Here she is, the very cool & stylish lady with the dream helmet!

Have I told you how much I love fish? I really do! Don’t they look yummy?!

A beautiful poem about French Fries at the new Casper & Gamibini’s near AUB

The beautiful Emir Assaf Mosque, one of many nice Mosques downtown Beirut

Gruen, what a simple, minimalistic name, a German word by the way, meaning Green. A very chic and very modern restaurant in the heart of Hamra, next to AUB and Gefinor buildings (here). I’ve been there three times so far, once around Easter, when I bought cute sweets from their “Cacao & Co” corner (my post about C&C here). But what I loooved last time were these beauuutiful flowers! I forgot their name – do you know it? Then please tell me. I had a nice and almost poetic afternoon break on that day, with a very pleasant and interesting woman. Vivent les belles fleurs, vivent les femmes, et vivent les sweets!

Cute eggs that remind me of my grandmother’s “inn” (=chicken house)

Delicious “3assal” that reminds me of my uncle’s beeyard, really, not kidding!

The delicious Turkish (pita?) bread. Similar to Lebanese “khebez”, no?

Watching this elegant pigeon while having breakfast

Roasted chestnuts, a hand full of calories – and warm happiness!

Turkish coffee. Or Lebanese? Just thinking, these photos could have been in Lebanon!

I have been unfair to this cafe/restaurant (here); I’ve never mentioned it, although I spent several nice mornings there, like two weeks ago on a very rainy morning. The place is unpretentious and relaxed, like the people who visit it. Beside the food and the nice place, I looove the paintings on the walls. One of them shows a young lady sitting in a cafe on a rainy morning, looking outside, with an espresso cup in her hand – and another one on the table, although she’s alone. Is she drinking two espressos? Is she waiting for somebody? A very melancholic and romantic scene, I totally identify with it. Curious? Watch out for it when you’re there.

Hello dears. Did you miss me? Back to you today to tell you about Enfe, a very cute little place, a kind of small fisher port on the Northern coast near Chekka (here). A tourist told me recently that he had been there. I was astonished since it’s a rather hidden place (but ok, Lonely Planet mentions it). It has few remains of a Crusader castle and two very large moats/ditches in the rocks, one of them is 40 m long. Very impressive, when you stand inside. However, the place is very dirty, malheureusement, and nobody seems to value its historic meaning. Maybe they will when enough tourists go to visit. So yalla, your turn!

The nice restaurant where they offer a delicious buffet

Me happy in the lift lobby, overdressed for an afternoon tea – nooo, coffee!

The modest but lovely sea view – large enough to make you feel freee!

The nice lobby where you can have a drink, chat on your mobile phone, or just look around!

Everything is perfect about this place (here). Its name (I loooove magnolias!), its huge and amaaazing cakes, its friendly staff, its beautiful design – even the cute little flowers on the tables. How if you’re there with your beloved ones, on a weekday (while all other people are working!) and just before having a (successful!) shopping tour through ABC Mall… What, you never go to ABC Mall? This little bakery is deeefinitely worth the visit, vraiment!

Deliiicious fish at Le Marin restaurant in Batroun

A beautiful place on the way to the South, I think with banana trees to the left

Finally having blue eyes like my mom

A cute little gift that smells really good

I was recently sitting together with some people, eating donuts, when one of them started praising his home town of Jezzine, describing how special he was to be from there – until he found out that, par hasard, three neighbors at table were from there too! Jezzine is indeed a super beautiful place in South Lebanon, surrounded by equally splendid little villages like: Aytoule. We visited friends there some time ago and really didn’t want to leave. It is such a relaxed, charming, clean, green and traditional village that you looove to spend the evening walking, holding hands and smiling – happily ever after! Indeed, blessed are those who come from Jezzine, esp. from Aytoule!

Somebody asked me recently why there are no German restaurants in Lebanon. Well, there is one, at City Mall. It’s called “Schnitzels” (here), like the German word for escalope. It’s an “authentic German restaurant”, they assure you, but Schnitzels are of course eaten in many other countries, especially in Österreich/Austria, but also in Iran and Israel, as I just read! The waitresses at Schnitzels wear the traditional “Dirndl” dresses, and even the hands on the picture are authentic German by the way; this is my friend’s brother who is trying the Jägerschnitzel (I think), which means Schnitzel with a champignon sauce. Ok, enough said, it’s time to eat. Yalla, essen

The cutest ahwe or Turkish coffee in town (by my husband’s grandmother)!

The cutest mini flowers, at Magnolia Bakery, ABC Mall Dbayeh

A dream cake at Sugar Daddy’s Bakery, Qoraitem

Cute little golf balls at Golf Club of Lebanon

You know Rawcheh for sure, you know Pigeon’s Rock, Shrimpy’s, Hallab, Bayrock Café and all the other new cafés that opened there in the last two years. But you don’t know Forn al Mahabba! And you should. It’s a very small “forn” or bakery in a street parallel to Rawcheh (Australia Street) where you can find one of the best man’oushes and lahm b’ajins in town, seriously. I can’t define where they come from, if they’re originally Lebanese, or Palestinians, or maybe from Syria? I can’t tell, they offer the food in all variations (lahm b’ajin “Sfiha” from Baalbeck or “Shami” from Damascus). The staff changes very often, but they are aaall very kind and generous, a real blessing, especially early in the morning!

You think highways are boring and not the best place to go out? Well, the port highway in Beirut is home to many impressive clubs/lounges (one of which is B018, my post here). Have you ever noticed the super beautiful building above? I’ve always wanted to visit one of the places inside and was delighted to finally do that some weeks ago. Harbor 201 (here) was such a nice surprise. The dinner was deliiicious, the music was (mostly) our taste and the party was awesome, especially due to Julia’s hot salsa moves! Even our men couldn’t stop dancing! So now it’s time to try Kotch in the upper level. Is it a Sushi bar?, a Chinese restaurant?, no, a luxurious Turkish Hammam (here). Des surprises partout, this Lebanon!

It was fate. We were on our way to another café for breakfast, when we met a friend who strongly, very strongly recommended The Hangout in Gemmayzeh (here). My English isn’t good enough to describe the traditional beauty of this charming café/restaurant, the amazing delicacies you get on your dish, like labneh and jams made with love by M.’s téta (grandmother). I was amazed by all the details around me, I took photos and talked with every member of the staff who again took photos of me. I really felt welcome and spoilt. I think this is the word: They spoil you there, with their food, their ambiance, their friendliness and – their generosity. Am I exaggerating? Pas du tout! Just try it out. The perfect place to hang out.

When I was doing my PhD in Berlin, I needed to compensate my frustration with a nice activity. So I chose to learn golf at a place in “Berlin Mitte”, made especially for students. I enjoyed it a lot. Then I stopped and the virus went over to my sister in Munich who’s still playing to date. Thanks to a veeery nice gentleman that I know, we discovered recently the super beautiful and amazing Golf Club of Lebanon (here)! You would have never imagined such a green oasis in Beirut! We went there today, although it’s raining, with the wrong clothes and the wrong shoes, but ma3le, nobody cares. I took a golf lesson, and I l-o-v-e-d it. Mr. Golf, I am back, definitely!

One big advantage of living in Berlin is the great Indian food you can get for so little money! There are plenty of beautiful restaurants that serve delicious Indian food such as chicken masala, mango lassi or the tandoori you see above. Doesn’t it look gorgeous? You don’t need to fly to Berlin, you can get it at Moti Mahal (here) in Zaytounay Bay (but not for little money!), a nice chic place and one of the few Indian restaurants in Beirut. I wish I could have this now, but I can’t complain, I’m going out for lunch with my mom and my sister. Have a nice and sunny day

What’s Damascus without its Hammams? I’ve only been to one in Istanbul though!

The impressive Old Citadel of Damascus (here). These were architecture students.

Outside Souk el Hamidiyeh market (here) where we bought a beautiful painting.

At a place that I really like: Azem Palace, at the end of the Souk, so romantic (here)!

At the world-famous Umayyad Mosque that used to be a Basilica (here).

At Sayyidah Rouqaya (here) near the Souk but Sayyida Zeinab is more famous (here).

I love Arabic calligraphy, so I couldn’t miss “its” museum (here)!

“Qamar el Sham”, Damascus’ Moon. May the sun rise above you soon, Sham…

This is one of my hidden favorites. It’s a must every time I am at ABC Mall in Ashrafieh (here). It’s such a nice place on the roof, always sunny, with very nice waiters and very delicious food. And you always meet people you know, it’s incredible. And this time I saw, for the very first time in Lebanon or maybe in my life, a woman smoking a cigar. Wooow! Of course I’m for the smoking ban, but first we were sitting outside, and secondly I love women who have the courage to do what they like to, even if other people like me don’t stop staring at them! I think I’m gonna finally buy vanilla cigarillos soon!

The dream dress that came to me today…

My new studded but feminine boots from Zara Concorde/Verdun (here).

My cool new sunglasses by Dsquared, bought at…

…Optik Studio in the department store of ABC Mall Ashrafieh (here)

They have such grace! White swans, can you imagine? We were on a short trip to the North, with no specific target, when we arrived first to the woooonderful village of Bishmizzine in Koura, with its beautiful old houses (it’s even on wikipedia here, how cute) and then to Bnachii Lake in Zgharta (here). I didn’t even know it existed. And then, out of nothing, pleenty of cute little ducks, cute little girls eating cotton candy and elegant, gracious white swans. I loved them, I took maybe 50 pictures, but then I had to stop, the delicious nutella crêpe was waiting, and the hotdog, and the popcorn. A wonderful, relaxed and unpretentious afternoon.

La Mie Dorée, such a cute name (here). I really like this beautiful café at ABC Mall in Ashrafieh, because it “consoles” me every time I go out from the Chanel shop, with empty hands of course… La Mie Dorée offers me a delicious croissant, a nice fashion magazine – and a smile. The perfect place to enjoy the view to the right (a few trees in the rain), to the left (the dizzying perfume department) and straight ahead: Chanel! And in my hands Brad Pitt with his ad for N° 5 by… Chanel, again! By the way, I just read that La Mie Dorée is a “sister” of Café Paul and Café Balthazar (my posts here and here).

I really need the summer back… Please! What’s life without the sun? Wind, rain, thunderstorms, like we had them this week in Lebanon, no problem, but please not without the sun. Le soleil est indispensable! While dreaming of it, I remembered Lazy B, a beautiful beach resort in Jieh, south of Beirut (here). Not only is it a sun temple of course, it’s also very colorful and the exact right thing to cheer me up at the moment! Thank God it’s Sunday tomorrow, I think I’m gonna spend the day in a colorful place where you can “Sonne tanken”, which means in German to refill your tank with sun… How expressive!

This is really one of my favorite restaurants in Beirut. I don’t know why. It’s just chic and you get quality food and you can trust that everything is fine… And I love its name of course: Casper & Gambini’s (here). My favorite branch is in Verdun, at Dunes Shopping Center (here), although it’s daaaangerously close to Aishti (my previous post here)! And if you’re at ABC Ashrafieh, C&G is a great place to have a break, enjoying the pile of shopping bags on the chair next to you and watching other people hunting for their precious pieces…

I see colors in your life, and plenty of cherry! (Bar Cherry, my post here)

I see doors that will open for you, finally without any effort! (Café Em Nazih, post here)

I see delicious food and sweets and chocolate! (Restaurant Montagnou, post here)

I see tranquilityyyyy for you! Moments of total satisfaction… (Tyr, post here)

I see amaaaaazing trips for you, and plenty of exciting people! (Maldives, post here)

…and above all, I see LOVE for you! Love love everywhere! (My Joy Index here)

Can you believe that you even need a reservation for pubs in Beirut? Ok, not all of them, but in those new ones “downtown”, facing Le Gray Hotel. Tant mieux, all the better: We went to Cherry on the Rooftop (here) at Hotel Le Gray (here)! It’s really cute and welcoming, and I really liked the DJ and his “house” music. We spent a relaxed evening with relaxed people who, unlike those in the pubs, were stylish but not overdressed and – not smoking inside! Some of them just smoked in small groups on the beautiful terrace, enjoying the superb view! Try it, it’s a really cherry-sweet bar!