An earlier post looked at some typical examples of Lebanese driving habits. This afternoon I saw a different form of road rage - two traffic police having a fight over which stream of traffic had right of way.
I was sitting at the lights at the intersection above, waiting for my turn to go. This intersection is one of the major arterial crossroads in the city, connecting north and south traffic and the road from the port. On a Friday afternoon when everyone’s heading for the coast or the mountains it’s usually chock a block. Although there are traffic lights here, these tend to be optional in Lebanon so there’s also some traffic cops on duty to ensure the mass of cars keeps flowing.
Except today.
I watched with great delight as the two cops on duty had a screaming row over which approach road had right of way. There was lots of frantic arm waving, pointing of fingers, and some moves which were more akin to popping. This was lots of fun, but the upshot was that none of us were going anywhere…
I came across a great Lebanese artist’s blog the other day and she’s drawn some beautifully simple frames highlighting Lebanese driving and parking practices.
These might look like parodies, but they actually present a pretty accurate depiction of daily driving here. Great fun.
This next one looks just like the street corner below our apartment.
As we’ve noted before, Lebanon is pretty famous for the pursuit of physical beauty. Nose jobs are common and it’s not unusual to see people (men and women) proudly wandering around with plaster on their noses or for your colleagues to come into work one day with suddenly and eye-poppingly inflated chests. Two years ago one of the banks actually offered a special loan for plastic surgery.
This year is proving to be a mega summer tourist season in Lebanon. The country’s the most stable that it’s been in ages, and it is a more affordable option for many who’ve taken a hit in the global economic crisis. There’s been a huge number of visitors coming for the beaches, mountain resorts and to hang out with the (artificially) beautiful people. Many also come to get some work done, as demonstrated by this article published today.
But hey, I’m beautiful just the way I am (or I will be once the braces come off, insha’allah). Not that my staff don’t occasionally suggest I get a touch of botox or a nose job myself…
As mentioned previously, I’ve been teaching Mitchell to swim for a few weeks now. He’s getting pretty confident with the benefit of his floaty vest, legs chugging away under water and occasionally ducking his head under for a peek.
But most of the time he just wants to drown his old dad.
These are examples of plumbing and electrical wiring in the Burj el-Barajneh Palestinian refugee camp in the southern suburbs of Beirut. Unfortunately kids are killed all the time from touching exposed wet wires. Needless to say, it was a hazardous environment for a tall bugger like me!
Like all of the camps in Lebanon, conditions are terrible. The sewerage system overflows in winter, families are crammed into tiny apartments, and what little infrastructure there is is falling apart. Unemployment is extremely high, although perversely it’s highest among the most educated - Lebanon’s labour laws prevent Palestinians from working in a number of core professional fields, so it’s the low-skilled who are more likely to find work as labourers or mechanics.
