CANADA

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: Mashawi,... 3ala anwa3iha wa bi-doon tafriqa (with no exception)!

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: Swimming, and spending a whole day at the beach,...

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: It has to be Jbeil (Byblos), with its wonderful water front, and those narrow streets with small touristic shops.

SPECIAL MEMORY: That has to be watching Fairuz live in Downtown Beirut (Sept. 17, 1994), way before the downtown was rebuilt, and Fairuz was truly majestic.

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: Anything that is served with fries plus wara2 3inab.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: All Lebanon is amazing, so I like to keep moving between the mountains and the cities.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: The activities I enjoy the most in Lebanon are playing sports (Basketball and Football).

SPECIAL MEMORY: The memories that I still think about are the university activities used to do with friends.

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: I absolutely LOVE fetteh (chick peas, yogurt and fried bread! (YUM!) and you've got to have some fattoush on the side.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: for people like me who are deprived of one thing, among several: the beach! I love chilling at a beach all day long - basking in the sun until your skin starts to sizzle! (it happens...try coconut oil). Oh and can't forget jet skiing - the best activity to give you a surge of energy and time to cool off from the hot sun.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: it's got to be el Rouche - the scenery is breath taking - on one side you've got the ocean, the other side you've got the best cafes.

SPECIAL MEMORY: my most memorable moment in Lebanon was laying on the hot sand at La Voile Bleu, listening to George Wassouf on the speakers, sipping on a cold drink and being accompanied by some very special people.

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: There are many, but I'm gonna go with Kousa Mehshi.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: Going to the beach!

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: This should be easy, my home village Mashghara.

SPECIAL MEMORY: Meeting my family for the 1st time in 20 yrs.

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: Warak 3inab.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: Going to beach,hunting, Camping, anything in lebanon is awesome!

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: I like evry squar inch of the 10452 Km2.

SPECIAL MEMORY: When I first went to lebanon without telling anybody that i'm coming, and the police stopped at the airport for "The Military Service".

 

USA

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: Mjadara / Fatteh with Hommos / Knafeh.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: Sitting Under the Aaricheh in summer nights, with the guys, smoking the Argileh.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: Kornich in Beirut.

SPECIAL MEMORY: Hanging out at the Kornish with my friends late in the evening, when it's almost empty, setting the Argileh,... and have a nice peaceful couple of hours.

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: Mlukheyeh.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: Visit the Ceders North Lebanon, and enjoy the fantastic nature of the PEARL OF THE EARTH,... Lebanon.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: Tyre - South Lebanon, where I can feel the rythem of love and the passion of loving and being loved.

SPECIAL MEMORY: Lebanon,... is a special memory for a special people.

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: Riz 3a Dejaj.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: Being with friends and family. I'm a family oriented person, as long as I'm with them we will have fun no matter what we do.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: Jounieh baby,.. it's my Birth Place.

SPECIAL MEMORY: Going to Charbel's tier shop in Dawra, playing cards till midnight, then going to Mono with the whole group. Partying all night long, then in the morning going to George Farah to have breakfast at 6 or 7 am,... then going home and sleeping,... next, the same thing, start over.

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: Kibbeh Nayeh.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: Watching the sunrise and sunset from Ehden.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: Anywhere up North, because of the environment, the amazingly whole hearted people, and the food.

SPECIAL MEMORY: Picking grapes off of a grape vine to eat for breakfast, or lunch or dinner.

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: Tabouli (of course) who else makes it like us!?

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON:
going to Al-Berdawni at night with friends and family, eating the delicious raspberry ice-cream and just walking up and down enjoying the environment. I just never seem to get sick of it.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: or one of my favorite places,... it's the top of al-wadi (zahle) at night. If you go to the top you can see the how beautifully lit the road to Beirut is and see the whole Bekaa Valley. The view is breathtaking.

SPECIAL MEMORY: There are so many special memories in Lebanon. I really would have to say the one that sticks out in my mind is just being with family and friends. From the late nights on the balcony just eating shawarma and drinking coffee, to the great weddings, the election parties, wonderful nights in Beirut,to just being with the people you love the most. So many great memories I can't just pinpoint one, but anytime I was surrounded with family and friends would be included in a great memory.

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: # 1 weakness is shawarma djej, other favorites are: hummus, mashaoui, rakakat jibneh... and shish barak.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: Scuba diving, nightlife, and cruising with the gang.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: The fields of the South, but there are so many other special places. Lebanon is a very very special place, you never realize what a special place it is until you leave it.

SPECIAL MEMORY: So many special memories...

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: Falafel.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: People watching. I love to familiarize myself with the people I never knew but essentially the people I share the same heritage with.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: The village my family originally hails from Bint Jbeil, because of the weekly Thursday Market, it reminds me of the ancient markets in the movies.

SPECIAL MEMORY: My personal memories are of the times when I first visited Lebanon and we stayed in the family’s summer residence in Aley. It was a beautiful town in Mount Lebanon, and it was beautiful because our neighborhood was an expression of Lebanon’s religious and cultural diversity,... that was very important to me, because it was the first exposure I had to Lebanese culture and society. The neighbors were so kind and welcoming, and everyone was exactly what was expected and typical of the Lebanese; fun and generous.

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: When you live at home, you do not appreciate the tasty dishes, it is only when you do not get to eat them that you start missing them. I like the mjadarah, I like the Mloukhieh, I like Kaftah. I miss the Manakish in the morning, but mostly I miss the shishbarak.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: My favorite activity when I go to Lebanon is mostly hang out with my friends. Sitting in the downtown and watching people. When you stay too long out of the country it is always a good thing to watch people to try and catch up with the things that changed (and beleive me it changes like hell). I also enjoy going to some nice lebanese restaurant to eat the mashawi and Maza and specially the kibbeh nayyeh that I do not seem to be able to find anywhere but back home.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: I cannot say that I have any favorism to any place back home. It depends on my mood. I enjoy the beach, but also sometimes I want to go the mountains. I will say that I like Beirut since I have spent most of my time there and there is so many things to do in there that it is hard to get bored. However Dunkin Donuts bare a very special place in my heart since I have spent so much time in there with my friends over the years.

SPECIAL MEMORY: There is so many and it is really not easy to choose. But I guess in the light that we are all abroad, I will choose that one. It was the day I was leaving from Lebanon. I have never been out of Lebanon without my parents of for any reason other than vacation. But that was the time I moved to the USA in order to continue my studies. My plane was late at night. It was one of the most intense nights in my life. My friends came to say goodbye and they stayed with me until it was time for me to go the airport. Same goes for my cousins and other family members. My brother who has been in France came back to Lebanon in order to see me and wish me good luck. My mom and dad had tears in their eyes and beleive me when I say my parents are not the type to cry at all. It was so painful to say goodbye to all these loving faces knowing that by pursuing your future you are hurting them and yourself, that by leaving you are extracting yourself from all what you once knew and loved.

 

AUSTRALIA

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: "machawi" with Tabouleh and Hommos :)

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: Camping, because the camping lifestyle makes you feel that you are in another world. You get to experience the beauty of nature and appreciate what God has created for us. While camping, I love going for long hikes, horseriding, biking, rock climbing, rappelle and nature exploration.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: I honestly don't have one favourite place in particular, because I really love everything and everywhere in lebanon, and its hard for me to pick one place. Every place has its own speacial thing.

SPECIAL MEMORY: I have many memories in lebanon, and trust me, they are all very special to me because every memory has an effect on me. All memories are with my friends whom I miss very very much, since i am living away from them. My friends are the people who i should thank for my great memories, and especially all the adventures we got upto while camping. But there is one thing that i will never ever forget. That's when i went rafting in Nahr Al Aassi with few friends, and the raft actually tipped, we all fell in the water and the water was freezing. It was so funny that we weren't able to help one of our friends who didn't know how to swim, and he was so scared, even though he had a life jacket on. It took us about 45 min (without exaggeration) to get everyone out of the water, because we couldn't stop laughing. There is much more to the story, but I will keep it to your imagination,... he he he.

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: Kafta.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: Just hanging out with my cousins and family, as much as possible with them, because I don’t get to see them too often.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: The mountains in the Winter,... because I loved skiing there.

SPECIAL MEMORY: When I was there in 1999, and SAGESSE (Lebanon’s Basketball team) won the Asian Tournament. I remember how me and my cousins went driving around in the car, and waving the Lebanese flag and celebrating. The streets were packed, and everyone was so happy and proud.

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: Lahm meshwi ,.. Knefi.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: Playing soccer with friends, and going to the beach.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: Aley , where else would you wanna go ?

SPECIAL MEMORY: When I went to Downtown Beirut for the first time. It’s like the new face and the true image of future Lebanon. But I can’t forget staying for 2 hours turning around the same place. Everytime I asked someone for way they gave me wrong directions. I got out of a street to another to find myself back where I was. I was stuck in there for a while, but that gave me even more time to enjoy being there, in the heart of Lebanon.

 

FRANCE

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: Tabbouleh, Fatayer w Khebez Sekhenn ma3 labneh w zeitoun.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: Chouf el 3ayleh, rou7 3a ba7r el 3asskariyeh , esshar ma3 ass7abeh bi Beirut aw 3endna bi Antelias ta7t el 3ariché ma3 l 3aylé, talk during hours and hours about everything with my cousins 3al balcon ma3 arguileh, fessto2 w bira Almaza.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: My Village Naccache bi Antelias w Ba7r Cheika 7add Trabloss.

SPECIAL MEMORY: Christmas 1998 - the first time of my life I was with ALL my family in Christmas // Year 1998 - when I was Living there. I have nothing to add, you know what does it mean to live in the most beautiful country // Summer 2000 - two days before my grandfather's death, all my family were there, near him // Summer 2006 - when I saw with my friends and my cousins the football world cup kil el 3achiyeh 3al Marina ma3 arguileh.

 

VENEZUELA

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: Djej Meshwi, Tabuli, Kibbeh Nayeh.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: Skiing / Swiming.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: 3aroos el masayef Aley.

SPECIAL MEMORY: There are many, but the most interesting one is when I first went to beirut from Aley driving a car. It was around 11pm and I was with my best friends, and it happened that the car stopped working, so tlo3na from Beirut to Aley 3al blata! And the owner of the blata was m3alem 3abdu, so I don't remember a day that we laughed this much, from Beirut to Aley, non stop laughing.

 

SWEDEN

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: Lahem bi-ageen.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: Hard to say, I love everything with Lebanon,...

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: When i'm in Lebanon, I have 2 say its 2 be with my brother,... I almost never see him, so when you really love someone of corse you love to be with them.

SPECIAL MEMORY: I was there in 2003, the first time I visited my homecountry.

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: I love fattoosh so much, that it became my nickname in lebanon,... and with beeftek, its irresistible,... Yummi.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: To smoke arguile and play cards at night with all my friends. We'll stay up to the morning just telling Abo 3abed jokes.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: My absolute favorite place must be the beach.

SPECIAL MEMORY: One time when me and my friends were sitting at the balcony we heard the corn guy down the street, so I ran down the dark stairway and fell on the last step. And the corn guy saw me, so he felt kinda sorry for me, so he gave me everything for free.

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: My favourite dish must be sambousik with tabbouli, nothings beats that!

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: I have several activites I love, the perfect day is to spend it on the beach with my friends, dinner out in some restaurant, party in Batroun and eating breakfast at some stand, man2oushi and all.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: That must be my grandpa's village, Bmohray, its so beautiful to sit and watch the sun go down.

SPECIAL MEMORY: My absolute best memory, that's hard,... I have so many, but it must be when my friends and I "bridenapped" a girl we know the night before getting married, we drove downtown, singing in the open cab and having these big plastic pink hair.

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: Tabbouleh.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: Visiting monasteries in Lebanon is something that feels different from the rest of the word. so walking in the mountains and visiting the old churches and monasteries is a nice and special activity.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: Qadisha Valley.

SPECIAL MEMORY: When I was a boy and watched how the petrol boat came to Byblos under heavy bombardment and still made it to the port. We could see how the bombs exploaded around the boat.

 

GERMANY

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: Maschawe and Fatusch.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: I go to Mountin in Bhamdoun and Hemahna, go swimming, and camping.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: Best place for me in Lebanon is Lebanon,... why? coz its Lebanon.

SPECIAL MEMORY: I have a lot but the best is after I finished my army service,... I didn’t know what to do, so I started to learn salsa with a some Cuban people friends of mine. That time salsa music was not popular in Lebanon. but it was October 05, I saw a lot of Salsa Clubs,... and I like it.

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: Mlokhiye and Helewit el Jiben.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: Everything ;) Swimming, doing sport at the beach, clubbing... and hanging out with cousins and friends.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: Byblos and Downtown.

SPECIAL MEMORY: Last year I met lots of popular stars in Beirut like Ragheb Aleme, Nancy Ajram, Wael Mansour, Nawal el Zoghbe... On the other hand, I'll never forget the day I've been in Baalbak. It was fantastic!

 

QATAR

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: Habra Nayyeh (Raw Meat).

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: Definitely, eating authentic Lebanese food, my mother, my sisters, and my friends’ mothers, they all make great Lebanese food. If food wasn’t Lebanese at least the wine is.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: Manara, because it is very relaxing.

SPECIAL MEMORY: Although I should quit smoking or at least reduce it, but when I smoke one on my bedroom’s balcony while I am contemplating the sea, the far away mountain, cars in the streets, and Abu Ali el natour (the building watch man) gazing at me in wonder,... ”waynak ya Abu Ali”.

 

EGYPT

FAVORITE LEBANESE DISH: Shesh barak.

FAVORITE ACTIVITY IN LEBANON: To go on the high mountains, look at the skie, dream of my future, drawing a perfect one as much as i can.

FAVORITE PLACE IN LEBANON: Downtown beirut, where you can really be proud of being lebanese of how a country was reborn from nothing.

SPECIAL MEMORY: The first time I went to lebanon, it was when Iraq invaded kuwait. War had just stopped in Lebanon, and the country was in a complete mess, although I very young, I can't forget how it looked at this time.