In The MEA Aeroplane Over The Sea

Well, I'm back! Like I said, it was one of the quickest vacations ever, but it was a much needed vacation for me to de-stress from both work and school. And I have to say, mission accomplished! And you know Neutra Milk Hotel's "In The Aeroplane Over The Sea"? Well, I couldn't stop playing it my head as I was flying back home. I even Instagrammed this picture from the MEA plane:

I feel quite pumped and ready to get back to business! In fact, I even went straight to Marketing Class this afternoon! 

Amman to Beirut: 135 Miles, Beirut to Tripoli: 53 Miles, Tripoli to Balamand: 8.5 Miles, Balamand to Tripoli: 8.5 Miles… 205 Miles in 12 hours and now HOME SWEET HOME! (L)

RIP JAA

I used to wear this for her, for her fight against cancer. And she was doing alright; she was my definition of LiveStrong. And then, her husband died…

As I was told, they had spent a beautiful afternoon together, her, her husband, and their adorable 10-year-old son. When they got home, her husband said he felt like taking a walk, and that she and her son should go visit her sister. He walked and they went, and then God took him, at 45 years old, away from his wife and son who both needed him more than ever…

I slept that entire night without knowing, without feeling, until the next morning…

You tell me its life, that I didn’t know him, and that I don’t even know her too well either. Just people in the book of life, who’ve lost people, like everyone loses someone they love, and that there are worse tragedies in this world. And I won’t disagree. But I’ll insist that I do know her, and that she’s a good one, and good ones get to me…

This afternoon, I went to his funeral at church. Among the tens of people there, I only knew one person there, her… she looked in the saddest state I’d ever seen her in. And I came to understand how one could feel so alone when surrounded by so many people…

I wanted to get up and hug her, to tell her that I was there, that it would be ok again. But God, my heart feels things it doesn’t show, and my mind thinks things I can’t put into words…

But keep Living Strong, please LiveStong…

The Cedars of Lebanon

Last year, while in my second year at BankMed, Jinan and I planned a work trip to the cedars. It really turned out to be a fun filled day in the snow, but the one thing I regret was that we didn't have enough time to visit the Cedar forest (which closes at 3:00PM). So this year, to make up for last time, Jinan and I planned the same trip with the first stop being the forest!

On the drive up, we spotted a cart of cotton candy, which Jinan insisted on getting! Here’s the story in two shots :-P

The scenery on the way up to the Cedars is just wonderful, snow covered everything!

The entrance to the forest (and when I say entrance, I don't just mean the door but the entire way in) was blocked with snow! A local shop owner told us that some people were getting in from an open wire fence a couple of feet down and so we followed the snow prints…

It was a long hike up to the forest, and the walk up took half the energy out of us. But when we reached the top, the view was worth it! We took a rest on a nearby Cedar branch, which was also drowned in snow! We took pictures and had fun and I definitely made it a point to come back here in summer, where I can imagine the view would also be majestic without the snow…

On the drive home, we stopped for a late lunch in Ehden, where I also took the opportunity to shoot the winter scenery…

The Picture of Dorian Gray

I've never read the book, nor do I know what it talks about. But the title fits this post, for reasons I prefer to keep to myself…

I first met him at the bank where he was our client, a regular. I’d see him at least several times a week and I’d often take care of his customary banking transactions. He’d always thank me, ending with “God bless you, dear” and inside I’d smile for having satisfied a customer…

He wasn't that old, but he wasn’t young either. He was 73, with the spirit of a man twenty years younger than that. He was accurate and well-organized, always jotting down notes and numbers in his big black notebook. He was a rare gentleman, and sincerely I liked him…

And then I read his name, and the news of his passing. A heart attack…

I shivered. I had just seen him less than 24 hours ago, and he seemed absolutely fine. And now, just like that, I was never going to see him again…

I suddenly became more aware of my own heart beating in my chest cavity. I could feel the blood flowing through my veins and arteries, and all the other organs and vessels inside the human body, how they all function in perfect symmetry with each other… until one day, they stop…

But there’s something soothing about the Quranic verse, “إنا لله وإنا إليه راجعون” which translates into “We belong to God, and to Him we shall return…”

Rest in Peace, K.M.A. 1939 - 2012

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Pictures from Tripoli’s Car Free Day!

So, I know this is a few days overdue, but as I’d posted last week, last Sunday was “Tripoli and Mina’s Car-Free Day”, and what a day it was! I spent most of it at our BankMed stand, handing out gapples (organic apples), which were, all bias aside, the best tasting apples I've ever had!

I also got the chance to see Mr. President Michel Suleiman up close in the VIP section, and I got these two shots of him:

All in all it was a wonderful day, and it was beyond wonderful seeing Tripoli actually car-free! And instead of it being an annual event, I really hope it’s done a lot more often than that… :-)

So Sick

Hei blog, it’s me. I know, it’s not like me to post at 11:00am on a Tuesday morning (when I should be at work!), especially at the start of the month (when work needs me the most!) but I finally caught the flu, the kind sucks the life out of you! :-(

I think I began feeling a little queasy a couple of days ago. Typical me, I ignored the symptoms and I went out and about this weekend until I got quite sick on Sunday and spent most of the day in bed. But, I had my cousin’s wedding that night which I couldn't miss for the world, so I ended up feeling sick as a dog…

And, to add insult to injury, I actually woke up and went to work on Monday morning in the dire condition I was in!

Of course I’d overworked myself to the limit by then so I was forced to take off early and headed straight to the doctor’s, who told me that I’d got a combination of a bacterial and viral infection in my trachea (thus the seriously sore throat) and prescribed three different medicines for me and told me its best I take two days off...

So, fast forward from 12 hours of nonstop sleep since 9:00pm last night, I got up this morning, with less pain and less cough, had a light breakfast, and peacefully sipped tea for fifteen minutes (as opposed to gulping it down in 5 minutes at 7:00am as I’m rushing to work). It feels odd though, doing all the things in slow motion… but God, how my body needed a rest!

Happy Birthday Jinane, + Silkor

It’s my friend Jinane’s birthday today and as a celebration, me and two other friends from work, Jinane’s sister, and her cousin all took her out for a surprise dinner at Chocho’s in Batroun last night. I've only been to Chocho’s once before, and I remember having ordered a chocolate chicken combo of some sort (which tasted as weird as it sounds), but this time I played it safe with a chicken sub sandwich, which definitely made up for the last time! BM Friends, keep smiling! :-)

The Trio: Me, Lara, and Jinane! :-)

While we were dining, The Silkor Team burst in to distribute wet towels, which were delightfully refreshing. And as we found our last night, they’re holding a “One Million Competition” for a chance to win a trip for 2 to the country of your choice! (All you have to do is log in to www.facebook.com/silkorholding and participate!)

All in all it was a fun filled night, best wishes to Jinane, and good luck in the Silkor Competition! :-)

The First Dance (Part 2/3)

hehehe, I’m starting this post off laughing because I did the unimaginable! Ok, so as I’d previously mentioned, today was wedding two out of three for the summer. It was the wedding for one of our colleagues at work and so I went with two of my work friends. We arrived, walked in through the main entrance and were politely welcomed in. I have to admit I was a little shocked when I first stepped in the room. It was… chaotic shall we say…

I quietly whispered to my friend, “is this what you were expecting?” because frankly, I was still not believing my eyes. All the tables and chairs were plastic, little children were running around, women and men in jeans, hubble bubbles, loud country music. “We’re from the bank,” my other friend told the hostess and she said “welcome, welcome!” and led us to an empty table. And I sat there, feeling so out of place. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not judging but it was a first “country wedding” experience for me…

About half an hour later, while sitting there, eating nuts and trying to make myself comfortable, my friend asked, “Where are all our friends from the bank? We can’t possibly be the only ones here” … OMG! What if we’re in the wrong wedding?! And believe it or not, we were!!!

We quietly slipped out and asked one of the guests outside, who’s wedding was this? And sure enough, he gave us two names we’d never heard of. “But there’s another wedding over there in that ballroom”, he said, pointing outside. And we ran!

When I stepped in that other room, everything fell into place, a real wedding, or at least a wedding I was expecting! People were dressed up, great tables, chairs, and decorations, and though we were late, our seats were saved and as we told our story, everyone laughed at us. It was after all, pretty hilarious!

Thankfully, we had made it just in time for the first dance, an Arabic song for Carole Samaha, and here’s my snapshot of their first dance:

Congratulations M&M! Best Wishes for a beautiful couple! :-)

TRIPOLI RAILWAY STATION

When I first heard about the event “Tripoli Railway Station: Open Door”, the event was still due three weeks from then. But because I was so excited, I’d misread the date and assumed it was on that Saturday, three weeks ago, until Taha told me no, it was on the 25th. For some reason, I misunderstood again and thought that the event was the Saturday after that, on the 19th of June, but again I was wrong. That’s just how excited I was! And finally, after three weeks of waiting, the event finally arrived!

But I was swamped! :-( I got a big stomach ache that afternoon and I had a wedding that night, but against the odds, I took some medicine and toughened up for the event I’ve been looking forwards to for the past three weeks! I picked up Diala, Ymn, and Farah and drove over to the train station, which I’ve passed several times before but had never stopped to investigate. Of course I’d have loved to, but it being deserted, I never had the guts to explore it alone. And so, with this local event, I finally got my chance!

When we arrived, we were greeted by the ever energetic We Love Tripoli crew and of course the master of it all, Mr. Elias Khlat. We got free “BankMed” caps (Yes, I have to squeeze in the name of my treasured bank each chance I get ;-) and free souvenir postcards. Then, we took a half hour guided tour of the trains and their tracks, learning about the history of the station. Here are some of the pictures that I took (more on Flickr):

About an hour after that, the Open Air Concert started. We watched the first half hour of it before we had to leave, as I had to get ready for the wedding that night (next post!). But here are a couple of pics I snapped from the concert before we left:

The event is still on today, Sunday June 26th, so if you didn't make it, you still have a chance to go! :-)

The Kindness of Strangers

I’m free! Well, almost. I finally finished the seminar in Beirut that I had registered for two and half months ago, all that’s left is the exam on the 15th. But what I’m celebrating about today is NO MORE DIS-CONNEX-ION BUS!!!:-)

I've had a bunch of adventures on the bus over the past few months, I could almost write a book about my mishaps: like a moving truck screeching the side of the bus, bus door accidently opening into a street pole, breaking the glass and yanking the door off (both events of which happened on the same day!), arguing with one of the drivers who used to insist on taking us to Barbeer before Charles Helou, the weirdo passengers on the bus who tried to Bluetooth me, one man chocked on his cough and almost puked in my lap, the chatterboxes, the Connex-ion love, and of course the ultimate killer: arriving to the station just as the bus is driving away, forcing us to wait for the next bus for another half hour…

But today, as I was walking in to the station, I found a girl about my age crying hysterically on the phone. Our eyes met, and she just made my heart tinge with sadness. What could be so wrong that had her crying her eyes out? I wanted to go up to her and tell her that it was all going to be alright, but I couldn't. For some reason, the situation reminded me of a book I once heard about called “The Kindness of Strangers” it got me thinking about how people sometimes really do care, but just don’t do anything... it's an interesting topic, but one that I'll leave for another post...

Till then, ciao Connex-ion! Even though I hate you, I can't help but love you too :-)

P.S. I won't be checking in to Connex-ion on Foursquare for quite a while, so my Mayorship is up for grabs to whoever would like to accept it! :-P

Today, I Don’t Feel Like Doing Anything...

As Bruno Mars sings in The Lazy Song, “Today I don’t feel like doing anything, I just wanna lay in my bed. Don’t feel like picking up my phone, so leave a message at the tone, cause today I swear I’m not doing anything…” it’s been a lazy Sunday indeed, but a much needed lazy Sunday. And I’m sorry for not having kept this blog updated for the past couple of weeks but I've been exhausted…

See (two months ago) at work, I voluntarily signed up for a two and a half month seminar at the Head Office in Beirut, which has been brilliant so far. But, because it’s in the Capital and I’m in Tripoli, the transit time is against me, and its wearing me out. It’s been since April in which the routine of my life has been going like this:

07:00AM – 07:45AM: wake up, quick breakfast, get dressed, off to work

08:00AM – 11:30AM: work, work, work

11:30AM – 01:30PM: dis-Connex-ion bus (this is the biggest @$$ pain!)

01:30PM – 02:00PM: cab to HO + quick lunch

02:00PM – 04:45PM: seminar

04:45PM – 05:00PM: back to dis-Connex-ion station (rush hour!)

05:00PM – 07:00PM: dis-Connex-ion bus, home.

I’m frustrated! I’m not complaining about any of it except the four hours of dead time in the dis-Connex-ion bus! I’ve done everything to keep myself entertained; I’ve listened to the radio and memorized all the songs Mix FM, NRJ, and Radio One play, I’ve listened to all 827 tracks on my iPod at least a dozen times, I've memorized all the outdoor advertising billboards on the road from Tripoli to Beirut and back, I've read magazines, I’ve read Paulo Coelho’s latest book “The Winner Stands Alone” (great read!), and I've even caught up on my sleep… but come on, four spare hours a day is just too long a time to kill! (Yes, that was all a vent ;-)

So, “today I swear I’m not doing anything… no, I ain't gonna comb my hair, cause I ain’t going anywhere… no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no!” Really, it’s lazy Sundays like these that give me the recharge I need to restart the work week again on Mondays. So to all my friends and distant family members whom I've shamefully been out of touch with, apologies…

On the bright side, it’s almost over. I still have three more days next week, five more days the week after that, and then the big exam on the 15th of June (which I’d better do well in!). Thankfully, the biggest motivation that’s keeping me pumped during all this is the two week vacation in Canada that I’m going to be taking at the end of June! I’ll be back in the blogging scene again soon, so stay tuned! ;-)

A Time To Remember... 2011

Today is my Two-Year Work Anniversary!! I can’t believe it’s already been two full years. I still remember the little me, 21 years old at the time, when I first joined BankMed. What makes me smile every time I look back is the fact that I never wanted to go into Banking (after all, I was a Marketing major!), yet I found a new passion in Finance. I can hear Daniel and Nadine laughing at me from Kuwait and Jordan respectively: Nour, Finance? LOL! But it’s true; the Financial and Managerial sectors have opened up new worlds to me, worlds I thankfully found myself in. From last March’s One-Year Anniversary to todays second, I’m taking a better look at myself and I like the “Work Nour”!

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For the past two years, March 2nd has been like a double-edged sword for me: Happy for the day as my BankMed Anniversary, yet Sad for the day of my paternal grandmother’s passing away three years ago, on March 2nd, 2008…

I was still in the final year of university; still the little me that I was just talking about. I can’t help but think how different, how better my relationship with her might have been had she known me today. I know she’d have appreciated me being more social, more considerate, more understanding of things like I am today…

Family is one of the greatest blessings in life. Never take them for granted… :)

Winter Trip To The Cedars '11

Ever since the collapse of our government (no comment), I've been surrounded by a lot of people’s negative attitudes. It’s quite infectious but I’m quite immune, so I decided to spread a little positivity at work last week by organizing a trip to The Cedars!

Yesterday, we all met up at 8:00 A.M. (well, I’ll admit I was late, which was Micho’s fault because of Armin Van Buuren! :-P). We left Tripoli at 8:30 A.M. and arrived at The Cedars around 10:00 A.M. The road to get there was almost empty, there were few people there, and even fewer snow. But, with a group like ours, it’s all about fun!

Micho took us to the Army’s ski lift where we only had to pay LBP 4,000 for a ride up to the very top of the mountain and then back down again (about a 30 minute round trip). I got some snapshots of this winter wonderland (it’s the best I could get before my fingers almost snapped off from the cold!)

When I was a kid, there was nothing I loved more than tobogganing! But the last time I did that was probably when I was ten years old. Now, thirteen years later, we rented a toboggan and I don’t think Ive been more terrified sliding downhill at full speed, trying to avoid kids and beginner skiers. My legs are still aching from using them as brakes, and starting a snow fight with the kids. I got hit smack in the face with several snow balls, but I got my revenge. It was all exhilarating fun that I hadn't had in quite a while!

After that, it was time for lunch. We had booked thirty places at Le Pichet restaurant at Le Cedrus Hotel. The food was scrumptious, and I had burned an Arabic music mix. We asked the restaurant to play it, and turned our half of the place into a dance floor. I can’t even begin to describe how terrible I am at dancing, but despite my laughable moves, I didn't leave the dance floor…

What a beautiful day! Great weather, great time, and oh, I also got to tick “snow trip” off my 2011 resolution list. I love when things work out! :-)

It's Raining @ Work!

The rain has been falling in insane proportions! When I got to work this morning I realized that the balcony, just like a bathtub, had been filled up with water and was overflowing into our office!

We asked the cleaning lady to come help us fix the problem and she put on two black grocery bags over her shoes and dipped them outside to check why the drain wasn't working properly. Turns out it was clogged with leaves and mud and other descendants of Mother Nature. But with some team effort, we all managed to get the water level back to zero and crossed our fingers that the water wouldn't be back when we got back to work on Monday morning… :-P

Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree!

After not having had a Christmas Tree at work last year, I made sure to order one early this year (on November 30th) and it finally arrived to work this morning! The delivery men came in, set it up, decorated it, and here it is:

Ehden

I sometimes wish I could split myself into two or three Nours, especially on Sundays with all the weekend happenings. Yesterday, I wanted to go on the “Historical Guided Tour in Tripoli” that Elias Khlat was organizing, I wanted to go to the beach with Nan (I can’t believe the weather is still beachable in October! :-), and I wanted to go to Z’s farewell gathering in Ehden. And of the three, I guess I felt most obliged to go to the latter…

Z is a colleague from work, but just last week she resigned for a better position and pay at another job. I remember when I was still undergoing my rotation period last year; she was one of the sweetest and most helpful people there were…

So me and three other colleagues from work decided to go visit her at her summer house in Ehden. And as a going away present, we got her a purse from Mango and invited her for lunch at Ferdos (the best restaurant in Ehden)… Good Luck Z! :-)

BABY KEEP SMILING...

Mad World

There is a mad woman! Literally, a mad woman who owns a shop next to work. I used to hear stories about her, this mad woman. How she deflates car tires if non-customers park in front her shop. I once made that mistake and she came storming into work demanding that the owner of that red vehicle parked outside her shop be gone or she will make it be gone. I gulped and grabbed my keys and ran to save Micah. And never again did I park in front of her shop…

Yesterday though, I was running late for work (as usual) and the entire street was jam packed with parked cars except for one place, in front of her shop. I hadn’t parked there in almost a year and she hadn’t yet opened her shop, so I decided to take the chance… And all day, I didn’t hear any complaints...

Then, when I was about to leave, I found three cars double parked in front of mine, making it completely impossible for me to get out unless all three cars moved. So, I held my breath and went into the shop to ask her to remove the cars. And then she came closer to me, with a shrewd look upon her face, “so this is YOUR car? She sneered at me. “Yup!” I said in an all too jolly tone, trying not to look scared of her. She was a midget after all. She nodded and turned back to the counter to serve some customers, making me wait. About five minutes later, she came back out and said sorry, with a sarcastic smile…

Two can play at this game, I thought, and after she removed her car, I let it out halfway and took out my cell phone for some meaningless jabber. I could see the bedazzled look on her face from my rearview mirror, watching me yap away instead of moving my car to let her park. I carried out an inconsiderate full two minute conversation and then I hung up and looked out the window and said sorry, with a sarcastic smile…

I’ve got to admit though, that was the first time I ever turned evil on someone. But I learned my lesson, never park in front of the mad woman’s shop again! Never ever!

Ugly Naked Guy

We all remember Friends Monica and Rachel’s neighbor they once dubbed “Ugly Naked Guy”. And I remember every episode that ever mentioned him used to crack me up. But never did I expect that I’d actually get to have such a neighbor!

No, no, I don’t actually have an “Ugly Naked Guy” of a neighbor, but at work this morning (don’t let your mind wonder off just yet), as I was intently focused on responding to all the incoming mail, J stepped out of her office and stood in front of me with her mouth open. I raised an eyebrow. “Nour!” she exclaimed, “There’s an Ugly Naked Guy outside!” Excuse Me?! I tried to wipe the smirk off my face and turned around to look outside my window when to my surprise, I actually saw him, literally, a stark naked man on the street!

S from downstairs had apparently seen him too and he came running up asking if we had noticed the naked man outside. And before I knew it, the entire office was standing at the window, looking at the naked man outside! On the street, a crowd started forming around him, with some people taking out their camera phones. Some passersby stopped and stared and while some hurried on, covering their faces as they walked past him…

I’m sure he was mentally insane, as he started screaming at the crowd, shooing them away, and then he walked into a glass phone booth, grabbed the telephone, and started screaming into it. By that time, The Red Cross and Internal Security Forces had arrived on the scene, but every time one of them tried to open the glass door of the telephone booth, he started screaming in an even louder voice and hitting himself. In the end, they had no choice but to electroshock him with a tazer and cover his privates with a blanket, as he was dragged into a police car and driven off…

And before I knew it, everybody at the office was back to work, the crowd had disappeared, and I turned back to the emails. A little while later though, I looked outside the window to see a man had walked into that same phone booth, was leaning against the glass the Ugly Naked Guy had previously pressed his behind to, and was talking on that same phone. Ew! :-P

A Time To Remember... 2010

It’s been… 1 Year/12 Months/52 Weeks/365 Days since I’ve been working! Today, I just celebrated my 1 year “work” anniversary. But the real reason I’m all smiles about it is because as of this moment, I am finally entitled to taking vacation days. See at work, we don’t get to take vacations until after we’ve been working for at least a year. And now that I’ve passed the probation period, I get those 2009 vacation days added to my 2010 vacation days giving me a total of 28 days this year! (Still thinking of when and where to spend them… ;-)

On a more serious note, today also happens to be the 2nd year “death” anniversary of my paternal grandmother… Hope you’re in a better place, gran…