This is Beirut - Culture

In Tripoli, One Man Keeps the Tarbouche Tradition Alive

This is Beirut, 12/08 17:45 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Clothing Tradition Tarboosh Tripoli Lebanon Culture

Nestled among shops in a bustling market in north Lebanon's Tripoli, Mohammed al-Shaar is at his workshop making traditional tarboosh hats, keeping up a family craft despite dwindling demand. With a thimble on one finger, Shaar, 38, cuts, sews and carefully assembles the pieces of the conical, flat-topped felt hat also known as a fez, attaching a ...

Taylor Swift Announces 12th Album for 'pre pre-order'

This is Beirut, 12/08 17:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Taylor Swift Tour Music Culture Art Singer

US popstar Taylor Swift announced her 12th album, titled The Life of a Showgirl, for "pre pre-order" just after midnight Tuesday in posts on her website. Her online shop displayed blurred images of a record, CD and cassette tape overlaid with a glittery orange lock, explaining the album artwork would be "revealed at a later date." A disclaimer ...

Harry and Meghan Renew Netflix Deal with Fewer Perks

This is Beirut, 12/08 13:00 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Netflix Prince Harry Meghan Markle Series Culture Art

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will continue producing film and television content for Netflix, but under a more limited arrangement, the streaming giant announced Monday. Under the revised agreement, Netflix now has the right of first refusal—meaning the platform can accept or decline a project before the couple shops it to other ...

Magic in the Vosges: Theater Takes the Forest Stage

This is Beirut, 12/08 10:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Theater Vosges France Spain Culture Art

An enchanting summer break surrounded by greenery and mountain views: each day, crowds flock to the Théâtre du Peuple in Bussang, a symbol of cultural decentralization, which this season is staging The Naked King by Evgeny Schwartz. By early afternoon this August Saturday, the streets of the small 1,000-person village are buzzing—cars ...

China’s Gen Z Women Embrace Centuries-Old Script

This is Beirut, 11/08 14:45 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Women China History Culture

At a studio in central China's Hunan province, a teacher grips an ink brush, gently writing characters of a secret script created by women centuries ago and now being embraced by a new generation. Nushu, meaning "women's script", emerged around 400 years ago. Barred from attending school, the women secretly learned Chinese ...

Antonio Banderas at 65: “I’d Die if I Stopped” and Has No Plans to Retire

This is Beirut, 11/08 11:50 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Movies Antonio Banderas Entertainment Spain Culture

Spanish film star Antonio Banderas said in an interview published Sunday for his birthday that he has no plans to slow down now that he has reached 65. "When I was 20, I thought that 65-year-olds walked with a cane," said Banderas, known for roles in films such as The Mask of Zorro, Desperado and Philadelphia, in an interview with the Spanish ...

Poetry and Song Keep Oman’s Ancient Language Alive

This is Beirut, 11/08 10:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Oman Culture Heritage Art

Against the backdrop of southern Oman’s lush mountains, men in traditional attire chant ancient poems in an ancient language, fighting to keep alive a spoken tradition used by just two percent of the population. Sitting under a tent, poet Khalid Ahmed al-Kathiri recites the verses, while men clad in robes and headdresses echo back his words in ...

Adidas Accused of Cultural Appropriation Over Oaxaca-Inspired Sandals

This is Beirut, 10/08 10:30 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Adidas Fashion Heritage Culture Art Mexico

US fashion designer Willy Chavarria said Saturday he regrets that sandals he created together with Adidas “appropriated” a traditional design from the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca. Local authorities had complained that the Oaxaca Slip-On sandals were a “reinterpreted” model of huarache sandals, particularly one found uniquely in the ...

Fire Swiftly Contained at Cordoba’s Historic Mosque-Cathedral

This is Beirut, 09/08 12:30 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

UNESCO Architecture Culture Art History Heritage

A fire broke out in the historic mosque-turned-cathedral in Cordoba on Friday, but the monument was saved as firefighters quickly contained and then extinguished it, the Spanish city's mayor said. Widely shared videos had shown flames and smoke billowing from inside the major tourist attraction, visited by two million people per year. "The ...

Saint-Gilles of Tripoli

Amine Jules Iskandar, 09/08 11:00 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Lebanon Tripoli History Heritage Culture

Christian rule over Tripoli came to an end with the death of Byzantine emperor Nicephorus II Phocas in 969. Some 130 years later, the Crusaders reached the city gates and found a fortified settlement where the Arabs had firmly consolidated their presence. Despite reinforcements from the Christian mountain regions, it took them a full decade to ...

Tradition, Temperature, and the Parisian Home: The A/C Dilemma

This is Beirut, 09/08 10:30 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Climate A/C Health Climate Change France Culture

As summer temperatures rise, many Parisians are warming to the idea of installing air conditioning in their apartments, ending a longstanding resistance to what is considered a basic comfort in many capitals elsewhere. Although commonplace in the French capital's modern office buildings and large stores, air conditioning has never been the norm ...

Disney and Actress Gina Carano End High-Profile Legal Dispute

This is Beirut, 08/08 13:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Cinema Actress Disney Star Wars Culture Art

A Star Wars actor who sued Disney for firing her over inflammatory social media posts about the Holocaust, the pandemic and trans rights has reached a settlement with the Hollywood studio, the entertainment giant announced Thursday. Gina Carano, a prominent Donald Trump supporter who had a major role in the hit Disney+ series The Mandalorian ...

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