Beirut

Our second day in Beirut was much better than our first. We first checked out the Hamra area. I’d say the best way to explain this district is it is a Lebanese version of our U-District as it borders the American University of Beirut and has two other universities nearby.
Our next stop was downtown. We wandered through Place d’Etoile, which is a quaint little city center with shops and restaurants. Since it is a pedestrian only area it was a welcomed break from playing frogger with cars and relentless honking. Here is how our Lonely Planet guidebook describes downtown: “Think Paris, post-apocalypse, and you’ll have a good idea of how Downtown looked in the early 1990’s after a decade and a half of civil war. Now, in better years, you could almost say it’s touristy.” We saw the Mohammed al-Amin Mosque, where the former Prime Minister Rafiq Harifi is buried, we walked through a Rafiq Harifi memorial, we ooohed and aaahed at the recently erected Christmas tree and visited Santa’s Village.
Next we cruised the Gemmayez area, which I’d say is Beirut’s comparable to our Belltown. We had a beer at a little pub then at dinner at a quaint little restaurant, Le Chef, where host of “No Reservations,” Anthony Bourdain, dined a couple of years ago. The food is traditional and is catered towards Lebanon’s working class. While it wasn’t our best meal, it was a nice experience.