Arab Night

we had a cultural night dedicated to the Arab and Muslim culture.

let me tell you- it was awesome!

we started off with a presentation in the forum.

we were fortunate enough to have two men from the Al-aqsa mosque (one by the Dome of the Rock- the 3rd most holy mosque in the Muslim World) who are the voices for the call to prayer.

they were father and son, and this talent/right has been in their family for 500 years! it is an upmost prestigious honor to call to pray. the son memorized the Qur'an at 9 and started calling at age 13. it is a huge responsibility and rare talent- it is different and harder than just singing. these men never present or do this type of thing for anyone else but the Jerusalem Center.

they read a surah (chapter) of Mary from the Qur'an and prayed for us. it was sssssoooo interesting to see it right in front of me. it was the first time i have seen it because whenever we go to mosques, it is a time where there is not a service or prayer.

then we had a traditional Arab dinner. my favorite

thing was a circle of bread with a spread of spicy meat on it and a chicken burrito-esque thing. haha. wish i knew the names and how to spell them.

the night ended with all the students going in the

gym and learning Palestinian Folk Dancing! From an amazing dance team! we learned this one dance where we all hold hands in a big circle and wind up in intricate designs. super fun and i got a compliment from one of the instructors - maybe i will bag going back to the US and stay here and join a Palestinian Folk Dancing Team......

this is my Arabic teacher who put the whole night together.