east of the middle.

the Way - الطريق
Asking, Learning, Understanding - االطّلب , التعلّم , الفهم

~~~~~

the Travelers - الرحالون

Maddie - مادّي

Laya - لاية

Jessica - جيسيكا

~~~~~

Beirut, oh Beirut - بيروت يا بيروت "Beirut" - Nadia Tueini

Beirut of the hundred palaces and Beyte of the stones
Where people come from everywhere to build up statues
Which make men kneel down in prayer and make wars roar.

In Beirut in every house dwells a different idea
In Beirut every word is a parade
In Beirut men lay down thoughts and caravans

Whether she is a nun or a sorcerer
or both together...

Adored or cursed
Blood thirsty or blessed with holy water
Phoenician, Arab, or anybody
A Levantine with multiple vertigos
Like those strange flowers fragile on their stalks
Beirut is in the Orient the last sanctuary
Where man is clad in the color of light.

~~~~~

the Road to Damascus - الشارع إلى دمشقThere are no words to describe my love for this city.

~~~~~

the "holy land" - الأرض المقدسة

The entire time I traveled throughout Israel and Palestine, I always felt drawn to the question, "Is this all we are really fighting for?" I have yet to find an answer for that question.

a jaunt ends.

LevantaPalooza rolls closed, and I am really excited to go home. It's been an adventure, and I have interesting stories to tell. Some bad, some good, but in the end, the Dream lives on.

And less than a month left in Cairo until I head stateside. Which is growing more terrifying than I thought, and I am both dreading leaving and excited to leave. It's an odd simultaneous tearing that is located somewhere around my stomach. I can't tell which urge is stronger today.

Levant-a-Palooza 2009

Cairo - Beirut - Damascus - Amman - Jerusalem - Ramallah - Bethlehem - Amman - Cairo.
yellah, ya habibi.

القاهرة - بيروت - دمشق - عمان - القدس - رام الله - بيت لحم - عمان - القاهرة
يا الله, يا حبيبي

إن شاء الله - - Insha'Allah.