By Miriam Khoury

On the balmy Thursday evening of 16 June, the WLCU hosted its first-ever expatriate event. Hi! Keefna? Ça Va? The name of the soiree is the traditional Lebanese greeting, that we as part of the Lebanese diaspora are tickled with whenever we visit the golden shores of the motherland.

It was a sold-out event bringing together Lebanese Australians and the wonderful Lebanese expatriates who have relocated to Sydney. It was a great evening with many new acquaintances being made and rekindling of past friendships, with many of the expats reconnecting with old school and university friends at the event.

The WLCU reached out to different organisations and social media pages to find expats and gather a wonderful group. 

We were hosted by the always charming Lena Saab and the Salt Meats Cheese team at their fabulous establishment, Bar Ombre, in the prime location in the centre of Circular Quay,  facing the famous Sydney Harbour Bridge. 

Delicious food was abundant including mounds of cheese and charcuterie meats, arancini balls and a delectable range of pizzas.

One of Australia’s favourite Lebanese DJs, Tony Tannous, was our musical entertainment and played traditional Lebanese and Australian hits throughout the evening.

For one night only, a mouth-watering “Knafeh Burger” was created by SeaSweet Patisserie, especially for the event. 

Three signature cocktails were designed to be served throughout the evening; The Punch-bowl – in reference to a location in Sydney commonly associated with the Australian Lebanese community. The Spicy Matilda – which relates to the other Australian anthem, waltzing Matilda. The Tim Tam Slam – The Tim Tam being the iconic Australian biscuit and also lip-smackingly delicious.

The event was adjoined by Sylva Mezher and Petra Taok ElHindi from SBS Arabic to document and promote the event’s success. Guests had an opportunity to be interviewed and were encouraged to share their own stories, aspirations and dreams for the future of the Lebanese Diaspora. You can find the article and audio interviews here. 

Our Vice President, George Bousamra, spearheaded this event in the hopes of connecting young professionals in an engaging and entertaining setting. Through these events, we hope to build lasting networks between the new expats and the second, third and fourth generation Australian Lebanese to keep the connections and never to forget where we came from.

No doubt we will see you all again soon. The WLCU will have two more events before the end of the year. En Route to Beirut and another networking event at the end of the year.

Yallah, Bye, Allah mahkoun