Tag: culture
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Day 20~ February 20th~ Lebanon
In a geographically small country like Lebanon, people of different religions live side by side. It is so difficult to explain how religions, tradition, cultural norms, rules, and social order organize themselves there. Within each religion are sects, groups, different belief systems, different dress codes and different tolerances. Having been born to a christian family,…
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Day 14~ February 14th~ Lebanon
I was often asked after leaving Lebanon for good: “if you love it so much, why did you leave it?”, “if it is that beautiful why aren’t you there?” But when I remember what drove me out, it was not really the war, not the seeking of adventure, not my love for travel, no, it…
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Day Six~ February 6th~ Lebnaon
Lebanon’s location and unique geography and natural resources make it appear like a delicious pie that every passer-by dreams of grabbing a part of. Throughout history and since the days of the Phoenicians, Lebanon was forced to endure influences and occupations by Alexander the Great, the Roman Empire, the coming of Christianity for the Galilee,…
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Day Three Hundred Fifty Three, January 10, 2012
Happy faces and big smiles adorn the streets the closer we get to the Chinese New Year of the Dragon. The most important holiday of the year, the happiest day for many is around the corner. Celebrations start to manifest all around the place as more than 10 million people get ready to leave Shanghai…
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Day Two Hundred Seventy Three, October 22, 2011
At our local wet market where I buy our daily fruits and vegetables, the residents of the chicken stall were asleep. One temporarily and the others sort of permanently. This market makes me contemplate going vegetarian once again. The black chicken there is called Silkie, and it is a very much valued breed of chicken…
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Day Two Hundred Seventy Two, October 21, 2011
A few days ago, we entered the sixth year of our expatriate life in Shanghai and I so wish I was doing a 365 project for every day of those years. Living here is in every way a thrilling adventure, looking daily at the strange canvas of what this culture of contrasts has to offer.…
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Day Two Hundred Seventy One, October 20, 2011
Go to any Ikea store in China and you are guaranteed to find at least 10 people (I have once counted over 50 people) sleeping, lounging, chilling with shoes off, reading books, listening to music, on the sample furniture. They appear to come for their lunch breaks and just really shut down and take a…
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Day Two Hundred Twenty One, August 31, 2011
Walking around the streets and alleys of Shanghai, I love to meet old people, the ones that represent the China that I had read about before moving here, the China of movies, of books and historical documentaries. And these people are still there, walking with their fans, with their tiny previously bound feet, with their…
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Day Two Hundred Eleven, August 21, 2011
The first thing that amazes me coming back to Shanghai is the abundance of artificial light. Chinese people love lights, in their toys, on their cars, on their bodies, in their skies, on their buildings, in their windows, on their pens,… everywhere. You cannot escape being almost blinded by lazer light salespeople roaming the streets…