We are living on the campus of the American University of Beirut. The University is located in an area called Ras Beirut. The campus is walled with entrances guarded by AUB security and paid police/soldiers. The campus is one of the only green spaces in the city; it's one of the most beautiful campuses I've ever seen, with huge banyan trees, views of the sea, and lush vegetation. I won't go into the history of AUB, except to say that it began as Syrian Protestant College in the mid-nineteenth century and that it represents the first attempt by Americans to "transform" the Middle East. The pioneers of the college were Protestant missionaries who thought they could convert Maronite and Greek Orthodox Catholics in the Mt. Lebanon region of Syria to Protestantism. They failed miserably, (see Ussama Makdisi's Artillery of Heaven for a full account of this history) but left in their wake the Syrian Protestant College, which would ultimately become AUB. AUB is accredited in the United States, but is also a Lebanese institution that fashions itself as the [insert Ivy league school here]-on-the-Mediterranean.
I have come to AUB to Direct the Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for American Studies and Research (CASAR), a center I have visited annually for the last five years. CASAR also has a complex origin in the fraught politics of U.S./Middle East relations. In the aftermath of 9/11, Prince Alwaleed offered a $10 Million gift to the city of New York. During the donation ceremony, the Prince suggested that the U.S. may want to reconsider its policies in the Middle East, especially in relation to Palestine. Then-Mayor Rudy Guilliani immediately rejected Prince Alwaleed's donation.
Eventually, the Prince was persuaded to donate his $10 million to higher-education institutions that could expand understanding between the U.S. and the Middle East. Edward Said was instrumental in getting an American Studies center founded at AUB. Alwaleed gave initial endowments to American Studies Centers at the American University of Beirut and the American University of Cairo. He would latter help endow centers for understanding Islam in the West at Cambridge, Edinburgh, Georgetown and Harvard Universities. I'll save my discussion of what American Studies looks like in the Middle East for another time.
This is the first time I've worked at a private University. As a welcome gift from the Provost, we received four bags of groceries with many essential household items. Today I enrolled in the University's health plan, which costs about $125 per month for our family of four (the similar coverage in New Mexico costs us about $500 per month). Co-payments for doctor's visits are $2. At UNM, I've paid up to $30 to see a specialist. I've purchased prescription drugs (Statins) over the counter (without prescriptions) for a few dollars. I realize that very few Lebanese have the privilege of using AUB's medical center (at AUB rates) but I'm also fascinated to see a different sort of health system in which costs for preventative care are relatively low and where neighborhood pharmacists have considerable diagnostic authority and skill.
Other things are very expensive here. El Paso brand Enchilada sauce and burrito kit costs around $7.
We are beginning to adjust to the new time zone. Hiking up to the neighborhood has become easier as we've developed new calf muscles and are acclimating to the humidity. The campus guards know us, making it unnecessary for us to show identification when we enter campus. We are also familiar with some of the shop-owners in our neighborhood, all of whom have been warm and kind. We've figured out how to get certain provisions (like propane for our stove and filtered water) delivered.
The boys have free range of the campus, which has been really fun for them. They've named many of the cats and enjoy AUB's playground (which, we've learned, is one of the very few playgrounds in Beirut). They are definitely behind the other kids in soccer skills, a sport with which they have had only fleeting interest in the U.S. But, of course, soccer is king here and all of the kids have skills. At the elementary school, the Principal told us that the only thing our boys could not wear to school are team soccer jersey's, as these cause conflicts on the playground. I wonder if an Oakland Raider's jersey would be acceptable.
Yesterday we attended a street festival in Hamra. The street had been closed to cars for the event. Dozens of vendors set-up kiosks for the length of about five blocks where they sold everything from keychains, to toys, to local honey and other produce. The scene was typical of any large street festival, with the exception of the military vehicles on every corner. We were drawn to the local foods, which were fabulous, of course.
It's the last few days of what has been a very long summer. We moved out of our house in Albuquerque on June 1, spent six-weeks in Albuquerque in five different homes, and then spent four weeks in California and Washington in four different homes. Needless to say, we are looking forward to creating new routines and beginning the process of making home.
