67
- 0
My Mother and the Chicken Breast
Those days we were so poor. If my mother bought a chicken to cook or roast, she would mentally divide the chicken according to the size of the household, so at least each one got a piece. There were
- 0
Looking into the Ripper trade
- 0
The Repossession
Sam Hawskmoor’s novel divulges into the surrealism of the technologies of our modern and makes us captive of our own creations
- 1
Running Danger
A man running as part of a game where he is expected to die
- 0
Qatar crisis needs to end soon
- 0
Beating up spouse Saudi style
Saudi women beating up their husbands is becoming a common feature increasingly talked about. Al Arabiya satellite channel blasted with an unbelievable headline that stated 557,000 cases of men in Saudi Arabia claim they are frequently assaulted by...
- 0
Rolling the red carpet for Sisi
After denying that he ever wanted to become president, Field Marshal Abdul Fattah Al Sisi threw the towel into the ring and said yes, he wants to run for the top job for the welfare of the nation. Many say it wasn’t a 180-degree turn but it was...
- 0
A Silly Goat Story Joke
Whoever said Saudis are not light-hearted people are simply wrong. Like all nations of the world, they are very much into mirth, laughter, telling and yes, playing jokes on others. Take the news item that was reported not so long ago in the Saudi...
- 1
Weighing the options of a Syria strike
Just what are the options at the hands of US President Barack Obama for hitting Syria. He seems to be on the road for well and truly striking the country. However, while he initially put on a big show of force, he is now waiting for the vote from...
- 2
Where would I go in America
As an armchair traveler, by the way I nicked that from one of the Hubers, my first trip to the United States would be to see the Statute of Liberty from afar which I heard so much about from different mediums. It would be just look at the statute...
- 4
Tickling your taste buds
The English have maintained a certain decorum for the food they eat. And discounting mash which you seemed to have at every single meal of the day, excluding breakfast, you tend to have, after a while, a certain liking to it. I am sorry to say...
- 2
British dream cities
Great Britain has many favorite places. If I were asked some of the places I would like to go back to I wouldn't hesitate to blot them out. My favourite would always be to start with London simply because of the variety on offer. The hiatus of the...
- 2
How do you choose your topics?
This is a good question. You don’t always dive and choose a topic from thin air. It is not like clicking one's fingers and coming up with a subject or topic, it does not quite work like that. Once that pool of experience in your mind begins to...
- 0
Living the Asian dream
Splash out on a holiday. If you are going to Asia you might as well make the most of it. Go all the way, getting the rough with the smooth, zig-zagging through different cities. First on the list has to be Mumbai, long remained so but remains...
- 1
Skimpy Bikinis in Sharm Al Sheikh
It was a time of trepidation and excitement to get to Sharm Al Sheikh. Back in Amman, and at the last minute, we needed to run to the Passport Office to renew our passports. Quick, run, fill in the application, nods and winks and low and behold,...
- 2
Looking for a new job at 50
Just when you think you got it made in your cushy job, you suddenly find yourself on the unemployment heap and start looking for a job. You are almost 50, and start grappling with your real middle-age crisis. Changing jobs at 50 may be perfectly...
- 2
A European holiday
Treat yourself to a glorious holidays in Europe, you can go to one place, few or all the cities on the checklist. It’s a marvelous experience of cultures, surroundings and different traditions. The most alluring city to visit for me is Prague....
- 4
A literary chill
A back-biting mini-thriller. The Baby-Sitter by R.L. Stine keeps you in a state of anxiety as you flick the pages, subdued, as you read of the unfolding of events. They are tiny, normal happenings, but they keep you jumping. The action starts as...
- 0
Women take high seat in Saudi politics
It is being described as a historic step, a quantum leap, a break in the Saudi sound barrier. The appointment of female members to the Shura Council in Saudi Arabia shows the enlightened stance of the Custodian of the Holy Places King Abdullah to...
- 5
Idioms Dance on Paper
The pot calling the kettle black, bear with a sore head, off the beaten track, all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy and lots more. These are probably some of the minutest of the more graphic idioms in English, a language that is enlightened...
- 3
The 'thing' that men want from women!
Just, what do men want from women? Sex. Frankly speaking, this is what they want. On the general level, this is the first thing a man wants when looking at a woman, it is the sexual drive that comes into action. There is an instant “gut reaction...
- 6
The 33% rule to happiness
I am going to approach this topic from a roundabout way. Some dear octogenarian came up to me the other day and said there are factors to happiness which are linked to life in a special way. Before you say ‘here we go again’, just bear with one...
- 4
Psychedelic Dubai
Dubai, the experience and the showcase, a marvel in the middle of a vast desert, it is the place to travel to for wonder and amazement. Dubai has become the epitome of urbanization, a confluence of sectors and alignments that brought the political...
- 1
cockroaches in the workplace
The places I worked in were interesting for the kind of creatures I saw
- 1
Wake up call for obese people!
Apparently obesity, excess fat, and being overnight is a major and growing problem in the world. You don't realize the extent of the problem until you see it and hits you in the eye, flesh slobbering all over the place. Statistics are alarming,...
- 2
A bit of a Victorian world
While there are many good books around, it is seldom you see a piece of writing that is creative, innovative and with a sense of style. Michael Cox’s The Meaning of Night is such a good book that is filled with intrigue and panache from the very...
- 4
Fiction: Using the law to make money
Although John Grisham is a good storey-teller, occasionally he comes out with novels you can’t but get your teeth into, keeping you on the edge of your seat from the beginning of the book, half-way through, right till the end. And so it is with...
- 7
Beirut fragments
A heart rending book, this is a personal memoir of a family at war in Lebanon. Its a personal account foretold through the eyes of the author, a Palestinian/Lebanese academic, at the American University of Beirut. The book is apolitical and...
- 2
Time travel the human way?
In the old days a person would spend his whole life in his village, never moving probably until he dropped dead. Travel was a one-step or one-step approach affair despite the novels we read glorifying the fact that nearly everyone was on the move....
- 2
Messaging my ego
It’s true, he did, though I am speaking figuratively of course. The minister had exquisite charm. Despite your anger and frustration, he could turn you around in minutes, seconds, making you feel very important and respectable, telling you things...
- 8
The 'flash' name appeal in writing
Just why do people use pen-names whey they write a novel or even an article? Well, there is really no simple answer to that. There was in the good old days a certain mysteriousness about using an assumed name. It seemed to have been a fad in the...
- 6
Tunisia: A Country of Love
Dreaming in the delights of Tunisia, an enchanting experience
- 3
Making women angry
I guess some men do say things deliberately to make women angry, or stark raving mad! I am not sure why this happens, but it could be in the nature of the sexes--this is the way men and women operate; they say things and then kiss and make up and...
- 6
Looking after no 1
We are becoming more selfish in our approach to life, looking after number one rather than taking a wholesome approach of seeing ourselves as part of the big picture. The "we" no longer exists and is replaced by the "I myself" but with lots of...
- 4
Bits of British memories on paper
I see all places in England are good to live in, but that's just me! I have graphic images of places I lived in that seem to find little pigeon holes in my mind. Every city, town or even a village has a different touch and feel, there is a...
- 9
Roman soldiers re-enact the past
In their magnificent armor trappings, Roman army legionnaires reenacted some of the past as they went off to war held in one of the 10 Decapolis cities of the eastern part of the Roman Empire. This was a special performance made at the...
- 0
Travel Jarash
In the end I was trailing behind, the next two blind people, sorry visually-impaired, were 50 yards ahead, and the next group, were a 100 feet along. I rambled, slightly puffing. I caught up, they were at an enormous gate. They party...
- 3
A journey into the holy lands
It was an emotional trip long overdue. It was a trip of happiness and melancholy filled with emotion and rediscovery of a homeland and a nation long usurped by another. My mother and sister's journey to their Palestinian village...
- 11
Encounters of an electronic kind
We really live in a small world. Communication are modern niches, all we need nowadays is to be fitted with chips so people would know where we are! I joke, but it's happening in our happy but slightly sinister world. It is phantasmal how things...
- 10
Two camels and a hotel
It was a glaring sight. As the car zoomed through the road, something strange flashed across the horizons. It was really out of the ordinary, something you don't see in a cluttered urban setting where a built-up environment of tall buildings,...
- 2
Chin-Wagging in Mid-Air
The original question with slight modifications was: Have you ever had an intense conversation on a plane with a stranger you never saw again? It was posted by one of the hubbers. The immediate answer is yes, but invariably many people have such...
- 8
What's in a "quote"
I was tempted to say "I am all for quotes, and all for making them up". Don't take my word too literally, but its true I am all for quotes in an article, an essay or any other manuscript. Although I understand today's writing is all about...
- 12
Sensual desire for paper
My friend is not only in love with books. He has a deep and I suspect, a thrilling fetish for them. His favorite haunt is the thrift shop, nestled in one of Amman's neighborhoods. I first told him about it but now he goes there more than me. He...
- 0
Brand items at secondhand prices
Do you ever buy second hand wear? Apparently quite a lot of people do and they do not need to be poor. These days many visit the thrift shop just to look for brand bargains at very cheap prices. Many of these shops don't sell secondhand stuff, but...
- 6
A wedding dress, any offers?
Come on ladies! Can you remember the cost of your wedding dress, or is it too far too remember. For those of you who can dig in your nostalgic past, I bet it was much, much cheaper, than it is today, and much nicer as well, with lots of white and...
- 3
Scribbling for keepsake
They can be real treasure troves, there for keepsake. Some never see the light of day and remain deeply personal, some used to jog one's memory and turned into published books. Many remain a cherished read long after they've been scribbled on by now...
- 1
Europe's 2012 troubles will certainly be deeper
As Europe celebrates the 10th anniversary of the euro, many are holding their breath about the future of the continent as a viable economic entity in 2012. Today hardly a week passes, without a doom and gloomy scenario being painted about the...
- 10
Lebanese in Love with European Royalty
Traveling the world can be very exciting but sojourning the globe selling books is can be exciting still. One time Lebanese writer, now passed away was in love with European kings and queens. Week after week he would write a column for us on...
- 5
Under the Christmas tree
One kiss, two kisses, three kisses. Please don't think I am "kiss-hungry" person. I am definitely I am not. No, it's just we are in the festive season, its Christmas, time to be merry and goodwill to all men. It’s a season to be happy and...
- 2
Beating up the doctor very likely
The stereotype is that doctors on the whole, and I repeat whole, have a very cushy life. Ok, so at first they are roughed up, thrown at the deep end with work, being on duty for extraordinary number of hours and hardly having any sleep at all. ...
- 6
Funny faces
First of all they are faces but later they became more like caricatures of their former self. Faces have a knack for changing, the obvious reason being they progressively grow old. When you see people every day, you can't really discern the...
- 8
As long as it is a good book read it!
In terms of reading, I sometimes don't do very well. At times I am a lazy reader who gets bored with life although I write a lot on different things. Sometimes I set targets which I never reach. Sometimes I read so little that it becomes...
- 12
Scattered ideas, scatter brain
Thoughts are scattered, Bits of ideas sparkle here and there. They are sparse and come to you in pieces that need to be ironed out and developed. That's why they have to be planned out and put in a framework that make sense and in a logical order....
- 5
Hacks, a website saved at the last minute!
Hackwriters is a true inspiration the world-over. It is an intellectual platform for writers from west to east, north to south, who believe in the written word, at a time when its monopolized by cerebral elites who understand writing from a...
- 18
Fickle readers
'…writing should be a pleasurable exercise for everyone, and not limited to sectional elites. It should not been seen for intellects, intellectuals and pseudo-intellects but for everyone.' I should have written this hub when I reached the...
- 1
The child economy
Children are a muscular economic force because they are a strong spending and saving power. During school time, shops especially clothswear stores, supermarkets, confectionaries and newsagents, become animated. There is an almost daily...
- 7
Favorite topic to research and write about
Research and writing is a vast field of work action, spanning over many, many borders, topics, analysis and disciplines. A good researcher and/or writer should not put a cap on his level of intellect and limit himself to a particular set of subjects...
- 2
Prostrating to God
People coming and going, they come individually, some with their sleeves turned nearly to their armpits and bear feet which means they performed ablution. They form a line, prostrate in front of God, complete the prayers, then leave only to be...
- 6
'Where is make-up'
I'll always remember the phrase being used in one of the television episodes of Spitting Image in the 1980s with a skeleton of an actress who shall be nameless saying "where is make-up". It signified the fact make up made you beautiful and...
- 7
Hollywood Stars
The old greats are the best. Of course I am being highly subjective here when I talk about Hollywood actresses and actors. One of the best I remember is Catherine Hepburn who was so charming on film you could identify with her in any acting role,...
- 3
Not the suitcase anymore but lightweight screen
Everyone has a laptop, not only that, but it's being carried with them everywhere. You might say this is an old story by now so what is new, communications and technology are becoming user-friendly by the day? Well yes, but it struck me the...
- 0
Yemeni leader quits, new strategic thinking!
Lions and tigers Four down, one to go. The winds of change is hitting the Middle East with vengeance. It is the domino effect, slow but sure, leaders tumbling, not quite like a pack of cards but more as paper tigers and roaring lions...
- 2
Beef up your first para
The first paragraph in journalistic stories and articles is the most important. The first paragraph, also can be called intro, has to be written with a sense of flare and flamboyance. It has to be a like a "torch-light procession" as once one said...
- 2
I am not too old to watch cartoons
When I was young I never really watched cartoons on television except for Popeye. I used to think I was bigger than to be watching silly cartoons because I thought I was older, more mature if you like. However all that changed when I became a...
- 2
The kissing culture
Kissing is most enjoyable. It is emotional, erotic, and made as friendly gestures. However there is a value aspect to kissing. It is made to impress upon the idea of respect, reverence and esteem as in kissing someone's hand. Kissing is part of...
- 2
Syria's Baath stands firm opposes change
The West, Arab satellites and now the Arab League plainly state the Baath regime in Syria must go. They argue because of the daily killings of its civilian population, the regime lead by president Bashar Al Assad who succeeded his father in 1999 and...
- 0
Social media: A mover of change
What counts in the world today is the social media, new methods of social networking online. The cyberspace buzzword is claiming new meaning as more and more people are clinging to platforms like Facebook and Twitter. More and more people in the...
- 0
Arab satellites promote revolutions
Arab satellite televisions literally had a field day in their coverage of the revolutions and protests engulfing the Middle East and North Africa at end of 2010 and throughout 2011, in fact till today. Every single Arab satellite television will...
- 0
A holiday on the beach
Sea, beaches, sun, bikinis. I distinctly remember this of Hastings and St. Leonards-on-sea which intertwine together. As well, I remember much more of the place which I lived in for around five exciting years that added much nourishment to my being....
- 0
Antics behind bus window shield
Editor's Note: What follows is a piece from an unpublished manuscript titled The Homecoming To his dismay nobody took any notice of bus stops, drivers or fare collectors are unaware of their existence, mentally choosing to weed them out. Buses...
- 5
Women Are Stronger Than Men Because of Their Make-up
In a lot of cases women are indeed stronger than men. Women have greater tenacity, sustenance and staying power that is not found in men. The strength of women is mostly due to their physical make up and form as one part of the human race designed...
- 2
Voices like jingle bells
The echoing of the winds, voices of the night, the resonances of the day. It's a combination of sounds, light, thuds, cherubic, jingles, crackled and many more that can't be explained. It is all about echoes and hums, belonging to characters that...
- 20
USA, Iran, Israel: Relations in fear
The USA is against Iran having a nuclear capability simply because it would change the balance of power in the Middle East. It is against that because Iran is not an United States ally and certainly oppose US policies in the region. It's about...
- 2
Eid Al Adha: An Islamic occasion
The Muslim Eid Al Adha ( Festival of Sacrifice) is not only a religious occasion but a social one where family, kindred, friends and acquaintances renew their social bonding. Today, Eid Al Adha is once again upon us, being on the last days of the...
- 4
4G!
There, I've done it! At last when everyone has passed me by miles, I get the 4G iPhone that is the talk of town, or talk of the globe. After a good few years, I eventually and determinedly make the move and switch to the high-tech, high and mighty...
- 9
Milking the olive tree
Cherishing olive picking. Between September and the end of December, possibly January, many people in Jordan and the surrounding region like the Palestinian territories huddle around stretches of land to thrash down the olive trees, get the oil out,...
- 10
Charlie Chaplin, bolts and conveyor belt
The other day, I sat down and watched the workman dismantle my iron door and carefully replace it with a wooden door. As I watched the fittings, the varnishing, hinges and the placement of the door handle, enjoyable time slowly ticked by. Just from...
- 0
Marketing Aqaba: The making of a campaign
This is a report on the Aqaba media campaign (from December 2005 till December 2006) to encourage domestic tourists to visit the seaport city for their holidays. Over a 12 month period interviews, press releases and general features were written and...
- 5
Do we contribute to society?
How do we contribute to society. There are many ways so lets get cracking and put our heads together.
- 2
How to change cheating habbits
It is possible to change cheating habits. Of course it all depends on what kind of cheating. Is it cheating on your wife, cheating at playing cards, in selling expired products, or other forms of deviant behavior. The will-power has to be there in...
- 6
Meat markets, flesh and beauties galore
Let's face it, beauty pageants and contests are no more than "meat markets"— the parading of the flesh so that eyes can pop out for an hour or so and judges can give us a useless, subjective view about the best girl in the show, and audiences...
- 23
Climbing up the greasy pole
A young lady soft-peddles her boss in an attempt to get to the top, both sides of her are shown in the working relationship
- 17
Reading three books at the same time
I used to think this is crazy, but apparently a lot of people do it, read more than one novel at the same time. I used to think such would criss-cross ideas, plots and characters, but the human mind can be a jungle of thought. I used to think that...
- 4
Gaddafi: The final battle
The battle is over. The date is 20th October, 2011. Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi is finally dead. In the end he was caught in a drain pipe, shot and wounded, begging for mercy long after making mayhem of a country merely to cling to power. The...
- 5
Which comes first: Politics or journalism
Politics and journalism maybe one of the most of the controversial subjects of the arts and social sciences. This is because of the nature of the topics they deal with. Politics and journalism have direct relations with the public through the...
- 4
Wrapped in red tape
We started off early in the morning to one of the government offices. We needed to have our ID renewed. At first we were pleased, we found a parking place easily, there seemed to be light traffic and pedestrians. It all happened as we entered...
- 6
Slaves to technology
We are slaves to technology. Today, technology or its multitude of components move at the speed of lightning, being updated, revised, and expanded upon. Technological change is constant. Because our world is made up of many mass consumer...
- 4
The hooters, the honkers and the yawners
London, 1970: Very little honking or hooting on the roads, peaceful, serene. London 1980: Every one honking on the roads, its noise pollution, the city is going mad, busy roads like Oxford Street, or Edgeware Road. Explanation, many foreigners...
- 6
What's in a headline
Headlines are important, nay, they are crucial to allow you to want to read, or just go to the next article, or page. You have to be careful when you are forming the headline and say to yourself: "Will it grab, or will readers skip over." It's an...
- 5
What Do Men Want From Women?
What do we want from each other should be the better phrasing. It is both sexes who are continually looking for wants in either a woman or a man.
- 10
A 'posh' visit to the supermarket
Back in the early 1990s when the first chain supermarket opened in Amman, many saw shopping there as a fashionable novelty, something new and exciting. It was then thought not just anybody could enter the Safeway supermarket, you had to be a...
- 2
Walkies 3
Up and down, up and down, sauntering, cantering, running, galloping, trotting. I hope this doesn't like horses, or animals, for these are people out on a brisk morning walk. This is the one-hour daily walk for most people, strangers to me. I...
- 5
Three cheers for Nobel prize winner
Who would have thought Yemen would be the place for a Noble Prize winner? Who would have thought, Yemen, a deeply traditional and impoverished society, and now in a thrall of a revolution, would be the place for the 2011 Noble Prize winner. ...
- 14
They were journalists and became novelists!
Its seems to be a symbiotic relationship but it is all there to see, interlocking together as journalists who become novelists
- 0
On the box
Watching television is part and parcel of our everyday life. Television has long become part of our furniture, the living room, lounge or we receive guests. It's basically part of our culture and values, and the way we interact with each other. ...
- 1
Indentured!
Tied to the dhows, the wooden ships travelled between Kuwait, the Gulf and India. This was the generalized social relations that governed society and economy in pre-oil Kuwait, somewhere around the 1930s and before that in the 18th and 19th...
- 7
Piracy
The world is English. This is the feeling I get every time I go into the CD shop in my hometown to buy films. It's amazing, I feel I can buy every single film churned out by Hollywood long before it hit the silver screen and look at it in English;...
- 1
Belgium in the clouds
They are fluffy white, maybe like cotton, yes, this is the word. The clouds are rugged, woolly, disparate, floating in an animated kind of way. They are peacefully moving, bright white chunks of indescribable wool. We are above them, in some...
- 9
A cold war getting colder
It is definitely a new Cold War that is on the horizons manifested in the international system. Rather it as if the old Cold War never left, only this time more bitter and brittle. Perhaps we can coin a phrase for it a "neo-Cold War". Big powers,...
- 1
A slump hovers across the Atlantic!
Its doom and gloom. Many are forecasting a recession for the United States economy in 2012. This is a second recession within four to five years, since 2008 which is becoming a major worry for economic strategists who are now saying this points to...
- 6
Walking Is Good for You!
I feel my feet are not part of me, nor my legs, my ankles unscrewed. I am into my second week of walking. After doing it on a regular basis, I now make longer strikes, my back no longer hurts, and I don't need to sit down every couple of hundred of...
- 2
Aqaba diving
Aqaba is a great water diving experience. The Aqaba waters are untouched and its mysteries and beautiful corals and reefs remain to be uncovered and discovered. Experience the kaleidoscope of the underwater world in the Aqaba Gulf and the Red Sea....
- 1
Pavements are not for walking
Perhaps because it is a society still in the process of development. In Jordan most people leave the pavements and walk on roads. It's quite a glaring phenomenon. You can see it in a lot of cases, people leaving the pavements and walking on roads,...
- 13
Laughing
Laughing is good for you. Laugh longer, laugh louder, and laugh loudest. Mind you don't do it to the extent that other people think you are crazy. Apart from cheering you up and putting in a good mood, laughter is good for your metabolism, system...
- 7
The long walks
Walking is exhilarating. As each step you put forward, a muscle in your body moves, twitches and relaxes. While I am no expert walking is good for you, doctors recommended long walks for a lot of ailments a person may have. I started...
- 2
Jordan on The Economic 'Towering' Move
The building and construction sector in Jordan and the region is a dynamic, animated and energetic area that acts as a propeller to the rest of the national economy. It is also a valve to measure the health of the other sectors in the economy. ...
- 0
Gullible 16
Stepping stones, experiences, foot-holding through the adult world yet not quite there, a brash with petty criminals. And then there is the school education, preparation for university and rebelling against boring conventions. An Education, a...
- 8
Don't Read Word-by-Word
Reading for pleasure does not mean you read word-for-word, or you shouldn't have to because today's narrative is easy, generally speaking. Writing narrative is more straightforward to follow, understand and comprehend. A lot of today's writing is...
- 10
A massacre remembered
As America and the world commemorate 11 September and the horrible attacks on New York and Washington, people should spare a little thought to the massacre on the streets of Beirut's Sabra and Shatilla camps on that beleaguered September days of...
- 8
Smoking gets into your eyes
The smoke filtered in the editorial room. I was sitting behind the computer, getting sniffs of air-consuming tobacco. This had been going on all morning, reporters and editors going out to have a puff. I suddenly couldn't hold myself any longer,...
- 18
Many hands gone over my hair
My head went under the scissors from hairstylists in all over the world, a great story to tell
- 6
Talking mobiles
How many of you can use your mobile effectively? Give up, well not to worry because I bet most of us can't use today's expanded functions and features on their cell phones. I am unashamedly one of those people, using my mobile...
- 6
Shopaholic mania
Shopping can become a natural addiction. The notion of buy, buy, buy can become an all too easy way to acquire temporary happiness by more purchasing and consuming more, aggregating useless and unwanted goods that go to waste. But it is waste that...
- 10
Jerusalem burning
There is Rex the dog, the beautiful Jerusalemite home, Fatima the maid disappearing from the pages of narrative. We get much more than this in Ghada Karmi's In Search of Fatima, a beautifully crafted book, it is the story of a once blessed...
- 15
Hedonist Life
Life is a treasure. When you get up every morning and indulge in every day living it must surely be one of the greatest pleasures man was put on earth to do. The issue is philosopical and religious but it is also practical and empirical. Life is a...
- 8
Eating your heart out
People eat not necessarily they are hungry but want to interact act together
- 5
Killing me softly on TV
Television kills the art of conversation. Yes people stay "gob-smacked" and just watch in delirium. This is especially the case if there is good television content to watch including film, series, features and news, mind you "bad" television is...
- 9
When did you use a biro?
When was the last time you used a pen to write? Give up? For me it must have been a long, long time. Gone are the days when fountain pens, biros, and pencils used to be part of our central writing life. Gone are the days when our fingers got...
- 13
Borrowing a newspaper for 10 cents
Everyone loves to read newspapers. Well, I might be exaggerating here. With television and satellites, the concept of newsprint maybe going out of the window. But this is not strictly true either. Newspapers have continued. There are still...
- 2
Locked in space through a camera
Telecommunications today is a mind-boggling experience. You can say all we have to do today is get inside the computer and live in cyberspace. A bit far-fetched, after all we are still humans. But technological advancements have increased to such...
- 14
Nabataean Petra
The glowing stone city of Petra with its rugged mountains is the outcome of Greek, Roman and Arab and Nabataeans civilizations that left their indelible footmarks on the city. Petra is a 2000-year-old developmental marvel whose...
- 10
Ramadan, a time for spiritual renewal
Every Muslim in the world fasts during Ramadan which is a month for the replenishment of the soul. It is a month of spiritual renewal between Man and God, and getting closer to Almighty. It is a month of restitution, restoration and spiritual...
- 27
The book cemetery
It resembles a literary cave, all rugged with things coming out from all places and sides. Here, unwanted books are thrown aside and jumbled up. There are hundreds and hundreds of them maybe thousands for you to touch, cajole and even pamper. ...
- 9
In Alaska The Cold Bites But its Still Good to See
At first glance, when you think of a holiday destination your mind doesn't usually conjure up Alaska. Usually, I would imagine the country is thought of cold, sever and freezing. But for some this might be what makes a good holiday--even an...
- 8
American food in the novel
Food is the zest of life. When I think of American food, me and a lot of many around the world I'd imagine, think of lots of hamburgers, fries and pizza's. But this is not true as expounded upon by John Grisham's Last Juror, one of his earlier and...
- 7
In London there is a lot more to see
The title I originally used for this piece was "To London With Love. Not very original title, a bit clichéd drawing on the Ian Fleming book, To Russia with Love. London is a place of mystery and excitement, where you can revel in its intricacies,...
- 9
How to Write Letters
Editor's Note: A piece from a manuscript about my childhood years in Hastings, UK. ....Being at that age, I never wrote much. Other than the hellos and goodbuys, and how is everyone, it was very difficult to put pen to paper. My favorite was:...
- 4
Reading Hemingway ocean-wise
It is brilliant in its intensity and portrayal. Another classic for Earnest Hemingway author of the Old Man and The Sea characterized by its sheer audacity, endurance, determination and the sense of outraging power. The Old Man and the Sea is a...
- 11
Going to Makkah
Magnanimous, high-minded, noble, big, upright, a set of awesome feelings that keeps travelling between my body, mind and soul. The manner inexplicable, faith tested, the spiritual and the tangible, inner feelings of religiosity and the practical,...
- 12
Wordplay!
Word extensions. My daughter came up to me the other day and read 'she was a pretty gay very little girl….' She told me she feared there was a word misspell there because to her gay meant a different thing all together. I just smiled, and before...
- 3
Arab Winter of Discontent edges forward
When Tunisian leader Zein Al Din Ben Ali stepped down in 14 January after Tunisia became ablaze, the previous 17 December, the Arab street held its breath. When Husni Mubarak of Egypt decided to call it a day after an 18-day uprising that brought...
- 5
German executives get taste of Jordan's travel incentives
It was a pleasurable, hectic, didactic, awe-inspiring trip through the wilderness of Jordan; though wilderness is hardly the right word to choose. It was an organized five day (4-8 May, 2011) incentives trip for a relatively large group of German...
- 13
Why Don't You Go to Istanbul?
Your heart melts at first. An incredible sense of nostalgia hits you, a yearning for a living past, a current present, and a future to be. It’s a city of contrasts, mingling the old with the new, flamboyance with the traditional, the...
- 3
Searching for Hercules Temple
It was a wonderful day, a bit unexpected as we made our way to the Amman Citadel right in the middle of downtown. The Citadel occupies a whole mountain, an enclosure, yet an extension of a living metropolis, majestically looking an ancient city that...
- 10
Kuwait: Past and Present
Regardless of the developments Kuwait experienced in the past two decades, and despite the changes in its political, economic, and social fabric, the state, country and even the sheikhdom, will continue to hover within a particular mindset set. ...
- 2
Car racing the Dead Sea
- 4
Cold Winters
When I was young I remembered only the bitterely cold days and nights. It seemed to have always been freezing, with me sitting on endlessly hot radiators, getting sore bums, with my feet and toes ice cold. It was miserable, a situation that lasted...
- 17
Laughing your socks off through comedy
Can you really laugh your socks off through comedy. One short answer is you probably, no, definitely can. With comedy classics, you can't really get any funnier, but I must be living in a time capsule. "Only Fools and Horses", the British comedy hit...
- 10
Two American statesmen
Both came at distinct periods in American diplomacy, one heralding the period of detente, a movement to thaw the Cold War, another at the end of the Cold War, dismantling of the Soviet bloc, Soviet Union and the heralding of American hegemony and...
- 7
He is a German With a Taste for Egypt
An Arab house in a German town, all the trappings of a different culture, Egyptian, Jordanian, Syrian, and Yemeni, an Oriental setting in a traditional western German context. The town is Bruchsal, to the west of Frankfurt, owners, the...
- 22
My Favourite Women
They represent courage, tenacity, and determination under the most extreme of circumstances. At first they had no choice, later on their chores became part of life and the living. The first I used to go to meet at Heathrow in London. I was only a...
- 2
My Reading List
By Stephen King's standards it may be peanuts, by my standards it's highly satisfactory, an intellectual year where I went from one novel to the next. I read 24 novels that says a lot. It was 2010, a turbulent year as far...
- 7
The red tomatoe and the head-bangers
It was me, my wife, daughter, sister and my niece at the celebrations of the 10th anniversary of Al Balad radio, a local community radio station in Amman. At first it look just like any other events, people huddling together in droll kind of...
- 4
Pretty Women on the Air
Beauty is indeed on the air. Women broadcasters are really chosen for their looks and not necessarily for their brains
- 6
Zizagging Arab geography
If I was a foreign tourist and wanted to go to the Arab world, I would zigzag my way on the geography of the place. The region is full of tradition, it is not as modern as we think. Here is where history has been made, religions arose and where...
- 11
Arab conspiracies, world conspiracies!
Arab conspiracy theories continue as popular protests have engulfed the region starting from Morocco, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Bahrain, Yemen, Oman, Kuwait and United Arab Emirates. Even Saudi Arabia is having its share and Syria and Jordan have...
- 2
An eco-lodge in the heart of Ceylon
By Marwan Asmar It displays elegance and superiority, a majestic setting in the middle of a vast green that stretches as far as your imaginations and horizons, playing on your mind with you constantly asking “am I really here?” ...
- 6
Welcome to Sri Lanka
'I was dazzled, amazed, surprised, filled with nostalgia and a yearning to be in this gorgeous geography where Father Adam is said to have come down in a place—Adams Peak—just south west of Colombo.' It was a heavenly experience. A country...
- 24
My Reading Wife Is Not Reading Anymore!
I look upon my "reading wife" with some curiosity, and sometimes envy at the kind of novels she reads, and I don't mind telling you it is she who got me into the habit. She is the ultimate reader in our household, certainly among our extended...
- 13
The Rise and Fall of an Arab Leader
Power corrupts. Libyan leader Mommar Qadaffi fights till the very end, blinded by his rule and his position. He did not fathom his fall from grace in spite of the fact Libyan revolutionaries swept Tripoli the Libya capital, on 22nd August 2011,...
- 5
Have you ever tasted Kuwaiti food!
By Marwan Asmar The delicious aroma of food whiffs around you as you start thumbing this book on the rich cuisine of the Gulf. Sarah Al Hamad’s Cardamom and Lime: Recipes from the Gulf Countries ( Interlink Books) is an innovative delight that...
- 4
Visiting places from your literary bag
Have you ever thought of traveling to destinations around the world just because of a book you’ve read or a treatise you followed through? Although the relation may not be clear cut, the messages are surely subliminal. Modern fiction can be...
- 0
A Dead Quite Neigbourhood in a Busy City
You could almost smell its culture, inhaling in your lungs and letting it out with your heart pounding as you move through its alleyways, narrow streets and tight corners. It's the land of novelists and art critics, of the elite and the ordinary,...
- 3
Is the age of dictatorships ending in the Arab world?
By Marwan Asmar The train to throw away dictators is going full steam ahead with the toppling and death of Moammar Gaddafi. First it was Tunisia, Egypt followed swiftly. The toppling of their leaders, in less than two months between 17 December...
- 7
What Does an Old Man See in Aqaba?
Abu Nidal was wearing shorts. I thought he looked out of place, so Arab as if to say Arabs are not supposed to wear shorts. "Its Aqaba, it should be shorts to fit the sea occasion," he begins with a smile. With a crumbly hair barely trimmed at the...
- 14
Travelling Riyadh
She came down the aisle wearing a jean boiler suit with a T-Shirt underneath and sat next to me. Bits of skin from her torso were showing and of course, her arms bear. Half way up into the sky, she started changing, putting her abaya flow, and Burqa...