Candy Canes, Christmas Trees and Contrasts

I just got back from Lebanon and surprisingly enough it was a really relaxing time. I read a lot, ate a lot, saw some cool stuff and got away from all that is Jordan. What is that you ask? Well, it's the call to prayer 5 times a day, its constantly being stared at as a woman and foreigner, its a deep in your bones cold, its being constantly reminded that this country is 97% lost. While I love it, it tends to wear on you more than you realize, and now with a spring in my step, a fresher, lighter soul, I am ready to take on what is left of my time here.

Lebanon is a mixture of Paris-they speak french-and the Middle East. It's beautiful location on the Mediterranean Sea makes for gorgeous sunsets. The flag is red and white with a green cedar in the middle. Basically, it was a country filled with Christmas colors-coming from where I did-it was wonderful!

But that's not to say Lebanon doesn't have its stresses. It is a country divided in 3rds politically-Sunni, Shia, and Christian all vying for the majority vote. The poor country has seen so much civil war and unrest, its sad. While we were there the government collapsed and things were very unstable. Protests, threats of another civil war, political instability. It's a land of immense contrasts. Christmas trees next to minarets. Sunni Muslims living next to Shia Muslims. Bombed buildings still barely standing next to gorgeous renovated ones.

I woke up at 4am one morning to loud booms....it took a moment to register in my brain, but my first thought was bombs and airplanes, when in fact it was just a huge thunderstorm. Something so normal in most countries, tends to be the last thing you think of in these kind of countries. I looked out the window, the sky was red, the rain hadn't started and I prayed that it was really a thunderstorm.

My friends who live in Beirut come to Amman for a vacation...guess its all about perspective and what country you are meant to love.

Praying for Peace and Love in the Middle East.