Because it's too funny not to post

Somebody made Saudis dance to Michael Jackson. I give you 'Smooth Criminal, Saudi Style':

Friday-afternoon entertainment

I know it's old, and it has made the rounds by email and on facebook, but it's just such a hilarious song...

Recorded in 1978 in Kuwait by the Bendaly family from Lebanon. Enjoy!

New Math

Now here's a website with some entertaining math:

Made by Craig Damrauer, and there is a new one every monday... enjoy!

Do Lebanese Men Like Blondes?

Warning: if you ever decide to google something embarrassing, you should know that somewhere, somebody is going to have a laugh at your expense when they see your rather hilarious search-term coming up in their site-statistics. And because I’m not so selfish that I want to keep all the fun to myself, I will share with you some of the recent searches that got people to my blog – and the solutions, if I have any. It seems that many people are looking for stories. Stories about the (Armenian) Mafia, Lebanese wedding stories, Saida stories, stories about the resistance, stories about peace, Oosterhout-stories, or stories about Eid el Fitr-stories… as you can see, I can help you with those.

Other searches are a bit more complicated: maybe one of you can help the people looking for ‘a picture of the head of Imam Hussein’? Or for ‘rulers who have been declared insane’? Who knows where to find information about ‘frequently, the body and face of a beloved person?’?

Search-terms also betray people’s fears and desires: ‘I need a speech for a funeral’ sounds like a cry for help, but I can’t remember ever writing about that. ‘I panic when the phone rings’ is another revealing search for which the answer is most likely not found anywhere on qussa.nl. ‘Doggy-style’ also gets you here, but I highly doubt this is the desired search-result (obviously, the post is about weapons. This is Lebanon, after all). I also can’t help you with your recurring search (yes, yours) for a ‘Lebanese chat’, nor for ‘Lebanese women most beautiful.’ (Are they?)

I did once mention the black men’s bike of the former Dutch minister of Justice, and I also dropped a word or two about Lebanese hairstyles. Need help with your wedding proposal? Look here or here or here. Or here, if you need it to be romantic.

And finally, the most pressing question that you turned to Google for: 'Do Lebanese men like blondes'? I guess they do…

It's a Classic!

Did I get it right? Did I manage to get every single myth and stereotype of Beirut into one picture? I would almost think so:

- A church AND a mosque in one shot? Check - An ugly, modern high-rise juxtaposed with an old crappy building? Check - Some reconstruction going on? Check - A bit of nature and (almost) sunset to add a romantic atmosphere? Check

Seems like I’ve got a classic on my hands here.

And for some more ‘we all know what Beirut is like’, head over to this blog: Jad Aoun is handing out ‘Looks Like Beirut Awards'. Brilliant.