Qatari Weddings

For this active blog, I chose to write about a traditional Qatari wedding I attended this weekend. The wedding was especially interesting because it had elements of tradition, but also introduced new concepts and broke through some cultural barriers.Usually, Qatari weddings are segregated events. The males celebrate with the groom and his family in a “Majlis,” where they enjoy a variety of traditional dishes, desserts and endless supplies of tea...

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Qatar 2022: A form of cultural resistance?

Well, I apologize in advance if the title is misleading, so let me clarify what I actually mean by the title itself. By cultural resistance, I intend cultural resistance to the stagnant situation of the Middle-East; where no major world sporting event has taken place in the last few decades (with the exception of the Doha Asian Games 2006). In this post, I'm going to analyze the move to organize the FIFA World Cup in 2022 in Qatar using the various...

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The (Blind?) Glorification Behind Modernization

My parents and I have always had an interesting relationship to say the least. Don’t get me wrong, I love and cherish them greatly. However, when it comes to seeing eye-to-eye on certain matters, a clashing does occur. I have never wondered or gave the topic a second thought until Phil Cohen’s ‘Subcultural Conflict and Working-class Community’ was assigned as a reading for class last week. In order to explore some tensions behind parent and youth...

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Hijabizing Graffiti

In this week's class, we discussed about cultural resistance and used Banksy's example to showcase cultural resistance. For this particular blog post, I will be analyzing the work of another graffiti artist, Princess Hijab, from the perspective of culture resistance.So, who is Princess Hijab? Some refer her as the muslim sister version of Banksy while others claim her to be the founder of hijabism movement. Princess Hijab is an anonymous 20-year-old...

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Cheb Khaled and Pitbull: Rai and the World

Cheb Khaled’s latest studio album, C’est la vie, was released in September this year. The album features signature Khaled songs such as Wili Wili that are slow and catchy, reminiscent of hits like Aicha and also songs like Hiya Hiya which are upbeat dance tracks similar to previous chart toppers, Didi Didi. Most of the songs on the album consist of the quarter-tone notes (Langlois pg.265). These are a rather rare feature in Rai music considering...

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Musheireb Heart of Doha

For this active blog post I decided to revisit an area of Doha that I had not been to in a while, and to check on its development. In our sophomore year as journalism students we were stationed in the area of Musheireb and reported on the different issues that the community was facing. Before I delve into a more sociological analysis of the Musheireb community, I will touch briefly on the history of the area. The Musheireb area is located...

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From Art to Politics!

Politics or art? This art work was sprayed by Banksy on the apartheid wall in Palestine. Banksy is a street artist. Street artists use different mediums to show their art in the streets. Banksy’s real identity is anonymous. Yesterday, I watched “Exit Through the Gift Shop,” which is a documentary about street art and Banksy. What does the whole movement of street art mean? And why is significant?The narrator stated, “Street art was poised to become...

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Al MuQanaa' - Qatar's Man in the Mask!

In the streets of Doha, I came across Ahmed Mohammad Al Jaber. He is also known in Arabic by his alias, Al Muqanna'. As we grew up in Qatar, the sight of his cars and motorbikes always drew our attention outside of our portable video games, and we'd peek from our cars to take a look at this enigma. During my sophomore year, I filmed a short documentary about him, but for this blog I met up with him and found he was exactly as I had last seen him!Al...

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If I play video games does it mean that I am part of a subculture?

For this blog post, I decided to explore whether or not playing video games means we are part of the video gamer subculture?I decided to look into the video gamers that I know and see in NU-Q.A lot of my friends at NU-Q play video games, not at a regular level though, their love and commitment to video games reaches such a high level, that they buy all types of games ranging from "Mario cart games" to "Assassin Creed" on all types of gaming technologies...

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Qatari Families losing Its Ties

Qatar has changed over the past couple of years. It changed in terms of its traditions and the development of the country. Some might argue that this change is positive and some might argue that its not. However, if we look at the family links of Qatar today and Qatar 60 years back, the change is quite vast. In the olden days of Qatar, all Qatari family members lived close by, they all lived in the same street, and their houses were stuck to each...

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Let’s Play the Subculture Game

Souq waqif in Doha, Qatar, is one of the most common places residents go to enjoy traditional food, ranging from Syrian, Italian, Iranian and Lebanese, and to enjoy a good shisha in one of the numerous cafes and restaurants.Souq waqif is a main attraction for tourists because of its “authentic” architecture, souvenir shops and the random stands where people sell handcrafted ornaments or homemade food. The people who work in the stands dress in traditional...

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