
They like sugar in their tea and coffee. A LOT of it. I had a cup of coffee an hour before breakfast and I could hardly see straight! For breakfast we had zatar (spiced bread) and jibneh (cheese pie). Shortly afterwards we were whisked away, which happens a lot with no warning, for a driving tour of Baalbek. Abdo drove us through the city stopping once at the town park, and one stop for booza (ice cream). The ice cream was a mixture of five or six flavors served in one cone, and it was good, kinda like a mixture of our ice cream and water ice! We got to experience more of the driving, although it's not nearly as scary when you're going slowly, but the dust and exhaust still gets to you.
The afternoon was relaxing and dinner was great. They served skewered chicken and lamb, fried fish, fries, cucumber salad, tomato salad, hummus, and I'm sure there was more that I can't recall. After watching some of the family do a traditional Lebanese dance called the Debke, we both slept the rest of the afternoon.
We were again whisked away for another ride, this time to a tent market with Mohammed. The market is only open for 15 days out of the year and had vendors from all over the middle east. In order to get in we had to pass through security similar to the US with women on one side and men on the other. Inside, we bought Mette (cucumber) seeds for Jeff and a handmade vase from Iran for Mom Etherington. Uncle Mohammed's son-in-law had a booth there and welcomed us to Lebanon by giving us Lebanese flag bracelets. From here, we took a short ride to an overlook where we could see the Roman ruins in the sunset.
Despite the culture shock that I'm experiencing from some sights, it's comforting that no one seems to take a second look at me. I don't feel like much of an outsider.
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