Marching on to Tripoli

Well... actually busing to Tripoli, and that's Tripoli, Lebanon, and not the more famous city of the same name in Libya. After about a 2-hour bus ride from Beirut, I checked into the Palace Hotel in Tripoli (the second hotel by that name I've stayed at this month). This hotel is a somewhat dilapidated old palace and doesn't get particularly good reviews from my Lonely Planet guidebook. When the owner was giving me a little tour of this ancient museum-like hotel earlier today, she told me I'm the first Westerner she can recall who requested a streetside room. She said most tourists from the West want a back room as far as possible from all the street noise. Personally I like a room facing the street, and a balcony is a bonus as you can sit outside just above all the activity.