Flights that function

I left Saskatoon on Sunday, August 15. I was originally meant to leave on July 28, but felt the need for a couple more weeks of clean, cool air. Anyway, I am not a big fan of Air Canada's customer service on the phone. After 20-40 minutes of being on hold, you can finally get through to talk to someone, and after only two calls, my flight was changed, but I had to make a third call to get my confirmation of itinerary and receipt for the $100 change fee.

We arrived at the airport at 12:30 on Sunday for my 2:05pm flight, to discover that the flight had been delayed until around 3:00pm, so after checking in, we went back to Mom's to hang out on the lawn and eat some snacks. I went back to the airport around 2:30, and the flight was further delayed. No problem, I drank a hot chocolate from the machine, made several trips to the washroom, drank water, and observed the body builders who had been in Saskatoon for the Exhibition. All that muscle is really quite fascinating to look at.

On the flight, I was also seated in the emergency exit row, which meant extra leg room. Although I am short, those Air Canada domestic planes are pretty small, and I was glad for the extra space. I got a copy of the Globe and Mail from the nice flight attendant, and that kept me busy pretty much the whole way to Toronto.I ate pad thai for dinner in the airport, then bought the new Margaret Atwood and Yann Martel books (Year of the Flood and Beatrice and Virgil). We left Toronto just a little behind schedule, and I was fortunate to be able to maintain my aisle seat. Since I travel alone, I often get bumped so that people can be seated together. This often means giving up an aisle seat, and usually entails sitting next to a big dude, which is really uncomfortable, since big people take up a little of my already small space. The guy next to me was good- he was talkative without being annoying. I was able to finish reading Small Wonder by Barbara Kingsolver and start Year of the Flood. That was good.

I ended up staying in Heathrow during my layover. Originally, I was to have 8.5 hours in London, but due to the Saskatoon flight being delayed, I had a later flight from TO, thus reducing my London time to 4.5 hours. I was completely exhausted anyway, since I had barely slept on the flight. I wandered around for awhile before I found a place to lay down and sleep for awhile, then ate some soup and headed over to my gate for my flight to Beirut. I was seated on the window side, next to an older woman. I noticed the flight was not very full, so after the drink cart came around, I excused myself to a row where I had 4 seats all to myself, so I was able to lounge out and read and sleep. It was great.

And that brings me back to Beirut...it's hot and humid, but the food is almost always awesome, and what more can you really ask for?

Back in Beirut

After a glorious summer in Canada, I am back in Beirut, and surprisingly glad to be back in my little home. I currently have a flatmate who is writing a guidebook on Lebanon, so it's been nice to come home to someone- it's far more fun going out to eat pizza and Indian food with a friend, rather than alone. The other flatmate is returning today, for a couple of days, and that should be fun.

It's around 40C here, and super humid. Apparently it's hotter than usual, but hasn't the weather everywhere been unusual this year? Rains in Saskatchewan, floods in Pakistan, forest fires and killer heat wave in Russia...

I am trying to kick jet lag, though the weather really makes me want to sleep the day away. I slept from 5-10am the first night back, then from 12-2 that afternoon. The next night, I slept from 3-9am, so I thought I was on track, but last night, I slept around 11pm, but woke for a couple hours at 2:30 or 3, then slept until after 9 again. Well, it's not so bad. I am at least keeping myself up most of the day, and I am just thirsty most of the time, but not miserably tired.

Yesterday, I went with my guidebook writing flatmate, Jess, to visit Chatila, which is the main Palestinian refugee camp in Beirut. I already forget the population, but it is a very closed quarters setting. We visited the camp at the time when the power was out, and unlike much the city, there are no generators to run electricity at that time.There are electrical wires and plumbing features everywhere, buildings with only inches between them, little space to move- most flats are under 30 square metres. Smaller than my classroom at school, and that's to house a family with a little kitchen and bathroom. And that was around the moment I figured I really best stop my complaining about the little things. I will not dwell on all the details- it was actually a pretty hopeful visit, in the sense that the man who runs the Children and Youth Centre works hard and is very knowledgeable about improving the lives of people. He seems to be the mayor of the camp- everyone knows him and respects him. As a non-religious Palestinian, he did not once say inshallah (God willing). He said (jokingly) that he thinks God works for the Israelis. And once again, I profess my gratitude for being born in a safe place free of political turmoil.

Today, for a change of pace, I booked a massage appointment and went for a manicure and pedicure. Now I am sitting at a coffee shop that has internet, avoiding going home because this cat we are looking after is driving me insane. She is nice for about 2 minutes (if you're lucky), then scratches or bites. She thinks feet are mice, and is constantly attacking them, even when one is sitting still. Kitty is also in the habit of trying to play with my skirts, and has caused a couple snags so far. Luckily, her person is coming back in a few days, and then we will hand her over. I'm sure when Kitty becomes a grown up cat, she will be okay. She was really sweet in June when my friend first found her, but she's currently behaving like an annoying teenager. I think I'm just not really a pet person.

I think I need another coffee- it's 3:30pm and I'm fading fast.