I just bumped into this video on YouTube showing five tourists who documented their journey around Lebanon in an unusual way. They compiled several segments of themselves lip syncing and dancing to the tunes of Ed Sheeran’s Shape of You.
Among the places that show are Raouche, Jbeil, Batroun, Saida Castle, Saida Old Souk, Harissa, and Baalbeck. I believe if this goes viral then it can easily become one of the best promotional videos for Lebanon!
Back in 2012, several websites started posting about a possible closure of Zaitunay Bay closing down due to the slow economy and the low numbers of tourists visiting Lebanon. This however was denied by the people behind Zaitunay through twitter and the media.
Yet just today, Ziad Kamel, the co-founder of The Alleyway, confirmed on twitter that Amarres in Zaitounay Bay will be shutting down due to the instability the whole country is currently going through, which is eventually causing tourists and Lebanese expats to abstain from visiting the country, whereas Zaitunay heavily relies on them.
So while Zaitunay Bay might be staying, one this is for sure, which is that restaurants owners there are definitely struggling to make ends meet, except for Classic Burger Joint probably which always seems to be full! (khamseh bi 3youneh)
Anyway, back to Ziad Kamel, he claimed a second branch of Couqley will soon be opening in Dbayeh on May 15th, which is great news to all those who live north of Beirut. I’ve been once to Couqley in Gemmayze by the way and totally enjoyed their French menu.
The Wall Street Journal compiled this list of five fun things to do around Lebanon in an article published yesterday.
It’s good the articles mentions nothing about the nightlife in Beirut for a change! Anyway, I’m familiar with 4 out of the 5 things the author listed, but it’s the first time for me to hear about this couple in Beirut (Sylvia Khoury & Charles Ghorayeb) who welcomes visitors in their own apartment in Beirut and offer them home cooked dishes for the price of $20 per person, and $30 including wine. Has anyone heard about them before? I tried to look them up online but found nothing except what the article mentions that they previously used to organize tours around Lebanon for tourists.
2. Sit down at a Beirut couple’s table for a home-cooked meal
Sylvia Khoury and Charles Ghorayeb welcome visitors into their Beirut apartment for an evening of Lebanese food, wine and conversation. The couple, who formerly offered tailor-made tours of Lebanon to tourists, now focus on their home-kitchen venture. They serve dishes such as malfouf (stuffed cabbage leaves), shankleesh (ripened cheese) and makanek (little sausages). The food relies on seasonal staples that are grown in the couple’s garden in Damour, just outside the city. $20 per person, $30 with wine; to make a reservation, email Ms. Khoury at skhoury131@hotmail.com
Would you give them a try?
It’s definitely cool to have Beirut among the top destinations for tourists to visit in 2012. But it would also be cooler if editors, for once, focus on other cool stuff to do in Lebanon than Beirut’s nightlife scene. Don’t you think?
You’ll adore Beirut’s juxtaposition of old and new, traditional and downright funkiness. Restored Roman baths stand in the midst of the business district, surrounded by gleaming skyscrapers and an Ottoman palace. At Music Hall, in an old cinema hall, fez-wearing traditional musicians play Arabic ballads for their 15-minute spot, after an ’80s cover band, while cocktail-dress Beiruti women belly dance with their designer-jeans-clad partners supping cocktails. Soldiers with machine guns keep one eye on families drinking coffee at midnight, with squealing kids playing, on pedestrianized Place de L’Etoile square. Le Gray luxury boutique hotel sits a moment’s walk from the bombed-out Holiday Inn, still bullet-ridden from 1976 Lebanon Civil War.
You can check the full list here.
