and Palma, next time someone calls you a “sand people/terrorist/brown” because of your race, remember, an eye for an eye. 

Until we educate the ignorant and destroy racism, how about we add "Fair-colored Skin Only" to our tourism ads. 

Beirut barbershop experience

My favorite barbershop is in one of the busiest streets in Beirut. The shop itself is stuck in time. It’s like a scene from a 50’s movies. A pair of scissors, a comb, one seat, a small aquarium and that’s about it. You won’t see any modern decorations or fancy lighting. Hell, you won’t even see a hairdryer.

But I go there because each visit is an episode out of a sitcom.

Today’s episode guest starred an elderly man in his 70’s. During his 10 minute haircut, the elderly gentleman literally had 10 stories to share.

The first story, naturally, had to be the reason why he’s getting a haircut. It turned out that his daughter’s best friend is getting married. Obviously, he had to let us know that the wedding will cost $50,000 and it will take place at the Phoenicia Hotel.

It’s always the Phoenicia, isn’t it? It could have easily taken place at the Karantina dumpster and people would still say Phoenicia. But who’s questioning?

Then he had to inform us that the bride and groom had to borrow the money to pay for the wedding.

The sentence, of course, ended with ‘ki$ ikhton shu hibil’.

The he added “as you all know, the bride comes from money.”

None of us knew who the bride was but out of respect, we said “yes.”

From the extravagant wedding and the loser bride and groom, the elderly gentleman’s next story was the World Cup.

He didn’t care for the teams or the matches. He preferred to bitch about the post matches celebrations and noises in the streets of Beirut.

The sentence, of course, ended with ‘ki$ ikhton shu hibil’.

But what’s an old man without naming and shaming.

True to his age, the elderly man’s next story was to share the names of all the crooked Mukhtars in the neighborhood.

The sentence, of course, ended with ‘ki$ ikhton killon 7aramieh’

When someone at the shop asked him which Mukhtar he preferred. He gave us the name of what he thought was an honest man. Unsurprisingly, it was a member of his family.

Not to sound like the elderly gentleman, I will not mention the rest of the stories. But like I said, a visit to the barbershop in Lebanon is ‘filmed before a live studio audience’. And I was one of them.It is by far the best place to go when the power goes out and you need an hour or two to kill. 

Reality Check: UAE vs. Lebanon

Disclaimer: This post is based on a personal experience and does not necessarily reflect the views of others.

Before we get to the comparison, here’s a brief background…

Eight years ago, I took the decision to leave Lebanon to work in Dubai. During those 8 years in the UAE, I visit Lebanon ONCE for 10 days. Except for the call to my family twice a week, my relationship with Lebanon was completely cut off.  I didn’t even watch Lebanese channels and never followed its news. Furthermore, 90% of my close friends have left the country for jobs abroad.

Few months ago, I decided to quit my job and come to Lebanon for an extended vacation. At that point in time, A sabbatical was needed. 

Some might dispute that few months is an insignificant period of time to draw a comparison between the two countries, especially after being disconnected from Lebanon for 8 years.  Bullocks.  It is significant. 

This post is nothing but a reality check to remind myself that 8 years in the UAE was not enough and that I should be grateful for what the country has given me and my family. This explains why I still refer to my stay in Lebanon as 'vacation'. Evey person I met, every client I handled and every new culture I learned about has contributed to my success and growth. 

Dear Lebanon, this does not mean I don't love you. It only means that, until you get your act together, I can tolerate you 10 days every 8 years.

	Lebanon	UAE
Weather	Pleasant / reasonable weather 9 months of the year. July and August are the worst. Air conditioning is a must and with the constant power cuts, expect to shower 3 times a day. Winner	Pleasant / reasonable weather 4 months of the year. Insufferable 8 months of the year. Do not plan any outdoor activities.
Sightseeing	Historical sites, natural reserves, NATURAL ski resorts, beautiful beaches. Winner	Malls, world’s tallest-largest-widest-smartest buildings, fancy resorts across the Emirates.
Road Infrastructure	Are you kidding? We don’t even have traffic signals on one of the most dangerous intersections in Beirut.  A 5KM distance in the summer will take you 30-45 minutes.	Pretty decent. Yes, traffic jams used to be a nightmare but the with the new bridges and the metro, things have changed. A plus: from my old apartment in Dubai to Abu Dhabi (170km), there’s not one traffic signal. Winner
Taxis	You can take a shared taxi (service) anywhere in Beirut for $1.30 dollars.  A non-shared taxi costs $6.70. Winner	A taxi from my apartment in Abu Hail (Deira) to Sheikh Zayed Road (Buj Khalifa, for example) would cost an average of $7.00 - $8.00.  A taxi to media city would cost around $15. No shared taxis in Dubai..
Customer Service	What is customer service?	We tend to bitch a lot and we act  spoiled but compared to Lebanon, customer service in Dubai is fairly acceptable. Winner
Food and Restaurants	Several cuisines and choices. As for produce, it’s mainly local. You are limited with what’s available. Nevertheless, it’s cheap.	Several cuisine and choices. Produce comes from all over the world. Variety of choices.  I declare UAE a winner here because of more variety and better service. Winner
Security	Crime on the rise. Law is hopeless. Wasta rules.	You can keep your door unlocked for months and nothing will happen. Police officers are courteous, supportive and friendly. Winner
Telecom and Broadband	Broadband? Err…um…what? As for telecom, if you buy a prepaid card and plan to make a call, DON’T LEAVE THE STORE. You will need a new card in seconds. Credit vanishes  faster than the invisible man.	Again we tend to complain a lot about the pricing and the 2-day slow Internet when a sea cable is damaged but come one Lebanesos, deep inside, you know it’s heaven compared to cedar land. Winner
Entertainment	Nightlife is second to none in the region. Plus, lots of cultural events take place all year long. A clear winner. Winner	Choices are limited. Night clubs are mediocre. Cultural events are almost nonexistent.
Utilities and Petrol	Power cuts, power lines are damaged every winter, water is supplied every other day. In the summer, expect your utility bill to quadruple.  Petrol is ridiculously expensive.	I have no complaints here. Winner
Banking	Sad and pathetic. Epic fail. They make you fill and sign 200 pages to open an account. If you deposit money, they take commission. If you add money to your Internet card, they take commission. If you ask for Internet banking, they give you a CD-ROM to activate your ONLINE account (serious!) and you can install it on one computer only. Banking service in Lebanon is garbage. And I am talking about the number one bank in Lebanon.	One signature to open an account. I’ve never spent more than 10 minutes at a bank in the UAE. Service is superb. Online banking truly makes life easier (paying bills and whatnot). However, choose your bank wisely. Go with local banks. If you prefer an international bank,  for the love of god don’t go with HSBC. Winner
Career	LMAO	Yes, the financial crisis caused some people to lose their jobs but patience is a virtue and lots of those people managed to find alternative jobs. Winner
Starting a Business	A friend of mine wanted to establish a restaurant in Beirut. The Government asked for $200,000 for permission and license. That ridiculous amount did not include the property and the cost of setting up. (Could someone verify this information? My only source is my friend)	You have several options. Even though cost of setting up a business in Dubai Free Zone is high (but definitely won’t cost you $200K), you have cheaper alternatives in other Emirates. Winner
Differentiating Factors I don't know about you but both are equally important to me. Both win.	Family, Social life	Money, career growth