Last night we went out for dinner and drinks with our friend Bjorn. This wouldn’t really be so remarkable if not for the fact that I hadn’t left the apartment since Saturday (which unfortunately isn’t itself an occurence that is all that remarkable). We went to Soto, a sushi restaurant on the main drag in Gemmayze. Amy and I had passed by it several times and I had always panned it. Its giant windows, giant plasma tv, futuristic bar, and see-and-be-seen ambience seemed to foreshadow food that would be uniformly overpriced and terrible. However, Bjorn had previously taken us there and we found it to be delightful. Last night preserved that continuum.
Several crunchy tuna rolls later, we made our way across the street to Torino. Mike was bartending and had eccentrically written “Yo Soy Biz-gazer” on the menu blackboard. I was impressed with his ability to be filthy across three languages in such a short space. Mike asked us if we had seen it “raining mud” as a result of the khamseen. I hadn’t, but then I don’t leave the house. I do believe I’m suffering from sort of khamseen-related illness, though. I’ve been calling it “dust poisoning.”
Later in the evening, Bjorn took his leave and our friend Ben turned up. Ben is a journalist working in Iraq that we met several months ago through our friend Carrie. He’s now temporarily back in Beirut on something of an extended respite. I always thought it was funny to imagine someone who has an 80s perspective of Beirut hearing about someone like Ben working in Baghdad and coming to Beirut to “relax.” We talked of cabbages and kings for a few hours and then headed back to Hamra together. He’s staying right around the corner from us.
Before climbing the 5 flights of stairs to our apartment, we stopped by the store to by water and, to be frank, some more beer. Amy also bought these weird candy teeth. They’re from Argentina.
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