Day 1. Marhaba and welcome to Beirut.

After getting up at four in the morning the whole flight from Amsterdam to Frankfurt passed me by (fortunately). I arrived in Frankfurt around 08.30 and felt how hungry I was so I decided to buy an apple. I wasn’t truly awake until I saw the man next to me drinking half a liter beer (08.30 in the morning!!!).
During the flight to Beirut I had a window seat. I picked it because I hoped to enjoy the view… but all I saw were clouds! After a few hours my ears started popping and a friendly voice over the intercom said in German-sounding English that we were starting our descent. Ha nice, I thought and sat up strait to see how we sunk through the clouds and expected to see the city underneath. But the clouds disappeared and I saw… nothing. Just the sea and lots of mist. There was no city. But the plane was going down and down and when I could see the waves in the ocean I started to wonder: am I the only one not seeing this place or does the pilot just trust the instinct of the plane to much? But just when I was considering bending over backwards to see if there was anything to see from the windows on the other side of the aisle, the mist suddenly revealed hills covered in buildings and half taken by dark and unfriendly looking clouds. We sailed (because I am sure I could have touched the water if I could put my hand outside the window!) past the coastline and my first thought was: someone was playing monopoly on these hills and build all his flats on the same corner. Meanwhile we descended further even though we were still only above water. At the last minute a runway appeared as if Jake had just rolled in out for us (most of you won’t know Jake… watch The Rescurers Down Under, a 1990 Disney film ;)

A few minutes later I walked out the airport with my bag, right into the hands of a very friendly UNHCR driver who drove me first by the office and then to my house. My flat mate is very kind and helped me do some shopping this evening.

I wish I could describe Beirut for you… but I can’t. Overwhelmed by new impressions I am still not sure about the city I am in. No other city I have ever been to can be compared to it. After a few hours of walking and driving through the streets and talking to some people I decided it mostly reminds me of Douala. Even though the chaos is like the streets of Jakarta and the smells and contrasts when you turn a corner are like Hong Kong. But still, even if you have been in all of these cities you still can’t imagine Beirut… and neither can I ;)

I am going to eat something small and then sleep. My flat mate went to the gym and my eyes slowly close while I sink away in the comfortable couch. Tomorrow I have to get up early to try to get to the UNHCR office. It will be an adventure and I hope I can write about the positive outcome real soon!

Good night!
Marlies

p.s: My mobile number here in Lebanon is 00961 71926694.