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Entries Tagged as ‘Uncategorized’
March 20, 2009
obama’s message to iran
I’m so glad to see that the U.S. is finally engaging in direct communication with my beloved country and that there is some degree of cultural engagement going on. I would love to read your opinions about this:
January 19, 2009
slumdog
After hearing about how great a movie ‘Slumdog Millionare’ was, my husband and I decided we had to see it for ourselves. Yes, it’s a good movie and if you have the chance to see it, you will enjoy it. As we left the theatre, those around us were whispering how wonderful a [...]
January 17, 2009
change?
In three days, a new president will be inaugurated into the White House and America will never be the same again. Or will it? With all the excitement surrounding what has been coined as “black Camelot”, it is easy to get washed over by the wave of optimism and promises of change. But how will [...]
October 31, 2008
happy halloween!
Happy Halloween to all!
This is going to be a particularly exciting Halloween here in America, 4 days before the presidential elections. I suspect many will dress as one of the candidates. The talk of the town is who to vote for and what to do if the other gets elected. Here in California, many are [...]
October 26, 2008
game of your dream
We had a football game between UC Berkeley and UCLA today. Typically, these games have quite an impact on everything in town, most importantly transportation and parking become almost impossible. How lively it is to fight for winning, to have a favorite team, and to show your support for something you relate to. Today, while [...]
October 17, 2008
i am home
Playing ping-pong in South Tehran. All rights reserved.
“Manata, tell me, where do you like more, Iran or America?”
“I like both the same.”
“Yes, but where would you rather live?”
As an Iranian who has lived the majority of her life in America, I have been asked this question more times than I can recount by family and [...]
June 29, 2008
tale of “change”!
My aunt sent me this letter to share with our blog readers. It is about hope and change and has a strong message for all of us, whether you are from New York City, Tehran, Tokyo, Cairo, London, or Los Angeles, even though the topic is on the existing situation in the United States. Enjoy reading it and send [...]
June 10, 2008
calling for knowledge
Pupils at a primary school in the Philippine capital, Manila, demand that their teachers come back to teach them after learning of its closure to make way for a new sports complex.
May 30, 2008
protecting children
This morning I was extremely saddened and outraged to read the article “Pakistani boy ‘killed by teacher” on BBC. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7426980.stm
The story is about a seven year old boy who was hung upside down from a fan for not memorizing his Quran lessons, and as a result of this punishment, died. The teacher has been arrested, [...]
May 27, 2008
oblivious
Young street child selling fortunes in Iran. Picture courtesy of Shapour, flickr.com
I am getting ready to embark on a long trip to Iran this summer in order to begin fieldwork for my doctoral research. This will be the first trip that I will be taking in my life that will be solely devoted to [...]
May 2, 2008
taare zameen par
Last weekend I watched a wonderful movie by Amir Khan called, “Taare zameen par”, which loosely translated means ’stars on earth’. The production, acting and dialogue are wonderful and comparable in creativity and quality to hit independent movies. The story is about a young boy with a learning disability and his parents frustrations [...]
May 2, 2008
appearances
The young man didn’t say a word when I greeted him with the customary salaam. Nothing as I reached across for the warm loaf of barbari bread that he had just taken out of the tanoor and thanked him for his hard work. Complete silence as I handed him my crumpled tomans and asked for change. How [...]
February 25, 2008
hamed nikpay
A remarkable talent and an amazing voice: Hamed Nikpay’s music takes me back to Tehran’s old “khocheh baagh’s” (narrow streets separating beautiful gardens of Tehran), the remains of which can still be found in places like Darband or Maghsood Beig. At the same time, his music amazingly represents a multi-cultural background and his recent songs show a [...]
February 23, 2008
laughing with lunch boxes
Below is a picture on BBC that I loved. It seems that life for everyone around the world is becoming more and more stressful. Are we demanding more out of life now than ever before?
Indian lunch-box deliverymen – who deliver tiffin tins to workplaces around Mumbai each day – attend a laughter therapy session to [...]
February 22, 2008
asian reflection
A friend sent me this website today; I liked the music and images very much and hope you’ll also enjoy watching these slides:
http://asianreflection.com/slides/iran/index.html
January 24, 2008
three cups
I’m currently reading Three Cups of Tea, which is a book co-written by Greg Mortenson. It is a compelling story about an American mountainer who became inspired to build a school in the impoverished and isolated mountains of Pakistan. Mortenson began this journey in 1993 and since then has built 55 schools, especially for girls, [...]
