A walk on Eid al Adha

Eid al Adha (Feast of Sacrifice) is an important Muslim holiday that happens in October.  It celebrates with willingness of Abraham to sacrifice is son, Ishmael, for Allah (God).  In the end, Allah replaced his son with a ram because Abraham was willing. Allah rewarded him by saving his son.

During a wonderful (almost) week off, we decided to take a long walk towards the downtown area. The Lebanese tend to sleep in when they can and therefore the streets were empty. We wanted to take this picture for our friends Everett and Meg because they seem to always have pictures of empty streets where they live in South Korea.

No Everett, the zombie apocalypse didn't happen in Beirut!
We weren't quite sure where we were going but about 40 minutes later we found Nejme Square and it's famous clock tower. This area is usually blocked off by the military and yes the gates were there blocking traffic but we were there so early that the military weren't at their stations yet.

From there we went into St. Georges Greek Orthodox Cathedral. Pictures weren't allowed inside but WOW it was truly beautiful. There was a small chapel outside that had this great mosaic though. We took a picture of it.

Across the way from St. Georges church is the famous Grand Mosque. It was truly beautiful!

Notice the cross to the right? That's the newly remodeled St. Georges Maronite Cathedral (I think). Both are huge! But here's the really interesting thing. Between where I'm standing and these incredible buildings they found Roman ruins that they are now excavating.

We walked around the Mosque and Cathedral and ended up at Martyr's Square.

The statues commemorate Lebanese nationalists who were hanged during World War I by the Ottamans. What was remarkable is that Tim counted over 70 holes from bullets in one of the figures. The arm was blasted off of one as well. This monument survived the fighting that happened in the 70s, 80s and early 90s.  All around the monument it is pretty much flat. Nothing has been developed there yet. I think it's because they have found more ruins.

On the way home I took a picture of something very typically seen in Beirut. Giant cranes are everywhere. This is definitely a city that is still being rebuilt.

It was a long walk but really interesting. While many of the shops were closed because we were there so early I feel that we really had the opportunity to look around while there were no crowds.

We go plant shopping! Yay!

Yesterday, we had the opportunity to hop on the bus and go to a plant nursery just outside of the city. We got great deals because the owners kids go to our school. We are so happy to fill some space on our huge balcony! We picked out some plants that would never survive the Washington weather.  So much fun! Here is what we got!

 This Bird of Paradise isn't quite ready to bloom but it reminded us of Tim's sister, Kim, who loves them

The plant above has a small red flower on the top. We don't know what it's called but the nursery owner called it a "Nurd" plant. HA! I smile at it every time I look at it!

This is a Hibiscus. I guess they get really huge here and always are blooming. We see some the size of trees on the way to work.

 We couldn't resist getting a banana plant...YES an banana plant. I don't know if we'll ever get fruit but supposedly, they give you great privacy on your deck or balcony. I think this one may need a name.

 We plan to train the Jasmine to go along our railing. This one reminds me of my parents because they used to have one that they would have to bring in for the winter. We won't have to do that here!

 Of course, I had to find some rosemary and basil. Now if I can find some Thyme I'll be set. They call is Zatar here and it's in everything!

 Okay Libby! Maybe I won't kill this creeping rosemary! It smells so nice here and grows like a weed. It is all along our walk to school. Along the water, I've already seen it bloom twice since we've been here!

 This one still blows my mind..yes a pomegranate tree! YES! we own a pomegranate tree!! Below is our first one!

 The cute little flowers on our table are called Ice Plants. When the sun goes down, the blooms shrivel up and look like your should take them off. The next morning, the blooms are back!

 Above is Hibiscus  Delaney picked out. This morning when we woke up it had a bloom on it. She was smiling so big. She was truly happy with her plant! It sits on her balcony outside of her bedroom.

 Janna's plant is below. It blooms cute little purplish blue flowers. It sits on her balcony outside of her bedroom.

All and all, we had a great Saturday outing. I loved getting my hands dirty today to plant them!

Homecoming! ACS style!

Things got a little busy last week so this is the first of two blogs for today! Last week was Homecoming here at ACS.  We went to a Pep Rally on Monday. This involved all ages from Pre-K to Seniors. We as a Middle School staff came to represent! We all wore lab coats! It was a fun afternoon where the HS soccer team and HS volleyball team played against staff teams. There was free pizza, fresh lemonade, sno-cones, cotton candy and many booths where the younger kids could do activities or people could buy things where the proceeds went to displaced children from the "war next door". Here, homecoming doesn't revolve around some huge sporting event. While there was a dance for the high school as well as soccer and volleyball games at the end of the week, that wasn't what the week was all about. I kind of liked the spirit. It wasn't about beating another team, it was a celebration of the school.

 Here is our friend Sharon again with Elizabeth. She is another English teacher and works with Tim.

John teaches 6th grade Social Studies. He's one of Delaney's teachers. 

This is Wafa with Me. She is my Lebanese "Maria". (HP people, you know what I'm talking about) She reminds me of Maria every time I see her.  

Maya and Talar teach Science. They are fun and always have smiles on their faces 

Yes, this is our principal, Karim. Yes, he loves ACS!

 Delaney and the Swim Team came running through the gate. With googles on and squirt guns to get the crowd all wet! The swim team is the largest team here at ACS. Yes, bigger than soccer!

Here is Delaney and her friend. They are both on the swim team. Below is Delaney with another friend. She's on the dance team. They were also part of the pep rally.

 Here's Janna with the ACS Knight!

The wind was howling on the way home but Tim, I and the girls decided to walk right along the Corniche so we could see the big waves. These pictures and video don't do it justice. It was incredible.

Janna got pretty wet by a wave but that was okay. It was about 6:00 in the evening and about 75 to 80 degrees. We all had a fun afternoon.