The Last of Lebanon

Besides the Beirut Museum, the Jeitta Grotto was an unexpected highlight of our trip. It might have been one of those times when you come into a situation with absolutely no expectations, but I think even if someone had told Read More

The World’s Oldest City

Byblos is hailed as “the world’s oldest continually inhabited city,” but a quick web search indicates that is the matter of some dispute. But Byblos has been inhabited for at least 5,000 years, that much is clear. There are some Read More

The National Museum of Beirut

A museum, when done right, can be a truly spectacular experience. In my humble opinion, as a fairly frequent museum-goer, there are a few essential elements for a good museum. The National Museum of Beirut really nailed it on all Read More

Out & About in Beirut

Severin started reading the Wikipedia page on Lebanon’s Civil War; I told him I wanted the five sentence synopsis when he was done. 45 minutes later, Severin finished reading the main article but ultimately determined it was basically too complicated Read More

Lebanon: What We Ate

As has been well established by science, Mediterranean food is the healthiest cuisine in the world. I would also argue that it is the most delicious. While Mexican food is definitely my favorite, if I had to pick one regional Read More

#Can’tBelieveWe’reInBeirut

There are certain things you give up to be an American diplomat, and for a long time, one of those things was the right to visit Lebanon for any personal reason. Not such a big issue for people like Severin and Read More