The tourists have arrived and they ain’t shy about making their presence known to the rest of us
They come in full gear, the designer handbag, the over-the-top hair, the outrageous outfits, the silly hats, the neon-painted nails.And lets not forget, no trip to Lebanon is complete without the car rental. Be it a Kia, Tida or even Range Rover. Which leads me to my latest query, do these people behave or dress this way in their county of residence and if not, why is being in Lebanon an excuse to break all the rules?
Let me give you a couple of examples
A gulf man, wearing a shiny D&G three sizes smaller, with nasty sandals and enough perfume to suffocate a group of hamsters, followed me around while I was shopping in Beirut Souks. I was dressed decently, in other words, I did not look like a prostitute. But of course the man said stuff like: I love Lebanese girl and how much? HOW MUCH!!!! Priceless you ape!
I get it , we don’t have the best reputation abroad but this man has the audacity to treat me this way on my turf!!!
Or a 22 year old relatively good looking Lebanese Canadian guy who almost crashed into my car and ran over an old lady this morning. He was making ” betweens” driving too close to all the cars and speeding way too fast for his own good. Believe me, this guy probably adheres to all the rules back home, but thinks it’s his given-right to put all our lives at risk.
So what is it about this place that made him think: screw logic I’m in Beirut Baby, and I’m gonna do as I please.
Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing lovelier to me than hot tourists filling our bars with new conversation but coming here and abusing the place you call home is pathetic. The rest of us here are attempting to be civil, so how come the rest of you insist on turning this place into your own personal playground? Thoughts? Bisoux
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This is what angers me! Whenever tourists come to this country they behave as if Lebanon were their very own private playground!
“The rest of us here are attempting to be civil”. Seriously Ivy?
couldn’t have said it better Mustapha…
civil? wat a joke…
How about you lebs lead by example first, then criticise us tourists?
i visit lebanon every July, and not only we have to put up with hooligans on the roads and rudeness. we also have to put up with being made fun of for using the seat belt, or looking for a bin to throw garbage.
what about the “omg, are u actually gonna stand in line and wait for your turn? he actually thinks he’s back in sydney… ha ha ha”
What rules are you talking about? if i was to drive in lebanon according to the rules, would i be able to do a right turn or do any manoeuvre without some knuckle-head charging at me?
“but coming here and abusing the place you call home is pathetic…”
Oh please, it’s pathetic that you pple abuse the county you live in! it’s pathetic that your handle on being “civil” is wearing the latest fashion, driving a nice car (which is on a loan) and partying at clubs looking COOL with a 1 foot long cigar ya man…
Lebanon for tourists is just a party place going off like crazy, thats the only reason i go there year after year…
so untill you guys start leading by example, then you have the right to criticize others…
lol it seems expatriate readers are taking this too personal ivy. i agree with you, some tourists think they can own people with their money.
Simon said it all and said it so eloquently!
I can ditto every word- since I too visit Lebanon every summer and have had identical experiences.
I have to disagree with you on this one Ivy. I just got back to Lebanon today, and during a one-hour drive from the airport, I got angrier than the entire year I was in Sweden. Granted, some of the cars doing the crazy stuff were rented cars, which I’m assuming belong to tourists, but the vast majority or craziness on the road was done by people who looked like they were going about their daily business: I would hate to think that so many tourists come to Lebanon on a mobilette.
I’ve been looking forward all year to coming back home for the summer, and after barely an hour, the Lebanese road-side manners brought back, and vividly so, why I left in the first place. The Lebanese aren’t civil, they aren’t even trying.
It’s actually sad how badly we Lebanese have no respect for ourselves, each other, or basic civilities.
Agree with the tourists here. Its less stressful for me to drive 35 hours across Canada than it is to drive 15 minutes in Beirut. Tourists stop at the traffic signal, wear their seat belts, have the courtesy of holding doors for others, adhere to the 15% tip rule, dont litter, dont carry a baseball bat in their trunk eager to start a fight, and have much more to talk about than why Christine was wearing that hideous dress.
That being said, I cant wait to get to Lebanon…
why is everyone hating on the “Mobilette”??? 😀 hahahaha That’s Lebanon, love it or hate it.
The Lebanese civilised? Hahahahhahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahhahahahahahahahahahahahahahhahahaha
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
Look what you’ve done Ivy. I can’t stop laughing.
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
The Lebanese civilised! My sides are starting to hurt from laughter
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
Oh look!
Everyone is now a German supporter and has dropped Brazil like a bad apple.
How Lebanese!
Let me qualify that last statement.
Everyone here is now and always been “lifetime” supporter of Germany.
Brazil? Who are they?
Welll Ivy i agree with you… but Simon it is OUR country. we can act as we please in it. Your a guest have some damn respect. I mean… you go to a person’s house… their kids can jump and scream at THIER OWN HOUSE….you cant go in there and jump and scream along side them. The Lebanese are very civilized… i think the rest of the Middle East can take a few tips from the Lebanese. LOOOL Your gonna tell me the Gulf countries, iraq, and egypt are more civilized then Lebanese? hahaha ya allah. THATS HILARIOUS. Good post Ivy!
lebanese are civilized???????? hahaahhahahahahahahahh Lebanese are just a f****** animals. They have no respect and are selfish, arrogants and ignorants. They are the worst people in the universe. Please don’t be an idiot
To all the tourists and other Lebanon-dissing Lebanese who commented on this article: Do not generalize.
I am Lebanese and I try to abide by the code of the road as much as it is physically possible. I realize that we have a lot of horrible drivers who shouldn’t hold a driving license in the first place. However, this does not justify breaking any driving rule. So drop your unjustifiable excuses and stop driving like animals. B*tches.
Are you familiar with the saying “When in Rome…” ?
I hardly consider myself a Lebanese expatriate, but I have to say that even if all tourists behaved, things would still be crappy both on the roads in Lebanon, and on the streets for attractive women.
This is simply because Lebanon does not enforce its laws on the street (on everybody on the road), and needs a whole new set of ways to protect women from harassment, since a lot of times it somehow ends up being “the woman’s fault” if she gets harassed by some idiot. Had this been the case, anyone breaking these laws would be punished accordingly, and soon enough things would get better. Either that, or everyone suddenly awakening to their personal responsibility and behaving. Needless to say, I wouldn’t bet my money on the second one…
@ALI, i don’t know how it was at your house, but usually Parents (the law) will punish their kids (civillians) if they were making a mess inside the house. they can jump and scream in play areas or outside…
Such a bad analogy to start with! so if u get visitors over with their kids, and ur kids are making a mock of the house, are u telling me ur gonna punish ur visitors kids? wat a load of crap!
@Paralabanderado :”So drop your unjustifiable excuses and stop driving like animals. B*tches.”
Wow! a true example of a civilised leb! i thank you for proving a point.
It cracks me up when pple comment saying “Don’t generalise”… obviously we’re talking about majority and not everyone!!!
if anything, it is those who are accusing tourists of misbehaving are generalising,,,
it’s the lebs that should learn from tourists… you’d be surprised to learn that westerners are not as vain to judge pple by how they dress:
(ivy said) “They come in full gear, the designer handbag, the over-the-top hair, the outrageous outfits, the silly hats, the neon-painted nails.”
I’ve never seen a tourist going to beach in high heals, silly hat, designer handbag! but every leb gal on the beach in lebanon does that… u guys should hear the stories visitors bring back from lebanon, hehehe.. hilarious..
Again, we’re talking about majority and not everyone, so pls, no silly “do no generalise” comments…
Where the “Civilised” Lebanese can start being civilised is in the way they treat their slaves, sorry maids. Its disgraceful and immoral whatever religion you worship. Start there!
Then once you’ve got over your superiority complex with your slaves, sorry maids (there I go again, a Freudian slip – Google him if you are not “Civilised’) you can stop lying and cheating each other in relationships and business.
That way Lebs can start respecting and liking other Lebs before the “Uncivilised” tourists will start treating you like “Civilised” people.
There is one thing you should remember too (I’m on a role here) and its this. Without tourists from the Gulf (and I want to add I am from Europe) there would be no Lebanon.
Their money, through tourism and financial aid, is what Lebanon survives on. You have no industry, no factories and no manufacturing.
Your only export (besides human resources) is tourism. Without it, would your bars and restaurants exist through the winter months? Would there be expensive hotels like the Phonecia and Habtour? Who finances your western lifestyle. Its the Saudis and Gulf states. The Europeans would never touch you because they know how untrustworthy you are in business ethics.
Face the fact. You needs the Gulf to survive. What happened in 2006 when your country was devastated and you lost bridges, power plants and your tourism. You went to the Saudis and Gulf and asked them for aid and they gave them to you. Your decent President actually cried at the conference table. He knew without the arab states, Lebanon would be doomed. And you know what they help you because they considered you their fellow arabs, their brothers and sisters.
Then you have the face to then turn round and criticise them for being “Unclivilised” . If it was not for their money, you would be living in a truly uncivilised country. No clean water, no electricity, no bridges, no tourist industry, NOTHING.
@Simon @Phillip @all those who are being a tiny bit rude talking about Lebanon and the Lebanese people (while some of you, just like me, probably have a double nationality and consider yourselves pure North-Americans and Europeans all of a sudden…) The thing is every country and its people have their own flaws, some of you blame it on the tourists, others blame it on the non-civilized Lebanese. Whatever the semantics you wish to use, do not get aggressive, do not judge, do not misjudge, do not get rude…You and your respective countries may also have your own flaws and you would be annoyed by any rude comment or attack to the way you are. Peace everyone, respect yourselves, respect and accept each other, and the world will be a much better place, and if Lebanon does not appeal to you in any way, you can simply choose another destination, very simple. Again peace y’all:)
This thread, it you remember, started with Ivy saying that tourists that come to Lebanon are uncivilised. My argument, Alex, is that without these “Uncivilised” tourists there would be no Lebanon. So please read my comments CAREFULLY.
If you don’t admit to your faults, you just repeat them.
And its a first for me to hear a Lebanese talk about rudeness. Just step out of your flat for 5 minutes and see how polite people are.
Phil…I have read your comments carefully and I do not find your argument quite solid. I may find some truth to it (please keep that in mind), however relating the existence of Lebanon to the money the tourists pour into it is a bit too much. Lebanon has survived years of war without having one single tourist crossing in and at some times, there was no aid from any foreign country whatsoever.
I do step out of my flat for more than 5 minutes and I do encounter some very polite behavior. I tend to stay away from uncivilized people or manners and I also am a very polite person and find it extremely rewarding because I am often treated the same. Altruism pays off 😉
I do not live in Lebanon all year and I have met some very uncivilized Europeans, extremely uncivilized Americans, Canadians, and so on…but I never went hahahahahaha and said the Americans civilized!!! The French civilized!!!! Etc. I mean that was a bit rude Phil, wasn’t it? 🙂 And why is it that we can’t talk about rudeness? I really don’t see how this can be a first…
And guys just imagine me saying all of this with an extremely sweet tone, no hard feelings of any kind;)
Peace and Love
Peace and Love to you too Alex. 🙂
😉
hahaha
@ Philippe, you make me laugh and are generalizing again just like your tourist friend from a couple of comments above: “The Europeans would never touch you because they know how untrustworthy you are in business ethics.”
Set aside how rude and untrue this statement is,
I wonder what you think of Bernard Madoff, who pulled off a $20 Billion plus scam on his own! 😛 This number probably accounts for all the business turnover we could dream of conducting with the Europeans in 10 years!
Does that make all Americans scammers and dishonest? I’m sure a certain number of them are, but would you generalize and accuse the population as a whole as being corrupt? I don’t think so, unless you’re losing your objectivity.
And, guys, really, one note to all those who are generalizing and rudely criticizing this country, as well as those who think that Lebanon is filled with uncivilized and rude people, I beg you, please, don’t come to Lebanon.
I know that tourism is our forte, but we will find something to survive on… we’ve been living here for more than 7,000 years… don’t mind us guys…really… just don’t come if you’re being subjected to that much stress and hardship 🙂
That also goes to the expats who do not find one nice thing to say about Lebanon, the guys (and girls- so that you do not treat all Lebanese of male chauvinism) who are making a very decent living out of working here while enjoying a quality of life they would never have dreamed of in their home countries… we’re talking drivers, domestic helpers (not slaves- which is another generalization) fancy pads, cheap booze and smokes 😀
Really guys, being mean for free is not cool, so try to lead by example and do not take advantage of our loose rules to make them even worse.
I wish a very pleasant stay to all the tourists who are reading this thread.I also recommend they try Joe Pena’s mojito… one of the best i’ve tasted.
No hard feelings!
Cheers’ y’all!
“They come in full gear, the designer handbag, the over-the-top hair, the outrageous outfits, the silly hats, the neon-painted nails” ….that describes Lebanese women more than tourists sweety 🙂