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andnowanowl · 10 months ago

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Since "Palestine Speaks: Narratives of Life Under Occupation" is suspiciously not available in the US in the form of an e-book, I purchased a physical copy and wanted to share it here for anyone else also unable to get access.

IBTISAM ILZOGHAYYER

Director of cultural center, 54

Born in Battir, West Bank

Interviewed in Bethlehem, West Bank

During our dozen or more meetings with Ibtisam Ilzoghayyer in her office, her black hair is either pulled back into a slick ponytail or falls to her shoulders in tight curls. She speaks with us in English, and she has a distinct accent influenced by her time studying at Newcastle University in northern England. When she stands, she adjusts a clamp on a knee brace in order to walk. This is due to a childhood bout with polio, which she contracted when she was two years old.

Ibtisam is the director of the Ghirass Cultural Center, which she helped found in 1994. Ghirass, which means "young trees" in Arabic, serves more than a thousand youth annually in the Bethlehem region through enrichment programs in reading, traditional Palestinian arts, and more. The center also provides literacy programs for women - generally mothers who are learning to read so that they can take a more active role in their children's education.

The walls of Ibtisam's office are decorated with awards and framed drawings by children who have passed through the center. Throughout her day, children stop by to share their successes - an improved test score or a list of books read during the month. Ibtisam takes time with each one to congratulate and encourage them, and to laugh with them. She spends most of her time at the center she works five or six days a week, though she can often be found at the center on her days off as well. When she isn't at the center, she is likely to be at home with her elderly mother, tending a large garden of fruit trees, flowers, and vegetables.

I was born in 1960, in Battir.¹ Life in the village was simple. Most of my neighbors were farmers, and when I was a child, people from Battir would all travel into Jerusalem to sell produce in the markets there. My parents had some land that they farmed, and my father was also a chef. When I was very young, he worked at a hotel in Amman, Jordan, and we'd see him on the weekends.² Then, after 1967, he began working as a chef at the American Colony Hotel in Jerusalem.³

My mother stayed home and raised me and my siblings - there were nine of us. We didn't have TVs, and there were no computers and no plastic toys to keep us distracted. I think we were lucky to have those things. Instead, we used nature. We'd play in the fields, climbtrees, make toys ourselves out of sticks and stones. It seemed then there weren't divisions then between neighbors, despite religion or other differences. We were all part of one culture in many ways. I remember my mother coloring eggs every Easter. It was something that had been passed down for generations - it wasn't a Christian thing or a Muslim thing, it was a Palestinian thing to mark Easter that way.

I must have joined in all the games when I was very young, but then I developed a disability as an infant. When I was two and a half years old, my mother was carrying me past a clinic in town one day. A clinic nurse stopped us and told my mother she should come in, that she should get me the vaccine for polio. So I was given a vaccine. That night I had a fever, and I couldn't move my right arm and left leg. Over the next few years, I was able to regain function of my limbs, but my left leg grew in shorter than my right. At age four, I started wearing a brace to help me walk. It was just bad luck that we walked past that clinic.

I had to get used to people treating me differently because of my disability. Even people's facial expressions when meeting me were different they didn't react to me as if I were a normal child. When I was at school, I was excluded from physical education activities, and some field trips that required a lot of walking. That was really difficult.

I also had learning disabilities. My teacher beat me once in fourth grade because I was nearly failing all subjects. Education was important to my parents, so they were unhappy that I was struggling. My father had only gone through fourth grade, so he could read and write. My mother had never been to school. But they wanted more for their kids. Especially me. Because I had a disability, they wanted me to do well in school so that I'd be independent when I grew up, and not need to rely on anyone.

Then in the fifth grade, I succeeded on an exam, and the feeling was very strange. The teacher handed back the paper and said the work was "excellent." I couldn't believe I'd done anything that would make her say that. I couldn't believe that it was my paper that was excellent. I thought she'd made a mistake. I think that's common for children who aren't used to success-they don't realize it's their effort that leads to excellence. They think it's by accident. But I tasted success just that one time, and I realized I loved it. I just had to convince myself it wasn't a mistake! Then I continued to try hard at school, and I started to realize my potential.

In 1977, I was accepted into a boarding school in Jerusalem. It was actually right next to the American Colony Hotel, so I could see my father sometimes. I'd also go home on holidays. It was still relatively easy to travel into and out of Jerusalem then.

I did well enough in high school that I got accepted into the University of Jordan in Amman. I started there in the fall of 1979, and I studied economics. I loved university, and I wasn't lonely. Other than college students who became friends, I had a lot of family living and working in Amman. But I still felt homesick sometimes, and I started to understand what made Palestine feel special. In my last year at university, the Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish came to read at a theater on campus. I got tickets to go, but when I arrived, the theater was absolutely packed. And the streets outside were full. There were so many Palestinians in Jordan, and we all wanted to hear this poet remind us what it meant to be Palestinian.

IT RAISED A LOT OF EMOTIONS FOR ME

I returned home in 1984, and I had one of the hardest years of my life. I had just spent many years working extremely hard to make something of myself, to become independent from my parents - economically, emotionally, socially so that I wouldn't be a burden to them. Then I returned to Palestine and found I couldn't get a job. Because of my economics degree, I wanted to work in a bank, but there weren't any jobs in that field available, and I couldn't find any other sort of work. So I lived with my parents for a year and they supported me. I was very depressed during that time.

Then one day in 1985, I read a classified ad put up by the BASR.⁶ They were offering to train workers in a field called community-based rehabilitation, which was about helping people with disabilities overcome them by working with the family - the whole community, really - to integrate the disabled into daily life. At first, I wanted nothing to do with that sort of work. I had an economics degree, and I had spent my whole life trying to get away from any limitations imposed by my own disability. I simply didn't want to think about disabilities. But I desperately wanted a job, so I applied.

I trained with the BASR for a year. It was hard. I worked with children who had hearing issues, blindness, mental health issues. The work brought up a lot of emotions for me, and it took some time to become comfortable around the children. But I kept receiving praise from my supervisors, and they made me feel like I was useful. In 1986, I began working in some of the refugee camps in Bethlehem as well, and that helped open my eyes. I got to see some of the real traumathat was happening in the community. That same year, BASR opened a community center for people with mental health disabilities, and I helped to run it. It was a very busy time for me.

Then the following year, in 1987, the First Intifada began. I remember it started just after I got my driver's license. I bought an old used car on November 30 of that year, and I was really proud of myself. I was starting to feel quite independent. Then I set out to drive to work for the first time on December 6, and I ended up driving through streets littered with stones and burning tires. It was the first day of the Intifada, and I couldn't make it to work that day - there was too much happening in the streets. So I spent the day listening to the news with my family.

THINKERS BEFORE FIGHTERS

The idea of starting a community center came to me in 1990. It was the middle of the First Intifada, and the streets were dangerous places to play for children. Aside from the threat of getting caught in fighting, children were sometimes targeted by soldiers. Sometimes children threw stones at soldiers, but other times soldiers would find children simply playing traditional games with stones. Many children, even young children, were arrested by soldiers who saw them playing these games. So the idea of the center started as a way to give children a safe place to play.

Also, at that time many schools were frequently closed by military order, so children had to stay at home for long stretches of time. Sometimesthe Israeli military would even use schools as checkpoints to control the area. The school in Battir was used as a military camp. These realities came together to make us want to start the center.

The BASR was able to establish the Ghirass Cultural Center in Bethlehem in late 1993, early 1994. In the West Bank at that time, the school curriculum was Jordanian. In Gaza, it was Egyptian.⁸ So when I went to school, I studied a Jordanian curriculum. We never studied anything about Palestine or its history. We never saw a Palestinian map. We studied the history of Jordan, of China, of Germany, of England - I remember learning about all the families who ruled England-but nothing connected to our history, nothing connected to our geography, nothing connected to our culture.

When we started the center, we wanted to educate children about Palestinian culture, Palestinian music, Palestinian poetry. We have famous poets like Mahmoud Darwish, but it was forbidden for us to read from them or read other Palestinian writers. If the Israelis caught us with a book from certain Palestinian writers, we might end up in jail. We couldn't have Palestinian flags, political symbols, anything considered propaganda for a Palestinian state-everything could get us into trouble. My family, like most in the West Bank, had a hiding spot at home. For us, it was at the back of the cupboard. When we heard there were going to be raids on houses, we'd quickly hide our forbidden books of poetry or flags or whatever behind a false wall at the back of that cupboard.

With these restrictions in mind, one of our first goals at the center was to provide a sense of Palestinian culture to children. We wanted the center to be inclusive, so we didn't allow any religious symbols or symbols of any specific political parties in the center. We had children from Christian communities and Muslim, urban and rural, from refugee camps and from relatively well-off neighborhoods. I also continued to work with children who had disabilities, but we integrated them with other kids in the classroom, whether they were blind or hearing impaired or had learning disabilities. They were all integrated.

After working this way in the cultural center, I even began to forget my own disability completely. I had other things to worry about or work on. One day, I saw myself in a reflection in a window while in the street, and I remembered I didn't walk as other people do - I had simply forgotten for a time that I had any disability at all. And I was happy for myself! Overcoming my own disability was no longer my focus.

In the center, I tried to make students thinkers before fighters. I did everything I could to keep them in the center, or make sure they went straight home to keep them from dangerous interactions with the soldiers. We lost some children - some had a strong feeling that they wanted to fight. It was very difficult. Of course, they didn't always understand what they were doing. But they weren't just imitating other people who were fighting in the streets, they were expressing their own anger from experiencing humiliation and violence.

Not long after the center was established and I had begun working there, I had the chance to travel abroad for the first time. I went with a friend to help her apply for a scholarship offered by the British consul to study in England. While there, I applied myself, sort of on a whim. But it turns out I won the scholarship. When I got the call that I had won, the consular office gave me two weeks to get ready for travel. So for the first time, I got to leave Palestine - other than my college years in Jordan. I studied for a year at Newcastle University⁹ and learned administration and counseling. It was a good experience, even though it was hard.

I felt homesick from the moment the plane took off. I was away from home from the fall of 1994 to the spring of 1995. I got to travel a lot throughout England, and that was interesting, but I wanted to go home the whole time. I remember I had very little money, and what I had I'd use to call my family. I'd spend hours asking my brothers about neighbors I barely knew - old men who hung out on the street that I never talked to, for instance - just because I wanted to know everything that was happening at home. When I completed all my coursework, I was expected to stay for the graduation ceremony and some parties. But I told the school administration I didn't want any parties, I just wanted to go home and see my family!

CHILDREN SEE THAT THEIR PROTECTORS ARE SCARED

The Second Intifada began in 2000.¹⁰ During that time, I had to get around a lot of crazy obstacles just to continue my work. From late 2000 to 2003, I used to practically live in this office because I couldn't always go back home. I remember the first time I tried to go home to Battir from Bethlehem in 2000, just after the Intifada started. It was just a couple of miles, and the checkpoint was closed. Nobody could cross to or from the five villages on the other side of the checkpoint. The soldiers refused to let anyone go back home. Children, old men, workers - imagine, all these normal people who wanted to go back home at four p.m., the end of the working day. Hundreds of people! We were surrounded by soldiers, and I remember thinking that nobody had any place to hide if shooting started. I waited that day from four p.m. to seven p.m. At seven p.m., I was so angry and depressed I started talking to myself. I said, "God, are you there? And if you are there, are you seeing us? And if you are seeing us, are you satisfied with what is happening to us?" Finally, a little after seven p.m., I gave up and came back to Bethlehem and stayed at the center.

Another time that same year, I tried to walk home past the checkpoint. The Israelis had blocked the road with large stones. I wanted to go around the stones, because I couldn't climb over them with my leg problems. It was also slippery, because it was wintertime. But a soldier, a man less than twenty-five years old, stopped me from going around. When I tried to explain, the soldier said bad things to me - nobody in my life has said these things to me. He called me a prostitute. I can't repeat all the things he said. I became angry and I started to argue, and at that moment, a young man, Palestinian, tried to calm me down and asked me to stay quiet. He took my hand and helped me pass the checkpoint. At that moment I couldn't talk. I passed the checkpoint, and my brother was waiting for me on the other side. He took me by my hand and led me to his car, where my nephews and nieces were waiting. Normally I would talk to them, but I couldn't say a word. I knew that if I spoke, I'd start crying, and nobody would be able to stop me. I reached home and I threw myself on the bed. I felt I was paralyzed completely.

I saw the soldier the next day. I had a feeling that if I'd had a gun, I would have killed him. You know, I can't kill an insect, but in that moment, I felt my anger was more than it's been at any time. When he saw me, he began swearing at me again. It was very humiliating. I saw that soldier many times-usually soldiers would stay one week or ten days before they changed the group of soldiers at the checkpoints. I had to see him every day. And every day I looked at him and wished that someone would kill him in front of me. I wanted him to suffer.

One more occasion stands out from that checkpoint during the Second Intifada - I'm not sure exactly when. I remember a little girl was crying. She needed to get to school to take exams, and the soldier wouldn't let her. It's not guaranteed that a child is able to go to school. And it's not guaranteed that the child will be able to come back. Of course, this kind of helplessness has a psychological impact on kids as they grow up. Many parents have told us that their children have nightmares and achievement problems. Children look to us adults as people who can protect them, and when we can't - in many situations, we're scared! To see the child recognize that his mother is scared, his father is scared-it's not an easy thing.

When you move around Bethlehem, it's very restricted. We don't travel long distances. When you face a checkpoint or a wall, you might need to travel only a mile or two as the crow flies, but your destination is far away behind the wall. The children I teach don't have a good sense of distance because of the restrictions. They might say they live "far away," and I'll ask, "How far?" And it's a ten-minute car ride away, if not for checkpoints. That's far for them, because that fifteen minutes might actually be an hour or two most days. Sometimes I try to put all the obstacles in the back of my mind - the checkpoints, the harassments - to try and keep up my energy for my work, to keep my optimism for the future. But when I'm waiting at checkpoints, I have to face the hard realities of our lives. And the children I deal with they also have to face these realities, and before they're even fully grown they have to face them without guidance, without someone to protect them.

THE SIGN JUST SAID "OTHERS"

Back in 1994, just after we'd started the center, we used to take students to Jerusalem for trips, to spend the day in the city. It was possible then. Since the Second Intifada, it's not possible to take the class to Jerusalem.

I think this is the first generation of Palestinians that isn't able to see Jerusalem easily. Now we only talk about Jerusalem. At the center, when we ask the children, "What is Jerusalem?" they only know about the Dome of the Rock.¹¹ That's all Jerusalem is for them. They've never experienced the city - to see it with true senses, to feel it, to smell it. They only know it through photos. I think it's really demoralizing that this experience, something that used to be essential to being Palestinian, has vanished. I think the Israeli government wants other parts of Palestine - Gaza, Jerusalem - banished from our minds. The new generation, these children might never come to Jerusalem. After years, how will it be in their mind? They won't think of it as Palestine.

Here in the center, we try to keep students connected with the different parts of Palestine, even if it's only through photos, movies, films anything. For instance, I want our students to understand that Gaza is part of Palestine. This is my hope for all Palestinians in the West Bank, that if they have the opportunity, even if it takes a lot of effort, to go and visit Gaza. I think it's our duty. Many people have lost their lives to keep Gaza and the West Bank one land. I'm not losing my life, but I have put in some real effort to go there.

In 2011, I went to Gaza to facilitate an outreach program. I was with a German colleague who worked for a German NGO that addressed international development projects. The German NGO was trying to fund a cultural center in Gaza that used our center in Bethlehem as a model. The Israelis keep a tight control on who gets into Gaza, so the permits to visit were not easy to get. I had to go through a lawyer and the court to get the permit. First, the Israeli military rejected my request for the permit, but I was able to appeal and get permission from the court to go for one night. It took me some time to get permission. But even then, I had to go through checkpoints - a checkpoint to get out of the West Bank, and then another checkpoint to get into Gaza.

To get to Gaza, we took the car of my German colleague. When Palestinian workers in Israel talk about the checkpoint, you can't imagine - you hear about it, but you need to live the experience to understand it. We went through the checkpoint nearest Hebron, because from Bethlehem it is the most direct route to Gaza.¹² It was the first time I was at that checkpoint. I can't imagine the mind that designed that checkpoint. It's a kind of torture. We tried to pass through the checkpoint in her car. We thought we might have an easier time in her car since she was an international. She passed right through in her car at first, but then a soldier stepped into the road and stopped us. They checked my ID, saw that I was Palestinian, and I was made to get out of the car and walk back to the checkpoint building a fifteen-minute walk! It was difficult for me to walk all that way with my brace. When I got back to the checkpoint, I was put in line with the rest of the Palestinians. It was around seven a.m., so most of the people there were workers. We were herded in lines through cages, and all around us were young soldiers with guns. There were only three or four other women in line, and they all passed through with no extra delay. But not me.

All the Palestinians have to pass through metal detectors. I failed the detector because of my metal leg brace. The soldiers had to examine me personally because I couldn't just take off the metal and pass through the detector. Soldiers behind security glass told me that I'd need to be taken to a special cell. The whole time I was at the checkpoint, I hardly ever talked to a soldier directly - it was through microphones, since they were always behind glass.

I was taken to a cell with no chairs. The walls were all metal with no windows, and I couldn't see anyone. I stood waiting for half an hour. I thought they might have forgotten about me. Because of my disability, it's difficult for me to stand for long periods of time. I knocked, and nobody came. Later, I knocked several more times, to remind them that there was somebody here.

Then I was taken to another room, also like a cell - just five feet by five feet. Here there was a soldier behind security glass. She was young, in her twenties. Otherwise I was alone in the room. The soldier was dealing with me as if I didn't exist. She ignored me and didn't bother to explain what would happen next. She just sat there behind the glass. From time to time I would knock, or ask her to please search me so I could leave the cell, and she'd say, "I'm just waiting for someone to come." For an hour she left me standing there.

Then another soldier joined her behind the glass. They told me to undress. I said, "I can't, there's a camera." She looked at it and said flatly, "Yes, there's a camera in the room." Every checkpoint has a Palestinian mediator, someone to translate and do chores for the soldiers, and I made them get him for me. This took a long time. Eventually, he arrived and I talked to him. He put his jacket on the camera and then brought me something to put on. I got undressed and then the soldiers told me how to move so they could examine me. Then I put on the clothes the mediator brought while he took my other clothes for them to examine. More waiting. After everything was over, the mediator took his jacket and left, and then I was taken to pass through the metal detector again.

The whole time, my colleague was outside in the car waiting for me. It had been hours. Then, once we made it to the Gaza border, it was the same procedure. My German colleague was allowed to pass quickly through the checkpoint, while I had to go through procedures strictly for Palestinians, not for foreigners. At the Erez checkpoint, we were not in the car.¹³ We had to park, and after you pass through the checkpoint, everyone has to walk through a mile-long tunnel to where the taxis are.

The tunnel was an open-air tunnel, with fencing on both sides. It was narrow-not big enough for a car to drive through. Outside the fence was a barren, treeless security area. My colleague had waited for me so we could walk the tunnel together, but a mile is very far for me to walk. I had to sit on a luggage cart of another Palestinian who pushed me the whole way. It was a struggle for me. I like to think of myself as strong, independent. I do things on my own. It's not easy for me to sit on a luggage cart and be pushed!

We finally made it to Gaza after hours going through the checkpoints. We went directly to the organization because we couldn't waste time. They only issued me a permit for one day! It's ridiculous to not be able to visit your own country. We can move freely in other countries, but not in our own.

After I finished my trip to Gaza, I had to go back through screening at Erez. This time, at the start of the checkpoint, I saw the two signs-one for "Israelis and Foreigners," and the other just said, "Others." You know, it's like they want us to feel that we belong to nothing. They could write "Palestinians," they could write "Arabs," but "Others"?

Going through the tunnel, there were open-air cells along the way. They were more modern than the Hebron checkpoint, but the same principle. The soldiers were all on high scaffolding with guns. They looked down on us from up high and talked into microphones. They would say things like, "Open gate number 2. Open gate number 10." And they'd tell us to move along. The whole time, we could see soldiers on the scaffolding, but we could never see exactly who was talking to us and ordering us onward to the next cell. The last cell had a ceiling and a grated floor. A soldier behind the glass was there. She asked me to take off my clothes. We negotiated what I could take off and leave on. I took off my trousers and my brace and put them on the conveyor belt. She checked them and then put my things back on the machine to send back to me. I waited for them to contact the people who got me a permit. It took a long time. I thought I had already negotiated all the permits I needed, so it would be fine, but no. They made me wait anyway.

I've spoken with some friends and some people at the Bethlehem Arab Society for Rehabilitation. They go through the same thing, the same conditions. They have the same procedure. It's not because of me - they target Palestinians anyway - but they could show more understanding. They could not make me wait so long, or bring me a chair to sit on, to be humane. I understand they need to check, but they could do it without humiliating the person. If this were just about security, they wouldn't need to humiliate Palestinians and not others. It's to show that we're a lower class of people. The Israelis and foreigners are first-class, the Palestinian people fifth-class. And people don't understand why we are fighting. I want to be equal! Equality! Not one of us is better than the other.

Someday I want to go back to Gaza to keep working on developing a cultural center that is like Ghirass. But by then I hope I can find an easier way to get there than through the Hebron and Erez checkpoints as they are now. Still, I'm happy that I passed that experience, really. Now I know what it's like for Palestinians who have had to travel through the checkpoints day after day for work.

ALL THINGS INDICATE THAT THE FUTURE WILL BE MORE DIFFICULT

I am very proud of being Palestinian. I have never thought of living in another country. I've traveled across Europe, but I prefer to live in Palestine. When I was abroad and something bad happened in Palestine, it would be very difficult for me to sleep. If people I love die, then I want to die with them; if they live, I want to live with them. If they face a difficult situation, I want the same thing to happen to me. I want to be a member of this society. When I think of Palestine, I think of the struggles we've had. We have to keep struggling for our rights, and there's no end to the struggling for me - some days it's for rights, some days it's to improve education. We are all fighters. When I do work with the children at the center, that's fighting. When I work to improve their quality of life, that's fighting. And working against the occupation, that's fighting as well.

Day by day, it becomes more difficult. All things happening in Palestine indicate that the future will be more difficult. Twelve years ago we did not have the wall, the settlements were fewer, the harassment was less. Everything bad is increasing. Usually I avoid going to the checkpoints, because it makes me sick - physically, emotionally, all kinds of sick. It usually takes me time to come back to normal.

My goal now is to expand the center - to extend it and spread it to other places. We're working on outreach programs, to reach schools and other communities that are struggling just to continue to exist. Some villages are surrounded by Israeli settlements and are cut off from important resources. We are looking to support these communities and improve the quality life through education. I believe a lot in education if you want to rebuild the nation.

At the cultural center, we try to keep our students as children as long as possible, to protect them. When they reach a certain age, we can't protect them anymore, they have to face the reality of the streets by themselves. And this is very sad. I can think of many times I've been out walking with my nephew, or with other young boys and girls who are nearing the end of childhood. Suddenly I would get very sad, because when they reach fourteen, fifteen years old, they are children under international and national law, but the soldiers don't think of them as children. They deal with them as adults. And it doesn't matter if they're following the law or not. How they're treated depends on soldiers' moods. I use many strategies to manage. My strategy is that I love life. I want to protect my life, and the lives of others, as much as I can. Life, even with all these difficulties, deserves to be lived. And I like to look for nice things. Even the smile of a child, or flowers-I try to find something.

I'm not optimistic about the future for Palestinians. Israel is strong, and the Western powers give them their support. On the other hand, I don't think Israel can continue this forever. The world will not support Israel forever with all their behavior towards Palestinians. One day, changes will happen - history proves this. One day, sooner or later, the Palestinians will have their rights.

When the world looks at Palestine I do not think they see the full situation. If people want to see the reality of the situation, they will see. If they want to hear the reality, they will hear. But if they don't want to know the reality of the situation, they won't, even if it's right there in front of them.

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Footnotes

¹ Battir is a village of around 4,000 people located four miles west of Bethlehem and three miles southwest of Jerusalem. It is a site of ancient agricultural terraces and was named a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2014.

² Amman, the capital of Jordan, is a city of over 2 million residents. Jordan administered the West Bank between 1948 and 1967, and many Palestinians worked in Amman during this time.

³ The American Colony Hotel is a luxury hotel in Jerusalem. It was built in the 1950s on the site of a former utopian Christian community started by an American couple from Chicago in 1881. The hotel is well known as a gathering spot for influential people from diverse political and religious backgrounds.

⁴ The University of Jordan is considered one of the most prestigious universities in the Arab world. It was founded in 1962 and currently serves over 30,000 undergraduates.

⁵ Mahmoud Darwish (1941-2008) was considered Palestine's leading poet and helped lead a movement to promote Palestinian cultural heritage. Darwish was also a leader of the Palestinian liberation movement and part of the executive committee of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) from 1973 to 1993.

⁶ The Bethlehem Arab Society for Rehabilitation (BASR) was originally founded in 1960 as part of the Leonard Cheshire Disability project, a major charitable organization in Great Britain dedicated to global disability care.

⁷ The First Intifada was an uprising throughout the West Bank and Gaza against Israeli military occupation. It began in December 1987 and lasted until 1993. Intifada in Arabic means "to shake off."

⁸ Jordan administered the West Bank and Egypt partially administered Gaza until 1967. Textbooks developed during those administrations were used even during the Israeli occupation after 1967, but when the Palestinian Authority assumed administrative control of the West Bank in Gaza after the Oslo Accords, it developed its own educational texts.

⁹ Newcastle University is a public research university in northeast England. It serves over 20,000 students.

¹⁰ The Second Intifada was also known as the Al-Aqsa Intifada. It was the first major conflict between Israel and Palestine following the Oslo accords, and it lasted from 2000 to 2005.

¹¹ The Dome of the Rock is an Islamic shrine built on the site of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.

¹² From Glossary -

checkpoints: Barriers on transportation routes maintained by the Israeli Defense Forces on transportation routes within the West Bank. The stated purpose of the checkpoints in the West Bank is to protect Israeli settlers, search for contraband such as weapons, and prevent Palestinians from entering restricted areas without permits. The number of fixed checkpoints varies from year to year, but there may be as many as one hundredmthroughout the West Bank. In addition, there are temporary roadblocks and surprise checkpoints throughout the West Bank that may number in the hundreds every month. For Palestinians, these fixed and temporary checkpoints-where they may be detained, delayed, or questioned for unpredictable periods of time-make daily planning difficult and can make cities or villages only a few miles away seem like distant points on the map.

crossing points: Crossing points are the gateways into Israel from parts of Palestine, or between Palestine and neighboring countries such as Egypt and Jordan. There are currently five crossing points by land into the Gaza Strip, and most of them have been closed or significantly restricted since the Israeli military blockade was imposed in 2007. There are seventy-three barrier-gate crossing points from West Bank into Israel, and Palestinians with permits have access to thirty-eight of them.

¹³ As of 2014, the Erez crossing is the only remaining crossing point between Israel and the Gaza Strip accessible to Palestinians. The crossing is tightly restricted since 2007, and special case-by-case permits granted by Israel are needed.

#palestine speaks #palestine #palestinian voices #strike for palestine #part 1 of 16 #there are sixteen interviewees #book exerpt

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tieflingkisser · 6 months ago

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Israeli officials seize AP equipment, citing alleged media law violation

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Israeli officials have seized a camera and broadcasting equipment belonging to The Associated Press (AP) news agency in southern Israel, accusing the news organisation of violating a new media law by providing images to Al Jazeera. The Qatari-owned media network and satellite channel is among thousands of clients that receive live video feeds from the AP and other news organisations. The AP denounced the move and accused the government of abusing the recently passed foreign media law. “The Associated Press decries in the strongest terms the actions of the Israeli government to shut down our longstanding live feed showing a view into Gaza and seize AP equipment,” said Lauren Easton, vice president of corporate communications at the AP. “The shutdown was not based on the content of the feed but rather an abusive use by the Israeli government of the country’s new foreign broadcaster law. We urge the Israeli authorities to return our equipment and enable us to reinstate our live feed immediately so we can continue to provide this important visual journalism to thousands of media outlets around the world.” Officials from the Communications Ministry arrived at the AP location in the southern town of Sderot on Tuesday afternoon and seized the equipment. They handed the AP a piece of paper, signed by Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi, alleging it was violating the country’s foreign broadcaster law. Al Jazeera's correspondent Mohammed Jamjoom reports from the Jordanian capital, Amman, while Kimberly Halkett reports from Washington, DC. In addition, Carlos Martinez de la Serna, the Program Director at the Committee to Protect Journalists, joins us from New York City to discuss the latest updates.

#palestine #free palestine #news #Youtube

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30-before-30-but-im-27 · 1 year ago

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Greek Islands, Cyprus, Jordan & France - Full Itinerary

This summer I made one of my life goals come true and travelled for 3 weeks to 5 countries (the 4 I was meant to visit originally + an accidental stopover in Austria) including Greek mainland and island hopping as well as visiting one of the 7 Wonders of the World, Petra in Jordan.

ATHENS - GREECE

Official gov tourism website https://www.visitgreece.gr/mainland/attica/athens/

Day 1

Take a 40 min bus from the airport

Temple of Olympian Zeus - Acropolis & Slopes Pass

Hadrian’s Arch - FREE

Theatre of Dionysus - Pass

Ruins of Asklepieion and Stoa of Eumenes - Pass

Odeon of Herodes Atticus - Pass

Acropolis of Athens - Pass

Erechtheoin - Pass

Temple of Athene Nike - Pass

Parthenon - Pass

Acropolis Museum - €15

Coming down the hill Areios Lagos (ancient law court) - FREE

Ancient Agora of Athens - Pass

Temple of Hephaestus (at the ancient agora) - Pass

Monastiraki Square - FREE

Hadrian’s Library - Pass

Day 2

Plaka - FREE

Zappeion Garden - FREE

Ethnikos Kipos (Athens national garden) - FREE

Kalamaki Beach - FREE

Day 3

The Prison of Socrates - FREE

Church of Saint Demetrios Loumbardiaris - FREE

Pnyx - FREE

Philopappou Hill - FREE

Flight from Athens to Santorini

SANTORINI - GREECE

Day 1

Thera (Fira) day out - 30 min bus (€2)

Three Bells of Fira - FREE

Black sand beach - FREE

Day 2

Day trip to Oia

Day 3

Ancient Fira - ��5

Ferry to Heraklion

HERAKLION - GREECE

Day 1

Beach day - FREE

Day 2

Venetian port Heraklion - FREE

Old Town - FREE

Day 3

Knossos Palace - £15

Heraklion Archaeological Museum - Included in the ticket

Day 4

Take the bus to Chania, 2 hours 30 min https://www.allincrete.com/buses-timetables/ around £15

CHANIA - GREECE

Day 1

Old Venetian Port of Chania - FREE

Lighthouse of Chania - FREE

Boat Trip - many depart daily from the port for £25

Day 2

Chania International Airport flight to Paphos

PAPHOS - CYPRUS

Day 1

Take a 25 min taxi to the hotel

Explore Paphos Old Town - FREE

Day 2

- Venus Beach - FREE

Day 3

Archaeological Site of the Tombs of the Kings - £2

Day 4

Archaeological Site of Nea Paphos - £4

Paphos Castle - FREE

Forty Columns Fortress - PAID

Paphos Mosaics - PAID

House of Dionysus - PAID

Villa of Theseus - PAID

House of Orpheus - PAID

Agora - PAID

Lighthouse - FREE

Day 5

Flight to Amman Queen Alia International Airport

AMMAN - JORDAN

Day 1

Take a bus from the airport (departs every 30 min)

Roman Theatre - JORDAN PASS

Folklore Museum - JORDAN PASS

Amman Citadel: Open Cistern, Palace - JORDAN PASS

King Abdullah I Mosque - FREE

Rainbow Street - FREE

JORDAN PASS (includes visa) https://jordanpass.jo/Contents/Prices.aspx

Day 2

Take a bus from Amman to Petra 6:30 am takes 3 hours arrival 9:30 am https://www.jett.com.jo/en

PETRA - JORDAN

Day 2

Petra Tourist Office - FREE

Petra Museum - included in the JORDAN PASS

Siq (the Treasury) trail, then Jabal Haroun trail, then the climb up 900 steps Ad-Dier Monastery Hike - JORDAN PASS

Take a 40 JOD taxi to Wadi Rum Visitor Centre

WADI RUM - JORDAN

Day 2 Continued

Pick up from Wadi Rum Visitor Centre for 5 JOD organised by the camp (let them know arrival time one day prior to the stay)

Check-in at Desert Magic Camp & Resort Ad Disah Road 1, 77110 Wadi Rum, Jordan

Traditional dinner - 13 JOD

Day 3

Jeep tour of the desert (regular 4 hours) - 22 JOD

5 JOD jeep ride back to Wadi Rum Visitor Centre

Take a bus back to Amman

AMMAN - JORDAN

Day 3 Continued

Dinner at Hashem Restaurant

Day 4

Swim in the Dead Sea - Amman Beach - Dead Sea - FREE or ask your hotel for a private driver around 80 JOD for two people with access to a private beach at one of the resorts

The Baptism Site of Jesus Christ https://www.baptismsite.com/operating-hours-a-entrance-fees/ - 12 JOD

Flight to Paphos then flight to France Marseille Provence Airport

MARSEILLE - FRANCE

Day 1

Chateau d’If via boat - €6 transport not included

Day 2

Palais Longchamp - FREE

Cathedral La Major - FREE

Basilica of Notre-Dame of la Garde - FREE

Flight from Marseille Provence Airport back to the UK

#travel #travel journal #travel diary #journal #travel plan #travel itinerary #travelphotography #photograpy #memories #traveling #travel photography

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hotelphilosophy · 1 month ago

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Amman Hotel | hotel-philosophy.com

My Incredible Stay at Hotel Philosophy: A Hidden Gem in Amman

If you're planning a trip to Amman and looking for a place that combines luxury, history, and convenience, let me tell you about my recent stay at Hotel Philosophy. I can honestly say that this boutique hotel exceeded all of my expectations and made my visit to Jordan unforgettable.

A Perfect Blend of Modern Luxury and Timeless Charm

From the moment I arrived at Hotel Philosophy, I knew I had made the right choice. The hotel is housed in a beautifully restored 1930s building, but inside, it feels ultra-modern and chic. The combination of old-world charm and contemporary elegance creates a truly unique atmosphere. It’s like stepping into a luxurious oasis right in the heart of Amman’s historic downtown.

Every corner of the hotel is thoughtfully designed to blend culture and sophistication. The rooms are spacious, and the décor is modern yet cozy, with a lot of personality. I loved how the hotel felt like a peaceful retreat after a day of exploring the bustling city.

The Best Location in Amman

One of the highlights of my stay was Hotel Philosophy's unbeatable location. Everything I wanted to see was just a short walk away! I could stroll to the Amman Citadel, where I marveled at the ancient ruins and enjoyed panoramic views of the city. The Roman Amphitheater, another must-see, was also close by and offered a glimpse into Amman’s fascinating history.

And then there’s Rainbow Street – just a few hundred stairs from the hotel! This lively street is full of cafes, local shops, and cultural spots. Whether you’re into art, local cuisine, or just people-watching, Rainbow Street is the place to be, and having it so close to the hotel was a huge bonus.

Dining Like Royalty

The food at Hotel Philosophy was one of the best parts of my stay. The rooftop restaurant is amazing! I spent an evening dining there, enjoying a beautiful meal with a view of the city’s old town – absolutely breathtaking! The menu had a wonderful mix of local and international dishes, and everything I tried was delicious. Plus, their cocktails were some of the best in Amman!

If you love good food and drinks, you’ll be in heaven here. The restaurant has this vibrant yet relaxed atmosphere, perfect for a romantic dinner or even just winding down after a day of sightseeing. I even found myself spending time at their lounge – it’s cozy, chic, and the perfect spot for a nightcap.

Top-Notch Service and Amenities

The service at Hotel Philosophy was exceptional. From the moment I arrived, the staff was welcoming and eager to help with anything I needed. They offered great suggestions for things to do in the city, and the concierge service made planning my day trips a breeze.

I also appreciated the little things that made my stay comfortable: free Wi-Fi, valet parking, and incredibly thoughtful housekeeping. Everything was smooth, seamless, and designed to make my stay stress-free.

An Unforgettable Experience

In all honesty, I couldn’t have asked for a better stay in Amman. Hotel Philosophy combines everything I look for in a hotel – beautiful design, a fantastic location, amazing food, and outstanding service. It’s the perfect place to stay if you want to experience the best of Amman while enjoying all the comforts of modern luxury.

Whether you’re visiting for a few days or staying longer, I highly recommend Hotel Philosophy. It’s more than just a place to sleep – it’s a whole experience that adds so much to your trip. I can’t wait to go back!

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emeaentrepreneur · 8 months ago

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Chinkilla: Women-Led Athleisure and Sustainable Fightgear Brand Empowering Women to Fight Back

In today’s world and generation, supporting and empowering women have risen and come far away and apart from the past traditional, conservative, and restricted norms and nuances type of treatment that have been meted out to them. We all know how women were restricted, made to be at home, uneducated, controlled, and taken advantage of, and unfortunately some women are still treated this way even today. When women started to raise their voices and fight back against all the restrictions and barriers that were blocking them, they came out braver, stronger, brighter, and healthier, and they fought to be completely themselves, redefining the employment industry with their talent, skills, and other contributions. Some women became great innovators, learners, teachers, thinkers, doers, wives, mothers, motivators, inspirations, entrepreneurs, and just flourishing hard-working women in whichever field they took up and worked in. They contribute hugely to the economy and the development of communities which encourages, promotes, and fosters equality as well as equity in the world.

Female empowerment is very important and essential in ensuring that our women are made to know, feel, and be safe, protected, happy, accomplished, and educated. Redefining gender roles, breaking down walls, and pushing through traditional barriers, rules, and logic can make way for women to be more open and free, as well as make the workforce and families stronger with their contributions and potentialities. Empowering women to feel safe and protected in the wild, predatory, and dangerous world that we live in even today is a very demanding topic that needs to be dealt with. Women are now freely participating and involving themselves in things that very only seen as ‘manly’. In kickboxing, Muay Thai, and other Martial Arts, for example, women are now deeply involved, but there are still hesitations, fear, embarrassment, judgments, and other restrictions and avoidances that they are faced with. Encouraging women to fight hard against the shells that societies and norms have built around them is very important.

Therefore in this article, we will be covering the inspiring and entrepreneurial story and journey of two strong, hard-headed, brilliant women – Dani König and Sarah Barakah, who together banded and started an Athleisure and Sustainable Fightgear Brand Clothing Line in Apparel, Health, and Fitness, in Germany, and which also led to the #JoinOurFight Campaign that took the world by the reins.

About Dani König and Sarah Barakah – Co-founders at Chinkilla:

The Co-founders of the Athleisure and the Sustainable Fightgear clothing wear brand – Chinkilla, are – Dani König and Sarah Barakah. The two co-founders co-incidentally met each other in the Middle East in Jordan, when they were on their respective work trips in the year 2016. Dani König shared that Sarah Barakah lived with her husband and worked in Amman, Jordan, where the latter undertook Kickboxing courses and it was the first-ever Women Martial Arts Studio in the Middle East. Dani was also in the area filming a documentary – WATERPROOF which was her debut film. Being a pro-martial artist and having a keen interest in that world, Dani decided to check out Sarah’s studio.

This was where the two met and were quickly and easily acquainted with one another on shared topics and interests. Upon learning that Sarah was soon going to cross-country to Germany with her husband to the very small-paced town of Weimar where Dani lived, they both were ecstatic. Sarah moved to the town of Weimar and soon looked to open a Women’s Kickboxing Class in the year 2017. The next year in 2018, Dani contacted Sarah and opened up to her about the idea of making a German city tour where girls get interested in Martial Arts and Self-Defence. Sarah was on board with Dani’s proposition immediately and that was the start of the journey towards finding Chinkilla.

For more interesting insights and reads, visit The Europe Entrepreneur.

About Chinkilla:

Chinkilla is all about – “Making the world safer by empowering women to fight back”. This mission statement also became the Campaigning line for their #JoinOurFight hashtag in 2022 years later. The brand was established in the year 2020 and revolves around women’s activewear.

Sarah Barakah and Dani König are the Co-founders of Chinkilla and the latter is the Chief Executive Officer. Dani has completed her formal education with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Film/Video and Photographic Arts from Bauhaus University and then a Master of Fine Arts in the same field and university. Before meeting Sarah, Dani was a self-employed documentary filmmaker. Sarah lived and worked in Amman, Jordan, Middle East before moving to Germany, where she established the first-ever Women’s Martial Arts Studio and undertook Kickboxing classes.

When Dani and Sarah banded together on their German city tour, they traveled from one city to the next attracting a full women following base as they offered Self-Defense and Kickboxing Workshops and Bootcamps. After this, they separated as Sarah moved to Paderborn 500 km away from Dani. But this did not distract them from their vision and goals, they skyped each other and stuck to their mission and passion of empowering women. In the year 2020, Chinkilla was officially established and headquartered in Paderborn, Nordrhein-Westfalen, North Western Germany. In the year 2021, Chinkilla produced their first sustainable lifestyle clothing line in Fightgear for women. Thereafter, Dabi soon joined Sarah at Paderborn, and from there the duo continued to manage the thriving and flourishing start-up business.

In the year 2022, on International Women’s Day, the co-founders at Chinkilla started a campaign with the hashtag – #JoinOurFight. This move helped Chinkilla a lot as 25 Gyms in and around the area reached out to the brand’s co-founders. The Gyms reached out to offer 800 women free classes in Martial Arts and Self-Defense courses. Thereafter, around 10% of all sales profits made by Chinkilla are used to fund free Martial Arts and Self-Defense Events for Women in Germany. The brand later rolled out a Streetwear clothing line alongside their initial Fightgear and Athleisure wear. Chinkilla also is an environmentally conscious journey of practicing and incorporating initiatives towards sustainable fashion.

Visit More : https://theeuropeentrepreneur.com/chinkilla-women-led-athleisure-and-sustainable-fightgear-brand-empowering-women-to-fight-back/

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jontycrane · 1 year ago

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The King’s Highway

Running most of the length of Jordan, The King’s Highway stretches from Madaba down to the Red Sea. This post covers the smaller sights seen along the way, with the big ticket sights of Petra, Wadi Rum, Red Sea, Jerash, and the Dead Sea covered separately. Madaba was a peaceful place to end my trip, a relaxed market town relatively close to Amman. It is home to one of the largest Christian…

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#Jordan #Kerak #Madaba #Mt Nebo #photography #The King’s Highway #travel

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thedeamriders · 1 year ago

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Riding Through History: A Journey on Two Wheels in South India

Embarking on a South India bike trip is not just an adventure; it's a journey through time, riding through the pages of history that have shaped this culturally rich and diverse region. As you rev up your engine and hit the open roads, you'll find yourself traversing landscapes that echo tales of ancient civilizations, colonial influences, and a vibrant heritage.

The historic significance of South India is palpable at every turn of the wheel. Begin your expedition in the city of Chennai, where the colonial past meets the modern hustle. Explore the historic Fort St. George, a relic of British rule, before heading south towards the coastal town of Mamallapuram. Marvel at the intricately carved Shore Temple, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that stands as a testament to Pallava architecture dating back to the 7th century.

As you ride further down the Coromandel Coast, the road unfolds stories of the Chola Dynasty. Visit the Brihadeshwara Temple in Thanjavur, an architectural masterpiece from the Chola era that showcases the zenith of Dravidian temple architecture. Feel the history beneath your wheels as you cruise through the ancient town of Madurai, home to the iconic Meenakshi Amman Temple, a living testament to the grandeur of the Nayak Dynasty.

Venture into the Western Ghats, where the landscape transforms, and the air becomes crisp. Twist and turn through the lush greenery as you make your way to Mysuru, the cultural capital of Karnataka. Explore the opulent Mysore Palace, a symbol of the Wadiyar Dynasty's grandeur, and ride up to the Chamundi Hills for panoramic views of the city.

The journey through South India on two wheels is not just about visiting historical monuments; it's about immersing yourself in the cultural tapestry of the region. Traverse the narrow lanes of Hampi, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that narrates the story of the Vijayanagara Empire through its ruins and temples. Feel the spiritual aura at the Virupaksha Temple and the Vittala Temple, surrounded by the remnants of a bygone era.

Cruising through the vibrant state of Kerala, witness the remnants of European colonialism in Fort Kochi, where Dutch, Portuguese, and British influences meld seamlessly with Indian culture. Ride along the picturesque backwaters, passing ancient trading ports and quaint villages that whisper tales of a maritime past.

In the midst of this historical voyage, relish the diverse cuisine that South India has to offer. From the spicy Chettinad delicacies to the flavorsome Kerala seafood, every pit stop is a culinary adventure.

A South India bike trip is not just a ride; it's a journey through the annals of time, where each twist of the road reveals a new chapter in the captivating history of this enchanting region. So, gear up, throttle on, and let the wheels of your bike spin the tales of South India's rich and storied past.

#south india bike trip #south india bike tour

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azvolrien · 2 years ago

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Jordan - Day 7

Today was much quieter and more relaxed, a bit of a wind-down before the long drive back to Amman. We left the desert camp at about 8 and rode the pickups back to the village to meet back up with the minibus. We then set off down the highway to Aqaba, home of Jordan’s only stretch of seacoast and many a beach resort.

Some of the group then set out on a long boat ride and snorkelling trip, down the Gulf of Aqaba almost into Egyptian waters. Mum and I had planned to visit the Aqaba Aquarium, but that plan fell through; it seems the aquarium is closed Fri/Sat during Ramadan, so instead we signed up for an afternoon at one of the beach clubs a little way south of the town, including a shorter ride in a glass-bottomed boat.

The beach was pretty nice and I shared an excellent pizza from the snack bar with one of my fellow travellers, but the boat ride was the real highlight of the day. The waters around Aqaba are crystal-clear despite the huge container terminal south of the town, and the boat gives a great view right down to the seabed. We saw hundreds of tiny fish schooling through the water and a rich variety of corals. Some of it did look like it had suffered bleaching, but there was enough colour to suggest that it will recover given time. Apparently the current king of Jordan is very into diving, and we sailed over the wrecks of a ship, a tank and a plan, all submerged on purpose as artificial reefs. Some people were scuba diving at the plane, bubbles from their respirators rising to the surface.

We took the shuttle bus back to the hotel after another while on the beach and went out for tea at a local restaurant just over the road. I had shish tawook, a local chicken skewer dish – quite a subtle spice, not too hot – but again couldn’t finish the huge portion. The guidebook said it’s polite to leave a little here, so perhaps that’s OK.

#holiday diary #jordan

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yolojordantours · 2 years ago

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Experience the Beauty of Jordan with Jordan Tours and Travel

n Jordan, you may go on hikes through gorges and down spectacular waterfalls amid the unspoiled wilderness, climb cliffs and mountains to reach breathtaking vistas, ride along the paths taken by kings and emperors throughout history, and so much more.

Amman – Um El-Jimal – Desert Castles

Pick up from Amman to Umm al-Jimal with the help of Jordan tours and travel, a stunning village and ancient archaeological site that rises out of Jordan's northern basalt plain, which is home to nearly 2000 years of intriguing history and culture, including Nabataean, Roman, Byzantine, Umayyad, Mamluk, and Ottoman.

Aqaba – Petra – Aqaba

Drive towards the Nabatean Red-Rose City of Petra, the newest wonder of the world, after picking up passengers in Aqaba. Petra was constructed out of stone more than 2000 years ago in order to control the trade routes of ancient Arabia. See its dams, waterways, and towns. The major entry to the city is the siq, a three-quarters-mile (1.2 kilometre) long, extremely congested roadway. The "Khazneh" or treasury is at the end of the siq. Go back to Aqaba.

Amman – Madaba – Mt. Nebo – Amman

Pickup from Amman, Moses' final resting place on Mount Nebo. See other mosaics depicting various animals and individuals that may be found inside the Mount Nebo cathedral while taking in the view of the Holy Land. Next, take a transfer to Madaba to see the gigantic Madaba Mosaic Map at the Church of St. George, which is now a Greek Orthodox Basilica. It depicts Jerusalem, Jericho, Bethlehem, and other sacred locations in exquisite detail. Get back to Amman through Jordan private tours and travel.

Amman city tour – Desert Castles

Take up Amman City, a historical location in the heart of Amman; visit the churches and mosques, traditional souks, coffee shops, and restaurants to sample local cuisine through Jordan tours and travel. Amman is also the historic city once known as Rabbath Ammon, followed by "Philadelphia," where you may visit the Roman Theater and the Citadel. Travel to see the stunning examples of early Islamic art and architecture known as the Desert Castles, which are situated east of Amman.

Book your trip now.

#Jordan tours and travel #Jordan private tours and travel

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docpiplup · 2 years ago

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Banu Qasi triology: Words & Etymology

'amil: local chief. Plural: 'ummāl

'amil al-bahr: 'almirante', admiral

'arif: low ranking officer

'arif al bannā: master builder

albannā: 'albañil', construction worker

albáytar: 'albéitar', precursor of the current veterinarian

al'ard: 'alarde', pre-departure ceremony for a military campaign

albardí: esparto-like plant

(This plants are either called atocha, esparto or albardín)

alfaquí: priests and teachers, specialized in religious subjects, both in terms of their teaching and their application

algara: revolt

alhabáqa: 'albahaca', basil

alhínna: 'alheña', henna, dye used for its magical and cosmetic properties. It is used to dye the hair and to beautify the hands and feet.

almuwádan: 'almuhédano', muezzin, person in charge of the call to prayer in the mosques

alqabála: business transaction tax

alqasába: 'alcazaba', fortress

alqásr: 'alcázar'

alqáyid: 'alcaide', warden

alqaysaríyya: 'alcaicería', area of the market reserved for the most valuable objects

al-quitrān: 'alquitrán', tar

al jurs:" the mute", elite guard corps of the successive emirs

alkuhl: alcohol

almúnya: country house used as an occasional residence, located in a cool area, with an abundance of water and vegetation

alqutún: 'algodón', cotton

amān: amman, pardon in exchange for laying down arms, capitulation treaty

as sayyida: the Lady, referring to the emir's first wife

asaifa, sa'ifa: the 'aceifas' were expeditions of the Cordovan army against Christian areas that took place during the summer period, at times almost annually. In many cases it was the emir himself or some of his sons who led them

asfarag: 'esparragos', asparagus

ashsharín: 'aserraderos', sawyers

assánya: 'aceña, noria'

assutáyah: 'azotea', rooftop

assúd: 'azud', weir, prey

attahúnna: 'tahona', bakery, bread oven

azza'farán: 'azafrán', saffron

bābūs: 'babuchas', light shoe without heel

bait al mal: religious community treasure, amount of money, destined to the relief of the most needy and the payment of the expenses derived from the operation of the mosques

baraka: luck, blessing

baskiya: name of the Arabic sources of the Basque language, incomprehensible jargon for them, which is why it is classified as "barbaric language"

baskunish: basques

bilawar: ornaments made from stringed beads, origin of the Spanish word 'abalorio", bead

burj*: tower

*the name of town of Borja in Aragon comes from that word, also the male name Borja and the surname Borja, the noble family of the Borjas probably were from that town, and when they moved to Italy, their surname was adapted as Borgia (in other post I wrote that Teruel comes from Tirwal, meaning tower, because in some sites that etimology I read that it comes from Arabic, although the Arabic word for tower is burj, so maybe Tirwal is a kind of Arabized form of the latin word for tower, turrem/turris, like Guadalupe means River of wolves because the lubb in Wadi al-lubb comes from an Arabized form of the latin word lup)

comes: count, highest representative of the Mozarabs in a city, in charge of collecting their taxes

dā'is: Fatimid missionaries in charge of spreading the Shiite doctrine

dar al raha'in: hostage house

*(the word 'rehén', hostage, comes from the Arabic raha'in)

dar al sina'a: 'dársena', dock

dimmī: member of Christian or Jewish minorities subject to Islam

dinar: gold coin used during the emirate

dirhem: silver coin used during the emirate

dīwān: set of offices grouped within the alcázar that made up the central administration

drakaar: dragon

fals: low value copper coin

falūkah: shallow draft sailing boat to go up rivers

faquí: 'alfaquí', alphaqui, doctor or scholar of the law

fata: slave, eunuch

fitna: revolution, civil war

fityán: page

funduq*: warehouse where merchants deposited their stocks and their place of accommodation. Origin of the Spanish word 'alhóndiga'.

*or al fundaq, that derived as alfóndiga in old Castilian, and then to alhóndiga

galasqiyin: gascons

gallasa: a woman in charge of the female area of the public baths

ghasul: Clay made with cloves, lavender and rose petals to beautify hair

gūrab: "crow", warship similar to the galley, with a highly variable number of oars. Plural: girbān

hadra: capital of the kūrah or province

hammam: arabic bath

haram: main prayer hall of the mosque

harem: 'harén'

harrāqā: warship supplied with naphtha

hasīs: 'hachis', hashish, the consumption of opium in Al Ándalus is attested from the 10th century, due to the appearance of remains of bowls to consume it.

hachib: position of maximum responsibility in the court of the Cordovan emirs, direct head of central administration, military and provincial

haffarín: laborers, diggers

haymah: 'jaima', tent, usually made of camel skin

hisba: market admission and regulation treaty

hisn: castle, fortress. Plural husun

Id al Adhà: lamb feast, one of the main celebrations in the Muslim calendar, which falls on the tenth day of Dul Hijjah

imām: 'imán', imam, spiritual or religious head of a Muslim community

jarayaira: prostitute who worked in a brothel or dur al jaray

jassa: group made up of the aristocracy, the dominant families of society and the main dignitaries of the government and the army

jatam: Royal seal

jayyarín: 'caleros'

jizya: burdensome tax that non-Muslims from Al Ándalus had to pay

jund: troops of Syrian origin who participated in the early days of the Arab conquest. Plural: junud

katib: senior civil position in the Cordoba administration

khalífa: 'califa', caliph

kuhl: kohl, powder made with antimony, toasted olive and date pits, and cloves, which beautifies the eyes and highlights the look

kunya: nickname used in Arabic onomastics

kūrah: 'cora', kora, each of the emirate's administrative divisions, similar to a province or district

madinat: 'Medina', city

mahalla: military camp

maqbara: graveyard

maqsura: enclosed space inside the mosque of Córdoba that improves the security and privacy of the emir

mawla: client, person linked to another by a client relationship. Plural: mawali

maylis: literary gatherings

mayûs: also madchüs or machüs, Normans, Vikings. Arab chroniclers also use the names alurdumâniyûn or nordumâni

mihrāb: niche located in the wall of the mosque facing the Qibla and in the direction of Mecca

minbar: kind of pulpit, usually made of precious wood and ivory, where the preacher would sit to deliver the sermon in the mosque

muhandis: construction technician, engineer

muladí: descendant of those inhabitants of the peninsula who, after the arrival of the Arabs, spontaneously submitted and embraced the Muslim religion. They constituted the majority group of the population together with the Mozarabs (from Arabic mustarib: arabized), who maintained the practice of Christianity, subject only to the payment of special tributes (jizya).

muqrif: 'matarife'

musalla: outdoor enclosure in many Muslim cities, facing Mecca, which served as an open-air oratory

musara: 'almozara", open and wide space outside the cities in which equestrian exercises, horse races, demonstrations and military parades were held

muwalladun: muladíes

muwassaha: 'moaxaja', Arabic poetic or musical composition

muzdamin: civil head of the Jewish aljama (the rabbi was the religious leader)

nabarrus: It seems probable that since the 8th century the users of the nabar or plowshare in Old Basque were known as nabarrus in the Pamplona region, that is, the peasant population

nāfta: incendiary material used in naval warfare

naggafat: mistresses of ceremony

najjarín: carpenters

naqib: commander of a two hundred-man battalion in the emirate army

na'úra: noria

nazir: head of an eight-man squad in the emirate army

neggacha: specialized woman to compliment the bride in the ritual prior to Muslim weddings

pasaranga: itinerary measure equivalent to 5250 meters used by the Persians since ancient times

politeístas: term commonly used in Arab chronicles to refer to Christians, alluding to the conception of God as three different people

qa'id: commander of a thousand-man battalion in the emirate army

qabila: Muslim midwife

qādī: Muslim judge *(other form of this word is alqádi, that derived into 'alcalde', mayor in Spanish)

qafiz: Arab unit of measurement of variable value according to the area and the time

qamís: front buttoned garment

qarāqir: 'carracas', argosy, merchant ships

qasí: belonging to the Banu Qasi clan

qass: storyteller. On market days it was common for mubahrich (puppeteers), la'ib (presdigitators), muhli (minstrels), hasib (fortune tellers)

qubba: Royal pantheon that served as accommodation for the Emir of Córdoba during the expeditions

*(al qubba is the origin of the word 'alcoba', meaning bedroom or bedchamber)

qumis: Arabized denomination of the old Christian Comes, head of the Mozarabic community in each city, in charge of relations with the Muslim authority and especially the collection of taxes

qurtubí: relating to Cordoba

ra'is: Captain of boats, in charge of navigation, while the qa'id holds the military command

sabat: elevated walkway over the street that linked the alcazar with the mosque of Cordoba, for the exclusive passage of the emir

sabun: 'jabón', soap. In Muslim Spain, a rudimentary soap made from olive oil and wood ash was used.

sahib*: Lord, formula of respect before a superior

* or sayyid, from which the name of Cid comes from.

sahib al 'ard: quartermaster general, in charge of reviewing ('ard) the weapons and equipment. From the Arabic term al'ard comes the Spanish 'alarde' *(and the verb alardear, both meaning something like to boast, to brag)

sahib al abniyā: master mason

sahib al madina: city prefect

sahib al suq: head of the souk, later he would become the muhtasib or almotacen, an official in charge of ensuring compliance with Islamic norms, and specifically for the proper development of commercial transactions in the souk

sahib al surta: Police chief

salat: there were five calls to prayer, salat al fajr, or also called salat al subh (dawn prayer); salat al zuhr (at the instant the sun begins to decline); salat al 'asr (mid-afternoon prayer); salat al maghrib (a few minutes after sunset) and salat al 'asa or salat al'atama (one hour after sunset)

salaqiba: slaves from Slavic countries, of great importance during the emirate of Córdoba

samra: night party, evening party, sarao, origin of the Spanish term 'zambra'

sāwna: warship similar to galley. Plural: sāwani

sarauil: breeches or 'zaragüelles'

shari'a: Islamic law

shura: Islamic assembly

siqlab: plural of salaqiba

sirtaniyyun: Cerretans, Aragonese

suak: walnut bark

sudda: prey

suq: 'zoco', market, souk

tābiya: construction technique, formwork

tafaya: dish made with slow-cooked coriander broth, pepper, onion, oil and water, to which meatballs and crushed almonds are then added

tahlil: small leather box in which Muslim soldiers used to carry relics, prayers and exclamations of profession of faith

tiraz: workshops controlled by the emir in which fabrics considered luxury items are made

ulema: doctor of Islamic law

umm walad: concubine mother of one of the emir's sons

wālī: 'valí', governor of a province or part of it

wazīr: 'visir', vizier

yabal: mountain

yamur: top of the minaret formed by golden spheres of decreasing size

yenun: evil genies

yihad: Holy war

yilliqiyun: denomination that the Arab chroniclers give to the Asturians

zakat: taxes that Muslim families had to pay in Al Ándalus

zakat al suq: market rights

zandaqa: crime of heresy

zanáti: Origin of the Spanish word 'jinete*', rider

* I made a post some time ago about history, etimology of this word and genets (and an Asoiaf related drawing about a silly idea I thought)

Locations II Characters

#banu qasi triology #words #etimology #long post

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daby-zainab-faidhi · 8 years ago

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Background of Amman-Petra cities of Jordan, solo exhibition 2010 / Zara Gallery.

check out rest of collection:https://www.behance.net/gallery/11277949/JORDAN-2010

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classicalmonuments · 4 years ago

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Great Theatre of Philadelphia (Theater of Amman)

Philadelphia (Amman), Jordan

2nd Century CE

6,000 seat

The Roman Amphitheater is located in the eastern part of the Jordanian capital, Amman. A Greek inscription on one of the pillars indicates that this amphitheater was built in honour of Emperor Antonius Pius (138–161 CE).

The large and steeply raked structure could seat about 6,000 people: built into the hillside, it was oriented north to keep the sun off the spectators.

It was divided into three horizontal sections (diazomata). Side entrances (paradoi) existed at ground level, one leading to the orchestra and the other to the stage.

The highest section of seats in a theatre offers excellent sightlines, while the actors can be clearly heard, owing to the steepness of the cavea.

Sources and more text below.

“The great theatre of Philadelphia is situated near the eastern extremity of the town, on the south side of the stream (see map), at a point where the mountain¬ side, a steep wall of rock that rises from the river throughout the greater part of the length of the town, stands back from the bank of the stream, leaving a level terrace, partly artificial and partly natural, upon which a number of ancient buildings stood. The cavea of the theatre, which consists of three horizontal divisions of seats, was almost completely excavated in the rock of the hill-side, though it was found necessary to build up the higher parts of both ends of the semicircle. None of the seats was cut in the natural rock, but all were made of a slightly different quality of limestone, quarried, no doubt, in the immediate vicinity. The artificial portions of the cavea were erected upon masses of masonry penetrated with tunnel vaults that followed the curve of the cavea to about a third of its perimeter on either side. The semicircle of the cavea was produced in straight lines about four meters on either hand, and this part, being entirely artificial, was built upon three stories of superposed tunnel vaults separated by great masses of solid masonry. The lowest of these vaults, on either side, served as an exit, a. sort of covered parados, under the end seats. The scaena with all the stage buildings has been entirely destroyed, leaving only remains of its foundations. The auditorium (Ill. 31) is exceptionally well preserved so that even the casual visitor will observe that the cavea had three horizontal divisions of seats, with an upper and a lower praecinctio, besides an outer horizontal passage above the uppermost tiers of seats. The seats in the middle sections are preserved, from the orchestra to the uppermost passage, though those of the lowest division are almost completely buried in soil that has washed down from above. A more minute examination reveals, as the plan (Pl. IV) shows, that the lower and middle sections comprised each sixteen tiers of seats, divided by six scalaria into seven cunei, with scalae at the ends of the outer cunei. The uppermost division of seats is composed of eight cunei, and the scalae in this division were midway between the ends of the scalae of the lower divi- sions. The number of tiers of seats in the lowest division is assumed to be equal to that in the middle division from the oldest descriptions on the one hand, and from the measurements on the other. The orchestra and the lowest tiers of seats are completely buried, as is shown by the dotted line in section C. D. of Plate IV ·, but the level of the orchestra may be determined from the level of the passages within the arches that open upon the orchestra on either side. The semicircular barrier about the orchestra is not likely to have been over 1.50 m. high, and a height of 1.30 m. would allow for just sixteen tiers. The middle division preserves almost all of its tiers of seats intact, on the west side (Ill. 32) as far as the scalae on the diameter of the semicircle, and on the east side (Ill. 33) to within two or three meters of that line, as is shown by dotted lines on the plan and in Pl. IV, section C.D. The topmost division preserves five cunei intact, the cuneus on the west end, and the corresponding cuneus on the opposite side, with half of the cuneus adjoining it, having fallen in ruins (Ill. 32 and 33). These portions being built upon artificial substructures were naturally among the first to fall. The middle horizontal division of seats was reached from the lower praecinctio by double flights of steps in the middle of the terminal cunei. The uppermost division was reached from the upper praecinctio by similar flights in the middle of each of the uppermost cunei, at the ends of the lower scalae (Plan, Pl. IV). The upper and the lower praecinctio are each 2.30 m. wide; their walls are 1.80 cm. high; the passage at the top of the cavea is 3.40 m. wide, and probably had a colonnade corresponding to its outer wall which is 4.50 m. high. In the middle of this outer wall is an exedra which will be discussed later. Immediately within the wall of the lower praecinctio, at both ends, is a vaulted passage with two openings upon the praecinctio. From the present condition of the passages it is not possible to determine how far the vaults were carried; but, judging from the slope of the hill at this point, I do not believe that they were carried far beyond the second opening to the praecinctio. (Section C. D.). The passages within the wall of the upper praecinctio were carried well around the curve to points shown in the plan by dotted lines drawn across the uppermost division of seats. It had three openings to the praecinctio, on either side of the cavea. (Section C. D.). The openings between the vaulted passages and the praecinctiones were not arched, but were provided with long three-piece lintels or flat arches, that carried the seats above them. The steps which mounted to the upper divisions of seats were placed on either side of these openings, and within the circle of the lowest tier which was not a seat, properly speaking, but a narrow passage above the praecinctio. The arches that opened upon the orchestra sprang from moulded caps, and had moulded archivolts, as is shown in the detail drawings in Plate IV. The same plate shows also the details of the mouldings at the top of the walls of the praecinctiones, and the mouldings and other details of the seats and steps. The details of the exedra at the top of the cavea could not be accurately drawn, owing to the fact that the place has been converted into a modern dwelling. It appears to be well preserved. Two columns stand in the opening of the exedra, supporting an architrave and an arched pediment (Ill. 31). The spaces between the columns, and on either side of them, have been filled with walling pierced with a door and windows, and the pediment has two windows in it. The whole surface is covered with mud plaster, so that nothing but the chief dimensions of the exedra are obtainable. I was told that there were three niches within the exedra, and I have shown them in the plan and elevations as they were described to me. The extension of the cavea toward the north was, of course, entirely artificial. The lowest of its vaulted passages are preserved on both sides, with their ornamental arches which opened upon the orchestra. These arches are in line with the sixth tier, from the top, of the lowest division of seats. Above the arches were five tiers of seats. The outer ends of these passages were undoubtedly open, though they are closed now, so far as we may see in the accumulation of debris; for this reason I have shown walls in the plan closing the ends, but in section A B I have shown an arched opening at the left end. The remains of the next vaulted passage, i. e., that on the level of the first praecinctio, consist of a pavement and two side walls on the west side (Ill. 32), and a pavement on the side opposite (Ill. 33). Of the uppermost passage no remnant remains, but it unquestionably existed. In section CD of Plate IV, a cut through the three vaults is shown on the left, with the ends of the curved passages opening upon them; on the right is shown the plain outer wall that rose from the pavement of the parados to the top of the end of the cavea. It is impossible, in the present condition of the ruins, to find out definitely the width or disposition of the paradoi. Owing to the distance between the cavea and the foundations of the scaena, it seems certain that there were open spaces on either side between the ends of the cavea and the stage buildings. However, there seem to have been walls at the ends of the paradoi, as may be observed in Ill. 32, where an ancient wall, now employed as the east wall of a modern dwelling, is seen, abutting the end of the cavea at the level of the lower praecinctio. The lower part of this wall is deeply buried in debris, and it is impossible to say whether there was an opening in it on the orchestra level at the end of the parados. It may have been that the ends of the paradoi were closed, and that the paradoi were used exclusively by the chorus (see small restored plan above section A B); while the vaulted passages below the ends of the cavea were the means of entrance and exit for the audience. One would hardly detect the remains of stage buildings in the ruins of this theatre without searching for them. Some writers have even gone so far as to say that the theatre of Phila- delphia had no stage. The foundations of these buildings are indeed almost completely buried, only the upper surface of the stones can be seen in the general level of the soil, and this surface is worn smooth with constant passing. In the plan I have shown the foundations as they appear. To the left of the line which bisects the cavea are foundations which show a semicircle and a quadrant facing the cavea; the quadrant terminates in a short projecting wall: the rear part of these foundations is perfectly straight, and three meters from it are the foundations of a wall, 1.10 m. thick, composed entirely of headers. On the right of the line which bisects the cavea there are no traces of foundations now visible as far as a modern wall; this wall are foundations with a semicircle corresponding exactly to the other, and with a straight line behind it, a passage three meters wide, and an outer wall, 1.10 m. thick, which forms the boundary of a modern court-yard. Beyond the semicircle, i. e., toward the west, is an open space, and on the other side of this, more foundations, and other modern houses. These remains are scant enough, but they apparently give us a basis for the restoration of the scaena in the form of a solid wall 4.30 m. thick, with an opening in the middle flanked by half niches, with semicircular niches on either side beyond the half niches, and with a passage in the rear. We may perhaps carry the restoration a little further by recognising a side portal of the scaena in the break in the west side, though it does not appear to be matched on the opposite side. This, however, may be due to the condition of the ruin. The plan of the parascenia must remain a matter of conjecture until systematic excavations shall have been undertaken here. Eastward from the foundations of the scaena are heaps of rubbish, and westward are modern houses. I am of the opinion that two of the modern houses shown on the plan, and in Ill. 32, make use of the wall of the stage buildings, but the house- walls are so completely coated with mud plaster that it is quite impossible to ascertain whether they are ancient or not. The extreme north wall of the stage buildings appears, from the ruins, to have been prolonged to the outer ends of the cavea, as I have shown in the small tentative restoration. Outside of the rear wall of the stage buildings, and at a distance of about seven meters from it, there appears to have been a colonnade of Corinthian columns. Eight of these columns are still standing, with architraves above them, opposite the western end of the cavea. The row of columns extends a little beyond the line of the west side of the cavea to a double column, the stump of which protrudes from the soil. From this point a second colonnade was carried northward, not quite at right angles with the first colonnade. The second colonnade consists now of only four columns without capitals; it is of smaller scale than the other: the larger columns are .70 m. in diameter, and the intercolumniations are nearly 3 m.; while the smaller columns have a diameter of only .60 m., and inter- columniations of 2.32 m. The greater colonnade undoubtedly extended entirely across the width of the theatre, and the smaller one may have corresponded to a similar colonnade at the east end of the theatre, the three enclosing one end and two sides of a public square in front of the great theatre, flanked on the east by the odeum, and, possibly, on the west by some other building which has completely disappeared. M. de Laborde published a sketch1 of the theatre as it was in 1827, anti gives a short description of its ruins; Captain Conder gives an incomplete plan~ on a small scale, and describes the ruins at some length as he found them in 1881. Among the earlier illustrations of the theatre are those published by Merrill3, and Thomson 4 5 who visited "Amman between 1875 and 1880. A more recent photograph is that published by Professor Briinnow in his great work u on the Province of Arabia. “

(Text is told first hand by Howard Crosby Butler, who wrote the Syria series)

Sources: 1, 2 ,3

#art #Architecture #travel #history #roman #amman #Philadelphia #jordan #theater #theatre #middle east #roman art #roman architecture #roman theatre #Roman theater

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warrioreowynofrohan · 3 years ago

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Today in Tolkien - October 29th

The Hobbits and Gandalf spend the day in Bree on their way back to the Shire.

The travellers stayed in Bree all the next day, and Mr. Butterbur could not complain of his business next evening at any rate. Curiosity overcame all fears, and his house was crowded. For a while out of politeness the hobbits visited the Common Room in the evening and answered a good many questions. Bree memories being retentive, Frodo was asked many times if he had written his book. [In FOTR, under the identity of ‘Mr. Underhill,’ he had told people at the Pony - as an explanation fir his travels - that ‘he was interested in history and geography…and was thinking of writing a book,’ including about hobbits living outsude the Shire.]

“Not yet,” he answered. “I am going home now to put my notes in order.” He promised to deal with the amazing events at Bree, and so give a bit of interest to a book that appeared likely to treat mostly of the remote and less important affairs ‘away south’.

Then one of the younger folk called for a song. But at that a hush fell, and he was frowned down, and the call was not repeated. Evidently there was no wish for any uncanny events in the Common Room again.

I love the line I’ve bolded - it’s very fun when Tolkien takes a moment to tease the narrow provincialism of characters from the Shire and thereabouts. There’s another where Rosie, during the Scouring, asks Sam why he’s leaving Frodo “just as things are getting dangerous”. One thing that the reestablishment of Arnor may bring to Eriador is a little more awareness of the existence and relevance of the world beyond their borders, even if life largely goes on as normal. Tolkien’s perspective is, broadly, that it’s good to know that the world is larger than your hometown, but it’s also good for places to retain their distinctiveness. (One thing he would almost certainly dislike about the world today; I’ve been to cities from Vancouver, New York, London, and Rome to Istanbul, Cape Town, Amman, and Beijing, and it’s disturbing to me how often-similar they feel - same shops, same malls, many of the same chain restaurants, and, outside of historic districts, much of the same modern and postmodern architecture. Don’t get me wrong, they’ve all got wonderful places and elements of their own character, but globalization’s done a lot to homogonize urban areas.)

#tolkien #today in tolkien #the lord of the rings

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ashleysitalianlitblog · 3 years ago

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My Brilliant Friend (HBO Tie-in Edition): Book 1: Childhood and Adolescence

From the famous Italian author Elena Ferrante, the story is about a poor but vibrant neighborhood on the outskirts of Naples, Elena Ferrante’s four-volume story spans almost sixty years, as its main characters, the fiery and unforgettable Lila and the bookish narrator, Elena, become women, wives, mothers, and leaders, all the while maintaining a complex and at times conflicted friendship. This first novel in the series follows Lila and Elena from their fateful meeting as ten-year-olds through their school years and adolescence. This book is now turning into an HBO MAX show and it’s a young adult classic in modern-day Italy

The Story of a New Name (HBO Tie-in Edition): Book 2: Youth

The follow-up to My Brilliant Friend, The Story of a New Name continues the epic New York Times–bestselling literary quartet that has inspired an HBO series and returns us to the world of Lila and Elena, who grew up together in post-WWII Naples, Italy.

In The Story of a New Name, Lila has recently married and made her entrée into the family business; Elena, meanwhile, continues her studies and her exploration of the world beyond the neighborhood that she so often finds stifling. Marriage appears to have imprisoned Lila, and the pressure to excel is at times too much for Elena. Yet the two young women share a complex and evolving bond that is central to their emotional lives and a source of strength in the face of life’s challenges. In these Neapolitan Novels, Elena Ferrante, “one of the great novelists of our time” (The New York Times), gives us a poignant and universal story about friendship and belonging, a meditation on love and jealousy, freedom and commitment—at once a masterfully plotted page-turner and an intense, generous-hearted family saga.

Adua

The book Adua is by lgiaba Scego has historical references and looks into the life of an immigrant. The story is about Adua, an immigrant from Somalia to Italy who has lived in Rome for nearly forty years. She came seeking freedom from a strict father and an oppressive regime, but her dreams of becoming a film star ended in shame. Now that the civil war in Somalia is over, her homeland beckons. Yet Adua has a husband who needs her, a young man, also an immigrant, who braved a dangerous crossing of the Mediterranean Sea. When her father, who worked as an interpreter for Mussolini's fascist regime, dies, Adua inherits the family home. She must decide whether to make the journey back to reclaim her material inheritance, but also how to take charge of her own story and build a future. From the choices of being an adult to a wife, the book gives us a look of the hard choices life gives us in a heartbreaking story.

100 Strokes of the Brush Before Bed

An instant blockbuster in Italy that went on to become an international literary phenomenon, 100 Strokes of the Brush Before Bed is the fictionalized memoir of Melissa P., a Sicilian teenager whose quest for love rapidly devolves into a shocking journey of sexual discovery.

Melissa begins her diary a virgin, but a stormy affair at the age of fourteen leads her to regard sex as a means of self-discovery, and for the next two years she plunges into a succession of encounters with various partners, male and female, her age and much older, some met through schoolmates, others through newspaper ads and Internet chat rooms. In graphic detail, she describes her journey through a Dante-Esque underworld of eroticism, where she willingly participates in group sex and sadomasochism, as well as casual pickup

The Scent of Your Breath

Melissa P.’s fictionalized memoir, 100 Strokes of the Brush Before Bed, became an international literary phenomenon, selling over two million copies worldwide and provoking a warning from the pope. The Scent of Your Breath, the second installment in her series of confessions, is a tale of obsessive love and destructive passion.

Melissa is now a successful writer in Rome, living with her new lover, Thomas. With his soft body and feminine eyelashes, he is sensual, patient, and comforting—the antithesis of all the men who came before. But as soon as she meets Viola, a young woman from Thomas’s past, Melissa is consumed with jealousy. Written as a confessional letter to her mother, the story that follows is one of dark obsession, violent lust, and soul-destroying talent, teeming with the ghosts and dragonfly-women Melissa is convinced are trying to steal her man and bring about her ruin. The Scent of Your Breath blurs the boundaries between reality and fantasy and delves deep into the disturbing yet strangely familiar mind of a teenage girl terrorized by love.

Three O'Clock in the Morning Is by Italian author Gianrico Carofiglio the contemporary heart-waring piece is about Antonio is eighteen years old and on the cusp of adulthood. His father, a brilliant mathematician, hasn’t played a large part in his life since divorcing Antonio’s mother but when Antonio is diagnosed with epilepsy, they travel to Marseille to visit a doctor who may hold the hope for an effective treatment. It is there, in a foreign city, under strained circumstances, that they will get to know each other and connect for the first time. A beautiful, gritty, and charming port city where French old-world charm meets modern bohemia, father and son stroll the streets sharing strained small talk. But as the hours pass and day give way tonight, the two find themselves caught in a series of caffeine-imbued adventures involving unexpected people (and unforeseen trysts) that connect father and son for the first time. As the two discuss poetry, family, sex, math, death, and dreams, their experience becomes a mesmerizing 48-hour microcosm of a lifetime relationship. Both learn much about illusions and regret, about talent and redemption, and, most of all, about love. This heartwarming story has captured the modern Italian audience.

Lost Words

Winner of the Viareggio Prize, a vivid portrait of Italy on the brink of social upheaval in the 1970s.The author Nicola Gardini, writes about the Inside an apartment building on the outskirts of Milan, the working-class residents gossip, quarrel, and conspire against each other. Viewed through the eyes of Chino, an impressionable thirteen-year-old boy whose mother is the doorwoman of the building, the world contained within these walls is tiny, hypocritical, and mean-spirited: a constant struggle. Chino finds escape in reading. One day, a new resident, Amelia Lynd, moves in and quickly becomes an unlikely companion and a formative influence on Chino. Ms. Lynd—an elderly, erudite British woman—comes to nurture his taste in literature, introduces him to the life of the mind, and offers a counterpoint to the only version of reality that he’s known. On one level, Lost Words is an engrossing coming-of-age tale set in the seventies, when Italy was going through tumultuous social changes, and on another, it is a powerful meditation on language, literature, and culture.

Things That Happened Before the Earthquake

The book by Chiara Barzini describes a story about Mere weeks after the 1992 riots that laid waste to Los Angeles, Eugenia, a typical Italian teenager, is rudely yanked from her privileged Roman milieu by her hippie-ish filmmaker parents and transplanted to the strange suburban world of the San Fernando Valley. With only the Virgin Mary to call on for guidance as her parents struggle to make it big, Hollywood fashion, she must navigate her huge new public high school, complete with Crips and Bloods and Persian gang members, and a car-based environment of 99-cent stores and obscure fast-food franchises and all-night raves. She forges friendships with Henry, who runs his mother's movie memorabilia store, and the bewitching Deva, who introduces her to the alternate cultural universe that is Topanga Canyon. And then the 1994 earthquake rocks the foundations not only of Eugenia's home but of the future she'd been imagining for herself.

I'll Steal You Away

Italian literary superstar Niccolò Ammaniti’s novel, I’m Not Scared, prompted gushing praise, hit international bestseller lists, and was made into a smash indie film. In I’ll Steal You Away, Ammaniti takes his unparalleled empathy for children, his scythe-sharp observations, and his knack for building tension to a whole new level. In a tiny Italian village, a young boy named Pietro is growing up tormented by bullies and ignored by his parents. When an aging playboy, Graziano Biglia, returns to town, a change is in the air: Pietro decides to take on the bullies, his lonely teacher Flora finds romance with the town’s prodigal son, and the inept janitor at the school proclaims his love for his favorite prostitute. But the village isn’t ready for such change, and when Graziano seduces and forgets Flora, both she and Pietro’s tentative hopes seem crushed forever. With great tenderness, Ammaniti shines light on the heart-wrenching failures and quiet redemptions of ordinary people trying to live extraordinary lives.

Heaven and Earth: A Novel Every summer Teresa follows her father to his childhood home in Puglia, down in the heel of Italy, a land of relentless, shimmering heat, centuries-old olive groves and families who have lived there for generations. She spends long afternoons enveloped in a sunstruck stupor, reading her grandmother's paperbacks.

Everything changes the summer she meets the three boys who live on the farm next door: Nicola, Tommaso and Bern—the man Teresa will love for the rest of her life. Raised like brothers on a farm that feels to Teresa almost suspended in time, the three boys share a complex, intimate, and seemingly unassailable bond.But no bond is unbreakable and no summer truly endless, as Teresa soon discovers.Because there is resentment underneath the surface of that strange brotherhood, a twisted kind of love that protects a dark secret. And when Bern—the enigmatic, restless gravitational center of the group—commits a brutal act of revenge, not even a final pilgrimage to the edge of the world will be enough to bring back those perfect, golden hours in the shadow of the olive trees.

An unforgettable story of enduring love, the bonds between men, and the all-too-human search for meaning, Heaven and Earth is Paolo Giordano at his best: an author capable of unveiling the depths of the human soul, who has now given us the old-fashioned pleasure of a big, sprawling novel in which to lose ourselves

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