Explosions rock Egyptian capital

from BBC:

A bomb explosion in the centre of the Egyptian capital Cairo has killed at least one man and injured several others, including foreigners.

Police said a bomb was thrown from a bridge to the street below, killing an Arab man and injuring four Egyptians and four foreigners.

The blast happened near the Egyptian Museum, the country's main Pharaonic museum and a major tourist attraction.

Meanwhile, reports are coming in of a second explosion in the city.

A source close to the Egyptian security services told the BBC that two female suicide bombers had blown themselves up near a suburb of Cairo called Nasser City.

Another unconfirmed report says that a tourist bus has come under fire in the city, but the attackers failed to hit the vehicle.

I am not surprised by this development in the slightest. I had an expectation of additional violence after the small bomb explosion at the entrance to Khan-a-Khalili last month. I visited Cairo in April and found the atmosphere to be very tense and especially un-welcoming to foreigners. It was the first time that I had traveled in a Middle Eastern country with a woman and I experienced thinly veiled anger directed at Westerns based on several conversations as well as the outright stares of disapproval of a Western woman dressed modestly.

It will be interesting to see how Mubarak responds in the coming days. Are these attacks intended to destroy the tourism industry or simply to kill tourists? Is at an economic attack or a direct challenge to governmental rule? The Doha bomber was also Egyptian. Is there a coming rise in terror incidents committed by Egyptians at home and abroad? The coordination and number of attacks in a short period is surprising. More to come...

New readings

I've started reading Robert Fisk's intriguing book Pity the Nation. I really admire how he frames his discussion of the Israel/Palestine conflict by journeying to Auschwitz to examine the plight of holocaust victims and survivors. It's a good read and so far I'd highly recommend it.

It's getting hot here in Dubai. No, really it is. Not much to do around town right now. I've been seen a few movies this week. Interpreter is an interesting new release. It was a bit long in places but all in all worth the 30 dirhams. Need to finish writing the third part of the Lebanon trip. Hopefully it will be done tomorrow. Also, need to get all the photos added to the galleries. Busy busy...

The Syrian street speaks on Lebanon

an article from al Jazeera:

Shuqayri's is a view echoed by many Syrians. They believe the assassination was just the excuse the US needed to meddle in their country's relationship with Lebanon - and Syria is getting the raw end of the deal.

Ali Ziyatir is a civil engineer who spent the better half of his life working in Lebanon for one of the late al-Hariri's many construction companies.

"The opposition is behind the assassination, definitely - along with the West - Israel, France, and the United States. It was all a plot to make Syria withdraw its forces.

"The reality is Syria had nothing to do with it. But the US will not attack. If it wanted to, it would have attacked by now.", he says.

I have heard this same view expressed over and over by students and professionals in Dubai and elsewhere; this view is not limited to Syrians either. The logic is asinine but it stills prevails. It makes no sense that any Western nation would want to intervene in Lebanon since prior actions have only brought death to nationals and military personnel abroad and/or engagement in an endless political squabble.

The issue drives at the epicenter of the modern Arab mindset. It is a general inability to accept fault in the individual sphere and at the governmental level. My claim is based on three primary factors: intensely patriarchal and largely xenophobic families, lingering embarrassment caused by Israel, and the Nasser Arab unity doctrine.

Each culture is rooted in the dynamics of its prevailing family type. In most families the father is the ultimate authority. Inclusion in the family is dependent upon obedience and loyalty. In my experience, there is dramatically less questioning and thought expended by a child towards the parents demands and wants in an Arab family opposed to a Western family; particurarly an American family. This is a broad generalization, but it is a relevant point. Two significant results are that maturity (emotional and intellectual) is stunted and critical thinking skills are not encouraged. When an authority figure (father) announces a direction it is generally accepted. This analogy applies when attached to a powerful central government with a visible figurehead.

The creation of the Israeli state will remain a blow to the Arab psyche for the foreseeable future. There is no acceptance of the mindset of apathy that states neighboring Palestine pre-1948 demonstrated for thirty plus years as the Haganauh grew in power after the Balfour declaration. The reality is that either Egypt and/or Trans-Jordan military forces could have invaded and defeated the Zionist movement. Instead after the formation of Israel they suffered lasting military and political defeat. Today the modern Israeli state is fully supported by the United States, according to popular thought. This thinking allows the populous to blame the US for its continuing problems. Instead of introspection there is a lashing out at non-Arab governments for attacking the collective society. Before there was the United States there was the British and their mandate system. Before that the Turks. When does one recognize a pattern and diagnose the root cause?

Finally, there is the Nasser syndrome. Nasser is exalted as the Arab leader. His ideology based in pan-Arabism and socialism have both united and divided the region. In modern times his lasting legacy has been to develop a collective Arab mentality. An external threat, real or imagined, to one country is a threat to all people. Likewise, there is great skepticism when one Arab country is accused of threatening or attacking a neighbor. The immediate reaction is to blame an outside force. In this case it couldn't be possible that Syrian and Lebanese intelligence corroborated to kill Hariri because clearly the Israelis and their puppet American allies have joined in an alliance to control the Lebanese government. Please. Both the US and Israel have fairly recent and very bloody pasts in Lebanon and I believe that neither wants to engage again.

The fragmented Syrian government, particularly the intelligence services, are the big bully in Lebanon. The Hariri operation went too far and dramatically racheted up diplomatic pressure on Syria by the international community and United States which currently as a sizeable military force deployed just south of her borders. Fear of a government being toppled sent Syria fleeing from Lebanon, not a grand conspiracy conjured by the West.

Global terror attacks tripled in 2004

Terror attacks around the world tripled in 2004, rising from 175 in 2003 to 655 last year, according to statistics released by the US government's National Counterterrorism Center (NCC) Wednesday. The figure includes the children killed in the Beslan massacre in Russia, and the victims of the Madrid train bombings.

- CS Monitor Daily Terrorism & Secruity Report

Read the full 2004 State report here.

Visiting Lebanon Post Hariri: Part 2

Friday afternoon I made arrangements with a knowledgable taxi driver
to take a tour of the Bekaa Valley area of Lebanon on Saturday. Bekaa
is an elivated plateau that lies east of Beirut and the Mount Lebanon
mountain range. Syria and the anti-Lebanon mountains border to the
west. Bekaa is particuraly strategic for Syria because it acts as a
buffer zone against an Israeli offensive.

My plan for the day was to visit the ancient sites in Bekaa;
particurarly Baalbeck and Anjar. I also wanted to get a general sense
of the place. Was it true what I had read about the Syrian military
that occupies the region and the Hezballah precense?

I met the driver around 10. We went for a short tour of the Green Line
areas around Beirut. I gained much insight into the neighborhoods and
divisions. The term "Green Line" actually refers to a stretch of
road/land that winds through Beirut that was a no-man's land during
the war. The line was overgrown by vegitation and named the "Green
Line".

As we got away from downtown (Waslett al Midan) the effects of the war
become more apparent. Entire blocks remained in nearly the same
condition as when fighting ceased in 1990. Each different neighborhood
was pointed out to me. Some Sunnah dominated, some Christian, and some
Shia. The conversation revolved around the Shia districts which are
still divided between Hezballah and AMAL. This short part of the day
really prompted me to read more about the divisions and in-fighting
during the civil war.

We headed out of Beirut along the Damscus Highway. Along the way we
stopped at a military monument. It was massive column of concrete that
had whole pieces of tanks and armor imbedded in the structure. Quite a
sight but didn't really have an emotional feel to it. It came off
very, well military and cold. It was positioned next to the entrance
of a Lebanese military base and we gained an armed visitor monitoring
us as we walked the site.

Heading through the mountains was interesting. Each town/village has
it's own flavor. Some Sunni, Shia, Christian, and Druze. Tourists,
mainly from the Gulf, come to resorts in the area to escape the
oppressive heat during the summer. It's always strange to hit an
ultra-modern concrete building after passing by kilometers of
villages. I'll never understand the khaleeji love of ugly concrete
structures.

The driver and I had been talking about the Syrians and he took me on
a mini-tour of a few recently vacated military camps. The Syrian army
had positioned itself on most all mountain tops and they commanded
views of the valleys in the area. There were dugouts from hundreds of
tanks that had been positioned in defensive positions throughout the
area. Apparently, most of the tanks had vacated about 2-3 weeks back.
The barracks and living conditions were at best harsh. I had a feeling
that this was probably a prime assignment in the Syrian army. If that
is true I can't imagine how bad the regular army in Syria has got it.
Some of the areas had been taken over by Lebanese military, but many
were simply abandoned.

A largely abandoned Syrian military tank park in the mountains near the Damascus highway.

We made a quick diversion to tour a vineyard on the way to Baalbeck. I
hadn't known there was wine production in the area. Interesting tour;
aparently the Romans had used an underground cavern to store and age
their wine. It was abandoned until a Jesuit group built a church on
the land and inadvertently found the cave. The Jesuits then started
wine production. It's currently owned by Lebanese. The wine tasting
was ok, but truthfully I have no idea what I'm doing in that
department. I like wine, liked Italian wine, but the swishing and
swirling is beyond me. I ended up buying two bottles for $10 but
realized that bring them back to Dubai would be an issue and unloaded
them later.

Headed off to Baalbeck. I've seen a fair amount of Roman ruins in the
last year and these were some of the best perserved I've seen. It's a
relativley small and contained area but well maintained. Massive main
temple complex. The columns had Corinthian leaves so I figure the area
was built up during the Hellinistic period. Truthfully, I'm a little
tired of walking around these types of places. Overload. I checked all
out was impressed but only spent about an hour and a half there.
Beautiful views of the mountains. Must have been a great city/state in
its time.

Exploring the Baalbeck ruins.

Before leaving the ruins I wandered over to the museum. Interesting
collection but I was the only one looking at it. At least until some
Syrian officers wandered in. It was a sight. Four high ranking
officers drinking swaggering through the museum. They reaked of
alchol. I figured they were on their fairwell tour after 30 years. I
briefly greeted and talked with one of them in Arabic. They seemed in
pretty high spirits for a army withdrawing under a cloak of shame. eh.
Everyone likes a happy drunk. Later my driver told me that they were
high ranking officers who were coming to give finals instructions to
the garrisons in the area regarding the withdrawl.

The Syrian officers' truck outside of the Baalbeck museum.

We sat down for lunch at a meat show in the town. My favorite kind of
meal here. We sit among the lamb or cattle that had been butchered
that morning. The butcher cut up some meat for us, skewered it, and
threw it over the hot coals outside. Grilled a few tomatos and onions
and I was in heaven. Hot damn. The driver got some tasty bread and we
feasted. You just can't match fresh well seasoned and cooked meat. I
watched a couple of tour buses drive past our spot. I'll never get
those tours. You speed through the interesting culture just to see
ruins of culture that has been gone for more than a thousand years.
Same as Egypt and Jordan. I just don't get that either. A little work
goes a long way in my opinion.

We left in mid-afternoon and headed towards Anjar. We were winding
through a series of villages in the Bekaa. Many were covered by
Hezballah banner with pictures of marytrs along the road. That part
was a little surreal. Hezballah supporters had setup a "checkpoint" at
one point. Really, it was just a roadside donation stop. They offered
free sweets because of the Prophet's birthday holiday. My driver
stopped got some sweets for he and I then left without giving any
donation. He wasn't much of a Hezballah supporter.

Hezballah exerts a little bit of influence in towns around the Bekaa.

Down the road we ran into a pro-Lebanon rally. During the day we had
seen signs and buses head towards rallies. I decided to stop because
of the lack of Hezballah or conservative Christian signs in the area.
It was a demonstration supporting Hariri and demanding the Syrian
exodus. I only stayed about 20 minutes. Early on during the trip it
occured to me that I was visiting a modern day fall of the Berlin
Wall. It was explained to me that had this happened two months ago the
mukhaberat would have come and machine-gunned the crowd and taken
many back to Syria where they would have become "disappeared". The
power of unity struck me while standing on the outskirts of the
demonstration. Of course, the real reason for Syrian withdrawl is
American pressure but the Lebanese demonstrators didn't hurt the
effort.

The recently emboldened Lebanese demonstrators.

Not much to see at Anjar. Anjar is a mainly Armenian town inhabited by
refugees that fled Armenia during the 1930s. The ruins weren't
spectacular and I didn't even pay the ticket price to get in. eh. We
took another tour of Syrian military posts. Anjar is right on the
border so we did run into a fair amount of troops. Many were beating
down walls of their camps or taking down tents. We also saw some
mukhaberat. We had only come across two other intelligence
check-points but being that close to the border I expected them.
Friendly enough, no problems.

I heard the story of a dedicated military line that runs through
Anjar. It is seperate from the official boder crossing. Apparently it
directly links Iran and Syria to Lebanon. The occupiers had used it
for many years to ferry people and supplies in and out of the country.
Apparently, it became an issue after the withdrawl was announced. The
Lebanese started to check vehicles after the small bombings in Beirut.
They found two cars laden with C4 about 2 weeks previous. After that
the military line was closed. The Lebanese even opened fire on
vehicles that tried to cross. Curious that this all occured at the
same time the bombings stopped. Coincidence? I think not.

We made our way back to Beirut without event. The whole trip was
actually pretty draining even though all I did mostly was sit in the
passenger seat of a Mercedes.

The driver wanted to stop by his home and drop off some grocries he
had bought during the day. I readily agreed because I wanted to see a
different side of Beirut. His neighborhood was in a Hezballah
stronghold and across the street from an AMAL neighborhood. He lived
in an apartment on the top floor of a monlithic concrete building with
his wife and 6 children. When we got there the electricity had been
turned off. This is a fairly common occurance, I was told. During the
war the mukhaberat had three stations in the neighborhood but now they
had left. The area had been the only area during the war that always
had electricity.

Ahmad is a Shia muslim but dosen't associate with either AMAL or
Hezballah. Listening to him speak all he wanted was peace and a chance
to make some more money and provide for his family. Really, what else
is there? Anyways, we sat and drank tea and chatted for a bit. I
talked with his kids who had varying degrees of English fluency. I
just had to find the right topic to coax it out of them. For one son
it was football. Chelsea, Real Madrid, AC Milan; I didn't think I was
going to be able to leave. His youngest daughter, 11, impressed me
most. Her English was excellent without accent. I like being able to
move back and forth in English and Arabic even if my Arabic is pretty
spotty at times.

Ahmad dropped me off back at the hotel. I wasn't sure if I'd see him
again so I said my goodbyes. I had hoped to meet up with a friend, but
he was out of town. Rested for a few hours and watched some TV. It is
nice to get away and be able to sleep in a room alone and watch TV.
The small pleasures of life.

More later...

Syrian Intelligence Still in Lebanon

An article from todays Post.

U.N. member states and the Lebanese opposition have told the United Nations that Syrian military intelligence has taken up new positions "in the south of Beirut and elsewhere, and has been using headquarters of parties affiliated with the government of Syria as well as privately rented apartments for their purposes," said a report Annan made to the Security Council and released yesterday.

Syrian intelligence is also deployed in Palestinian refugee camps and communities, some of which have suddenly grown larger, U.S. officials and Western diplomats said. One Palestinian community in the eastern Bekaa valley, which is tied to the Syrian-backed Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), is of particular concern, as are strategic locations inside the Lebanese border with Syria, Western envoys said. The PFLP is based in Damascus.


A photo I took on 24 April of the entrance outside of the former Syrian mukhaberat headquarters in southern Beirut.

Last Syria Force Leaves Lebanon, but Political Puzzles Remain

The Times has run a well written article in today's news.

"Some Lebanese politicians and American officials expressed concern, however, that Syria might continue exercising influence here through intelligence officials and its Lebanese political allies. And Secretary General Kofi Annan expressed concern at the United Nations that Lebanese militias, including Hezbollah, had not yet been disarmed."

This paragraph hits the heart of the widely held Western view of Lebanon. Of course Syria will continue to be deeply involved in Lebanese politics. America, the Arab World, and Russia build and wane in their influence in the country. However, Syria will always be just across the border. The idea that the Syrian government wouldn't be involved is asinine. It is the equivalent of saying that one is concerned that Germany will continue to influence the political atmosphere of Luxemburg.

Syria is the big brother with a much larger population, economy, and military force. In the present state system it is essential for Syria to protect their interests; ie access to the Lebanese economy. The focus of Western governments and the UN should be less on verifying Syrian withdrawal and investigating the Hariri asassinantion and more on building a viable economy and helping to equip and train a competent Lebanese security force (training outside of Lebanon). Lebanon has a unique opportunity to rebuild its base and encourage the millions its highly skilled expatriate workers to return. Syria will continue to be intimately involved until Lebanon is strong enough economically to stand on her own.

Regarding Hezballah; how is it possible to disarm them? This is not a structured or defeated military force. The organization is an armed militia operating in a semi-autonomous region in the south and less so in Bekaa. Disarming them by force is not a smart option. The Lebanese military is little more than a more organized militia and is not capable of that operation. Foreign forces would do nothing more than worsen the situation.

Hezballah's strength lies in its base that see the organization as a force that prevailed in driving Israel from Lebanon and representing the largest organized Shia party. As wealth and opportunity return to the country Hezballah will play less and less a role in the political scheme. In the meantime, the focus must be on incorporating and legitimizing its base into mainstream politics. Disarmerment will be a natural course of action.

Both issues are a matter of focus. The glass must be seen as half full rather than half empty in Lebanon.

In other news: found out this morning that I'll be making a trip to Tehran in May. Can't wait. It's one of the places I had written off because of visa issues and general difficulty of travel. A contact in the consulate should be issuing the visa; fingers crossed.

Syria completes Lebanon withdrawal

Tuesday 26 April 2005, 5:51 Makka Time, 2:51 GMT

Aljazeera's correspondent in Lebanon said the Syrian army's intelligence chief in Lebanon, Major-General Rustum Ghazala, crossed the border and arrived in Damascus on Monday.

Ghazala's departure comes after Lebanese security forces took control of the last positions vacated by Syrian forces from Anjar in the country's eastern Bekaa Valley.

The final handover of control to Lebanese forces will be carried out on Tuesday in a ceremony where Syrian forces will be honoured for their services to Lebanon.

On Sunday, Syrian soldiers were seen loading ammunition and knocking down the walls of an old base in eastern Lebanon, ending a 29-year military presence.

Blast, gunfire in Israeli-occupied Shebaa Farms: witnesses

Blast, gunfire in Israeli-occupied Shebaa Farms: witnesses

By Agence France Presse (AFP)

Monday, April 25, 2005

RASHAYA, Lebanon: An explosion, followed by gunfire, was heard in the Israeli-occupied Shebaa Farms district on the Lebanese-Syrian border Sunday, according to witnesses in the area. The blast struck around 5.30 p.m. and was followed by several bursts of gunfire before four Israeli helicopters arrived on the scene, the witnesses said.

There was no immediate riposte by Israeli artillery as is usually the case when Israeli positions in the area come under attack.

According to witnesses, it was unclear how many people were wounded.

Reports emerged that the explosion had taken place inside an Israeli tank in the Ramsa farm, or that the tank had run over a land mine planted by Israel. However, neither reports were confirmed.

Shiite guerrillas of the Syrian-backed Lebanese resistance group Hizbullah usually carry out sporadic attacks in the area. But on Sunday, a Hizbullah official - despite confirming the explosion - added that the resistance group would not comment at the time being.

Originally part of Syria, the Shebaa Farms are now claimed by Beirut with Damascus' blessing, but the arrangement is not recognized by Israel or the United Nations. - AFP

Visiting Lebanon Post Hariri: Part 1

I left last week to spend four days in Lebanon. The country hasn't been my focus of study so my knowledge was pretty general. Civil War ~25 yrs, Syrian occupation ~30 yrs, Israeli occupation ~20 yrs, Hizballah, SLA, the Green Line, Khiam detention camp, Bekaa, etc. This is just general knowledge stuff, but I figured it would be a safe enough place despite the State travel warnings. I think if one abided by the warnings it wouldn't be safe to leave the US or Canada.

I digress; I flew in at night to Beirut. It was gorgeous flying into the airport because I got lucky with a window and, wait for it... Emergency exit row seat. Go Air Arabia. I'd seen pictures of the city but hadn't realized the extent of the mountain ranges the encircle it. It's quite beautiful at night when the surrounding hills are lit up.

The airport was so-so. Not as nice as Dubai but not as bad as Sudan. A bit like the old Detroit terminal. The Sharjah airport was a diaster. Not nice at all when compared against Dubai and even Abu Dhabi.

The Lebanese women at the airport were incredible. Big departure from other Middle East countries. They wore western clothes and wore them well. This was a highlight of my time wandering around Lebanon, especially Beirut.

I stayed in the Hamara neighborhood in West Beirut. I was a five minute walk from AUB and in the middle of one of the major shopping districts. Bar Bar is food chain I frequented often. Good menaeesh and shawarma. There was also a good saj stand across from the main gate of AUB. The area I was in had defiantly seen some fighting during the civil war.


The street the hotel was on in Hamara. Notice the bullet pock marks on the building to the right of the photo.

I wandered around Beirut the next day. I basically stayed in the area around Hamara, Downtown, and Ashara Fi (the transliteration there might suck). Lots to see. The corniche was quite beautiful but the skyline was somewhat obscured by a cloud layer over the mountains and city. Not great photo weather both days in Beirut, so not many photos there.

It's actually a little depressing. It could be such a beautiful place, and is to a extent, but the remnants of the civil war haven't been cleaned up. Most places around the Green Line still show traces of the fighting. Collapsed and bullet riddled buildings are a plenty.

I went along the corniche to the area where Hariri's convoy was attacked. The bomb left a massive crater and destroyed the entire block. The area was still blocked off and guarded by soldiers and police. Not much seemed to have been moved. The twisted remains of cars littered the street with the rubble. There were plastic bags up over the cars that must have still been covered in blood. It was a sobering sight. I had wanted to take a photo but decided not to after some milling about. I think it is because I have the mental image and the area is well documented by talented journalists. It also felt like an invasion of Lebanese privacy. Ah well.

At one point I drifted over to Marytr's Square; the location of the huge political rallies following Hariri's death. The square was closed off to cars but was open to people. It was mostly empty when I was there. However, there has been a photo wall/memorial opened and dedicated to the last 2 months events. Very moving to see and even more moving to stand back and watch the Lebanese walk along while talking and pointing at the photos. I am not sure if these photos are art, but their power to convey emotion and prompt an intimacy with the people portrayed is unfathomable powerful. There are also two grotto areas near the photos under the tent that covers the area. Christians and Muslims stood side by side weeping while praying.


The center of the square is marked by a large statue that existed before the war. During the war it symbolized the epicenter of the fighting and beginning of the Green Line. Camped around the area are mostly student aged demonstrators that decided to stay rather than risk leaving and not being allowed back in by either the Syrians or Lebanese government.

The weather was fairly warm and more humid than I was expecting. I spent only about eight hours getting acquainted before heading back to the hotel for a rest. I met up with a friend that night and went out to the Manour street area. Great, vibrant bars/gathering places. People were out having a good time and it was a very attractive scene. That topic was the topic de jour. I think it would very interesting living in Beirut.

Slept in the next day and then shed my camera for the day. Went to the AUB campus. This is a beautiful place. It sits on a large parcel of land on a hill that slopes down to the coastline. The entire area is wooded and silent. I couldn't hear the city from inside campus. Go trees; they're pretty and muffle the sounds of the city. The main building had been destroyed by a car bomb during the war and was rebuilt about 10 years ago. It sticks out as looking new but in time I hope it will weather and take on the character that the rest of the place has.

I went on a book shopping spree. It was good. About 6 or 7 Lebanese and Mid East books in total. I also went up in a tethered hot air balloon in the center of downtown. Very cool experience. I could see all of the mountains and urban sprawl that encroached upon them. The Hariri bombsite was near and the full extent of the devastation was clearly visible. I also could see the funeral procession for Bassel Fleihan who died as a result of burns suffered while riding with Hariri.

Fleihan was a Christian and the funeral was held at a large church near the Parliament building. I wandered over in that general direction and watched for a bit. It was an odd mix of a funeral and political demonstration. Really, its not odd at all but it struck a chord with me. I also felt like I didn't belong there so I only watched for a short time.


Everywhere I went in Beirut there were posters of Hariri. Along the streets, in shop windows, on cars, billboards. I thought this scene was poignant.

I wandered around for a while longer and stopped at some cafes along the way. It was nice to just sit and relax along the corniche and think in peace for an hour or so. After, I headed back to the hotel and relaxed for a bit. Had dinner at Bar Bar and then headed off to find a another decent bar for the night. Things don't get started until late and I didn't go out until about 11. Service taxis are a great and cheap way to get around. You yell your neighborhood destination from curbside and they either stop or continue. It's a good chance to meet interesting people and make conversation. I ended up in a bar on the eastern side of Manour street down a side alley. Really cool place. White Stripes, Von Bondies, Franz Ferinand, Joan Jett, Modest Mouse all being played. Nice stiff drinks and made quick friends with the bartenders and other guys sitting at the bar. A few JD w/Coke and shots later I headed in for the night.

The next day I was planning to head to Bekaa and needed some sleep. More on that later.

Trying the blog bit again

I'm trying to get into blogging. Again.

The first time through I was preparing to leave for Sudan and a few
months in the Middle East. I wrote a bit last December about
preparing, but I found it to be a chore and stopped. I don't
particularly regret that yet because all of my memories are still
fairly fresh. That may change in time but not yet.

In Sudan I tried to keep a journal but the experiences were just a
little too overwhelming at times. I was mentally exhausted from trying
to keep up with Arabic and the events around me. While I was in the
south part of northern Arab Sudan I managed to get deathly sick for a
few days and that didn't help the journal keeping.

My advice: if you find yourself in a refugee camp in Sudan stay away
from the roadside agachi. YMMV.

So that is my apology to myself for the my future anger at failing to
keep an accurate journal for ~ six months. This brings me to my next
point, first being the agachi, my audience is not you. It is me. If
you found these posts and are interested, great. The first time around
I sent this stuff to lots o' people and it felt like too much
pressure. If you don't like what I write then don't read it.