A little more randomness from what I'm learning upon my arrival to Beirut...
Getting around is pretty simple on the surface...if you're lucky, you have a friend with a car (or in my case a colleague), otherwise you walk or take a bus or taxi. The busses look either like a regular city bus (think CARTA) or are the old school VW van-looking things. I haven't ridden the bus yet, but I've heard it's cheap and efficient. The other option is taxi...which is more complex than at first glance....there is a taxi then there is a service (servees) taxi. Servees is cheaper and is shared with other (most likely random) passengers. There is really no way to tell the difference between a taxi and a servees other than to ask. This transportation thing is still an area where I'm not confident and will need much more practice. Come to think of it, this whole day to day living- moving around the city, running errands still needs practice. But it's definitely a place that I don't mind (AT ALL) living in!
Everyone that I have come in contact with is so friendly and many ex pats that I have met have lived here for years...they liked it so much they figured out a way to make what began as a temporary post into a permanent one.
Another interesting thing here is the bathroom situation. The hotel where I'm staying as well as a home I've already had the pleasure of being invited to (for dinner) has a hose-type thing with a sprayer on the end (much like a mini shower hose) in place of a bidet (that will be my next experiment...using the hose). Anyway, the plumbing isn't near like the West, so you throw all "products", including toilet tissue in the trash can. I'm getting used to it but it's weird to be out and throw tissue in the trash instead of flushing it.
It is exciting and fun to experience all the differences in the daily life here...I thought the day would never arrive when I would finally be "Live from Beirut"!! More to come!
Getting around is pretty simple on the surface...if you're lucky, you have a friend with a car (or in my case a colleague), otherwise you walk or take a bus or taxi. The busses look either like a regular city bus (think CARTA) or are the old school VW van-looking things. I haven't ridden the bus yet, but I've heard it's cheap and efficient. The other option is taxi...which is more complex than at first glance....there is a taxi then there is a service (servees) taxi. Servees is cheaper and is shared with other (most likely random) passengers. There is really no way to tell the difference between a taxi and a servees other than to ask. This transportation thing is still an area where I'm not confident and will need much more practice. Come to think of it, this whole day to day living- moving around the city, running errands still needs practice. But it's definitely a place that I don't mind (AT ALL) living in!
Everyone that I have come in contact with is so friendly and many ex pats that I have met have lived here for years...they liked it so much they figured out a way to make what began as a temporary post into a permanent one.
Another interesting thing here is the bathroom situation. The hotel where I'm staying as well as a home I've already had the pleasure of being invited to (for dinner) has a hose-type thing with a sprayer on the end (much like a mini shower hose) in place of a bidet (that will be my next experiment...using the hose). Anyway, the plumbing isn't near like the West, so you throw all "products", including toilet tissue in the trash can. I'm getting used to it but it's weird to be out and throw tissue in the trash instead of flushing it.
It is exciting and fun to experience all the differences in the daily life here...I thought the day would never arrive when I would finally be "Live from Beirut"!! More to come!
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