Written by Ahmad Humeid After the recent opening of Wakalat Street in Al Sweifieh in Amman, many Ammanis have expressed their delight to the pedestrian mall and activities happening around Amman’s newest attraction. According 360east's Ahmad Humeid he was impressed by the number of people walking on Wakalat Street after 10pm. Thousands of people. Jordanians, Iraqis, Gulf nationals. Teenage boys and girls. Totally westernized clothes to pitch black niqabs. Families. Very light security presence. A policeman and a smiling policewoman, both riding horses. Packed cafes. From Starbucks to Wakeem to Aroma to Libnani Snacks. Cool Ammani night after a very hot day. And yes: Arabic and English signs. (more...)...

Written by Roba Assi Recently, I attended one of the best musical performances I have ever been to in my life; Music Matbakh (which means music kitchen in Arabic), a performance featuring musicians from Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Syria, Tunisia, and the UK. The lineup combined traditional and cutting-edge, bringing together ancient Arabic traditions with hip-hop and electronica. They were playing the oud and the nai, mawaweel and singing in Bedouin accents, with drummers and electronica masters, rappers and MCs. (more...)...

Written by Kinzi Jones. Last month, my kids and I said a sad, one-sided good bye to 'Rakan.' It seems we just said hello to the impish little boy who would stand by the roadside rubbing his chin for a hand-out each Eid. We first saw him years ago when we moved this neighborhood, when we were the minority intruders on his mountain, his way of life. The tents of his extended family seemed to stretch a city block, herds of goats and sheep were penned nearby as were horses and donkeys and chickens. Their tents were surrounded by fields in every direction, fields were not considered 'undeveloped real estate' then. Houses were the exception to the rule, whereas now there isn't a plot of land without an apartment building. Not even one indigenous tree remains, just the carefully manicured topiary brought in from...

Written by Ruba Saqr When I was invited by 7iber.com to blog my ideas away at this forum, I knew it was time to vent out a life time's experience in the music scene in Jordan. In my opinion, what Jordan suffers from in this respect is lack of vision. Producers don't know what to do with you, managers (well, there aren't really a lot of them out there) don't understand you, studios don't know where they are going (it's all about making money, with no long-term plan to 'get somewhere'), and musicians are caught in this vicious cycle trying to find their way through broken glass and shrapnel. Lack of work-ethics is the most prevailing issue facing the music scene in general. With the growing number of private companies in Jordan, work ethics have been changing drastically in the business sector (thanks to entities such as Aramex...

Written by Jenny Ernst We count the number of American soldiers lost in Iraq and shudder, but the number of Iraqi soldiers and citizens who have given their lives is often lost in translation. That country's sorrow does not fully register with us, but the sting of unnecessary loss is felt across the Middle East as strongly as it is in the West. Death knows no national boundaries. Why does our ability to empathize vanish when it comes to feeling compassion for those different from ourselves? I first stepped into the Middle East during the summer of 2004, and was immediately faced with a society, culture and religion that were inconsistent with my expectations. Everything I had heard or thought about the region was overwhelmingly negative – I anticipated that the people would be cold and the culture harsh. They would not welcome me as an American or as a Christian. It...

Written by Ramsey Tesdell A lover of Um Kalthoum and hailing from a family with a long lineage of Sufi masters, Ruba Saqr is continuing the family tradition of using music to connect with the Divine, but also using her musical talents in Music Matbakh to introduce the world to the long tradition of Arabic music. "Any civilization that leaves a mark on history is rich in its arts and music. Music is not just an entertainment tool; it is a voice that speaks for all of us," said Saqr. (more...)...

Written by Ramsey Tesdell

When you ask football fans around the world who are some of their favorite teams, Jordan doesn’t usually make the list. But with a strong performance in Canada, the Jordanian national football team, playing in their first ever FIFA international tournament turned a few heads.

A full house was on hand in Burnaby's Swangard Stadium as Jordan made history with their first ever FIFA U-20 World Cup point, after drawing a strong Zambian team 1-1 on Sunday 1 July in the opening game of Group B. Jordan fought through an early red card to earn a well-deserved tie against Zambia, a team laden with players from the French league. The Jordanians then continued their tournament by frustrating Uruguay before going down 1-0 that could have easily ended 1-1. Jordan, in impressive form frustrated the Latin American giants with...

Written by Batir Wardam I was almost certain of Petra's win in the New Seven Wonders competition, but it never crossed my mind it will be second only to the Great Wall of China. I thought Petra may end up in 5th-7th position judging by the small population of Jordan and the enormous influence of the global media that highlights other places in Europe and Latin America. The success of Petra is worth celebrating for many reasons. I will try to summarize seven of those reasons that capture the spirit of the number ‘seven’ that is becoming a thriller nowadays. (more...)...

Written by Pheras Hilal Taken by the region's chronic identity crisis, Omar Bilbeisi tries to bring Arabic Calligraphy back home by capturing the source of Arab World's pride in his paintings: the Arabic Letters. 7iber.com sat down with the prolific artist for some insight on his work. Omar Bilbeisi, is not the average artist you may have in mind. In fact, Bilbeisi passes a bearing resemblance to what could be best described as an old-school rock star. With his torn t-shirt splattered with words in French all over, the classic stone-washed and rugged blue jeans, and the token David Bowie track clamoring in the background. But what was mistaken for insanity was interpreted by Bilbeisi, as a sense of appreciation for aesthetics and a love for youth. 7IBER: The most typical question for an artist, but let’s start here. What's your source of inspiration? Omar...