Beirut, Lebanon
July 26,2023
Once considered a rich country and called the Paris of the Middle East, Lebanon was the playground of the rich. But it has been crippled in recent years by a series of crises. The unfolding economic and financial crisis was compounded over the past three years by the systemic failure of the banking system, the effects of COVID 19 and the port of Beirut explosion in 2020. The news is that Lebanese economy remains in precipitous decline. But news in the media is rarely the entire picture and taking it with a grain of salt, large or small, is usually good practice.
I had met a traveler in Kurdistan who had recently been to Lebanon and the picture he had painted was of pervasive desperation. So, surprise was the first word that came to mind on reaching Beirut.
There are street lights when I expected none. There is public transport when I had expected little. There are boutiques of clothing and art that I had not expected at all. There are quaint cafes and restaurants and a sense of vibrancy which I did not expect. Posters of festivals paper the walls and windows. It is at odds with the doom and gloom scenario and I cannot quite make sense of it.
Signs of USAID and other relief agencies posted prominently contribute to the ongoing renovations and reconstructions. It appears to be an economy kept going by money brought in by ex-pats living and earning in Dubai, London and elsewhere. They come back to holiday in Lebanon and some come back to live here.
Most of all, I had not expected the hopping nightlife of Beirut. Bars and nightclubs thrum to the beat of music to the wee hours of the morning. Frequented mostly by well-heeled ex-pats with a sprinkling of travelers and tourists, they do not quite jive with the images I had formed in my mind. I met a group of travelers and we had no trouble contributing copiously to the local economy at the bars, restaurants and nightclubs.
ITCHY FEET TRAVELS 