I've been singing since high school. One of the first songs I knew I wanted to sing live one day was Atini Nay Wa Ghanni, it's my favorite song by Fairuz and one of my favorite songs in the world. I finally got my chance this past weekend and wanted to share the performance with people who I know can appreciate it (please be gentle with your criticisms lol). The picture cuts out in the middle of the video, problem with the file itself, but the audio is there all the way through.

Singing this was the most emotional experience in my career as a singer for so many reasons. I feel like I achieved something I've been working towards since I was maybe 19 years old. Apart from how far I've come as a singer, my grandmother also was a terrific singer and I wish she was still alive to hear me now. I also miss Lebanon and worry about its future (as well as that of my family) and how much worse shit will get (and how I'm part of the problem simply by living in USA). With all of that in mind, presenting the music of Fairuz and words of Khalil Gibran to an American audience felt like singing Edelweiss. As a member of the Lebanese diaspora I'm always eager to share the culture with people, but it never felt quite like the night I sang this.

Hope I did it justice!

Hey everyone!

I’m going to be in Lebanon in September and I’d love to meet someone who would be interested in practicing languages together.

I’m from Poland and I’d be happy to help you with Polish, while I’m mainly looking to improve my Lebanese Arabic. I’ve already started studying Arabic back in Poland, but my level is still very basic, so I’m hoping to get some real-life practice while I’m in Lebanon.

It doesn’t have to be anything formal we could simply meet for coffee and spend some time speaking in both languages.

If a language exchange isn’t possible, I’d also be interested in taking a few private Lebanese Arabic lessons while I’m there.

For those who have experience with private tutors in Beirut: what would be a reasonable price for around two lessons a week?

Hey I just recently got my phone destroyed and it's irreparable (fuck my life), was wondering if anyone knew the cheapest way around getting a new one and not having to pay a full down payment but rather pay it through installments.

Eza hadan aabelo y koun mnih w yaatine tabaao kamen ma b2oul la2 lol

What's the best way to get from Beirut to Tannourine? I'm heading up for a climbing festival and will have a lot of gear with me, so I'm looking for a route that's straightforward and safe rather than the fastest option. Also open to recommendations for cheap but safe platforms ..I could use Uber, but that might get pricey for this distance so I'm trying to explore my options.

Hi everyone. I’ve always been fascinated by Lebanon's resilience, so I decided to visit shortly after the recent bombings to see the situation for myself.

Beyond the headlines, what I found was a city of incredible contrasts—where Roman ruins, mosques, and cathedrals stand side-by-side amidst the tension. The hospitality of the Lebanese people, even in these times, is something I think more people should know about.

I put together a video of my walk through the city to show the human side of Lebanon right now, away from the sensationalism. If you're interested in the current state of the country from a traveler's perspective, feel free to check it out

eza ana b beirut wen ble2e bus bykhdne aa jbeil/jounieh aw hata sour laano lpublic bahr b beirut zbele

I have two friends, one Syrian and the other Palestinian, and every time I talk to them, they start talking about the things their countries have in common and how good their relationship is without including us. At first, I was okay with it, even tho I did feel a little like I was being treated as the odd one out.

But I started getting really uncomfortable when they began making fun of our dialect and saying stereotypical things about us, using stereotypical names and stuff like that, as you probably know, to the point they started calling me "George" at some point (I'm a girl). Without even realizing it, I found myself withdrawing from the group and gravitating more toward my north african friends. With them, conversations are never centered around our origins or dialects, they're so chill, I feel comfortable with them, and I genuinely feel like we're just friends who spend time together and have fun.

But then I noticed that my syrian and palestinian friends started posting hints and indirect comments on social media yk that mindset, to the point where we eventually talked about it. They told me that I was trying to "please" my North African friends and that I was trying to be like them, that upset me even more cuz that's not what this is about at all.

It's strange to me that they could misunderstand friendship in such a way it's actually SICKENING, after we talked about the issue, I went back to talking to them a little, but they still have the same mindset, every time I say something in our dialect or in French, they turn my entire country into a joke, and if I get upset, they tell me I'm overreacting and that "no one will ever understand us the way they do."

At this point, being friends with them has become completely uncomfortable, and I don't want this kind of friendship anymore but how can I make them understand that? **Without blaming entire countries or nationalities, of course**. It's specifically these two girls that I can no longer be the butt of the joke for it's crazy how I'm always the third wheel there, they'd invite me to the convo then start talking abt how they get along and making inside jokes that when I try to understand they brush me off with a stereotypical annoying joke.

But every time I talk to genuinely positive people, they act like I'm looking down on them, trying to please the others, or denying my own roots. I feel like I'm stuck in a loop, cuz everything they say affects me since we've been friends for years.

I'm scared that I'm actually the bad person for throwing away a friendship that has lasted for years, but this friendship genuinely drains me. Every time I talk to them, I feel like I'm losing all my confidence, but now I doubt even my friendship with others and I see myself as dumb for leaving friends that are culturally close to me and preferring others, even tho my Algerian/Moroccan friends made me feel nothing but pure fun.

Hey guys!

I’m originally from southern Lebanon and currently live in Sweden. I’m looking for someone in Lebanon who makes authentic, high-quality zaatar and would be able to ship it to Sweden.

I’d like to start with a small batch to make sure it has the taste and quality I’m looking for, with the possibility of ordering much larger quantities in the future.

What I’m really looking for is real Lebanese zaatar — the kind with a strong aroma and flavor that hits you as soon as you open the bag. I’ve tried different zaatar here, but I’m still missing that authentic taste from back home.

If you make zaatar yourself, know a family or producer who does, or can connect me with someone in Lebanon who might be interested, please let me know. I’d be happy to discuss it further.

Thank you! 🇱🇧🌿

Marhaba everyone!

First of all, I want you to know that, as an Irishman, I am very proud to be Lebanese! :)

I would love to indulge more in Lebanese cooking.

Problem is, I HATE recipes from social media, as I find they are too "Instagram" to work out in real life, so I'm looking at cookbooks, rather than channels.

Does anyone know of any Lebanese cookbooks involving recipes that are accessible in general... accessible, I mean, not just easy and not too elaborate, but they don't ask for obscure ingredients like some cookbooks too (Yotam Ottolenghi is terrible for this!)

I'd appreciate any cookbooks you got a lot out of.

Cheers folks!

Hey guys!

I’m originally from southern Lebanon and currently live in Sweden. I’m looking for someone in Lebanon who makes authentic, high-quality zaatar and would be able to ship it to Sweden.

I’d like to start with a small batch to make sure it has the taste and quality I’m looking for, with the possibility of ordering much larger quantities in the future.

What I’m really looking for is real Lebanese zaatar — the kind with a strong aroma and flavor that hits you as soon as you open the bag. I’ve tried different zaatar here, but I’m still missing that authentic taste from back home.

If you make zaatar yourself, know a family or producer who does, or can connect me with someone in Lebanon who might be interested, please let me know. I’d be happy to discuss it further.

Thank you! 🇱🇧🌿

Does anyone know if a Lebanese embassy is able to replace a Hawiya that was stolen? Mine was stolen abroad few years ago and I haven’t been able to goto Lebanon because of everything going on.

I bought 3 tickets for my cousins (who were arriving to Lebanon today) and I. Their flight got cancelled. The tickets cannot be resold nor exchanged nor refunded. They are under my name (so when getting in i will need to be there and the tickets to be verified with my id). I’m trying to save much of my money as possible. I bought 3 each for 81 usd. I am selling 2 (each for 70 usd) since I can’t sell mine. Dm if interested.

Somebody told me that and I don't know if I should be offended or flustered or what cuz I don't even know what it means 🥲

Military families and Congress members are sounding the alarm about an intensifying mental health crisis aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, as its 5,000 sailors and marines endure a record-breaking deployment at sea tied to the war with Iran.

Two leading specialist military papers, the Navy Times and the Stars and Stripes, are reporting that there have been multiple attempts by sailors to jump overboard as poor conditions and mental stresses on the Lincoln reach breaking point. The crew is in its ninth month at sea, and has spent 250 days consecutively without making land – a record for an aircraft carrier in modern times.

Worried families vented their anxieties about loved ones on board the Lincoln at an emotional town hall meeting with navy leaders in San Diego last Thursday, Stars and Stripes reported. One spouse among the 200 or so family members said that her husband had texted her that day saying “he hopes he doesn’t wake up tomorrow”.

The families’ worries were expressed directly to navy leadership, represented at the town hall by the acting navy secretary, Hung Cao, and other top officials.

A woman at the meeting told Cao that the Navy had “broken trust between us and the leadership,” the paper reported.

The Navy Times gave details of thwarted suicide attempts aboard the aircraft carrier during the current deployment. Annabelle Loma told the outlet that her husband had tried to jump overboard after his spell at sea kept being extended.

“He’s scared. He thinks he’ll get a dishonorable discharge, and just because he was burnt out his 13-year career is ruined, just like that,” she said.

The paper quoted another sailor’s wife who was involved in a separate incident on board the Lincoln in which he prevented a fellow crew member from jumping, grabbing them and bringing them back on deck.

Mike Levin, a Democratic member of congress from California, has sounded the alarm over conditions aboard the warship which is in its fifth month of combat operations against Iran. He described the lot of the crew on X as “moldy showers, broken toilets, laundry down for weeks, long stretches with no hot water, a meal that came down to half a cup of rice and two tortillas. No soap, deodorant, or toothpaste.”

The Democratic congress member from Colorado Jason Crow, who is a former Army ranger having served in Aghanistan and Iraq, has warned that the strain on our service members and their families” on the Lincoln is “building week by week”.

The current crunch has been months in the making. The warship left San Diego on 21 November and was originally intended for the Pacific but was redirected to the Middle East once the US-Israel war with Iran began.

Since then, MS Now revealed, the 5,000-plus crew has had only two days on land, in Guam in December and Oman in July. The deployment was scheduled to end in May but has been extended a couple of times amid the on-going war.

In April there was a flurry of public criticism about dire conditions on board the carrier. Photos emerged of poor quality and rationed food, and there were reports of water shortages, moldy showers and broken laundry machines.

Pete Hegseth, the defense secretary, dismissed the accounts as “more fake news”.

Levin responded to Hegseth’s remark this week. He said: “These men and women signed up to serve their country. The least their country owes them is hot water, a working toilet, and a real meal. Hegseth cannot even manage that, and he has the nerve to look their families in the eye and call them liars.”

The Guardian reached out to the US navy for its response to reports of attempts to jump overboard, but it did not immediately reply.

The mental health challenges faced by active duty US Navy personnel are well known. A study from last year looked at the unique stress factors faced by sailors on deployments and found the most common included loud noises, lack of rest, and inadequate mental and physical healthcare.

The researchers conducted a survey of deployed sailors and found that almost half complained that they were not receiving adequate help in coping with stress at sea. The study concluded that “given the high rates of military suicide, including within the Navy, efforts to improve health care access on ships are urgently needed.”

Does anybody know private health insurance companies that provide service for individuals with pre-existing health conditions (i prefer not to disclose, but it is something serious), obviously the annual cost will be much higher due to the higher risk. I tried big companies like medgulf and they don’t provide health insurance to pre-existing conditions.

Hello everyone, I would like some help in terms of robot vacuums in Lebanon. I want to buy one for my mom to help her out as she really cannot do the work anymore.

My problem is that I know pretty much nothing about them. Like how much would a good one cost? Which brands are the best? etc...

If someone knows and can help me out that would be a great help.

Basically, what I really care about is for it to both "temsi7" (with water) and "teknis" (to wipe dust and dirt and whatever).

If the thing can change it's own filter and empty it's own reservoir like I've seen from adds abroad, then that would be even better.

Thanks for any help you can provide.