Beirut or Bust

In these last few days prior to departure, I find myself overwhelmed trying to address Christmas obligations while fretting over details regarding my upcoming journey. It has created a perfect storm  that has left me like a bunny in my own headlights.

If you want to find out how much of a control freak you are a good place to start is to plan a trip like this by yourself. Apparently, my control freakiness knows no bounds

I have researched every aspect of Turkey and Syria that I reasonably can, but my little foray into Beirut remains understudied, an ill considered dessert order after a spectacular meal.

However, I have been watching the news..................

I thought that this comment from afz at the Thorntree forum summed it up best. It seems to me that the violence in Beirut is either turned up to "11" or it is off.

In general it's perfectly safe for tourists, with the caveat that massive communal violence and/or aerial bombardment can break out with no notice at any moment. The Lebanese are generally very friendly, but they're all convinced, as they have been continuously for most of the last millennium, that catastrophe is imminent (and they're usually right). Barring war however, you'll have no worries. Street crime and personal attacks against tourists are both far less common than in Europe or the United States.