Every few years, I see someone reminding us about the rocket a Lebanese professor called Manoug Manougian created some 50 years back at the Haigazian University. The rocket was called Cedar 3 and made it into the thermosphere reaching an altitude of 145 kilometres. [Link]
It apparently caught the attention of the US and Soviet Union at the time who sent cultural attaches to see what the Lebanese scientist had done.
This year, to mark the 50th anniversary of the first rocket launch, artists and film-makers Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige have created a set of installations that tell the story of, and reflect on, the Lebanese rocket launches in one of the largest art shows in the Middle East, the Sharjah Bennial 10. [Sharjah Bennial 10]
It is quite sad that we haven’t heard of any valuable invention by a Lebanese scientist since then, as if history has stopped for us back in 1966.
The television campaign sponsored by the Ministry of Tourism and entitled “Lebanon blues” has angered a lot of Lebanese women who claim they are being portrayed in an indecent manner and that the Ministry of Tourism and its minister Fadi Abboud are promoting Lebanon as a country for sex tourism. [Full Response] [Lebanon Blues Ad]
Here’s an excerpt of what came in that response:
“The truth is that we are not “free†women wearing bikinis and partying all night. The truth is that we are deprived, poor and oppressed. Our bodies which you say are free, are still subject to many social, domestic, legal and economic restraints. We, as injured and humiliated women, ask the Ministry of Tourism to recall this advert immediately and to apologize for this insult. Because out bodies aren’t delicious fruit to offer to consumers so they will visit the “homeland†to pick out what they desire.”
Is it acceptable for the Ministry of Tourism to promote Lebanon as the “cabaret of the Middle East†to tourists? Can’t it revive tourism without selling women’s bodies? Dear Ministry, how can either we or you accept our bodies becoming the goal and target of the lust of the arriving spenders? How are we supposed to understand that “Lebanon Blues†is connected to our naked bodies? How can the Ministry of Tourism promote a message to the whole world that Lebanon is a country which sells its women for the sake of the tourists?
I am not surprised that Fadi Abboud might come out with such ads, he is known to be filthy and vulgar and has reportedly hit a female worker at his ministry few months back. Moreover and to make things worse, he issued a statement today that he wants to go through the Miss Lebanon 2011 applicants this year in order to “ensure the competition’s high standardsâ€. [Article]
I wonder how he plans on ensuring the competition’s high standards?
I must agree with Mustapha from BeirutSpring that “it’s very unfortunate that a person with such dubai-esque sensibilities is the one in charge of promoting a place as rich and diverse as Lebanon. What’s even more unfortunate is that he’s using Lebanese women as Lebanon’s unique selling point.” [BeirutSpring]
For the past week or so, most radio stations were scrambled in the Keserwan area as jammers were set near Bkerke to prevent any communication with the Maronite archbishops so that they elect a new Patriarch.
Well the wait is over and we just had a new Patriarch elected two hours ago, Patriarch Mar Bechara el Rai. He’s the guy in the picture below on the right. He’s 71 years old, no beard and barely any white hair.
Kebbet La2teen is a very famous dish prepared during Lent. It is not the healthiest of Kebbes (Is there a healthy Kebbe to begin with?) but it is really good. It is a Lebanese dish and does not take much time to prepare. Here’s a link that I found on how to prepare it.
BlogBaladi was featured in the latest issue of Crepaway’s magazine, Hangout. The magazine is available at their branches but here is a scan of the interview [Link]
Thank you Crepaway for featuring us in your magazine.
I love watches but I always had a problem wearing them as it bothers me, but I decided to get myself used to them. If all works fine, I want a Patek Philippe for my next birthday :P !
Here’s how the tsunami looked like from Google Earth. That’s one freaking scary image! You can check out Google Maps as well for various locations, videos and pictures of the tsunami. [Link]
I had posted a few days back about a flaw in the park meter’s system that journalist Imad Atallah had found in which he succeeded to cheat the park meter man by photoshopping the parking stubs and changing the dates.
Well I decided to email the park meter company yesterday and inform them about the flaw and I received a response today from their senior IT manager telling me they are looking into this and should resolve it soon.
I will keep you posted of any updates on the matter.
