Late sixties - 3

Chapter 3 of 60's

The Haddads' apartment, at the time, was in a quiet street in the Beirut area of Koreitem, bordering on Verdun, St, that area was, and accessible by the upper exit of the LAU, then called BUC or BCW in the distant past (Beirut University College or Beirut College for Women respectively).

This street, the Marie Curie, was in the sixties, voted to be the cleanest, best maintained so that the 'privileged' might choose to live here, in the newly built Minkara, or its neighbour buildings ..

This was the street that, a generation later, would be blocked, barring cars going downhill towards the beach, occupied by a friendly army officer, explaining to drivers and passengers that it was a highly guarded area because Rafic Hariri lived there.  The line indicating the limit of the Minkara Building, touching the Walls of Qasr Diab (Qasr Salha), determined the barrier of this part of the neighbourhood.

It was only in 1970 when this road was open, letting occasional medium traffic by, going downhill towards the beach, or otherwise, zooming towards Hotel Bristol's direction, .. It was the same road that numerous times the Haddads arrived on after having been cruising on the Beirut Corniche, after having eaten grilled or boiled corn, with ambulant vendors of Kaak Zaatar on trays on top of their heads and on their arms.  They passed by the Rawshe (Pigeon Rock) up to some lightly to hardly frequented curve, with buildings, still with sea view, then up the hill, onto Marie Curie Street, into the round Minkara driveway, with car parkings on parts of the circumference not defined as the entrance to the building.

Peugeots, Renaults Alfa Romeos, Mercedes Benz taxis, buses, all went by Minkara Building at regular speed while five year old C crossed the road, and back by 1971, she was well-advised by her mother:

- Isshik trouhi maa hada byaatiki 'bonbon' aw 'sucette'  said she, with a worried calmish aura while C was attentively listening for a few seconds and recording the motherly requests, remembered until 'Abad Al Abideen' .. forever..

She looked left, then right and confidently crossed the road   

  

Author's Note

Setting the atmosphere of the story/memoir ...