Sylvia's Journal

I am a bit wobbly after sharing one bottle of Primitivo with Julie. I am not used to that much wine; but it did taste great.

We rewarded ourselves with the pricey bottle after various meetings that included the ministry’s top leadership and that continued long after working hours, both for her Excellency and her staff and for us.

We ended our day with a lovely dinner with Jan who had been eluding me for months as she works part of the time in Pakistan; we finally were in the same place at the same time.

Last night, Julie gave her five year old son a guided tour of our house/her temporary lodgings, pointing her computer webcam then to this part of our house and then that. Later she repeated the tour with her parents. We’ve never had such a guided tour of our house, and so we felt honored. Axel got to wave to the parentals on camera; I was already asleep.

We are beginning to see our Beirut trip faintly sketched out against the horizon: less than 3 weeks away. The balmy weather of the last few days adds to the ‘lightness of being close to vacation and close to spring.’ The leaf buds on the rose bushes and fruit trees are swelling and some tiny leaves are visible on the honey suckle outside my office. Hawa bahari they call this here.