22nd - 23rd October, 1947 - Those "top" American girls... to have and have not.

Wednesday, 22^nd October, 1947

With Joe & John I went to look up Dorothy this morning to date her for Saturday evening.  We found her at home and she kindly accepted.  She has a marvellous personality & I am looking forward to Saturday.  Next John wanted to see Liz so we went to her house where we found she was not in.  Her mother a charming woman invited us in to lemonade and cookies.  The American girls and women I have met here are really the tops.  They are very much more sociable than English girls.

We later went to the Legation and invited some of the girls down to their hut at “Saint Simon”[1] this afternoon.

We whizzed down to the beach in one of the American taxis that screech about the town all day.  The sea was exceptionally rough but it was very good fun in the breakers.

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/To_Have
_and_Have_Not_(film)

Joe & I went to the cinema this evening to see Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall in “To Have & Have Not”

We are all hoping it will be fine for a sail tomorrow but the sea is very rough to night and we had a shower of rain this afternoon.

[1] Saint Simon and Saint Michel were two high end beach resorts in Beirut famed for their European style appeal.  Now it seems times have changed as this article outlines 
SEASIDE INFORMAL HOUSING Mashallah News

Thursday, 23rd October, 1947

We went in a dubious mood to the harbour this morning and as we half expected were told that it was too rough for sailing.

As we had our bathing gear with us Erica, Joe & I went to the A.U.B.[2] for a swim.

Pigeon Rocks - unsurprisingly, they are still there
source: http://www.placesonline.com/asia/lebanon/
travel_guide.asp

In the afternoon Joe & I went for a walk along the coast to some large rocks known as the “Pidgeon Rocks” why I can’t guess.

As these rocks were halfway to Saint Simon we nearly decided to walk there & taxi back.  However we turned back through the city.

At diner John & Lofty came in late & informed us that they had been to Saint Simon with Dotty & Liz.  They had been very secretive about this so had their legs pulled.

After dinner Joe & I stretched out on our beds to wait until it was time to go to the cinema.  We must have tired ourselves out walking for we both went to sleep missing the show.

The "lagoon" at the American University of Beirut, 1940's
source: http://almashriq.hiof.no/

[2] A.U.B - American University of Beirut