Kfardebian, Lebanon
I woke up late again today, getting out of bed after 09:30. I dressed to go skiing and then walked out on the balcony to look at the mountains; well, the entire area was shrouded in clouds and due to the limited visibility, none of the ski lifts were operating; so, it turns out I didn’t miss anything from sleeping in. Soon, the ski lift for the “Baby” slope began to run, but that was the only one. I didn’t feel like paying for a ski pass just to do the “Baby” piste over and over again, so I decided not to ski today and just rest inside my room instead. I ate the rest of the toast I had bought with peanut butter and nutella; I watched ‘Erin Brokovich’, I ate some nuts, watched some mindless television, and so my day went. At noon, the clouds had mostly cleared away and the blue sky ceiling had returned; however, I still only saw the one ski lift running. It was not until 14:30 (an hour before all the ski lifts shut down) that I saw another ski lift become operational. Also, due to most of the mountain being shut down today, the parking lot had few vehicles and there weren’t many people out in the snow (I guess word gets around Lebanon quickly . . . or people check the status of the ski resort before coming here). At 17:00, I left my room and walked around outside taking pictures of the mountain and Kfardebian during sunset. I then walked to the convenience store and bought some Swiss chocolate, water, and three types of wine. I then returned to my hotel, ordered dinner from the nearby restaurant, and had steak with mushroom sauce, steamed vegetables, mashed potatoes, and “mozzarella sticks” that were hollow and lacked the key ingredient – mozzarella. I also had a bottle of Lebanese red wine with my steak; it was a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah; it was very pleasant and tasted of berries and vegetal flavors; it was also high in tannins. After finishing that bottle, I had a small bottle of Lebanese Rosé that was a blend of Cabernet Franc and Syrah; it tasted of citrus, melon, and flowers. Then, incredibly and in a fit of stupid drunkenness, I opened the third bottle of wine that I intended to drink tomorrow; this was a bottle of Lebanese white wine that was a blend of Chardonnay, Viognier, and Muscat (apparently most Lebanese wines are blends; the only ones I found that were purely made from one grape variety were bottles of Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay); the white wine tasted of lime, apple, and flowers. Each bottle of wine I had was fine and I enjoyed each one. During the last bottle, I had passed out on the couch for about two hours; I then finished the bottle and chased it with some beer. I then went to bed . . . after 02:00.