Life happens when you're making other plans.

This morning, Israel bombed my runway.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/israel/Story/0,,1819295,00.html

RECAP:
1) Woke up
2) Recovered my laundry from the clothesline on the roof of the hostel I've been staying in (Talal's New Hotel - not to be confused with Talal's (old) Hotel which, from what I can gather, was a brothel)
3) Packed my bags (well) - including one-way ticket to Amman
4) Walked into the lobby of the hostel to call for a cab to the airport
5) Found small group of people huddled around television in silence

(me, to Talal (not his real name)/hostel owner): "Hey, do you know how I could call a cab?"
(Talal): "To where, the airport!?" Cackling laughter from the group.

At six AM this morning, the Israeli military bombed (at least one) of the runways of Beirut Int'l - my flight for Jordan was scheduled to depart just after noon.

(me, to travel agent) "How long do you think it will be?"
(travel agent who had booked my ticket to Jordan, smiling) "Oh, you know..."

Israel has claimed that the runway target was/is part of a strategic air/land/sea blockade designed to hamper the purported delivery of weapons to Hizbullah (pro Palestinian militant faction operating in the south of Lebanon) but the strike, I'd guess, is aimed more at the simple disruption of Lebanese business and tourism. Why would Syria choose to fly weapons caches to Lebanon when it could simply smuggle them over ground (cheaper, more covert)? It's not a smart play for Israel - many Gulf States like doing business in Lebanon...attacking the West Bank is one thing, but this move directly antagonizes the entire region against the Israelis.

Anyway, so it begins. Depending upon how quickly diplomatic efforts can quell this fiasco, I'm going to be here in Beirut for at least a few days. Can't go south (border/warzone), can't go north or east (Syrians not too keen on the US Passport these days) and can't go west (Israeli naval blockade). Great.

The city's pace has quickened; everything has a pre-war feel to it. The cafe televisions that normally blare with comically risque middle eastern music videos are all tuned to Al-Jazeera. Nejmeh Square (where I take my coffee and wireless) has stepped up security from the normal thirty or so soldiers grouped about the Parliament building to a new deployment of one soldier positioned literally every thirty feet. This is a marked departure from last night, when the city seemed to be watching this all play out like a dramatic soap opera.

It's very, very interesting to see the difference in people at large as they move through the city. People here in Nejmeh are still shopping, still dining but you can almost see them walk on their toes, can almost feel the hairs on the backs of their necks. Here, in my little coffee shop, people are markedly more quiet, speaking in close tones.

I can't tell if I prefer this reaction to the only other "invasion" reaction I've ever witnessed: The American public during 9/11. This current skirmish is nowhere on that scale (yet), granted, but Sept11 is all I've got to go on. Then, we (Americans) were all in a frenzy, some crying out for peace, some demanding revenge and blood and counterattacks - but most, if I recall, were simply stunned, were hardpressed to know what to think let alone what to do. "Why?" through tears. In fact, Bush addressed this idea that Americans just didn't know how to operate in his first televised speech after the attacks: (http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2001/09/20010911-16.html).

Reading through it, it's as if he needed to take a group of stunned children by the hand and simply say "look, the first responders are doing their job, we've got a strong military and they're doing their job, the economy is top notch so no worries on money....look, your job is just to pray."

The Lebanese are remarkably good at this. They're demonstrating to me exactly how being under relatively constant threat manifests itself into the public character. Frankly, I'm impressed and a little bit...jealous. They all know how to walk through this fire drill; I don't envy their (geographic, historic, political) position - wouldn't wish it on most - but the resultant degree of emotional control...can't figure out just yet if it's strength or ambivalence or what.

In other/better news:

(me, to Hawlah - coffeehouse staff): "you mean, in person?"

(Hawlah): "Yes, in the United States"

"No. She used to date - remember Ben? I think they might have hung around Boston when they were...whatever they were...but..."

"I want - she is, to me, my best actress and my best singer. I want to be Arabian Jennifer Lopez."

"well, we all...have...dreams..."

Last night, before I left this coffee shop in Nejmeh Square, Beirut, the staff presented me with a free bag of coffee. Like I said, I spend a lot of time here. Again, only wireless in the area. So, I know them all pretty well - they've started to get me my coffee for free (they even know how to make it) and when I announced that I'd be departing for Jordan the next day, it was if a member of the staff was leaving. I didn't have the heart to tell them that a) I don't have a coffee maker and b) I didn't have room in my bag for a sack of coffee beans. Still, I was touched. As I left and they waved me goodbye I said, "wish me luck in Israel" at which point they broke into laughter. Store Owner (broken English): "tell them we say hello!"

This morning, the staff were all pretty happy to see me when I waltzed in after learning that no one would be flying in or out of Lebanon for a few days. I agreed to play guitar for Hawlah to help her practice her singing if she agreed to help me with my Arabic.

OK, I'm off to find the Washington Post reporter I met two days ago and ask about taking photos.

Shukran.

PS: As I'm leaving, transcript of portion of heated "conversation" between Parliamentarians (taking a break in the coffee shop) and an Israeli women/peace activist:

Woman: "If I make you angry, you will hit me I swear - you should not make the people angry! You have to - you must look - how many times do you have to look - you should not make the other person angry - if there are prisoners...then...diplomatic action! Lebanon must become strong inside..."

P: "30 years diplomatic! There is no solution - no diplomatic - we have many presidents in Israel in 30 years - the only way is to fight. Many times MY HOUSE on the border destroyed by Israeli. How much Israeli forces destroyed many countries - how many killed!"

"Yes but if you get invasion - you must ask why! Why we are doing this"

"We don't have time for why!"

"Oh I hate this - people dying - the war the violence all weapons...the people...you have to eliminate all weapons, the children dying...the..."

"No this is not the problem - there is the bigger problem - there is a bigger problem."

"It makes me cry - my people, my children - killing..."

"You have no leader - you have one leader - the president and then there is the resistance"

"Did you just say the resistance? HA! Killers!"

"You cannot take the Israeli at the wall...anything you have to do, big surrounded...we take two Israeli soldiers...this?"

Continued bickering and crying and screaming....