Beirut turned out to be surprisingly much nicer than I expected. The vibe is amazing. It's got that Arab Eastern feel, but way more tolerant than its neighbors. European and Eastern architecture blend perfectly together. The food is delicious.

There are some unpleasant aspects, but they're bearable. Walking around isn't pleasant everywhere though—the infrastructure is designed mainly for cars. At busy intersections, there are lots of street kids begging (even the magic phrase "مافي مصاري" doesn't work on the first try). Pretty much all these problems have roots in the economy. I'll write about that separately.

PS. The photo shows the prosperous downtown area. I didn't venture out to the suburbs or the Palestinian refugee neighborhood. To make it interesting rather than just wandering through slums, you'd need to find a fixer and go around with them. I wasn't that keen on going there myself. But I'd recommend checking out what it looks like through the eyes of a Lebanese person.