Nour will take one picture every day of her Iftar table, which is a great simple idea.
The result is a collection of iftar pictures in a typical Tripoli household. The food is naturally different from and much better than the stuff you get in restaurants in Beirut. (But seriously Nour, fish??)
No one doubts that the Syrian president supports the “resistance” and its weapons. But the fact that he reached out to Hezbollah’s newspaper and told them that no one should dare touch the resistance or its arms (English) smacks of overcompensation in my eyes.
Perhaps those like Michael Young who are arguing that Syria wants to limit Hezbollah’s influence are up to something after all. Here’s an instructive passage from Young’s article today (emphasis mine)
It would be too simplistic to suggest that the Syrians provoked the Hizbullah-Ahbash confrontation in order to bring their army back to Lebanon. Bashar Assad would like to do so, because only a military presence allows him to truly control the country and regain the Lebanese card regionally. However, such a process requires time, careful preparation regionally and internationally, and patience. For now the Syrians are focusing on gaining leverage against Hizbullah, which holds the political and military initiative in the country.
Could Mr. Assad’s embrace be the hug before the stab?
As many of you know, I’m a big Apple fanboy. So it’s no big surprise that I jumped straight into their new music social network service Ping.
As with everything Apple, I’m sure it will get better with time, but I could use your help: I’m always on the lookout for cool new music, so if you created a Ping account, It would be great if we could follow each other. My user name is “Mustapha H.”
I’m looking forward to listening to your music recommendations..
We talked about this before but Now Lebanon‘s Paige Kollock actually did some research. She went to restaurants and talked with people on the street. My takeaway is that restaurant/hotel owners have all the discretion, things are getting a bit more strict than before and Christians are resentful.
I took the picture above when I was visiting Tripoli’s traditional soapmakers with a group of friends who came from Beirut. It shows one of the colorful bundles of organic soap in their glorious display. They look really good, but the ones I’ve tried weren’t as impressive as they look. Still, apparently because the world is now more interested in natural, organic products, they’re making a comeback.
AFP on extravagant spending in Ramadan:
the month of Ramadan has become an occasion for extravagant spending on everything from lavish evening meals to crystal bowls to cosmetic surgery in Lebanon, a country famed for its “see and be seen” attitude [...] Prominent Beirut families and socialites compete over who can host the most lavish iftars, and night-long feasts are not uncommon, often landing on the pages of glossy magazines.
I don’t know what it is about religious occasions that were originally intended to be ascetic affairs. Whether It’s Christmas, Easter or Ramadan, it suddenly becomes about who can get the most expensive gifts and buy the most expensive meals..
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