The Older Generation of the Middle East

The older generation of the Middle East is a pretty broad topic that has the potential of being elaborated upon for a very long time and I like the older generation of the Middle East. The age of the people around my grandparents maybe or something like that is the generation I am really interested in. For example they all have stories of their past. In fact, I find it really odd that they are able to still recall. Nonetheless, it is always interesting to just sit down with the older people and just listen to them talk.

Their style of talking is also really unique. It is like they are always narrating something like a story or something. The dramatic touch they always add to their speech is interesting and I find it difficult to do it myself. Also when older people get together and start talking it is more interesting than watching something on the television or something.

The older generation is also unsure of the features of the newer generation. For instance they don't like their music, their outfits, and their hair. There are plenty of other things that the older generation just looks down upon however I can't seem to remember it at the moment.

The main thing that the older generation has to offer is their idealistic approach to things. They are not materialistic (at least the vast majority of them aren't) and they also are really don't seem to think at all about their nation. Some of them have been living in the terrible governments for a very long time and they all seemed to enjoy the Arab Spring (the simultaneous revolutions that occurred throughout the Middle Eastern nations) very much.

I like the fact that the older people still showed support for the Arab Spring because they seem like they still have to have a hand in fixing up their nation.

The older generation's features of music and clothing and so on is something that they still use until today. Even though they have been introduced to the newer and more modern outfits and music yet they still like their older music and they don't like what the newer generation is into itself.

Older generations have get plenty of respect from the younger generations. You will often see a younger child helping out an older person. It is really nice to see the respect being exhibited to the older people.

Restaurants of the Middle East

The restaurants of the Middle East differ from nation to nation and from places in a particular nation to different places. I don't really know much about restaurants in like Dubai or Kuwait City and so on however if I was to make a guess I'd probably say that they are all fancy and they attempt to appeal to the public like as if they were tourists. However that is just a guess. Restaurants in the Middle East tend to get very fancy in hotels and so on and more richer areas. In fact, there are some restaurants in the Middle East (particularly in Egypt because I know about them) that tend to get very expensive and it's like who would want to pay this much for it.

If you go to a tourist town any where in the Middle East the restaurants there are very fancy and modern and that's because the owners are probably trying to attract the tourists that are arriving from abroad. Those restaurants also have the potential of being very expensive and mainly tourists and the upper class people visit them. Tourist towns and their restaurants are among the main source of revenue for the city itself. There are plenty of other forms of money and so on however restaurants play a prominent role.

Then there are the restaurants that are in like the middle of the city and that have the potential of being either very fancy or not fancy at all. There was once a restaurant in in the older areas  that had places to sit outside. It was really cheap. Nonetheless the food was amazing. The fact that the place itself wasn't "modern" and "fancy" and so on made it seem much better.

The fancy restaurants in the Middle East are not visited much by me only because it is unnecessary to pay the much money for food that you could buy somewhere else in the street and also the people that go there are not your average person in the city. It would definitely be nice to visit one of these restaurants only to have been there. However I wouldn't plan on going there often.

The food on these restaurants is very similar to what you can make at your house. In fact, it has the potential of being so similar that it is like you are eating your mother or your grandmother's food. If the food in the restaurant itself tastes like that then you know that the restaurant offers very good food.

Modern Middle East

The modern form of the Middle East is something that many people around the world tend to understand. For instance, many people tend to think that they (Arabs) still live in the old age. This fallacy tends to also be the same thing that's attributed to the modern Middle Eastern world of no expansion and progression. I'll be honest, the governments of the past have definitely had a hand in impeding the growth of certain areas in the Middle East. Nonetheless, there are some nations around the Middle East that have experienced economic growth in the past and they have established more modern infrastructures.

Dubai, for example, is a city in the Middle East however you would never associate it with like a city in Yemen or something. For some reason or another I haven't really been paying attention to the cities in Oman and Yemen and Bahrain and so on and that's only because I really don't know much about them, however that's another story. Nonetheless, Yemen is very old. To think that Dubai and Yemen are in the same region is unbelievable. However they are in the same region and they are inhabited by Muslims.

Middle Eastern societies have enough to deal with on their own. They haven't really been worrying about materialistic (or some cities there) goals and so on. I think that there is a difference between expansion and progression to be able to accommodate a growing population and so on and expansion based on temporary wealth appearance (oil) and see what it can lead to.

Modern Middle Eastern societies have been subject to plenty of wars and occupations in the past. For instance Palestine is a beautiful nation and Jerusalem has been among the centers of world affairs for a very long period. I think that if the Palestinians weren't subject to occupations and war and so on then they would be an advanced and modern society.

There's no doubt that some Middle Eastern nations have adapted to their own particular form of dealings and so on and so they may seem like they are unable to adapt to modern forms of world affairs and attributes. Modern qualities are unique to the already advanced places in the world (Europe and so on) and so the Middle East, whether it's advancing or not, is unable to among the advanced nations around the world because the Middle East is mainly different.

Women in the Middle East

Are women in the Middle East oppressed? Are they really limited in their rights? Do they even have rights? Well, it's questions like these that I love to answer only because I love to spread the positive image of the women in the Middle East. First off, let's discuss the things that they are limited in. I really can't think of anything except maybe in Saudi Arabia where they are not allowed to drive. Ok, I agree that is not good. Nonetheless people tend to look to very trivial aspects and make assumptions that this certain feature is proportional to the equal different topic of something else.

I want to make it clear that women in the Middle East are appreciated very much. It wouldn't be right for me to say that they run the nations. Nonetheless they are more dignified than what they may be presented as. Just because they have to wear a scarf and whatnot around their head doesn't entail that they are oppressed. It just happens that they are Muslim and all they are doing is following their religion. In fact, if you look around the world and find Muslim women all around the world you will find that they too wear the scarf anywhere they go as well. So how come that when they wear in the Middle East they are considered oppressed and if they are in Europe or something they are only portraying the "expanded rights" offered to people there.

Women in the Middle East have had special roles. For the longest time they have been able to vote and they have been considered equal in the work force. And if it happens that a woman chooses not to work then the closest male to her in the family (whether it is a sibling or her father or whatever) is supposed to take care of her. This is to ensure her stability and freedom without forcing her to work.

Women when they get married are not responsible to take charge of the financial aspect of their life and their husband's life after marriage. It is the husbands duty. If they choose to work then it is out of her own decision. Nonetheless people might say that putting the duty on the man only justifies that the male is destined to be the one making most of the decisions and so on. This is incorrect only because the male is supposed to ensure the women's freedom and they (the men) are supposed to go out of their way to make a comfortable life for the women. Women in the Middle East are not oppressed.

Projects in the Middle East: Abdali

The Middle East nowadays (dismiss the fact that there have been numerous uprisings and so on in the past year or so) is quickly expanding its infrastructure and economy and each individual nation is developing numerous projects. There are so many projects going on around the Middle East these days you wonder where they get the money. Then you remember that there are plenty of natural resources such as oil and uranium located in the Middle Eastern region.

One project that caught my attention was Abdali. It is a new business district located in the middle of Amman. Basically what this project consists of is a series of skyscrapers and business parks and so on to take on the expanding economic image of the nation as a whole. Amman is quickly becoming one of the regional spots for starting up businesses and so on and its economy has been expanding incredibly. In order for them to accommodate the expanding business sector of the nation it is imperative for them to start developing a new image to the city. In fact when you look at rendering of the project itself you can tell that it is in the older downtown area (I don't know why they would do so). So they need to knock down older buildings and so on in the area just to put up new skyscrapers.

What is in these skyscrapers? Hotels, apartment complexes, business hubs and so on. And on the ground floor you will find malls and all that stuff. Yes the necessary things that tend to attract the tourists. I'll attempt to refrain from exhibiting any discomfort only because I want to talk about the project itself. So, other than the skyscrapers and so on that necessarily are a few years late, what else is in these skyscrapers? Look, I support expansion but I don't support meaningless expansion. Amman, I think, is a different story though only because I like the city a lot. But Amman insists on developing an infrastructure that models that of European or whatever models. And when I say it like that it does sound like I'm uncomfortable with expansion. Nonetheless I don't know another approach to developing a more modern infrastructure for the Middle East.

Shops along the Streets

The shops along the streets in the Middle Eastern nations all have many similar features. On one street or sidewalk you will have plenty of stores and shops that have absolutely no shared theme whatsoever. You will have a store that sells spices and right next to it you will have a store or a shop that sells clothes or something. In fact, these places sometimes it gets to be like how did these two stores get together in the same area; but it happens.

Many times you will see apartment buildings that sore into the sky with shops on the ground floor. Many of these stores have like the necessary materials that an individual home may require. The understatement of "they are a small shack" and so on does not tend to get to anyone only because the concept of these stores is fantastic. Instead of driving yourself to a supermarket somewhere and getting stuck in traffic for an unnecessary period of time, all you have to do is walk downstairs out of your apartment building and walk not even two or three steps and you will be at a store that has plenty of materials.

Of course these qualities of the stores that I am defining is only found in the middle class areas and the older areas of the cities. For example you won't necessarily find these shops in the newer developments in Abdoun in Amman but you will certainly find them in the older areas downtown.

Then you begin to wonder if these stores are listed and if the people pay taxes and if they are really among the system in the nation's economy. Plenty of people tend to take a small room or storage place and rent it and just start selling things there. I'm not so sure, however, that these places actually are among the listed shops.

Actually, I'm not even sure that these stores exist in places like Dubai or Doha because these shops portray extreme "Arab" qualities of like the older, pre-modern era of the city and Dubai and so on are like the exact opposite of these cities. Since I have never been to those new "world class" cities I really can't say if they (referring to the shops) are there or not.

I personally think that a true Middle Eastern city has these shops around

Places inside Egypt I still haven't seen

I have never once seen the pyramids up close in real life. It is something that tends to not make sense because I have traveled to Egypt plenty of instances before and I have drove by them, flew over them, and never once stopped in for a near-up sight seeing image of the structure itself.

I honestly don't mind that I haven't seen the pyramids (before), however actually seeing it in real life would be quite an experience. This post should have been included with the previous one in which I was discussing the places that I would like to actually visit in real life.

The sphinx and the pyramids are interesting actually, however there are people that live in Egypt that haven't even seen it in real life. That's something that I tend to find funny. I personally think that going to the pyramids is a hassle because the place itself is far away and also I don't want to be considered a tourist.

Another place inside Egypt that I wouldn't mind going to in real life would be somewhere in the Sinai Peninsula to see the Bedouin people and how they live. Also, the scenery there surrounded by water all around also offers quite a remarkable experience.

Places I'd like to go

I know I keep on talking about Egypt and the cities there such as Cairo, Alexandria, Mersa Metrouh, and so on and I haven't really been giving much detail about other nations and cities within those around the Middle East out of experience except maybe just offering known facts and then giving my opinion about the city or whatever. However, in this post I plan on discussing the cities throughout the Middle East that I would like to visit, however I'm not sure I'll get to see them.

The city that I would definitely travel to first would be Mecca. That's because Mecca to a Muslim is extremely important and it is mandatory for every Muslim to make Hajj during the time of Hajj. However you can still go to the city and make U'mrah. I'd go see Mecca than travel to Riyadh and see that city as well as my second city on the list. 

Another city I'd like to see that is outside of Egypt is Amman. Amman seems like it is another Cairo, just like three times as small. However all of the attributes that are available in Cairo seem like they are available in Amman. Amman seems clean and rich and organized, so I wouldn't mind visiting an actual Middle Eastern city that has these qualities.

The next city I would like to visit would be Istanbul. This is mainly because Istanbul sounds like the cleanest and richest city in the Middle East with quite a different culture than the rest of the Middle Eastern nations. Although the city itself may seem european or whatnot, I have an odd feeling that Istanbul is very different from that and I wouldn't mind seeing it in real life.

The next city I would like to visit would be Dubai. Despite the fact that I extremely dislike the city as like a tangible thing, I wouldn't mind visiting it and seeing the towers and the fancy and luxurious hotels that they have to offer. Also, since I like exotics and whatnot, Dubai seems like it would offer a lot of that. And I know this because of plenty of videos online and so on.

Doha and Kuwait City both would be nice to see, however I get this feeling that these two cities share very similar qualities of Dubai. And out of the two cities (Doha and Kuwait City) I would probably favor seeing Doha over the other. This is mainly because Doha just seems more touristic and more modern and I personally wouldn't mind visiting such as place. Nonetheless, Kuwait City is nice, however I wouldn't travel.

None of these cities (except for Mecca then Riyadh) are in any particular order. This is just some of the cities of a list. There are maybe other cities that I have forgotten temporarily that I wouldn't mind traveling to in the future.

Night Time along the Mediterranean Sea

The Mediterranean Sea is amazing. I know I have talked a lot about it and I plan to maintain the discussion about this beautiful place. Look at the title of the blog itself.

Besides swimming in the beautiful blue water in Mersa Metrouh and swimming in the amazing beaches in Alexandria, the Mediterranean Sea offers other things besides just swimming. For example, there is an extremely famous bridge in Alexandria known as "Staley Bridge". This bridge is amazing when you look at it from far away. It's modern looking, yet it still provides an image of older style architecture. Many people arrive to this bridge at night and just sit there. Refreshments such are brought and people just relax there. And if you are on the bridge and look into the distance at night, you will indeed probably find some people taking on the water at night. They don't mind the time, whether it is two in the morning or not, they'll stay there until when the sun arrives if they want to.

Apart from the bridge and the night swimming, you can also stay along the shore and just relax in one of the numerous cafes and places to just relax in. And as I said, you don't have to worry about the time because guaranteed there will be plenty of shops open. There are cafes that offer amazing things ranging from mango juice to tea to many other things that I just can't seem to remember at the moment.

Traffic at night along the Mediterranean in Alexandria especially is also a sight. It is like the people are acting like it is not two in the morning and it is something like ten at night or something. Imagine getting stuck in traffic at two in the morning. I loved Alexandria at night, especially when you are along the Mediterranean. And like I mentioned before in another post, we ended up swimming in one of the beaches there at two in the morning. It was an amazing experience. And the post swimming meal at around five or six in the morning was also amazing. Everyone of us in the group was starving and nothing sounded better than just giving all you got at some shop that offered amazing food.

Alexandria (so I hear) offers plenty of seafood restaurants. I'm not the biggest fan of seafood as I have mentioned before. Nonetheless, I wouldn't mind spending some time at the restaurant to just hangout there at night overlooking the sea. Another thing that I love about the beaches there is that the waves (more in Alexandria than in Mersa Metrouh) is that the waves there offer another form of excitement.

Along the beach also are many different people that walk around ready to sell just about anything. From things to eat to things to wear to things to not even think about buying and so on. I know that may not have made much sense, however explaining it might take a little too long and so I'll just stop here.

Staley bridge, the cafes, the swimming, it all offers amazing things. I love the atmosphere along the Mediterranean Sea.