I found a dead bug in my cereals box today morning. Don’t think i have to say more to express my disgust. Maybe i should sue Kellogs.

A predominant number of Lebanese hotels forbid unmarried couples from staying together in a room. [Source]

I have to partially agree with this article as i believe there are more hotels that accept unwed couples than ones who don’t.

“If the guests are not Lebanese, they can book a room,” said Nasrine Jabado, a front desk agent at the Quality Inn in Tripoli.

“If they are coming from abroad, it’s ok,” said an employee at an upscale hotel in Beit Mary who preferred to speak off the record. “Usually, in Arab countries, that’s hotel policy.”

Added to that, i have to ask those hotels what difference does being a Lebanese make? Why do they assume the girl is a whore or the guy is filthy if they are sharing a room?

I find this policy really backwards and unjustified as this is bad business for them.

Yesterday around 6 pm, i was driving on the Jal el Dib highway then went left under the bridge to withdraw money from a nearby ATM. I was on the phone when a police officer jumps in front of me from no where and asks me to pull over. I swear i could have hit him if i wasn’t going slow.

Here’s how the discussion went:

Police Officer: You know you cannot talk on the phone while driving, it is against the law.

Me: I know but i just picked up the phone and am parking over there (pointing at the nearby Bank Audi ATM in Jal el Dib).

Police Officer: It doesn’t matter, you broke the law and i have to penalize you. Please give me your papers.

Me: Here you go.

Police Officer: So you are Najib.

Me (telling myself Dah): Yes

Police Officer: So as i was telling you, i have to write you a ticket for talking on the phone while driving.

Me: Ma badda hal2ad, i was just gonna park over there. I’ve received already two tickets that i didn’t deserve. Just let me go.

Police Officer: I am not sure i can. It is the law, but i can make you a favor. I will write you down the ticket and you can pay it without handing me your driving license.

(So basically, he wants a bribe)

Me: No it is ok, just go ahead and do it the legal way, i don’t mind. Do it as it should be done.

Police Officer: Hmm you know what, you seem in a hurry, i will let you go this time.

So i just left without getting a ticket but imagine how many people are actually bribing him and the money he makes in one day, even though i sense the police officer in question was not even allowed to issue tickets, if he was a real police officer at all!

The Central Bank of Lebanon is going to issue new 250,000LL and 500,000 LL bills in an attempt to “absorb the large number of bills currently circulating in the market,”. [NowLebanon]

So basically people earning the minimum wage will receive one bill as their salary! A positive aspect of those new bills though is that it will be easier to bribe (via Mustapha)

Check out this ad in alwaseet:

Rass Osta – Mar Charbel road Annaya 3000m2 – will trade it for a Range Rover 2006 Sport.

MTV reported Wednesday that Tourism Minister Fadi Abboud beat a female employee in his ministry. [NowLebanon]

I read this in the news two days ago, yet no investigation has been conducted or update has been posted on this very serious incident.

Of course Fadi Abboud rejected the accusation and wants to sue MTV now.

Who should we believe?

I like the idea but i wish they had worked a bit more on his smile as he is looking as if he’s telling people “Hahaha Gotcha!”. Now if we go back in time and take a look at the phoenicians, they were known to be traders and sometimes unethical ones, but do we really want to send out this message to tourists?

The Development & Real Estate Annual Meeting (DREAM) 2010 is being organized by promofair at BIEL Beirut from Wednesday 20th till Saturday 23rd and is considered Lebanon’s most important property event of the year.

I visisted it two days ago and unless you wish to buy an appartment for 500,000$ and more, then don’t bother go there. The prices are ridiculous and the exhibition is more targeted towards millionaires and billionaires.

Beirut Terraces, Plus Properties, Sama Beirut and other fancy and luxurious projects are overwhelming the place, with few reasonable projects dispersed here and there.

There’s of course a stand for every bank in Lebanon, giving out impossible to reach loans at the highest of interests.

I hate leaving my car to the Valet Parking but sometimes you just have no other choice, but after hearing from what they did to my friend’s car, i would rather not park and leave than give it to a Valet Parking (except for Roadster since i know the guy).

So what’s the story?
A friend of mine had a wedding yesterday at the Batroun Village in Batroun. He gave his car to the valet and few hours later, he was done with the party and ready to leave. He ordered his car and as soon as it got here, the car was completly messed up from the inside, the car phone damaged and its stand broken as if someone was trying to steal it.

He got pissed and asked the Valet guy what happened to his car, and was told nobody touched it. He even talked to the person in charge and he denied any responsibility. The funny part is that Batroun village is situated in a relatively isolated area, so there is no way someone could have gotten in without the valets noticing.

I told my friend to call and complain but he said it’s pointless. I would have called and made their life a living hell until i got compensated to be honest.

This whole valet business is getting seriously out of control and someone should put an end to those car-wrecking car-stealing pricks.

I finally asked the owner of the car how much he wants for it.

So ladies and gentlemen, the owner of the car wants $5,000 for it.

Why does it have a blue door?? Maybe it got a bruise after the accident! lol!

A friend of a friend of mine who is in Lebanon came up with a cool idea for Halloween, he wanted to dress up as spartan since he’s a huge fan of the movie 300. He had 65 days till Halloween and he was overweight and unfit. So he decided he would go on a strict diet, exercise his ass off and document his journey on a blog. There is now 11 days left till Halloween and as you can see from the picture above he has practically achieved his goal. I think that is just amazing. When you see the before and after pictures in magazines you don’t think much of it but this guy is real and managed to achieve all that in just 50 days. Check out his blog [Here]

He is now planning a charity event where he will parade in Beirut with other Spartans. Once I get more information on that will post about it.

Is this one of the other privileges army men have over us? not wear helmets on their vespas?

Just like Liz, the character played by Julia Roberts in “Eat, Pray, Love”, I’ve been dating guys since I was fifteen as I never wanted to be alone.

I came back to Lebanon almost a year ago, after spending several years abroad and of course not wanting to stop my habits, I started dating a “nice” guy who on our first date told me that he had not at all a Lebanese mentality as if this were a positive thing. After a couple of months of dating, I had to break up with him as he was possessive, jealous and suspicious. A typical lebanese after all!

So I thought why don’t I spend some quality time just with myself for once and take a long break from dating.
I discovered later on that being single in Lebanon is a very challenging issue:
• When I accompany a couple to a restaurant, the waiter: “Will there be a fourth party joining you?”
• At the movie theater on an early afternoon on a Sunday, the guy at the ticket box selling: “Bass la shakes wa7ad?”
• In a mall when I bump into friends: “ Shoo ma3meen hon?”
• At a party meeting new people: “Single? Shoo in3ammo el rjeil?”

I discovered that I’m not cut out for this single life especially in Lebanon, so I decided to look for Mr. Right but where to find that rare gem?

This summer I met a very nice lady who happens to have a matrimonial agency in Lebanon and to my surprise she told me that so far all her matching were at 80% successful. When she found out that I was single, she expressed her surprise (of course me being a great gal) and proposed her services that I gently rejected saying that I can manage.
Few days ago, she called me to tell me that she has the perfect match for me; so I felt embarrassed and told her that I was seriously not that desperate that if I put a bit of an effort to it I’m sure I’ll find a nice guy but she insisted that I have a look at the perfect guy’s profile. So a couple of hours later I get her e-mail and I started reading:
Profession: CEO (Good a man with a career)
Location: Dubai (Oh I wouldn’t mind moving to Dubai especially with the actual situation in Lebanon)
Hobbies: All type of sports (Hmmm athletic)
Languages: 8 (Very cultured)
Hair & Eyes: Blond & Blue (Well I’m not really into blond guys unless they looked like Robert Redford in his 30s)
Nationality: European (Why not, Lebanese men don’t get me or is it me who do not get them??)
When suddenly I read “SMOKER”!!!!!! That was definitely a deal- breaker!
I sent her back an email, thanking her for considering me and congratulating her on how professional is her agency and finally apologized, telling her that I don’t like kissing ashtrays, thinking I am being funny!
Only this morning I get back an e-mail from her saying:

“No wonder you are still single!”

I received an email from my brother who has been in the states for 6 months now that he misses Baklawa and Bzourat and wants some. He asked me if he should order some online or wait for someone travelling to the states to get him some.

I honestly have never ordered Baklawa online, so i don’t know much about it and i personally dislike it. I know that Al Hallab delivers Baklawa and i also found another site called Baklawaonline.com but it is not located in Lebanon. As for the bzourat, Al Rifai delivers and has special sets for travel.

If anyone has ever ordered Lebanese sweets online, i would be glad to get some hints on the matter.