Ready Or Not

Getting married has clearly given those surrounding me a free pass to invade my privacy. And nothing is more obvious then how I’ve been on bump watch since I tied the knot. A protruding stomach following a heavy meal, a more loose shirt because I feel hot and sticky especially in this weather, and even…

A Few Words About My Husband

I couldn’t focus on work today so I found myself reading some old posts on this very blog- posts from around the time our wedding planning had hit its stride and our marriage was getting closer and closer.  I’m really glad that I wrote all of those thoughts and experiences down, as now and almost…

Some of My Observations At The Beach

One of my favorite activities in the summertime is to grab a book, my headphones, and head to the beach for some much needed quiet time and relaxation. It’s been my go-to summertime activity for years so I have to say I’m very unpleasantly surprised at the current state of Lebanese beaches and the ridiculous…

Stressed Out

My sister calls it the “Monday song,” so it’s become an integral part of my Monday mornings to listen to 21 Pilot’s hit Stressed Out. She’s totally right: it’s catchy, unsophisticated, and I bet that anyone in a certain age group can very much relate to it- especially when they’re preparing for the week ahead. In…

My Kind of Saturday Night

  It’s late on a Saturday night and I’m sitting in the comfort of our home, playing a really cool board game  with our friends called Takenoko, where we’re trying to cultivate bamboo to get a panda to survive. This is all set to 80s music that we’re live-streaming from some radio station in the…

Back To The Habit

As anyone will tell you, finding time for your hobbies gets increasingly more difficult as the responsibilities increase. And I’m finding it especially true when it comes to picking up a book and finishing it. I’ve gone from being someone who reads one book per week to someone who only gets reading done while waiting…

Vogue Spends Four Perfect Days In What They “Think” Is Beirut

Every time a foreign publication publishes a travel account or recommendation about Lebanon, my timeline is flooded with people sharing the article, possibly in awe that a non-Lebanese came here and had a good enough time to write about it. Well, I’m sick of it. I didn’t even read Vogue’s account, which is currently making…

At My Worst (Again)

About twenty days ago, when I was feeling at my worst yet again, I wrote the below in an attempt to help myself understand why I wasn’t okay yet again, and what are the issues that I need to work on.  Writing always helps me feel better- and when I come back to the posts…

Behind The Wheel

I don’t drive. And in a city like Beirut, where public transport is abysmal and cars abound, this means that I have to be dependent on other people to get from one point to another.  Which quite frankly is a horrible feeling when you’re trying to assert your independence. It’s even worse when you want…

Catching Up

I think the best way to describe penning this post is to compare it to writing a letter (or rather an email to keep with modern times) to a friend after we haven’t been in touch for a while. And it’s been quite some time since I last wrote any new material for Beyond Beirut, as I just…