The enduring legacy of Lebanon’s beloved cedar tree
THE NATIONAL (19/5/2023) Draped with snow, the ancient cedars on the mountain slopes of northern Lebanon spread their evergreen branches like arms welcoming visitors. On Mount Makmel, the country’s oldest cedar grove towers over Wadi Qadisha, the “Holy Valley”, where monasteries carved into cliffs for centuries were a place of refuge and meditation. Known locally as Arz […]
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King’s Highway – The ancient road that bridged kingdoms
BBC (9/1/2023) “Welcome to Jordan!” a group of kids shouted excitedly, as I stepped out of the car to admire the sun setting over the vast sandstone canyon of Wadi Mujib. While I stood on the cliff’s edge, awestruck by the mountain ranges stretching to the Dead Sea, a black-and-white hooded wheatear swooped down near […]
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Dinosaur Prints In Jordan Highlight A Largely Unexplored Region
DISCOVER MAGAZINE (2/11/2022) About 100 millions years ago, dinosaurs roamed through the coast of the ancient Tethys ocean that covered most of the modern Middle East. Recently, dozens of their footprints have been found on the arid mountain of Safaha, southwest of the city of Shobak, in the south of Jordan. In 2019, two Polish […]
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The woman preserving the handwoven history of the Levant
DEUTSCHE WELLE (1/6/2022) Women in the Levant have long used needlework to depict the region’s history, its landscapes, customs and traditions. Intricately embroidered panels, varying in style, colour and pattern reflect the different cultural, religious and family affiliations. One woman, Widad Kawar, has made it her quest to ensure this heritage is not forgotten Read […]
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In Jordan, a quest for the country’s resilient national flower
WASHINGTON POST (22/4/2022) Sitting beneath the branches of an ancient oak on a windswept hill in Jordan’s highlands during the first week of spring, I’m surrounded by a dazzling array of wildflowers. Purple anemones, red poppies, pink cyclamen, yellow and orange daisies. But one elegant flower stands out in the midst of all the bright […]
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Jordan’s grassroot movement for food sovereignty
AL JAZEERA (7/2/2022) Carrying sickles, a group of Jordanians gather to harvest a wheat field that spreads around Amman’s City Mall. Logos of international supermarkets and franchises tower above the golden wheat, as dozens of people reap a crop that for thousands of years has been cultivated in the region. This collective harvest last summer […]
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تعرف على المدينة العربية التي تجسد معاني التسامح والكرم
ب ب س عربي https://www.bbc.com/arabic/vert-cul-59797455
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As-Salt: Where Tolerance and Generosity are World Heritage
BBC (22/12/2021) The dawn call to prayer echoed through a still sleepy valley before the first rays of sun started illuminating golden limestone houses clustered on the slopes of three mountains. “Allahu Akbar” (“God is great”), the voice of the muezzin rose up above the domes of the city. “Hayya ‘ala-s-salah” (“Hurry to the prayer”), called loudspeakers […]
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Arabic inscription on Coimbra Cathedral “Greatness will stay”
DEUTSCHE WELLE / QANTARA (18/8/2021) The stones of Coimbra’s twelfth-century cathedral glow in the last rays of sunlight on a warm summer evening. Swallows swirl around the austere building as tourists line up to visit the Romanesque monument in Portugal‘s third largest city. The cathedral’s elaborate three-storey portal in the northern façade attracts many visitors. But […]
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Zapatistas “invadem” Madrid para comemorar ”500 anos de resistência”
SETENTA E QUATRO (26/8/2021) Um barco está atracado à porta da sede da Presidência da Comunidade de Madrid, na praça central da Puerta del Sol. Em redor, um mar de gente com cartazes e bandeiras. Quem está de passagem pelo centro de Madrid no dia 13 de agosto não percebe bem o que se passa. […]
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