Make sure to check Joe Show’s latest video on God’s Heaven as he speaks about our public debt and the recent arrests over free speech.
This isn’t the first time for him to talk about Lebanon with the last time being about the elections I think, but what puzzles me every time is the number of people defending their sect leaders in the comments like they’re just flawless.
To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Big Mac, McDonald’s is releasing their own currency called “Mac Coins” in more than 50 countries around the world including Lebanon.
As of August 2nd, people around the world started getting a MacCoin with every purchase of a Big Mac burger, and that coin can then be used to get another Big Mac for free at any participating McDonald’s outlet in the world until the end of 2018. I’ve read online that more than 6 million MacCoins will be given away and you can start getting them in Lebanon as of August 9th.
According to USA Today, the commemorative coins will come in 5 different designs, each one representing one of the decades since the Big Mac has been sold.
The ‘70s: Showcasing the decade’s flower power
The ‘80s: Alluding to pop art
The ‘90s: Defined by bold, abstract shapes
The early ‘00s: Specifically focusing on the technology that was at the forefront of the turn of the century
The ‘10s: MacCoin calling attention to the evolution of communication
I usually like to try McDonald’s when I’m abroad to see if they serve any special edition burgers at the country I’m visiting, but the Big Mac remains one of my favorite items on their menu along with the Big Tasty, and I’ll personally make sure to collect all the 5 coins as soon as they’re available in Lebanon not to exchange them for free meals but to keep them as a souvenirs for the future!
Last week was absolutely full of fucked up news. The cyber crime bureau has been randomly calling people in for investigation over opinions expressed on their social media accounts, Beirut Municipality is planning to go forward with deploying a waste incinerator somewhere around Karantine just like 1st world countries do, and political leaders are meanwhile busy sharing the cake fighting over the government seats.
However, one post on Facebook by journalist Rasha Abou Zaki almost overshadowed all other news (to me at least) as she unveiled a chicken hatchery inside the Electrecité Du Liban headquarters!
As Rasha stated, it is unbelievable how none of the responsibles at EDL knew about it or did anything to stop it, and I believe other governmental institutions are certainly not any better.
Given how chaotic things are in the country we used to always hear people comparing it to a farm, and this shows the government is actually living up to that reputation!
Lebanese Nizam Hussein Shalak has been living inside Jose Joaquin de Olmedo airport in Ecuador for over 40 days now an we unfortunately wouldn’t have heard about his case if it wasn’t for the foreign media outlets.
The man visited Ecuador two months ago, but on his way back to Lebanon he stopped in Barcelona where he was detained after losing his papers and credit cards and was sent back to the Ecuador. He is now living off food coupons that airlines offer to him and gets to shower every few days when he is allowed to do so.
What’s puzzling though is that the Lebanese consulate in Ecuador didn’t know about Shalak until the media there reported about him, so I think the ministry of foreign affairs here in Lebanon doesn’t have an idea about the matter as well, and chances are he will have to wait several more weeks until they figure out how to issue new papers for him.
His situation is not unique by the way and many other people ended up somehow living inside airports around the world after they lost or got rid of their personal papers (check here), with the most notable case being that of an Iranian man who lived in Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris for around 18 years!
I’ve been meaning to write about MEESOO for a while now but it’s better late than never I think! MEESOO is a relatively new Italian machine that instantly serves tiramisu cake. You can think of it as an espresso machine but for tiramisu instead. I happen to work in the same building as their head office, that’s why the first time I tried it was at their premises when they were holding tasting sessions for their neighbors and I totally loved it.
The secret for the good taste lies in the Italian mascarpone cream cheese that is kept fresh inside the machine which takes a few second to serve you a cup, and from there on you get to prepare your dessert the way you like. The one I tried had ladyfinger biscuits in the bottom with cream and cocoa power on top, but others may also opt for other ingredients, for example I’ve seen people adding strawberry syrup instead of the cocoa powder, and another brewing a shot of espresso and then pour the cream on top. Still no matter what mix you come up with, you will always feel that rich cream flavor.
In all cases, the idea is to have the same good tiramisu wherever you find MEESOO just like when you order an espresso. And bottom line, I highly recommend you give it a try. MEESOO is now available at several restaurants and coffee shops, and you can check their Facebook page for a list of the places offering it.
Cre8mania staged a cool 3D mapping show on the National Museum of Beirut as part of La Nuit des Musées last Saturday. I personally missed the event but fortunately for us here’s a video to show how it looked like.
Make sure to watch it in high defintion.
I’ve been watching for a while now what the parliamentary candidates have to say about their electoral programs and the amount of literal bullshit you get to see and hear is sickening. The promises almost everyone is making are so ridiculous and fanciful that I can’t believe there are real people supporting them and their programs.
Take for example this video by Nicolas Sehnaoui which promises a solution for the chronic traffic congestion.
In parallel with the above plan, this gentleman named Nazih Najem wants to also build 13 dams covering the whole country.
We live in a country where a pothole takes forever to get fixed, yet this candidate wants to convince us that 13 dams can be built with the flip of a switch.
I really have nothing personal against Sehnaoui or Najem, the above two ads just happened to have appeared on my Facebook feed and I’m pretty sure other candidates are promising similar stuff. The thing is, why can’t they keep it real? First of all, members of the parliament are in principle supposed approve laws and governments expenditure. Initiating projects on the other hand falls under the duties of each ministry, so how on earth can these candidates promise projects?
Anyway, I personally don’t care who wins and who loses, and I’m not interested to see new faces winning because thank god neither my life nor my income depend on any of them. In fact, I won’t even bother voting for anyone because I’d rather put the energy for going to the polling station into something more useful for myself. I just pity those who actually believe such campaigns and waste their time and effort supporting these candidates.
The Ministry of Culture is organizing the 5th edition of La Nuit des Musées which will take place this Saturday April 14th. This year, 13 museums around Lebanon will be open for free to the public starting 5:00PM until late at night.
Free shuttles will be available at LibanPark parking in Mathaf area for people from Beirut who wish to visit the museums in the north and south, but reservations are mandatory through Virgin Ticketing box office to secure your place.
I highly recommend you use public transportation to visit the participating museums in Beirut by the way because it tends to get very crowded around them on this day.
Here’s the list of the participating museums:
MUSÉE NATIONAL DE BEYROUTH
de 17h00 à 23h00
“Mathaf”, rue de Damas
MIM, MUSÉE DES MINÉRAUX
de 17h00 à 23h00
Campus de l’innovation et du sport, Université Saint-Joseph
MUSÉE DE PRÉHISTOIRE LIBANAISE DE L’UNIVERSITÉ SAINT-JOSEPH
de 17h00 à 23h00
Rue de l’Université Saint-Joseph, quartier Monnot
VILLA AUDI
de 17h00 à 23h00
Rue St Nicolas, Achrafieh
MUSÉE NICOLAS IBRAHIM SURSOCK
de 17h00 à 00h00
Rue St Nicolas, Achrafieh
MUSÉE ARCHÉOLOGIQUE DE L’AUB
de 17h00 à 22h00
Université américaine de Beyrouth, Ras Beyrouth
MUSÉE DE LA BANQUE DU LIBAN
de 17h00 à 23h00
Locaux de la Banque du Liban, Sanayeh
SENTIER CULTUREL À SAÏDA
MUSÉE DU SAVON
PALAIS DEBANNÉ
KHAN SACY
KHAN EL-IFRANJ
KASR OLA
de 17h00 à 23h00
MUSÉE DU CATHOLICOSSAT DE CILICIE
de 17h00 à 23h00
Antélias
MUSÉE DES ORPHÉLINS DU GÉNOCIDE ARMÉMIEN “ARAM BEZIKIAN”
de 17h00 à 23h00
Jbeil
MACAM – MUSÉE D’ART MODERNE ET CONTEMPORAIN
de 17h00 à 23h00
Alita, Jbeil
MUSÉE ETHNOGRAPHIQUE DE L’UNIVERSITÉ DE BALAMAND
de 17h00 à 22h00
Koura
I lived my whole life in Beirut and never knew you can actually buy a boat ride around the coast and the Pigeon rock until last year!
I always knew about the two small fishing ports in Dalieh (Raouche) and Ain El Mrayseh, but a friend last summer told me that people can pay the fishermen in Dalieh for a cool boat ride around the area. So back in October I decided to take my kid and do it and we absolutely enjoyed it. I’ve been to a few similar rides in Byblos, Saida and Tripoli but to be honest they’re quite dull compared to what you see in Raouche. And now that the weather is getting nice for such rides, I recommend you plan it because it gives you a very nice perspective of the seaside and pigeon rock.
First of all, you should know how to reach the Dalieh fishing port which is located right next to the Movenpick Hotel. On your way to Movenpick, slow down before reaching its entrance and you will notice a small unpaved road to the right, stop your car there and ask one of the fishermen you will find there to assist you for finding a parking spot at the port entrance. Don’t try driving further down the road unless you have an SUV because it can seriously damage your car.
Going down to the port by foot takes a couple of minutes, but make sure to negotiate the price for the ride with the fishermen before you go. I recall we paid around $50 for 4 adults and 3 children on a ~20 minutes ride. And more importantly, make sure to also have a mosquito repellant because you will definitely need it on the way down.
Don’t be surprised with the port state once you reach it though. It is very ill equipped because the government was supposed to revamp it in 2012 but it unfortunately never delivered and even tried to privatize it, hence why you see the fishermen who live there complaining on the news every now and then. Add to that, the water surrounding it was full of trash coming from the Costa Brava when we went.
So, once ready, hop into the small boat (no life jackets by the way), enjoy the views, and make sure to talk with the guy steering the boat because all fishermen there have so many interesting stories to tell (our guy was called Mohammad Itani). You will see several sea caves, among which is the one below Dbeibo Cafe where a seal supposedly lives. The boat will also go a good distance into the sea for you to see the coast, and on the way back you will approach the pigeon rock and sail inside the hollow part in it.
On the way back from the port, you can’t not see the small houses where some fishermen live, and the contrast you will see between these poor wooden houses and the adjacent luxurious Movenpick is just awkward… However, the setting of their terrace and the views they have from it is so beautiful.
I personally have no idea if the families living there actually own their properties by law, and I also don’t know how legal are the attempts to privatize the area. However, the fishermen who work there definitely deserve a better port and it is a shame for the government to keep it that way. Elsewhere in the world you would see a whole economy built around such rock formations, but then again this is how things are here…
Anyway again, do not miss this cool ride if you have never done it before.
One of the things I really struggle with every weekend is coming up with a new place to take my kid to for some outdoor fun. The options in Beirut are quite limited due to the lack of public spaces/gardens so most of the times we end up at a closed playground, which I absolutely despise, and sometimes at some place up in the mountains when the weather permits.
However, I’ve been lately thinking that the Municipality of Beirut actually does have the capacity to compensate for this lack of public space during the weekends and holidays at minimum, and they can seriously focus on this instead of spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on what they label as attempts to revive Nejmeh square.
Beirut has a lot of big schools such as Lycée Abdelkader, La Sagesse, Makassed and International College to name a few, in addition to many public schools as well, and most of them have large fields with kids playgrounds. So why not can’t the municipality agree with a couple of large schools in every area to open their doors during the weekends in order for the people to enjoy a casual troll or jog away from the polluted streets or even bring their kids to play and spend some time.
I know the whole thing is not as simple as just opening the schools’ doors and it definitely needs money and human resources to make it happen, but the municipality can take it as an opportunity to provide jobs for part timers who are willing to participate. Moreover, schools can also benefit by offering to rent small kiosks for business owners for example.
So yes, instead of pouring money into pointless projects and initiatives, how about we simply try to make use of what’s already available?