Street art + Hummus = BEIRUT

I stopped in Beirut for only 4 days after a trip to Iran, Turkey and Egypt and it was a great surprise.

Beirut wasn’t on my bucket list, but as usual I got interested in getting to know this city after talking with someone I met on an airplane. I was moving back from Reunion Island to Europe, it was October 2014, and I started talking to the lady sitting next to me; she told me she worked for the UN and she was based on an assignment in Beirut. In the following weeks I did some research and the desire to visit this place started growing.

I finally had 3 weeks off work in December 2015 and I had planned a trip to Iran, Istanbul and Egypt so I made sure that my last stop would have been BEIRUT.

Many people warned me about the risks of going to Beirut and even the UK home office website displayed a map that had too many red zones….anyway it was already too late and I made my mind up and decided to stick with my travel plans. Once in Beirut seeing signs on ambulances or outside buildings saying "weapons not allowed" didn't help either but during my stay in Lebanon I didn't have any problem!

I took a taxi from the airport to avoid all the red zone areas clearly marked on that map from the Home Office. What was supposed to be a 30 minutes ride became a 1.5 hour adventure. The taxi driver couldn’t find my hostel and I even gave him a printed map of the location. He kept stopping at every corner asking for directions. The hostel I stayed was not the cheapest hostel as for 3 nights I had to pay 70USD and was located here:

 

The hostel wasn’t very central but it wasn't far from Armenia street, in a great quarter full of art and amazing street art at each corner! I loved the contrasts of Beirut, in one area you can find high end shops and restaurant and another you can find old buildings destroyed by the war and covered in fantastic art and colors.

I spent a day walking all the way to Pigeons' rocks (Rock of Raouché) on the seafront and this is something I really recommend. I met and chatted with so many local people and the scenery was just stunning with the sea and its big waves....And if it is a nice day that's definitely something you cannot miss.

...But the thing I probably I have enjoyed the most in Beirut was the food!!  Armenia Street is packed with nice restaurants, coffee shops and bars. I found an amazing  restaurant here on Armenia Street and the food was so delicious that I went back every single night. Most amazing hummus with freshly baked bread! This made me really hungry…checking flights to go back!