#lebanese lit

[soracities]

Kahlil Gibran, excerpts from Sand and Foam [ID in ALT]

[feral-ballad]

For the first time the sun kissed my own naked face and my soul was inflamed with love for the sun, and I wanted my masks no more.

Kahlil Gibran, from Grape Leaves: A Century of Arab-American Poetry; “The Madman (Prologue)”

[silentroad]

" Travel and tell no one,

live a true love story

and tell no one,

love happily

and tell no one,

people ruin

beautiful things."

- Khalil Gibran

[jamel-omar]

Allways keep your #skills in shape and good... have a nice day 👌✨💫 #bestoftheday #hiphop #breaking #breakdance #bboy #trickshot #fit #lit #style #dance #danceclass #jamelomar #beautiful #like #follow #instalikes #instadaily #lebanese #romanian #hamburg #photooftheday #pictureoftheday ⚡️ (hier: KAIFU LODGE) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cn4fZg1MM04/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[onyouriah]

LEBANESE LITERATURE

[alatismeni-theitsa]

This video made me homesick ?? 😢💓 As a Greek, my culture includes Orthodoxy since it's our ethnoreligion, and suddenly I feel that I have so much in common with so many people around the world!

I was also excited because some of the Christian communities shown here are ancient, and have persisted despite centuries-long prosecutions and pressures! (When talking about the "first" and the "ancient" Christianity we're talking about Orthodoxy or dogmas linked to Orthodoxy.)

I'm referring to the era before the Western European colonization. It was when people came to it freely and what we today call "Catholicism" wasn't what they came into. The Christians in these areas were culturally linked more to the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantium) and to the Orthodox creed.

Christianity's home is the Middle East. Starting from Jerusalem, it spread to the whole Levant region. Assyrian, Lebanese, Syrian, Jordanian, and Armenian people came to Christianity in large numbers from the 1st century already. Antioch has been a stronghold of Christianity, and a producer of the brightest Orthodox minds.

The West Arabian Peninsula (Hejaz region) held the majority of Christian Arabs. Christians lived around Mecca and Yathrib before the advent of Islam. One of the earliest Christian church buildings ever, known as Jubail Church, is located in Saudi Arabia and it was built around the 4th century.

Christianity in Africa first arrived in Egypt in approximately 50 AD. By the end of the 2nd century it had reached the region around Carthage. In the 4th century, it arrived to modern-day Ethiopia and Eritrea (the Aksumite empire), and the region was one of the first in the world to adopt Christianity as its official religion. The Nubian kingdoms of Nobatia, Makuria and Alodia followed two centuries later. From the late 5th and early 6th century, the region included several Christian Berber kingdoms.

This is the chant, in Arabic (with subs in many languages). There's a Greek version too but on youtube I only found the singing version (lit. "ψαλτοτράγουδο"):

[beautifulpersonpeach]

This isn’t related to BTS so feel free to skip this message if you want. I’m guessing you’ve either live in Korea or at least have been there but do you think Korea, Seoul in particular, is safe for a woman to travel to alone? I’m planning a trip there and I’ve read (mostly from other travelers) conflicting accounts on if it’s safe or not so I was hoping to get a local’s opinion. I’m not aware of your gender so the answer can be as vague or as detailed as you feel comfortable giving.

***

Hi @ahhockey

My family does and yes, after not visiting Korea at all during the pandemic, in the last year or so I've been able to travel home more frequently. Korea is very safe for solo female travelers. I suggest you take all the usual precautions like avoiding very crowded areas, watching your drinks, staying in well lit public areas, and communicating often with people you trust about your whereabouts. The subways are fine but taking a taxi is my preferred way to get about. Taxis aren't as expensive as it is in the US/UK, you're not expected to tip, many drivers can communicate in passable English too and you can download the app beforehand so it's not too difficult - I really suggest going for taxis over using the transit system in Seoul if you can. Also, if you're traveling before September, I suggest you try to stay above ground and avoid underground malls and subways as much as possible. July to September is raining season and flooding can happen very suddenly and escalate quickly. And just as a general rule, I'd say avoid public bathrooms too. It's something I personally do and it isn't limited to Korea either. Even though there's less molka instances in Seoul recently and sometimes fears do get overblown, I suggest avoiding public bathrooms in Seoul unless it's necessary.

I'm not sure if this would be fully applicable to you, but based on what I've seen, it's race rather than gender that impacts how many Koreans treat you if you're a foreigner. Rather, race more than gender impacts any considerations. And so I'd add, if you're lighter skinned, you're fine to move about solo all the time, but if you're darker skinned, I strongly suggest you try a buddy system while there. You can do this by joining travel forums and connecting with other foreigners going to the same destinations I think.

I hope you have a wonderful time in Korea! Koreans have the best cuisine after Japanese, Nigerian, and Lebanese food. In my opinion. If you like kalguksu there's many really good places along Donhwamun-ro near Unnidong. :) Good luck! 💜

[imsiriuslyreading]

i have made Remus lebanese in rocketman and i’m feeling very happy about it 🇱🇧

“Thanks, uncle. Glad you approve,” Remus grinned. “Got a table for two?”

“Always, my boy. This way,” Ahmad replied, and began leading them through the dimly lit restaurant.

As they walked, Sirius looked around at the place. He’d never been to a Lebanese restaurant before, but he imagined that this one had to be the most beautiful one to exist. There was lots of gold everywhere, and all of the walls were solid, old-looking beige stone. It looked a bit like a cave, done up with fairy lights, with healthy, dark green plants trailing in any space they’d fit. It was like they’d been transported out of London and had landed in an entirely magical place, within seconds.

“Here you go, Remus,” Ahmad said, grabbing his nephew’s face in both hands and squeezing a little. Sirius caught the slow blush of red that crept up Remus’ cheeks, and thought it was the loveliest thing he’d ever seen, but looked away to avoid embarrassing him further. Instead, he slid into the booth they’d been led to, and picked up the menu to look.

Eventually, Remus was released and came to sit opposite Sirius.

“Ah, sorry about that,” Remus said, looking awkward. “Haven’t been here in a while.”

“Don’t be sorry, it’s cute,” Sirius replied. “He your uncle?”

“Yeah, my dad’s brother. Good guy. Makes killer Dolma.”

“Oh yeah? You’ll have to show me,” Sirius said, looking at Remus over the top of his menu.

“I can do that,” Remus replied, eyes not leaving Sirius’ for a moment.

[hazardous-waste-containment]

[If] conservatives want to save the country they are going to have to rebuild and in a sense re-found it, and that means getting used to the idea of wielding power, not despising it. [..] The government will have to become, in the hands of conservatives, an instrument of renewal in American life — and in some cases, a blunt instrument indeed. [..]

For now, there are only two paths open to conservatives. Either they awake from decades of slumber to reclaim and re-found what has been lost, or they will watch our civilization die. There is no third road.

— “We Need to Stop Calling Ourselves Conservatives,” John Daniel Davidson

The Lebanese people must realize that they stand today at a historic and dangerous crossroads. They have only two choices: Either they take on the task of liberating their nation by making tough decisions with genuine determination and creative ideas that will return Lebanon to the ranks of the civilized world and to its lost glory, or they persist in a state of subjugation and submission to traditional politics that stand on half-baked solutions, dependency, subservience, surrender, rivalry, and duplicity, and keep their future dark and unknown… They have been warned!!

— “The political program,” Guardians of the Cedars

America stands at the crossroads of an era. An uncertain future lies in the hands of a new generation which has been given a simple choice between sovereignty and subjugation. America suffers under the rule of an occupied government. Tyrants, with delusions of infinite power, have declared the American people too weak to revolt. The damage done to the nation will not be fixed with the approval of the dysfunctional system which remains American in name only. Democracy has failed this once great nation. The resurgence of the American Spirit will bring with it the death of tyranny. The torch of revolution has been lit.

— “Manifesto,” Patriot Front

The state is burning and the political parties are obsessed with narrow party and factional interests. It is truly a time for weeping as tragedy grips us and there is so little time, so little time. [..]

And so, with the time running out there must be a total and substantive change in the very form of the government, a radical transformation that will allow those forces that grasp and cleave to the authentic Jewish Idea to save the Jewish state and people from their enemies – and from themselves. There must be a transfer of power by the people to a new system of strong and forceful government.

There must be – in these waning moments before tragedy strikes us – a democratic demand by the people to freeze democracy and allow a strong Jewish hand, a truly Jewish hand, to take over the rudder of the ship that, today, drifts toward the shoals and rocks of catastrophe.

— The Ideology of Kach, Meir Kahane (emphasis in original)

[aperfectphantom]

Being lebanese definitely has its downsides (lack of hot water/electricity/public transport) but it definitely has its upsides too (pomegranate molasses/shawarma/knefeh/baklawa/fairouz) and honestly who needs basic human amenities when my food is that good and the music is lit

[soracities]

Kahlil Gibran, excerpts from Sand and Foam [ID in ALT]

[feral-ballad]

Kahlil Gibran, from Grape Leaves: A Century of Arab-American Poetry; “Heavy-laden is my soul”

[greeds]

my interview at the small lebanese restaurant went rly well :) its owned by a husband and wife, hes the cook and shes the waitress, and he lit up when i said i have pottery on fridays bc they do pottery as well 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺 i have a trial shift on tuesday to see how well i can perform, and i have high hopes this will work out for me

[jamel-omar]

Have a nice evening 😏👌💫 #bestoftheday #hiphop #beach #sunset #summer #happy #lebanon #selfie #fit #lit #style #dance #danceclass #jamelomar #beautiful #like #follow #instalikes #instadaily #lebanese #romanian #tbt #photooftheday #likes #pictureoftheday ⚡️ (hier: Tripoli, Lebanon) https://www.instagram.com/p/ChH6JjDMZbY/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[amr-hossameldin]

The Light Shines in the Darkness

'The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.' - John 1:5    I recently came across this excerpt and couldn't help but smile. I pictured a small candle with a flickering flame, swaying. It dims and glows, and ebbs and flows. But just as sure as the blood runs in your veins, it shines. The candle is in a pitch-black space. It is so dark you would not see your hand if it was right in front of your face. The further away you go, the greater the darkness, and the smaller the flame. On and on till the faint glow becomes indistinguishable from a star in the night sky.    The tiny flame is alone facing the huge, engulfing, and heavy darkness. It alone shoulders the hopelessness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

   I thought about how some people are just like the candle, shining and flickering in the darkness. It reminded me of an episode of Sarde, a Lebanese podcast, with Omar Alshogre, a Syrian who was imprisoned at fifteen in Assad's prisons. He was relentlessly tortured, physically and psychologically. He witnessed the horrific deaths of all his friend, some of which died in his arms. What he described is enough to break any man, as it did many who died out of fear. Yes, just pure fear with no physical torture. Yet, you wouldn’t be able to tell from his face that he was describing one of the most terrifying human experiences. His face was glowing, and the smile never left it. He kept on smiling, even in hopeless darkness of prison. He talked about how this smile was the last thing he had. How it was the last thing he had to inspire his fellow inmates. He talked about his friend who used to hold this ‘smile mantle’ before him, and how he decided to play this role after his death so that he lives on through him. I can't imagine the resilience, the unbreakable will, and the strength it takes to be able to smile in the face of all that horror. In the interview, he said that going to prison was the best thing that happened to him, because now he has a story that enables him to help others and have an impact. He says he was lucky to be in such an environment to help him be strong, and that he’s not special and anyone could achieve this with the right help. He gives credit to his friends for making him the person he is today. He also still has the capacity to think of other people's struggles and not belittle their pain or suffering compared to his own. Such selflessness, such kindness, and such light.

   Equally inspiring is the light that Israa, wife to the late Mohamed Abo-Elgheit, represented in his life (something I talked about more in review of his book(https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5186348697?book_show_action=false)). She took care of him through sickness and health. She inspired him to hold on to dear life through the horrors of cancer. He dedicated his book to her saying: ‘ To who lit up my life; so I borrowed from her light to show me the way, mercy to sooth my pains, and kindness to house my soul…Israa’.

   You never forget such people; you carry them with you. Their influence flows through you to others as well. On and on through the darkness of night and darkness of day. On and on till the end of time their light shines in the darkness, and the darkness cannot overcome it.  Such light is as real as sunlight, if not more so.

“I’ve never seen a light that’s so bright

I’ve never seen a light that’s so bright

Blinded by the light that’s inside

Blinded by the light that’s inside you.”

Untouchable, Pt.2 - Anathema

[emiratesviisa]

Here are 5 things you must do to get a taste of Dubai’s nightlife:

Driving down Sheikh Zayed Road in Dubai, a long eight-lane road that was lit up and busy with traffic even at two in the morning. The designer facades of the tall buildings on either side of the street reflected light. In no other place did I feel as safe returning home at 4 a.m. as I did when a student in Dubai, where I frequently spent the evenings discovering the city's clubs and hangout spots. The nature of Dubai's nights is so distinct from that of Dubai's days that it seems like a completely separate city. One has to get an emirates visa for Nigerian citizens before they can enjoy Dubai’s nightlife. 

1.  Go Club-Hopping

Dubai's club scene is extremely amazing and draws tourists from all over the world. Every type of nightclub can be found across the city, from opulent to edgy, so on Friday nights, you have a tonne of options! Large screens for game nights are available at Barasti (Le Meridien Mina Seyahi Beach Resort), Chi@The Lodge (Al Nasr Leisureland) has a chic atmosphere and fantastic music, Kasbar (Al Sufouh Road) is a hip spot with authentic Arabic décor, and Nasimi Beach (Atlantis) offers a breathtaking view of Atlantis as a backdrop.

2. Order Late-night Shawarma

Without a Shawarma run at midnight, no trip to Dubai is truly complete. Lebanese eateries that serve this delectable pork wrap in the early hours of the morning are the spots that are bustling with the most bustle after midnight. Near the sidewalk, where the waiters collect orders from cars, many people will halt their vehicles. Aroos Damascus and Al Shami Restaurant (Al Muraqqabat Road, Deira), Al Mallah (Satwa), and Reem al Bawadi (Jumeirah Road), among others, are the greatest locations for late-night Shawarma.

3.   Drive Through the City by Night

Given the excellent roads, street lighting, and well-organized traffic, driving in Dubai is a delight. Driving at night is a fantastic treat since there is less traffic, better music playing on the radio, lovely roads to go on, and a glittering city to admire. Al Mamzar, where a creek separates Dubai from Sharjah and a lovely Corniche (promenade) draws people for leisurely after-dinner strolls, is my favorite location for a long drive. You can find Filli Café directly across from this bustling location, where you can finish off your late-night trip with a cup of traditional masala chai. highly advisable

4.   Walk along the Marina

Dubai Marina is a waterfront surrounded by speedboats, luxury yachts, and boats in the more modern area of the city. Families, couples, and friends enjoy the lights from the high towers as they are exquisitely mirrored on the crystal-clear seas as they stroll along the walkway, where European-style cafes are bustling with activity all night. This is a really beautiful way to experience Dubai's nightlife.

5.   Take a Puff of Sheesha at a Lounge

What would a trip to Dubai be without a sheesha cigarette? Many people still like evenings at quieter sheesha lounges, which typically have multiple screens showing live football or cricket matches, despite Dubai's reputation for having exciting nightclubs and a fantastic food and beverage scene. In addition, they frequently include lounge chairs, pool tables, board games, and video games for a laid-back evening with friends. And of course, sheesha—or hookah, as it is more widely known—in a huge variety of tastes and sizes! This is a typical Dubai night out and is a lot of fun, especially with friends!

Good to Know

In Dubai, the weekend is Friday and Saturday—not Sunday!

Tuesdays or Wednesdays are often designated as Lady's Nights in clubs and pubs. To get the best deal, schedule your girls' nights out on these days.

The Dubai government is very tough about drinking and driving, and on the weekends there are many checkpoints to catch drunk drivers and severely punish them. Since taxis are often available close to popular nightlife areas, returning home is both safe and simple.

In Dubai, the drinking age is 21, in Abu Dhabi, it is 18, and it is forbidden in Sharjah.

Drinking is not permitted in undesignated or unlicensed areas and those who do so face harsh penalties.

Apply emirates visa for Nigeria nationals to enjoy all the tourist places and attractions in Dubai. 

In Dubai, there is something to do every single hour of the day or night. What are you still holding out for? Let your hair down and take full advantage of Dubai's vibrant nightlife and for this, you have to take an emirates visa for Nigeria passport holders.