This October I paid a short visit to Lebanon. On my first evening, I had a tour guide ready to help me discover the streets of downtown Beirut.
A young-spirited Palestinian lady I met at the blue-domed mosque of Mohammad Al-Amin volunteered to show me the vibrant district where churches and mosques neighbor one another.
Sadly, like many countries across the Middle East, most of the old city was lost to war and conflict.
It was only a matter of few days before resemblances between Egypt and Lebanon started shaping.
From all the feelings one gets when traveling, homesickness was not a worry of mine. At every corner and with each meal, I found a glimpse of home.
1. Kishk, Shanklish, and Molasses and Tahini bowls
Among Egyptians, Lebanon is famous for its Tabbouleh and Fattoush, and its healthier versions of staple Middle Eastern dishes.
Here are three treats I came across but didn't expect to see in Lebanon:
Kishk: a preserved dairy product made from fermenting cracked wheat in milk and yogurt. It goes in manakish and is made into soups.
Shanklish: a type of spiced, aged, and dried cheese made of cow or sheep milk. Upon trying shanklish salad with diced tomatoes, onions, and olive oil, it reminded me of our Gebna Adeema.
Molasses with Tahini: a frequent member of any dinner table in Egypt, and apparently in Lebanon too. There is just a tiny difference, while Egyptian molasses is made from sugar cane, its Lebanese cousin comes from pomegranate.
2. The Traffic jam
Lebanon and Egypt share no similarities when it comes to population size.
So when typical Egyptians think of Lebanon, it seems almost impossible to have a traffic jam.
Dear Beirut, I stand corrected...
3. Power Outages
It starts getting weird when power outages follow you around, even when you're abroad.
5. Parking on both sides of the road
Which is just a glimpse of Cairo and Alexandria.
The Egyptian in me thought: "There is barely 7 millions of you people! Where are all of these cars coming from?!"
Turns out there's a very good reason for that:
The current population of Egypt is 95,316,445, while that of Lebanon is 6,026,179 approximately. But it's the population density that matters the most in that case. The population density in Lebanon is 585 per sq Km compared to that of Egypt which is 93 per sq Km.
6. You're never sure which one is the right direction of the street
Streets in Lebanon are just as confusing as they are back home.
7. Army Soldiers stationed in downtown Beirut
After the 2011 uprising and withdrawal of police forces, we became accustomed to seeing the army filling in the space.
To my surprise, I saw the same while visiting Lebanon.
I've come across army soldiers in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, India, and Lebanon. Despite the political turmoil and economic and social instability, the Lebanese were, in my opinion, the most helpful to foreigners.
9. Micro bus themed taxis
Just like in some Egyptian cities, I was surprised by my taxi driver stopping to pick up more passengers on the way, only to end up sharing the back seat with total strangers.
