It’s almost been six weeks since I’ve arrived with two bags and all our things from Houston. Last week I left again to Lebanon for a few days and returned to spend some time here with my husband. It’s been a nice break for the both of us. The city is quiet, peaceful, and everyone is gone. Business hours are back to normal and the people hanging around are calm. We’ve been spending some time at home, catching up on sleep, organizing our things, cooking, reading, and gardening.

Driving around, it’s easy to see how much more progressive this city is becoming. The roads in the center are well paved and well planned and in some parts there are no hints of desert. One can see new highrises every few blocks, new shops, and even newer malls sprouting from in between primitive structures. This is a city with a clear visible duality constantly in motion. Old and new, rich and poor, strong and weak, Native and non-Native.

This duality is a result of a leap towards progress, but this same duality also causes a great deal of hypocracy and inconsistency. The recent spike in oil prices has brought beaucoups of cash to the region. Arabs are quickly realizing that they cannot rely solely on energy income so they are investing in all aspects of the global market. Just a few generations back, life here was drastically different. There are those who embrace this duality and those who fight it. The truth is that you never know what you’re gonna get and you have to be okay with that.

Unfortunately women here are forced to be okay with much more than men. Despite having no public freedom, they manage to float around ever so gracefully under their beautiful abayas. One can notice subtleties in the way they walk or the way they carry their purses or even the way they wrap the covers on their heads. One can only see glimpses of their eyes and if paying close attention, one can notice that some are demure, others confident or sexy, happy or sad. They are definitely strong and proud beautiful beings.

Looking forward to life going back to normal in the next few weeks. Some positives of the past month are that all of our things are unpacked, spent some time together as husband and wife, hung out with some very interesting people, found a cleaning lady that helps me in the mornings twice a week, learning to cook, and most importantly, learning to go with the ever changing tides.

After lunch coffee, Mayfouk., originally uploaded by Carcura.

Fruit Platter, Mayfouk.
Originally uploaded by Carcura

Donkey on the way.
Originally uploaded by Carcura

Cross at The Maronite Church, Mayfouk., originally uploaded by Carcura.

The village of Mayfouk is located in a lovely mountain area with beautiful scenery, 64km from Beirut and 25km from byblos at 1000m altitude.

The Maronite Church of Patron Elige.
Originally uploaded by Carcura

Here is the Church of Our Lady of Elige, built of small stones and obviously of great antiquity. A Syriac inscription dating to 1276 is inlaid in the wall of the church and is written in estranghelo characters.

A Syriac inscription dating to 1276.
Originally uploaded by Carcura

It reads: “In the name of the eternally living God, in the year 1588 of the Greek era, this Jacobite temple to the Mother of God, who prays for us, was finished. Amen. By the hands of the bishops Mark and John.”

The Maronite bishop’s hiding room.
Originally uploaded by Carcura

The Church is today owned by the Maronite community and according to Maronite history, was for a time the seat of their Patriarchate.

Lady Elige of the Maronite Church.
Originally uploaded by Carcura

This beautiful icon of The Lady of Elige is said to have been recently restored and is a powerful symbol of the Maronite faith in Lebanon.