Lebanon

As the bombs fall, I can't help but think that - for all my hopes about breaking bread - neither sambousik in the Gourmet Express, nor a bottle of Clos St. Thomas at Cedar can be anything other than bathetic and trivial.

But then again, if I had never had a chat with Elia about the vineyards of the Bekaa Valley I might have a mental image of it as a desolate wasteland poplulated by loonies and fanatics.

So ladies and gentlemen, I present a random fact that may surprise you - the Lebanese constitution calls for the selection of a Maronite Christian president, a Sunni Muslim prime minister, and a Shiite Muslim speaker of the Parliament - but alas, beyond that multicultural nugget, discern no hope.