Meeting Pearls 1/Meeting Pearls Vol 1 (1994).iso/installed_progs/text/faqs/lebanon-faq

Internet Message Format | 1993-06-15 | 65.5 KB

Subject: soc.culture.lebanon FAQ-PART 1/2
Newsgroups: soc.culture.lebanon,soc.answers,news.answers
From: [e-mail] (Basil Hamdan)
Date: Mon, 14 Jun 1993 21:41:44 GMT

Archive-name: lebanon-faq
Last-modified: 1993/06/14
Version: 1.6


_______________________________________________________________________________



       Many FAQs, including this one, are available on the archive site
rtfm.mit.edu in the directory pub/usenet/news.answers.
The name under which this FAQ is archived is "lebanon-faq".

If you do not have ftp, you can request messages from rtfm by using
the local mail server.  Send mail to [e-mail]
containing the line "send usenet/news.answers/lebanon-faq" to get
this file.  Send a message containing "help" to get general
information about the mail server.

This FAQ could also be obtained via regular anonymous ftp at the site:
                  borg.poly.edu (128.238.10.106)
            in    pub/scl as filename "faq"

Version:          Version 1.6
Modifications:    Additional  information regarding MEA operations in the
          United States (Question 4). New Lebanese Restaurant locations
          (Question 18).  New book listings (Question 13).  Address
          of Lebanese Embassy in Bonn Germany (Question 2) and new
          information on Arabic Text editors for the Mac (Question 15).

Here is a listing of questions :

1.  What is the value of a Lebanese pound in terms of US$, Can$, UK lb,
    etc.?

2.  What is the address and phone number of the Lebanese Embassy
    and/or Consulates in the US, Canada, France, etc....
    and how can I contact the American University of Beirut ?

3.  How can I phone Lebanon and which carrier gives the cheapest rates?

4.  What are the airlines servicing Beirut ?

5.  Where can I find tickets for Lebanon at a good price ?

6.  What are the e-mail and telnet IP addresses for sites in Lebanon ?

7.  What are the phone numbers to call to get Lebanon news ?

8.  What are the radio frequencies and broadcast times of Lebanese
    related radio programs  ?

9.  What are the various Lebanese organisations and how can I contact them ?

10. What are the projects you can contribute to help rebuild Lebanon ?

11. What are the various Lebanese magazines and newspapers ?

12. Where can I find Lebanese magazines and newspapers ?

13. What has been written by Lebanese and/or on Lebanon ?

14. Where can I find works written by Lebanese and /or on Lebanon ?

15. Are there Arabic word processors ?

16. Is there a standard Arabic alphabet representation in Latin ?

17. Where can I find Lebanese songs and music ?

18. Where can I find a Lebanese restaurant ?

19. Where can I find a Lebanese grocery store?

20. Is there a good Lebanese recipe book ?

21. Are there recipes available on the net ?

22. Is there an ftp archive site for Lebanese art works ?

23. What is the best way to deal with multiple system TVs and VCRs and
    where can I get my VCR tape converted to a format that works in Lebanon ?

24. What are newborn names that could be used for Lebanese children living
    abroad that would work in both Lebanon and Western societies ?

25. I plan to go home soon and I have heard rumors that the draft
    will be re-instituted, do you have any additional information about this ?
    I was born in 1923 and I am afraid that I would be subject to the draft !!!

26. Where can I get a copy of the English translation of
    the Lebanese Constitution ?

27. Where can I get a copy of the English translation of
    Taef Agreement ?

28. I need to ship a car/ or some merchandise to Lebanon, do you
    know of a shipping company that handles this ?

29. I suddenly developped an urge for Middle-Eastern cuisine,
    can you help me quench this horrifying thirst ?

30. Where can I get the latest travel advisory for Americans wishing
    to visit Lebanon or the Middle-East ?

31. Are there available statistical and basic general information about Lebanon,
    and what are they ?

Thanks to all contributors to this FAQ, namely:
Naji Mouawad (who started the effort), Bassem Medawar, Samir Fahs, Mazen Saghir,
Edmond J. Abrhamian, Alex Khalil, Olivier M.J. Crepin-Leblond, Hassan Hammoud,
Mazen Mokhtar, Barre Ludvigsen, Ghassan Semaan, Elie Wardini, Fady Harfoush,
Debbie Masri, Pauline Homsi Vinson, Youssef Fawaz, Mike, Nasri, Rached Zantout,
May Nasrallah, Khalil El-Khoury, Danny Chahal, Haidar Harmamani, Wadih Shaib,
Walid Nasrallah, Kamie Kitmitto, Ibrahim Ballouz, Berthe Chouiery, philo,
Boudi Sahyoun, Naji Rizk, Nadim Maluf, Jamal Zemerly, Wassim Alami, Fadi Andraos
George Fisher, Roger Adbel-Hay, Knut Vik|r and Basil Hamdan, (sorry if I
missed anyone).

This FAQ file was compiled and edited by Alex Khalil and Basil Hamdan.

_______________________________________________________________________________

First of all, for the patriotic among you, here is a uuencoded Lebanese
flag gif file, with instructions on how to display it using xv,
all provided kindly by Naji Rizk.
A nice way to use this flag is to have it displayed in the background of
your workstation.


   Here is the procedure:

   1) Cut the file out (between Cut Here signs) so that the following line
      be the first line in the file:

      begin 400 flag.gif

      and save on your filespace as a file named say, "leb.uu".

   2) Once the file leb.uu is saved after these modifications,
      type under the unix prompt:
      uudecode leb.uu, this procedure will automatically create
      the Lebanese flag gif file "flag.gif".on your filespace.

   3) If you are using xv as a gif viewer, type: xv flag.gif &

      In order to have the flag in the background (tiled), type this:
      xv  -rmode 1 full-path-name-of-flag.gif   &
      xv  -rmode 1 full-path-name-of-flag.gif   &
                   ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
      If the file is in your home directory called /users/lebanese
      then the full path name is: /users/lebanese/flag.gif

___________________  Cut Here  ______________________________
begin 400 flag
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#   [

end

___________________  Cut Here  ______________________________

*******************************************************************************
1. What is the value of a Lebanese pound in terms of US$, Can$, UK lb,
   etc.?

  It fluctuates. Typically, a good way to keep abreast of the 'latest' figures
is to:

 - Look at the Wall Street Journal

 - Subscribe to Leb-Net (Leb-Net@@cumesa.mech.columbia.edu), which
   reports the value every couple of days.

*******************************************************************************

2. What is the address and phone number of the Lebanese Embassy
   and/or Lebanese Consulates in the US, Canada, Germany,  France, etc...
   and how can I contact the American University of Beirut ?

  For Canada:

Embassy of Lebanon
640 Lyon St.
Ottawa, Ontario
              K1S 3Z5
[phone]

Consulate of Lebanon
40 Cote St. Catherine
Montreal, Quebec

[phone]

  For the USA:

  Washington DC Embassy:

Embassy of Lebanon
2560 28th Street NW
Washington D.C.  20008

Phone: [phone]



Consulates:

New York

Consulate General of Lebanon
9 East 76th St.
NY, NY

Phone: [phone]

Detroit

Consulate General of Lebanon
1959 E. Jefferson
Suite 4A
Detroit, Michigan 48207

Phone: [phone]

Los Angeles

Consulate General of Lebanon
7060 Hollywood Boulevard, Suite 510
Hollywood, CA 90028

Phone: [phone]

  For the  United Kingdom:

Lebanese Councilor Section
15 Palace Garden Mews,
London W8 4QQ.

England UK

Phone: [phone]

  For Germany:

 BOTSCHAFT DES LIBANON
 RHEINALLEE 27
 53173 BONN
 TEL. [phone]

Here are the AUB NY office numbers and the Beirut AUB number:

The numbers  for the NY office are:

  Phone: [phone]
  Fax  : [phone]

The switch board in Beirut is

  011-961-1-340-740
*******************************************************************************

3. How can I phone Lebanon and which carrier gives the cheapest rates ?

     Using the *local* Lebanon number 04-961345 as example, you dial:

            011 961 4 961345   (to use AT&T)
     10 222 011 961 4 961345   (to use MCI)
     10 333 011 961 4 961345   (to use SPRINT)

 Note how the Metn area code 04 has been used *without* the leading
zero. These calls do not require an operator.

 Calls have been placed to beirut (01), & metn (04) without major
difficulty.

  MCI has the lowest rate, if you do the following.

    1- register for the $3 dollars a month international calling
    program. This will give you 15% discount on your calls if they were
    placed within the package specified time intervals.

    2- You have up to two international number to register under
    the family and friend program. So do register your Lebanon number
    under family and friends, and you will get 20% discount on these
    numbers when called.

    Total saving is 35% on their already cheapest Rate.

    Rates to Lebanon are $1.06 per minute all day saturday.
*******************************************************************************

4. What are the airlines servicing Beirut ?

  Most European and Arab airlines are now flying to Lebanon.

  *Some* are: MEA(obviously), Air-France, Swissair,
     Austrian Airways, Alitalia, Sabena, Alia, Egypt Air.

  Recently the State Department banned MEA from operating from
  its NY offices, and travel from the US with MEA has become
  very difficult.  Here is a related UPI article:

  Subject: Lebanese aircarrier chief urges lifting U.S. embargo
  Date: Mon, 24 May 93 13:17:16 PDT

BEIRUT, Lebanon (UPI) -- The president of the Lebanese national air
carrier, Middle East Airlines, said Monday that a U.S. order to suspend
MEA activities in the United States has left tens of thousands of
Lebanese stranded there and caused millions of dollars in losses.
MEA President Abdel Hamid Fakhoury called on the U.S. Administration
to exempt his company from a U.S. embargo imposed on Lebanon following
the hijacking of a TWA airliner in 1985.
Accordingly, MEA flights to New York and back to Beirut were
suspended while all other carriers were prevented from selling tickets
from its U.S. offices for destinations in Lebanon.
Fakhoury said MEA abided by the embargo but its U.S. offices
``continued to issue tickets, with the knowlegde of the U.S. officials,
placing either Damascus or Cyprus as destination countries.''
``But we were surprised last month of a new U.S. order to cease
immediately all commercial activities, which left tens of thousands of
Lebanese trapped there and inflicting losses estimated at $15 million,''
Fakhoury said.
The new order was apparently in retaliation to a decision by the
Lebanese Military Court on April stating that the 1983 bombing of the U.
S. Embassy in Beirut was covered by a general amnesty law.
The Lebanese Parliament approved the amnesty law as part of a
national reconciliation drive to end the Lebanese civil war.
The U.S. expressed dissatisfaction with the Military Court decision
and accused MEA of violating the embargo imposed during the
administration of President Ronald Reagan.
A month later, the Lebanese Supreme Court overruled the Military
Court decision concerning the U.S. Embassy bombing in which at least six
people were accused of involvement.
A suicide bomber drove through the gate of the U.S. Embassy in the
Muslim sector of Beirut on April 1983, killing 63 people and wounding
123 others.
activities in the U.S. as peace and security were restored in the
country.
He said contacts with U.S. officials have so far failed to alter the
order and called for launching a campaign ``to save the company and
allow the Lebanese residents in the U.S. to visit their homeland.''


The following is a summary of an article which appeared
in Middle East International (MEI - No. 450, p. 9-10);

The background is that Lebanese investigators had
recently identified 15 suspects in the 1991 truck
bombing of the US embassy in Beirut, and the US
government was anxious to see them prosecuted.
However, on April 24, Beirut's military court ruled
that the suspects were included in the general amnesty
covering "political" war crimes approved by the
Lebanese parliament in 1991.  The US was incensed that
the court's ruling would render them immune from
prosecution, and warned Lebanese leaders that the
prospect of normalizing relations with the US, which
seemed likely following Secretary of State
Christopher's March visit to Beirut, were no longer
realistic.

The impact on travel stems from the fact that Middle
East Airlines (MEA), which had hoped that it for the way it had
issued tickets to Beirut (actually entered on tth
connecting flights to or from Europe.  Although
technically a violation of the US travel ban, this
subterfuge had been used without objection for many
years.  Suddenly, MEA was told to stop selling tickets
or doing any other business, and warned that it was
subject to fines of $1000 per day for the entire period
during which it had sold such tickets.  The Beirut
government is having a second look at the amnesty law,
and may find a way out of the difficulty, but until it
does so, it may be impossible to get tickets to Beirut
in the US, and MEA is threatened with millions of
dollars of fines, an amount which MEI characterized as
"potentially crippling".

The Lebanese Supreme Court has already reversed the earlier ruling
making the suspects once again not covered by the General Amnesty law
but the US has yet to relax its position with regard to MEA operations
in the United States.

*******************************************************************************

5. Where can I find tickets for Lebanon at a good price ?

Travel Agency        Number(s)         Contact person(s),
     Name                                  location,
 (if available)                         and/or comments
                                          (if supplied)
_______________________________________________________________________________

Admiral :      [phone]     (located in Marietta GA)
                                  (ask for Hassan Ramadan)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
All Travel:    [phone]     (ask for Matthew)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Atlantis :     [phone] TEL  141 East 44th Street  #702
               [phone] FAX  NYC, NY 10017
               [phone]     (Alitalia and British Airways)
                                  ($ 1100 round trip ticket from
                                   San Francisco to Beirut bought
                                   in Christmas 92/93).
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Blue Mediterranean
Travel :       [phone]     (deals mainly with Alitalia,
                                   recommended for its good prices).
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Char Tours:    [phone]
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Corporate :    [phone]
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Farra Travel:  [phone]
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Golden Arch:   [phone]     (may be out of business ?)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Haddad Travel: [phone]     (experienced but beware)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Int'l Travel & [phone]     (ask for Doha Gabro ?)
Trade, Inc. :                     (Example of price quoted for
                                   Dec '92 round trip
                                             $ 880
                                   Travel from:
                                   Washington, DC - Beirut
                                   United: Wash <-> London,
                                   MEA: London <-> Beirut)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lotus :        [phone]     (located in Los Angeles area)
                                  (deals mostly with ALIA, the
                                   Royal Jordanian Airlines, can get
                                   relatively good prices if you are willing
                                   to endure traveling on ALIA)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mill-Run Tours:[phone]     (Ask for Jean Zodo.  She's lebanese,
                                   and she has been very helpful).
                                   They are located in Chicago, IL.)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oxford Travel &                   (ask for Sami Silfani)
Tours :        [phone] TEL (located in the Atlanta area)
               [phone] FAX (Sami was quite informed and
                                   worked hard to get the
                                   cheapest fare possible.
                   Strongly recommended by myself (Basil).
                   Example of a fare: $ 1080 U.S., round trip
                   on Air France from Cleveland,
                   travel date: April 13, 1993).
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sharif Travel: [phone]     (could be the same as the reference
                                   that shows up later as Moursi Sharif
                                   - other reference has an 800 number -
                                   Recommended as super nice and cheap)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sunship :      [phone]     (deals mainly with British Airways)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Travel All(??):[phone]
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Travel Corner: [phone]     (from outside Atlanta)
or             [phone]     (Atlanta)
or             [phone]     (Atlanta)
                                  (Ask for Lina Makhlouf, gets the
                                   prize as the most recommended
                                   travel agent)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Travel Nework: [phone] TEL  1581 Route 23 South
               [phone] FAX  Waynes, NJ 07470
                                  (Ask for Ms. Peggy Healy)
                                  (tell her Tommy's sister recommended!)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Vista Int'l :  [phone]     (located in West Virginia ??)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
World Express Travel:             (ask for Annie - she is from Lebanon).
               [phone] TEL (located in Houston, Texas)
               [phone] TEL
               [phone] FAX
_______________________________________________________________________________
No name given
for travel agency:                (ask for Garbiz Askanian)
               [phone]     (gave the best deal to someone)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
No name given
for travel agency:
               [phone]     (ask for Malek Haddad)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
No name given
for travel agency:
               [phone]     (ask for Hala)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
No name given
for travel agency:
               [phone]     (ask for Marwan or Maha)
                                  (located in the Washington DC area)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
No name given
for travel agency:
               [phone] TEL (ask for Pierre or Nathalie)
               [phone] FAX (located in Montreal-Canada)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
No name given
for travel agency:
               [phone]     (ask for Moursi Sharif)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
No name given
for travel agency:
               [phone]     (ask for Ali Srour)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
No name given
for travel agency:
               [phone]     (located in Florida)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
No name given
for travel agency:
               [phone]
_______________________________________________________________________________
Negative Recommendations
_______________________________________________________________________________

D'International:                    (located in West Roxbury, Ma.)
                                     Travel agent is a Lebanese person.
                                     She booked flight on non-existing
                                     flight from Paris to Boston.
                                     The traveler had to pay a $ 100.00
                                     penaly, and agent did not reimburse him
                                     even though she had made the mistake.
                                     Traveler also found out she had done
                                     the same thing with several other people.
_______________________________________________________________________________

for 800 number directory call 1 [phone]

In France the following Travel Agency has been recommended as giving
good prices for travel to Lebanon:

Nouvelle Frontiere  with prices ranging from 3000 to 3500 F.F., round
trip, Paris-Beirut for Summer of '93 travel.  No phone number was given,
it is assumed that the agency is listed in the phone directory.

*******************************************************************************

6. What are the e-mail and telnet IP addresses for sites in Lebanon ?

  As far as anyone can tell, none accessible to the public so far. If such
is not the case, let us know.  There is a service, however,
similar to CompuServe that is available for a fee.

  To my knowledge,the closest that comes to international computer
communications is LibanPac, that is modeled on the French TransPac
and that regularly transfers data between Ashrafiyeh and France through
the submarine cable.

AUB has some MCI mail boxes but access is restricted.
This is what Nabil Bukhalid, Manager of Personal Computer Support Unit at
AUB says about it in a recent communication:

    AUB has a restricted TYMNET link and an MCI mailbox. The
    PC Support Unit at AUB is negotiating the implementation
    of an EARN node at AUB and we are in the process of
    testing an X.5 gateway to EARN via a C O. concentrator.
    Also AUB has applied to the NCI for an Internet address.

    A TCP/IP backbone network was planned and its
    implementation was scheduled for the last quarter of
    1991.  The project was freezed after the blasting of
    College Hall, the upper campus cabling ducts are badly
    damaged, and we are facing some budget problems.

    For the time being I have the permission to use the MCI
    mailbox for urgent correspondence..


There are efforts to link Lebanon by an X25 network, which would give
email access through France.  Here are some of the details:

Connection cost to the Lebanese X25 network: 600$
Monthly fee for the Lebanese X25 network and the server in France: 50$
The connection to France will be used until Internet will be available
in Lebanon.
Each 1024 characters to the states cost 2.1 F.F (around $0.39)
plus around 500 Lebanese Pounds for X25.
But no telnet or ftp can be done.
However the subscription offers you a 10,000 PC and Macintosh programs to
download. They are updated on a daily baisis.
There are Forums and debates in French. You can also access the NEWS
of the INTERNET.
You will have an Easy Link, Mercury Link, X400 , Telex address as well
as the usenet one.
Also you can send faxes through the net....All in one subscription.
It seems that the costs for now are rather expensive, unless they are
borne by a business or a corporation.

*******************************************************************************

7. What are the phone numbers to call to get Lebanon news ?

  There is a mailing list called Leb-Net that sends digests to subscribers
every two days on the average. It is usually quite thorough.
  To subscribe, send a short request to:

         [e-mail]

*******************************************************************************


8. What are the radio frequencies and broadcast times of Lebanese
   related radio programs  ?

  This information is extracted from Passport to World Band Radio,
L. Magne (Ed.), IBS, 1992, ISBN 0-914941-27-5:

  All times are in GMT, frequencies are in KHz.

Voice of Lebanon, Beirut-Ashrafiyah, Phalange, 8KW, English but mostly Arabic
broadcast.

0900-0915       6550
1315-1330       6550
1815-1830       6550

King of Hope, Marjayou^n, Mideast, 12 KW, English and Arabic broadcast.
0700-1100       6280 (Mideast), 11530 (Europe)
1400-1700       6280 (Mideast), 11530 (Europe)

  Neither one of the stations listed above were easily received in NY with a
portable SW radio and an indoor antena.  The book doesn't list the government
radio station which used to broadcast in the 11KHz-12KHz range from Amshit.
The Amshit broadcast could not be received either.

*******************************************************************************

9. What are the various Lebanese organisations and how can I contact
them.

American Task Force for Lebanon
2250 M St., N.W., Suite 305
Washington, DC 20037
Telephone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]

  This organisation publishes a monthly newsletter called "Outlook",
with Tanya Rahal (Exec. Ed.), and Deeb Keamy (Managing Ed.)

*******************************************************************************

10. What are the projects you can contribute to help rebuild Lebanon ?

  There is a non-profit organization for Lebanese Academics and Professionals
that is working on development projects between Lebanon and North America.
It is called ALPA (Association of Lebanese Professionals and Academics)
to join or contact them, send e-mail to:

          [e-mail]
or
          [e-mail]

*******************************************************************************

11. What are the various Lebanese magazines and newspapers.

  Some of the newspapers are:

Al Hayat  (published in London as well as in Beirut)
Al Nahar
Al Safeer
Al Anwar

  Some magazines:

Al Nahar al Arabi wal Duwali
Al Hawadess

  A very good source of information on economic developments in Lebanon
is the Middle East Economic Digest, which is published weekly, in English.
To subscribe, send a letter to the following address:

P.O. Box 14
Harold Hill
Romford
Essex RM3 8 EQ
U.K.

It costs 275 sterlings in the UK, 300 sterlings outside the U.K.
No special concessions are offered for students.
*******************************************************************************

12. Where can I find Lebanese magazines and newspapers.

   In NY/NJ, you can buy it in the World Trade Center, in Penn Station, Newark,
NJ, and in Arab shopping areas (see below).

In Boston there is the "out of town news" which sells them. It is located
Harvard square, right outside the "T" station.
It has several newspapers including "al hayat" and "al hawadeth".

  In Norway, many big libraries have  magazines and newspapers relating to
the Middle East. In Arabic there is the Ahram or the British based alHayat
or Sharq al-Awsat.

  In Oslo the small Kiosk besides Saga cinema sells magazines and newspapers
that relate to the Middle East. The University of Oslo publishes a magazine
called Midtosten Forum that takes up issues related to the Middle East.
Most articles are in Norwegian, but there are some in English or other
Scandinavian languages. To get this magazine write to:

Midtosten Forum
Tidsskriftredaksjonen
1030 Blindern
0315 Oslo
Norway

In Montreal, There are the "Maisons de la presses internationales", that
have a wide variety of Arabic/Lebanese newspapers and magazines. They have
the daily Alhayat (printed in NY), Al-Hawadeth, Al-Wasat, Al-Watan Al-Araby,
etc.
"Les Maisons" have three locations on St-Catherines st. in downtown Montreal.
Other downtown Kiosques and arabic food stores, get Al-Hayat and other papers
and magazines.

A couple of local Lebanese papers are issued in Montreal weekly or bi-weekly,
the most important are Al-Mustaqbal and Sawt-Canada. These papers contain news
from Lebanon and the middle-east as well as news of the Arab and Lebanese
communities in Canada.

*******************************************************************************

13. What has been written by Lebanese and/or on Lebanon ?

  What follows are titles of books by contemporary Lebanese writers available
in English.(They all deal with the war in one aspect or another).

Kamal Salibi, "A House of Many Mansions, The History of Lebanon
Reconsidered", 1988.

Emily Nasrallah, _Flight Against Time_ trans. Issa J. Boullata.
Charlettetown, P.E.I.: Ragweed Press, 1987.
  This is a very touching depiction of an older man's inability to get
  used to life in Canada, where his children live and where they want
  him to move because of the outbreak of the war in Lebanon.  The old
  man's attachment to his Lebanese village is conveyed in a simple,
  direct style, making his predicament that much more poignant.

Elias Khoury, _Little Mountain_ trans. Maia Tabet. Minneapolis: Univ.
of Minnesota Press, 1989.
  What I find really interesting about this book is its post-modern
  style.  The narrative point view, speaker, time, place, all shift
  without warning.  It is almost as though Khoury is trying to re-create
  stylistically the disjunctions and disruptions occasioned by the
  civil war in Lebanon. (his representation of women, however, is
  rather sexist in my view)

Etel Adnan, _Sitt Marie Rose_ Post Apollo Press, 1978.
  In this work Adnan narrates the experiences of a Maronite woman who
  falls in love with a Palestinian and is kidnapped by a group of men
  (her co-religionists  among whom is an old school friend of hers.
  Her experiences are witnessed by her students who are deaf-mutes.
  This is a very powerful and disturbing book.

Etel Adnan, "five senses for one death." The Smith Special Issue 18, 1971.
  This is a long imagistic poem by Adnan.

Jean Said Makdisi, _Beirut Fragments: A War Memoir_ New York: Persea Books,
1990.
  Makdisi is a Palestinian-Lebanese who describes her experiences in war-
  torn Beirut.  For her those experiences, which she retells in very
  moving terms, and her determination to stay in Beirut make her a true
  Beiruti.  Her love for Beirut and her agony over what is happening to
  it are quite clear.  Employing different styles (chronicle, descriptive
  narrative etc.) in different chapters, Makdisi ends her book with a
  very moving poem.

Here's the poem :

"Is it possible to hope that from the rubble of war, which at certain
times seemed to haved ended civilization, a new form might arise and
permit future creativity?  There is something of the alpha and omega
in this hope, is there not?

Zbale   garbage surrounds us, everywhere we look, there are piles of
        rubbish, debris, there is stench and ugliness, we

Yield   always we yield to the force of things, we are in danger of
        surrendering to despair, and to the ease of

Xenophobia
        there is always someone else to blame for what has happened to
        us, it's never our fault, oh no, and meanwhile we are

Waiting always waiting, for the others, for the solution, waiting for
        them to let the water come gurgling into our empty taps, waiting
        for the walls to crumble

Weary   of the never ending

War     we listen, overwhelmed with sorrow and anger to the the empty

Words   the endless empty rhetoric which has only brought more

Violence
        while the

Veneer  of fashion glitters like a wrothless, forgotten coin in a
        mound of rubble as it catches the sun.

Ugliness
        surrounds us, the ugliness of a broken city, ugly buildings
        sprouting up everywhere, ugly streets, whole neighborhoods, the
        beauty of mountains is destroyed by utilitarian ugliness, and

Time    weighs heavily on us--our days are long, and we carry History
        on our backs, an intolerable burden--but History gave us also

Tyre    and

Tripoli and

Sidon   timless relics from the past, ancient, beautiful, but

Scarred by war and the suffering of

Refugees
        We are a land of refugees, a people of refugees, coming from
        everywhere, going nowhere.

Refugees
        make beautiful causes, but they are people--their trucks piled
        high with the pathetic remnants of former lives, mattresses and
        goats and children and stoves--they have found no

Quicksand
        in which everyone sinks.  We are in a

Prison  of violence and forgotten ideals.  Still,

Peace   will come, and

Oppression
        will end, must end, and

Nemesis will come, but not with more

Militias
        certainly not with more fighting men, nor with more

Lies    the lies told by everyone to preserve the war and to preserve the

Knitting
        together of the unravelling whole.

Justice In war there is no Justice, and it is not from War that Justice
        will come.

Jbeil   ancient Byblos, and

Jounieh with its ancient harbors and stunning bay, emerald mountains
        dipping into the blue sea and searching into the azure skies,
        they are in danger of drifting away from us, but someday perhaps
        there will be

Joy     and

Jubilation
        when this war ends and the

Internecine
        butchery ends.  They say

Hope    springs eternal and so it does, in spite of the

Guns    and the

Fawda   the anarchy which threatens us at every turn, because

Earth   around us is beautiful: the gray rocks on the sheer cliffs, the
        shimmering silver leaves of the olive trees, the deep dark green
        of the ancient cedars, the sweet smell of the pine forests, the
        oranges dotted like yellow stars in the sparkling groves that lie
        by the blue seas.  Meanwhile, our

Days    pass, drearily, with explosions shattering the stillness of the
        nights.  Our senses are dulled by the

Catastrophe
        that has been upon us here in

Beirut  --poor, ugly, stricken beirut, broken Beirut, unloved city, lost
        Beirut, like the child in the tale, torn between two mothers, but
        no Solomon here, no true mother.

Beirut  pleads to be redeemed, but not by

Another

Army.
............................
(This poem is more effective as a culmination to Makdisi's memoirs.  It
is reproduced here without permission.)

Hanan Al-Shaykh, -The Story of Zahra_ trans. Peter Ford. New York: Quartet
Books, 1986.

  Zahra is a shia Lebanese living in Beirut during the war (though she also
goes to West Africa for a while).  I won't give away the plot but only
mention that she has a very complex relationship with a sniper.  I really
liked this book.  It deals very frankly with sensitive issues such as sex
and politics, and especially with the struggles of women.

  Other Lebanese writers I like but for whom I have yet to see anything
published in English are Ghada el Samman and Layla Baalbakki.  Excerpts
of their works are available in English in anthologies such as -Opening
the Gates_ edited by Margot Badran and Miriam Cooke. Indiana UP, 1990
and _Middle Eastern Muslim Women Speak_ edited by Elizabeth Warnock
Fernea and Basima Qattan Bezirgan. Univ. of Texas Press, 1977.  There
are several other anthologies out as well.

  The University of Chicago library has an excellent collection of books
in Arabic.  You might search there for what's available. UC Berkeley
also has a very good collection.  There is at least one bookstore that
I know of in San Francisco called The Arabic Book Center that also
supplies books in Arabic as well as English.  They will order books
for you as well.

  If you want to read good books by Lebanese writers, Amin Malouf has
written "Samarcande", "Leon l'africain", and "Les croisades vues par
les Arabes".  These books were best sellers in France.
(Samarcande in particular is HIGHLY recommended).

  Amin Maalouf's books have been translated into English.
Here are the English titlesof two of them:

  "The Crusades Through Arab Eyes" trans. Jon Rothschild. Schocken Books,
New York, 1987.

  "Leon l'africain" has also been translated.  The English title is
Leo Africanus.

[Begin French]

  Le dernier roman d'Amin Maalouf s'intitule "Les jardins de lumiere".
Il raconte l'histoire de "Mani", un oriental qui a vecu au 3eme siecle,
et fonde une nouvelle religion, le "manicheisme".
Son principe de base etait le respect de toutes les religions
(Christianisme, Boudhisme, ... l'Islam n'existait pas encore).
Apres s'etre repandu un peu partout (de l'Inde jusqu'en Europe, en passant
par la Perse, le Moyen Orient, l'Egypte ...) cette religion a disparu vers le
12eme siecle a cause des nombreuses persecutions de la part des autres religions
(Christianisme, Islam ...). Bref, le roman est une sorte
de biographie imaginaire qui constitue neanmoins une vraie lecon de tolerance
et pose beaucoup de questions sur l'interet des religions ...
  Personnellement, j'ai lu les trois romans d'A.M. : "Leon l'africain",
"Samarcande" et "Les jardins de lumiere". Tous les trois sont excellents
(a mon avis) mais j'ai eu une legere preference pour "Samarcande".
  En realite, je pense que ce qui plait aux occidentaux dans les oeuvres de
Maalouf c'est son style de "conteur" (Haqawaati), auquel ils sont peu habitues
(parfois il va un peu trop loin dans l'invraisemblance des  coincidences...)

[End French]

  Robert Fisk,"Pity The Nation - The Abduction of Lebanon", Oxford Paperbacks,
1990, ISBN 0-19-285235-3, approx $16.00

  Fisk is an AP correspondent who reported on the war in Lebanon *from*
Lebanon since its inception in the mid 70's.  A devastating book.
  'Required' reading for anyone interested in an unbiased account
of the wars in Lebanon. Covers events through the late 80's.


  Thomas Friedman, "From Beirut to Jerusalem"

  Charles Glass, "Tribes With Flags"

  Jonathan Randall, "Going All The Way"

  N. Alamuddin

Title:      Turmoil: Druzes, Lebanon and the arab-israeli conflict

Publisher:  Quartet books (London)

ISBN        07043 7050 6     (hard back)
        07043 0189 x     (paper back)

        Price:      14.95  (english pounds), hard back.
            9.95        //         , paper back.

The book has recently been published and it is useful to those interested
in the lebanese politics and the history of Lebanon.

For those interested in the affairs of the Arab world, especially, the issue
of identity, Xavier de Planbol offers his ideas in a new book in french.
The book :

Les nations du prophete, manuel geographique de politique Musulmane.

Author: Xavier de Planbol.

Evelyne Accad :
_Sexuality and War :  Literary Masks of the Middle East_
New York :  New York University Press,  c1990
The topics in this book seem to include:
 Arabic fiction--Lebanon--History and criticism.
 Arabic fiction--20th century--History and criticism.
 Lebanese fiction (French)--History and criticism.
 Sex in literature.
 Feminism in literature.
 Violence in literature.
 Sexual animosity--Lebanon.
 Sexual animosity--Arab countries.
 Lebanon--History--Civil War, 1975-1976--Literature and the
 war.

  Here is a review that recently appeared in TIME magazine of Ziad Rahbani's
latest play:

From TIME Magazine (May 31, 1993)

SIGHTINGS by Emily Mitchell (p.61)

THEATER Lebanon
You Gotta Have Wasta
"Of Dignity and Stubborn Folk"
Written and Directed by Ziad Rahbani

ACT I: BEIRUT, 1998.
Syrian and Israeli troops have withdrawn from Lebanon, and the
country can determine its own fate. But greed is ascendant, and
mayhem is at hand. In kaleidoscopic scenes, belly dancers
alternate with news flashes and fake TV commercials, while people
boast of their "wasta" (connections). When an old Armenian is
electrocuted trying to repair a generator that is the only power
source, an announcement is made: " He was the last Armenian in
Lebanon - nothing technical will work again . "

ACT II: BEIRUT, 2003.
Though the country is in its death throes, sectarianism has not
expired. Animals join the few surviving Lebanese, and an
orangutan wants to vote. "What is your religion?" the humans
demand. Cannibals garbed in animal skin- and holding
walkie-talkies - proclaim a new credo:" We only eat our
friends."

In this bleak, gallows-humor play, Ziad Rahbani parodies Lebanese
society and evokes the pessimism of Orwell's 1984. The daily
"Hayat" notes that "Rahbani is like those animals that feel the
earthquake before it happens."
"Of Dignity and Stubborn Folk" is selling out in Beirut's
620-seat Piccadilly Theater, and audiences sense that the tremors
may already have begun.

*******************************************************************************

14. Where can I find works written by Lebanese and /or on Lebanon ?

  Check your local or University Library, most of the  books listed above can
be obtained in major bookstores or on special order from your local bookstore.

*******************************************************************************

15. Are there Arabic word processors ?

  Bassem Medawar has compiled a large FAQ on the subject of Arabic on
computers.  It is very comprehensive and is available on the SoL archive
in
     borg.poly.edu  in  /pub/reader/text/faq2   (notice the 2 in faq2)

  There is Arab TeX.  A message was posted about it on scl and Leb-Net
some time ago.  It is public domain, based on TeX which is also public
domain.  TeX is NOT user friendly -as compared to the Macs.

  There are Arabic word processors. But the solutions are a little more
complicated than we would want them.  There is one program
which runs on any Mac operating system, i.e. any language. I produces text
that can directly be pasted into other word processors. This program is
called AlKatib, but is very old and has very many restrictions. Don't
expect much from it.

  Otherwise the way to go is to use the Mac's Arabic Operating system
(AOS).  This system is designed to work with any program.  Yet again this
is not completely true. Most programs that are worth their price, are not
compatible with AOS. Only very primitive programs that uses the editor
routines of the operating system correctly and are very limited in
their features. There are however a few programs that work correctly
with AOS.  There are the products of a company called WinSoft
(based in France?). They have a word processor, WinText and a database
WinFile. I use the word processor and am sort of satisfied. It is not very
expensive either. On the other hand, there is an Arabic (and a Hebrew)
version of Nisus. I have not used it, but some colleagues who did are
satisfied. I am not sure of the price.

  For those who need a useful and cheap database, you could opt for
FileMaker Pro. It is not completely compatible with the AOS (you can not
search Arabic text) but is useful and quite efficient. Another program
that I used earlier was SuperPaint 1.xx. It is a paint/draw program which
is compatible with AOS.

  For those interested in Islamic studies, there is also Koranic software.
The Alim is an "Islamic Study Toolkit". It offers the entire text of:

  - The Qur'an in Arabic
  - Transliteration of the Qur'an
  - Yusuf `Ali's translation
  - Yusuf `Ali's commentary
  - M. Pickthall's translation
  - All nine volumes of Sahih Bukhary
  - Islamic Subjects Database
  - Maududi Sura information
  - Chronological History of Islam
  - Biographies of Companions
  - Islamic terms dictionary

  The Alim runs a clean and powerful text based windowing system.
Several windows can be run at once. It also has a powerful pattern
searching feature.

  The databases are cross-referenced. Separate modules can be
purchased, they include Sahih Muslim, Tirmizy, Al-Muwatta and Assad's
translation among other volumes.

  The standard package has an introductory price of $99.00 and costs
$149.95 in retail. Macintosh, Windows, OS/2 and OSF/Motif support is
expected in the first quarter of 1993. I saw the package and it is
EXCELLENT. It is certainly worth the price. If were to buy the books
in paper form it would cost more than $100, plus you would not be able
to cross reference or search.

  The current version is distributed on 7 high density DOS disks and
when decompressed takes 15Mb on a Hard Disk. You need at least 1.5Mb
on your Hard Disk to run the Software and you can decompress the
components you need. You also need EGA graphics or better. It also
runs on a Macintosh with Soft-AT.

  The Software was developed over six years by a two person company
called ADVENT (800-397-5561). It is distributed by IQRA Bookcenter:
800-521-ICRA or 312-274-2665.

  For users of Wordperfect, there is an Arabic module that can
be added to Wordperfect.  The module enables one to write in English and
Arabic.  It's extremely user friendly!  The regular price is
expensive but the educational price is about $135 (with student or faculty
id).  However that you need to have/buy the standard version
of Wordperfect in order for the module to run.  So it's great for those who
already use Wordperfect, but it may be too expensive for those who don't
since they would need to buy both the standard version and the Arabic
module.

Recently Arabic text editors for the Mac have undergone some major upgrades,
here is a critique of threeMac  Arabic text editors that have recently
been published.  These are: Tex-Edit, MuEdit and Style.

The problem with using Arabic on the Mac is that, while the Arabic system
itself is free and available, you can't use your standard word processor
properly with Arabic, and the Arabic-compatible programs like WinText and
Nisus Int. are expensive and always copy protected. The only alternative
has been to use small and fairly primitve "text editors", program-lets that
allows you to type text, but not very much more; not very useful.

However, recently some new text editors have appeared that makes this
option  more attractive. How do they handle Arabic? I have looked at three
of these new text editors, Tex-Edit, mu-Edit (formerly Quill), and Style,
to check how useful they are for the Arabist Mac user. These are some brief
remarks, based mainly on typing, editing and printing a couple of pages in
each.

A general remark first: These are still text editors. That means in
particular that they are limited in size, you can only write up to 32K
(about 10 pages) per document; any they may slow down when you approach
this limit. They do not have things like footnotes, style sheets, and
formatting beyond what is explicitly stated; none of them have rulers. But
they are free.

              Evaluation: Tex-Edit
A capable text editor. Has standard text styles like bold, italics,
outline, shadow, condensed and extended, as well as colour. You can freely
choose font and size and mix several in a document. All these three allow
multiple documents to be open at the same time.
     Tex-Edit has find/replace, with functions for finding returns, tabs,
linefeeds, whole word only, match case, and Replace all.
     Like Word, if you select a word by doubleclicking, it will include the
space after the word. Useful detail. Triple-clicking selects a sentence.
     It can strip unwanted control characters, and can paste time & day and
page number. It does not have a ruler, but when printing will ask for
margin sizes and may include page numbers. This does not work properly,
however, if you try change the margins on a document about a page or two,
the program hangs, and then crashes on command-period.
     You can justify left, right and center, but this will relate to the
whole document. Works under system 6.0.3 and newer, and with Macintalk will
read out typed text for you. (The name, incindentally, seems to refer to
Texas, not TeX.)

Handling of Arabic: Text entry and editing is acceptable, with a caveat
below. There are however some cursor problems with line breaks. Sometimes
when it should position the cursor at the beginning of a line, it is put at
the end instead. Eg: Moving back one step from the beginning of line 4 to
puts the cursor at the beginning of line 3; and typing will put new text
before the text in line 3.
     You can set the justification to right-oriented, but this is not saved
and has to redone every time you open the document. All these three editors
link fonts and script, thus changing script also automatically switches to
the previously used font in that script.
     Find/replace works with Arabic, but the dialog box shows only Chicago,
i.e. Roman characters (like Word would). However, what is inserted into the
text appears in the correct font.
     Positive: You can set the default font to an Arabic one, like Geeza
12. The editor will then start up with the Arabic script active.
     Negative: Actually, you have to do this. If the default font is a
Roman one, cutting and pasting will not work correctly. On pasting in the
middle of an Arabic block, the default will switch to Roman, and the Arabic
block will be split; the first part coming the left of the last. This can
be repaired, but is a nuisance. Also, if you write an English text, Arabic
is still default, so if you click somewhere in the English text, the script
often (not always) reverts to Arabic.

                  MuEdit
MuEdit appears to be designed for Arabic, thus it has a menu option for
"Orient left to right" and "Orient right to left". Generally, it has
capabilites similar to Tex-Edit: Multipe fonts and styles in a document;
multiple windows, text styles include extended and condensed; find &
replace. It has "find previous", but only options for whole word and case
senstive searches. It allows changing case, has a word count, and can
strip/add linefeed and carriage returns, but not as Tex-Edit, all control
characters. Like T., it has colour, but not  "smart quotes". Print margins
are set in the Page Setup dialog box.
     It works under System 7 only. Interestingly, cut and paste between
these two editors work better than between standard word processors:
Script, font and size information is remembered from one to the other. Both
read each other's files; Tex-Edit can read font and style (but not
justification) of a MuEdit document; MuEdit can only read the text of the
Tex-Edit.

Handling of Arabic:
Typing and editing Arabic text is unproblematic. Selection, cutting and
pasting work as they should. Justification does not automatically follow
scipt, but both are saved with the document.
      It has a couple of bugs, though:
      -- When you open Mu-Edit by double-clicking on a file, the line
breaks do not appear properly. However, if you open MuEdit first and then
the document, they appear as they should. There is an option for "word
wrap", what happens is probably that it is improperly set "off" when you
open document and program together.
     -- Find-replace does not work properly: It finds the Arabic, but the
"replace" string is inserted in Roman, i.e. as garbage characters; breaking
the line in two and reversing their order, in spite of the Right-Left
general orientation.  Instead, you have to copy the correct text, and then
use Find-Paste instead.
     -- Another peculiar bug when I use MuEdit with other text editors: If
right-left orientation is chosen in the MuEdit window; and I switch
directly to another editor, the text window there appears (incorrectly)
right-adjusted. Only by switching through the Finder is this corrected, and
the editor's window redrawn. This happens when I switch both to Tex-Edit
and to Eudora, but not to Word. Either it is problem in MuEdit, or in the
Arabic resources themselves.

                Style:
Style, an Italian offering, is the least capable of the three, and is not
really adapted for writing Arabic. It has the standard styles, and
Find/Replace, but no options for setting page width in printing. More
seriously, the word wrap does not break at the edge of the window, but at a
predefined length that seems to be calculated from a 13 or 14" monitor.
Thus, on my SE/30, I cannot see a full line, and I have to scroll
horizontally manually in order to see what I am writing. This is clearly
not acceptable. You can, however, mix styles and fonts in a document. Style
does not save in TEXT format, as the two others do, but has an XTND file,
so you can use it with MacWrite and other XNTD-programs. In version b.3,
the Open command did not work, perhaps due to a conflict with Super
Boomerang.
     In handling Arabic, another problem is that you cannot set
justification; it is stuck on left-adjusted. Thus you are always writing
'backwards', as it were, and printing will also be left-adjusted. Also, I
have been unable to add anything at the end of a line. The cursor will
then, whatever I do, place the correction at the beginning of the line.
Further, the cursor moves incorrectly. The left-arrow keys moves the cursor
forward, as it should, but at the end of the line, it jumps up to the
previous, rather than down (and vice versa for the right-arrow key). I.e.,
as in Roman text.
     Although Style handles Arabic text entry and editing, it is thus not
useful for Arabic; and hardly for for European languages, at least if you
don't have a 12"+ monitor.

                Summary
I will not recommend Style in its current version. The two others are,
however, very useful contributions, although both have some drawbacks. Each
has a bug; Tex-Edit the incorrect placement of the cursor at the beginning
of the line; MuEdit defaulting to no word wrap when you open the program
with a document. You can live with both, however. Tex-Edit can be set to
Arabic as standard script, so you can open it and just start typing Arabic.
MuEdit has an orient right->left option that makes it apt for Arabic, and
which is saved with the document (unlike Tex-Edit's justification).
     As it currently stands, I have problems choosing between them. If you
use System 6, you have to choose Tex-Edit, as MuEdit requires System 7.
Otherwise, the printing bug in Tex-Edit, if it is general and not just on
my machine, would tip the scales against it; I do not fancy being stuck
with a half-inch margin. On the other hand, the Find-Replace bug in MuEdit
is serious, but can be circumvented using Paste instead of Replace. Thus,
with the faults I have found to date, I would choose MuEdit; but both are
very useful, and to be recommended.
     If you want to include Arabic in a major work, like a book, you must
still buy a commercial Arabic-compatible word processor. But for simple
things, these editors are now almost as capable as the standard word
processors; and they are free.

     Versions tested:
     Tex-Edit 1.8.1 (8 April 1993). Freeware. Recommended memory: 390K
     MuEdit 1.0d0 (9 May 1993, formerly Quill) Freeware.
     Recommended memory: 360K
     Style 1.1b3 (US) (5 April 1993). Freeware. Recommended memory: 256K
     Tested on a Mac SE/30, 8 MB. All are on Sumex, in /info-mac/app.

*******************************************************************************

16. Is there a standard Arabic alphabet representation in Latin ?

  The standard is called cat (for Classical Arabic Transliteration) and
is the work of Bassem Medawar.

  The file can be retrieved from the SoL archive by anonymous ftp to

    borg.poly.edu   in   pub/reader/text/translit/cat

*******************************************************************************

17. Where can I find Lebanese songs and music ?

  Town Records in Manhattan sell International records including,
sometimes, Lebanese.

  Shahin Brothers, in Brooklyn, Atlantic Avenue, sell a large collection of
Lebanese and other Arabic Music.

  They also sell Lebanese/Arabic books.

*******************************************************************************

18. Where can I find a Lebanese restaurant ?

  In Brooklyn, NY, there are a couple Lebanese Restaurants on Atlantic
Ave.  One is Tripoli Restaurant, good food, a bit expensive, good to
invite a guest, and another more popular (and affordable) Kabab and
Shawarma restaurant (a-la Abu Khudor) accross the street from Tripoli
Restaurant.  The Kabab restaurant even has an indoor water fountain,
nice touch.

  The area near NY Univ in Manhattan has quite a few M.E. restaurants.

  In Manhattan there is Cedars of Lebanon restaurant.

Here is the Address:

  Cedars of Lebanon
  39 East 30th Street
  New York City, 10016
  Phone: [phone]

  I've been to this restaurant and it is excellent.
  They have a Lebanese band that sings Lebanese songs,
  and the food is very good.
  Excellent place for a saturday evening.
_______________________________________________________________________________

  There are three in the St.Louis area:

      Aladdin's - 2241 S. Brentwood, [phone]
      Very good, reasonable price.

      Salim's   - 6501 Delmar, [phone]
      Good, but expensive.

      Mediterranean Taverna - Edwardsville IL
      Good food & entertainment, Middle-Eastern buffet for ~$7.
_______________________________________________________________________________

Canyon Cafe, 330 N. Palm Canyon Drive, Palm  Springs CA 92262
Tel [phone], Owner Ghassan Razzouk.
It is a small cafe in Palm Springs that serves Lebanese dishes
The propritor is half Lebanese half Italian, he is married to
a Colombian and has lived most of his life in Mexico. He does
a good falafel, the makanek are nice, Tabouleh and Baba Ghannouj
need some work.

_______________________________________________________________________________

In Denver there is a Cedars Restaurant run by a Lebanese guy, I've
heard good things about it, but I've not been there.  Hopefully,
you can find it listed in the phone book.
_______________________________________________________________________________

  Here are two lebanese restaurants I've been to in Paris - France.

Name    : Al-Dar.
Address : very close to Place Victor Hugo (?Av. Raymond Poincarre?).
Price   : relatively expensive (200-300 FF per person = medium size
           mezze + meat + dessert).
Quality : Good to Very-Good (same quality then in Lebanon).
Remarks : Lebanese service, arabic music, grocery with lot of lebanese
          staff (less expensive).

Name    : Al-Diwan.
Address : Avenue Georges V (close to the Champs Elysee)
Price   : relatively expensive (250-350 FF per person = medium size
          mezze + meat + dessert).
Quality : Good.
Remarks : Lebanese service, arabic music, grocery with lot of lebanese
          staff (less expensive).

There are a lot of other lebanese restaurants in Paris. I only know
these two and I recommand Al-Dar.

_______________________________________________________________________________

  Here in London, we are well supplied with a number of Lebanese
restaurants.  I'll describe only a small selection of them.

Name: Maroush I
Location: 21, Edgware Road, W2
Telephone: [phone]
Cost per Person: No music, no arak : GBP.18 (US$ 36);
                 Music and alcohol : GBP.37 (US$ 74);
Quality: The food is okay. This is the flagship of the Maroush/Ranoush
chain of three restaurants+ 1 takeway in London. On week-ends in the
winter and throughout the week in the summer, there is live music and
dancing which makes you think you are in Bairut itself ! Beware
though, minimum charge when there is music and dancing is GBP.37
(US$74) which is damn expensive, but if you don't care, then go for
it. Last time I went there with friends, we spent 4 hours eating,
singing, and generally having a good time.  Quantity of food: Well,
since they will charge you a minimum price of GBP.37, you really have
to eat a lot to make up to this price ! Say 3 starters per person,
plus main course, plus baklawa, plus fruit, plus mint tea etc. - open
'til 4:00am or so !

Name: Maroush II
Location: 38 Beauchamp Place, SW3
Telephone: [phone]

Cost per Person: GBP.18 (US$ 36) + drinks (3 starters(shared) + main
course) Note: Second Maroush restaurant in London, near Knightsbridge
Quality: I'm not pleased with this one. Bad service. Crowded with the
wrong type of crowd. Although the food isn't cheap, the decor is
el-cheapo.  Quantity of food: Okay.

Name: Maroush III
Location: 62 Seymour Street W1H - perpendicular to Edgware Road.
Telephone: [phone]
Cost per person: GBP.18 (US$ 36) + drinks
Note: 1 minutes away from Maroush I

Quality: This one's my favourite Maroush restaurant because I have
been there so many times I know everyone. The food is good while not
too expensive. Summer is more crowded than winter because of the Gulf
population taking its quarters around the nearby Edgware Road.
Recommended starters: Arayes, Baba Ghanouj (Mouttabal), firri, Makanek
Un-recommended starters: Kibbeh (it's not the real thing), sojuk (it
is different every time I go there !)  Recommended main course: Lahem
Meshwi. Farrouj Kebab.  Recommended drink: Laban Ayran (they know how
to do it properly) Beware of the meat Shawarma, it's very greasy,
*very*.  Quantity of food: plenty. 3 starters to share plus main
course is enough.  Baklawa and/or fruit is included in the cover
price. If you can eat the whole tray of baklawa (about 40+) your meal
is on the house (that's what they told me) Additional notice:
Check-out the Maitre d'Hotel. He thinks he's Lebanese but in fact he
is Spanish, and it's funny to hear him speak Arabic ;-)

Name: Al Hamra
Location: 31/33 Shepherd Market, Mayfair, W1Y
Telephone: [phone]
Cost per person: GBP.29 (US$58) + drinks
Quality: Situated in the heart of Mayfair, a very prestigious area of
town, Al Hamra is pretty expensive. But then again, it is the only
place which has someone at the entrance to park your car for you.
Since it is so hard to park in central London, it's pretty good,
especially in the evening when you don't want to walk the streets. The
food is of good quality. But then, one would really expect it. Book in
advance, because the restaurant is pretty small and very popular.
Quantity of food: less than in Maroush III, but who says that quantity
counts ?

Name: Fakhreldine
Location: 85 Piccadilly, Mayfair, W1
Telephone: [phone]
Cost per person: GBP.40+ (US$80+) + drinks

Quality: Very popular, very expensive, very good. The bill seems to be
exponential with what you eat. If you have a business meal with
anybody you want to impress, take them there. Most people whom I know
and have gone there have gone only once. They are still saving for the
next time !  This is known to be the best in town. Go there, if you
can afford it.  Quantity of food: at those prices, do you bother ?
It's the people there that matter. Who knows, you could be striking
the deal of your career !

Name: Beit Eddine
Location: 8 Harriet Street, SW1X
Telephone: [phone]
Cost per person: GBP.25 (US$50) including drinks

Quality: This is a small restaurant where it is advisable to book
during week-ends. The food is good, but nothing special. But a friend
of mine really likes it. I guess the atmosphere, although being
simple, is very pleasant. Shawarma is pretty good. Lahem Meshwi is a
bit dry, so be sure to order Humus to dip the meat in...  Quantity of
food: the portions are rather small. Be sure to order enough !

Take-away food:


There is a quantity of takeaway shops for Arabic food in London, especially
on the Edgware Road. After having tried nearly all of them, I can only
recommend one:

Name: Ranoush Juice
Location: 43 Edgware Road, W2
Telephone: [phone]
Cost of sandwich: GBP.2.50 (US$5) average
Recommended sandwiches: Chicken Shawarma; Mouttabal Sandwich
Recommended drinks: freshly-made carrot juice, it's good for you !
Recommended process-to-get-served: go to the till, and order your food; pay
and use the ticket that you get to give to the cooks. If you are a pretty
girl you'll probably get served immediately ;-).

  Well, that just about rounds-up a small selection of Lebanese
restaurants in this part of the world. One last observation: you'll
find that the garlic sauce served with chicken (for example) is pretty
weak compared to what is served back in Lebanon.  Home cooking is
still the best !

  Editorial Note: I have used GBP for Great Britain Pound Sterling, and
the exchange rate is US$ 2 for GBP 1. -> I can't be bothered to use
the exact exchange rate.

  The PHOENICIA, 11/13 Abingdon Road (Off Kensington High Street)
London W8. Tel: [phone]. The food is
consistently excellent, the quantities are more than ample, the prices are
reasonable and extremely good value, and above all the service is
friendly, courteous. They even speak Lebanese instead of the condescending
French some are prone to. It merits at least one visit every time I leave
this cold country for the nearest I can get to a good Lebanese meal
barring home cooking. Try their mezza!

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19. Where can I find a Lebanese grocery store?

  There are two large Arab shopping areas that I know of in NY/NJ:

Brooklyn, NY, Atlantic Ave, Brooklyn Heights.
Paterson, NJ, off Guarden State Pkwy, Hazel Street exit.
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  In St.Louis:

Middle-Eastern Markets (Aswak al shark-al-awsat) on Grand Blvd.
Jay International Markets on Grand Blvd.
Al Madina Al Arabia in North County.

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