Skies of Lebanon (Sous le ciel d'Alice)

SKIES OF LEBANON

Beirut, 24th March 1977,

Dear Joseph,

I'm writing just before I leave.

I will probably post this letter when I arrive in Switzerland.

As such, we will travel together in a way

and it might be less painful for me to go back to my homeland,

which I had been so happy to leave.

Dinner time!

I'm coming.

Thank you.

Dear Miss Delaloye, please find below a job offer

in a commendable family.

The Wyden family in Fribourg.

Dear Miss Delaloye...

The Gibran family? In Beirut!

Welcome to Lebanon! Do you need directions?

Yes.

So... Gibran. Achrafieh.

Follow me!

- Welcome, Alice! - Welcome, Alice!

Hello.

Hello, Miss. Coffee?

Yes.

Thank you.

I beg your pardon.

I'm sorry, I don't understand Arabic.

Excuse me.

- Can I borrow the sugar? - Yes.

Joseph Kamar, pleased to meet you.

Alice Delaloye, pleased to meet you.

You don't speak any Arabic?

For your first Arabic lesson,

we will study the vocabulary of this poem I found.

- Does that suit you? - Yes.

In this country, that has its own stars,

Never have I seen such a beautiful one

The Swiss star has no equal on Earth

In a dull sky,

A glowing star

Your light overwhelmed me

I want to travel with you the path

That leads to the heavens

And walk hand in hand, night and day

That sounds beautiful.

What is it about exactly?

It's called "The Beauty of Lebanon's Cedars".

It's a poem about nature.

Here you can see Orion's nebula.

And that's the great Andromeda Galaxy.

I can't find Switzerland however.

What will you do after you've finished your work?

Are you going to go back to your country?

It's hard to explain but...

I don't feel that I belong there.

I might travel around the area

if I don't find any reason to stay here.

What about you?

- Don't you dream of traveling? - Yes.

But not on Earth.

You'll think I'm making fun of you.

At university, with my colleagues,

I'm working on a rocket project. Research has just begun.

I hope to send the first Lebanese person in space.

Do you think it's eccentric?

No, on the contrary! I understand very well.

- Your rocket... - Yes?

When it will be ready, will you invite me to the launch?

Yes.

Yes, he has a good job. He's a professor.

We speak French.

No, I don't need to.

I won't come home for anything in the world.

Mimi, let me introduce you to Alice, my fiancée.

Mimi, my little sister.

- Nice to meet you. - Nice to meet you.

Caution! A Swiss person has been signalled in the area!

- And so it's true! There she is! - Georges, stop it!

- Hello. - Welcome, Alice.

- My brother Georges. - Welcome to the family.

Thank you.

Amal, my sister-in-law.

Nice to meet you.

Unbelievable! You look like a doll!

Congratulations! She is stunning.

How do you find Beirut? Isn't it wonderful!

I'm so happy about your wedding.

Come to our house, we'll deal with the preparations.

- Won't we, Mimi? - Of course!

As God says, the most beautiful thing in life

is love.

I now declare you husband and wife, for eternity.

Happy birthday!

Ten.

Nine.

Eight.

Seven.

Six.

Five.

Four.

Three.

Two.

One.

Zero.

Bravo!

From now on,

there's no doubt about it, the entire world is wondering,

"When will a Lebanese person walk on the Moon?"

- Madam. - The artist.

- Wonderful work. - Thank you.

- Hello, Mum. - Hello!

Selim Bouzeid, my son.

- Nice to meet you. - Likewise.

Those two make a lovely couple.

Show me your ring.

- Beautiful! - It was my mother's.

Beautiful.

What's so funny?

Tony, when will you propose to Mimi?

Alice is right.

Congratulations, son!

Joseph, say something! She's your sister.

It's your turn, Mimi!

It's your turn!

Congratulations, Mona!

Congratulations. You two are beautiful. Stunning!

Come on, son. Put them here.

Stop annoying them with endless compliments.

Politicians are disappointed: US Secretary of State Kissinger

will end his tour of the Middle East without stopping in Lebanon.

Other news on Sunday 13th April 1975,

it was an eventful day in Lebanon.

This morning, a car opened fire on the crowd.

This afternoon, in reprisal, a bus was gunned down in Ain el-Remmaneh,

in the southern suburb, causing the death

of about thirty civilians.

- What's going on? - Don't worry. It's far away.

Officially, this is the second round of the unrest upsetting our country

In the last few days, street fights have multiplied around Beirut.

Last night, around forty people were killed by gunfire.

To the general surprise, the third round has begun.

The city centre has been spared.

But fights in sensitive neighbourhoods

have now turned into blind and arbitrary bombings.

Luckily, the creation of the new government

should confirm the summer truce which everyone hopes for.

I would make it a bit bigger. It's tiny.

You're jealous.

Are you sure you don't want to stay longer with us?

- Just a few days. - We must go home.

For once Georges isn't in Dubai!

Mona must study for her exam at the music academy.

She seems happy here.

Come and eat!

- Finally! - Come, come.

I'm starving.

Come on, you lovebirds.

My wife's feast!

That's why I married her!

- For the beans, Georges? - Especially the beans!

We left too late. We'll miss

the beginning of The Accursed Kings

The National Committee for Dialogue

created by the government after this spring's unrest

will meet tomorrow.

- My earring! - For the occasion...

- Have you lost it? - I hope not.

The Prime Minister said he was optimistic, 50.01%...

It's going to start!

Despite...

- Aren't they pretty? - You're pretty.

Thanks.

Mum!

Stop it! You'll damage the TV!

Won't you sit with us?

Hey you!

- What? - Why the big mouth?

Are you saying I've got a big mouth?

Ladies and gentlemen,

the exam will begin.

We will start with Miss...

Mona Kamar.

She's going to play Waltz 15 opus 39 by Brahms.

Lebanon, my little country,

Lebanon, they are killing you

I want to wake you

Before the world collapses,

Before the great cedars

End in pools of blood

For the scent of jasmine

Never to disappear

Making us forget

Who we are

Lebanon, my little country

Lebanon

My darling country

Don't take up arms

Your soil wouldn't stand it

It stands only for our unity,

Our pride and our revolution