Lovely Evening in Beirut

New York Times suggest I should go sit at the Hard Rock at dusk and watch the city parade on the Corniche. I gladly do that, probably more often than my health/weight allows me to. And so we go out for dinner.

It is a lovely evening here in Beirut, one of many nights to come this summer, and the sunsets are as fantastic as ever, with or without Icelandic volcanic ash in the atmosphere. It seems the Hezbollah people telling us that Israel will not be attacking us any soon. Always nice to know this bit of insiders information. They say it’s because Israel is afraid. The Jerusalem Post says the same, with this difference; it is not them who are afraid. I don’t care who’s afraid of whom; I want a quiet summer.

Muslim women in headscarves, scruffy locals in rock T-shirts, Filipina baby sitters: come dusk, Beirut’s seaside walkway known as the Corniche becomes host to a city on parade. To watch it and enjoy views of the glittering Mediterranean while you’re at it, start across from the Hard Rock Cafe …and stroll west past the fast-rising hotels, luxury apartment buildings.

We drive past the Abdel Nasser mosque, although I think it may actually have another name. It’s always decorated as if it is Christmas. The city is out in force, corn-on-the-cob vendors and all.

And for desert, we take a ride in the Ferris Wheel. 4 people for 8,000 pounds. Granted, the little carriage has no door, and swings quite ferociously. It sure helps with the digestion. A lovely evening in Beirut.