It was the ever curious travel writer Gertrude Bell who wrote so eloquently about the apparent anomaly of the conical mud-brick houses found in Twal Dabaghein and Sarouj east of the city of Hama, Syria. Comparing them to nothing found outside of “illustrations to Central African travel books”, Bell had the same feeling we did … Read more
This is the fourth installment of a series reflecting on the Syria we knew and the Syrians we befriended in the years we travelled to the country before the Civil War. Parts one and two were on the Storyteller Abu Shady and Jazz Duo Rasha Rizk and Ghazwan Zerkli. The Old City of Damascus had … Read more
For the second part of a short series in which we’re reflecting on Syria and Syrians before the Civil War, the places we travelled and the people we met, we want to share a story we wrote for a magazine about the traditional storyteller Abu Shady, who we last interviewed way back in 2009. The … Read more
Last weekend, following a three-day ceasefire agreement reached during the Syria peace talks in Geneva the previous week, the UN evacuated some 700 Syrians from Homs’ old quarter, a rebel-held area besieged by Syrian government forces for some 18 months. A further 300 people were able to leave a few days later. Sadly, as they … Read more
We meet the people behind the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha, Qatar, to find out more about the rich collection of art and artifacts, what they represent, and what they mean to the people of Qatar and the Middle East. Meet the People Behind the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha “The objects on … Read more