Cyprus

After teaching my last class of the semester, it was a marvelous break to get away to the island of Cyprus for a few days. Cyprus is only 112 nautical miles across the Mediterranean from Beirut--for us, a quick 25 minute flight on Cyprus Air--but it feels like a world away. Cyprus is a member of the European Union, and the major language spoken there is Greek. All the roadsigns, menus, etc. were in Greek. Luckily for us, Cyprus's lovely weather makes it a vacation haven for the Brits, so most of the tourist-oriented things are written in English as well as Greek. It was the first place Jeff and I had visited since being in Beirut where we didn't need a visa. Passing through passport control in Cyprus was wonderfully easy, and provided a great start to our relaxing vacation.

One of the fun things about Cyprus was getting to sample some Greek food. We went to one place called Militjis that had a great view of the sea as well as super traditional food. Jeff had roast pork on a spit (hard to find in the Arab world), and I had tavas, which was lamb, potato, tomato, and spices baked together in the oven. And the ovens are these neat dome-shaped things out on the patio.

Some of the island's private homes had those outdoor ovens, too. Speaking of private homes, many of the places we walked past looked like charming little cottages with plants and flowers everywhere. It was neat to see that the whole island hasn't been swallowed up by tourism yet.

We were hoping to get to visit the natural history museum in Larnaca while we were there, but it was closed. There was, however, a weird little zoo area where huge birds like peacocks and pelicans were penned up in cages that were too small for them. Poor little things. That didn't stop us from posing for pictures in front of them, though:

A visit to Cyprus would not be complete without lolling around pool- or beachside in the Mediterranean sunshine. We slathered on the SPF 30 and did just that.

It was a wonderful respite from the noise of Beirut and the stress of grading. And since it's only a 25 minute flight, who knows, maybe we'll make it back there again!

Lebanese Elections

It is hard to believe that I have very nearly finished my first academic year at the American University of Beirut. All in all, it has been a really good one. I get to teach interesting courses to small classes of articulate and polite undergrads from backgrounds very different from mine, the campus is beautiful, my sunny office overlooks a palm tree and some good-smelling flowering shrubs, and there are cats everywhere. Add to that some nice colleagues and pleasant weather, and it is no wonder the year went by so quickly.

 

When I realized that the June 7^th parliamentary elections were a really big deal here, I started to wonder if my quiet first academic year would end with a "bang"…literally.  Lebanon's two major political entities are the ruling pro-Western March 14^th alliance, which is backed by the U.S. and Saudi Arabia, among others; and the March 8^th alliance, of which Hezbollah is a key member. March 8^th, also known as "the resistance," has the support of Iran and Syria. In the run-up to the election, many were predicting a March 8^th victory, but (not to spoil the suspense for anyone not following the news) that did not happen.

 

It sounds as though the actual voting itself was fairly calm, with fisticuffs limited to northern Lebanon. There was a lot of what sounded like celebratory gunfire in the streets of Hamra (my neighborhood) on the Thursday night before the election. I'm not sure what they were celebrating that early, but it was enough to make me stay in most of the weekend. It was the first gunfire I'd heard since I've been here. However, some of my colleagues were convinced that the noise was from firecrackers going off and thought I was crazy for worrying about it.

 

 AUB's final exam schedule was all messed up due to the elections: school (and most everything else) was shut down on the Saturday before and Monday after elections, I guess in case things got tense. Luckily, things did not get tense, and I'm sure the students appreciated the extra time to study.

 

I was surprised about the March 14^th coalition's win. I think everyone was. Some in the media have speculated that Obama's speech in Cairo might have helped tip the balance in that direction, but it's hard to say. I still find Lebanese politics so completely mystifying that I can't really identify any clear causal relationships. Part of what made the election so confusing for me is that there didn't appear to be any domestic issues talked about in the campaigns. No one is promising a chicken in every pot, or even promising to fix the holes in the sidewalks.

 

Another surprise is that the leader of Hezbollah gave a calm, gracious, and seemingly sincere concession speech. Although there were rumors that there would be an immediate coup if the opposition lost, that has not happened.

 

Add to that the fact that none of my students have yet complained about their final grades, and it looks like my summer is off to a smooth start. I'm looking forward to traveling in the Middle East with Jeff, catching up on some reading, and taking a quick trip to the U. S. sometime later in the summer (I haven't yet decided when). For now, I'll keep my eyes glued to Al Jazeera English's website to see how elections go today in Iran. I'm hoping that theirs will be just as peaceful as ours.