Young And Foolish
Hi everyone!
It's 2013. I was only eighteen years old when I decided to go on holiday to Lebanon with a friend of mine. I can hear you think now: 'Lebanon? Why in the world would you go to Lebanon?'
Well, my friend's father was born there and her father's side of the family still lives there. At that time, she hadn't visited them in a long time and I had never been abroad without my parents, so that's why we decided to go on holiday to Lebanon together. And my mom, well, she was not amused!
© 2013 - @lackofcolor
How, when & why
We had talked about this idea many times. At first, it was some kind of joke and we both thought it would never actually happen. But after graduation, we both decided to take a gap year so we had plenty of time to go on holiday.
My friend told me her family had always been very good to her, although she didn't see them that much. She was also absolutely sure that they would like me and treat me like their own family. And right there she convinced me, haha.
She always stayed at her grandmother's house when she went to Lebanon so we decided to stay there again this time. It wouldn't only save us a lot of money, but I would also be able to get to know her family better.
© 2013 - @lackofcolor | The suburbs
Lebanon through my own eyes
To be honest, I had no clue what to expect from Lebanon, Beirut to be exact. Of course, my friend told me things about it but I know I would experience it differently.
So the first thing I noticed was the temperature. I freaking loved it! Her uncle picked us up in the middle of the night and he brought us to her grandmother. We got inside and her whole family stood there to welcome us, of course, accompanied by a lot of yummy food.
The days after we did all kinds of things. We went to a ladies beach, we went shopping, ate a lot of Manakish with za'atar (it's a flat bread with a mixture of herbs, sesame seeds and olive oil on top) and we smoked a lot of shisha. You can even order a shisha by phone and they will deliver it at your house, I just couldn't believe my eyes!
© 2013 - @lackofcolor | Of course, I bought one
Another thing I noticed was the huge difference between the area where her grandmother lives and the city center. Downtown it was all pretty and luxurious, but the suburbs were old and dilapidated. It's kind of logical though because there had been a civil war that lasted until 1990.
Also, the difference between how people live over there and how we live here in the Netherlands was a real eyeopener.
© 2013 - @lackofcolor | The city center of Beirut
© 2013 - @lackofcolor
Something that my friend told me a lot about was this little juice bar close to her grandmother's house. I don't think those juices were as healthy as this bar made them look like, but at least they were very tasty!
© 2013 - @lackofcolor
They also sold 'doping' at this juice bar which made me laugh really really hard haha.
© 2013 - @lackofcolor | For every one who wants to be young...
In the last week of our holiday, her uncles and aunts took us on a boat trip and into the mountains. Before we went into the mountains they told me to wear thick clothes because it could get very cold up there. I think they forgot that I was born in Holland;).
© 2013 - @lackofcolor
The end of the story
I really enjoyed my time in Beirut, but it was good to be home again after two weeks.
This vacation changed my view of the world and it made me hungry to see more of it. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to travel more, but you never know what the future will bring!
If you could travel anywhere, where would you go and why?
Thanks for reading again, I hope you enjoyed this post!
See you!
Dymph
The beast banner by @beherenow
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