Portfolio

Perhaps one of the most important tasks facing Oman in the coming years is building a more diverse economy.

Spending an afternoon in Al Khuwair, a busy commercial and residential area of Muscat, I can't help but marvel at how diverse it is. The smiling Syrian restaurant owner greets me and my weekly order of dips and falafel at his popular corner shop. Omani men appear from the golden domed mosque nearby. A crew of South East Asian men...

"Some 250 million people are international migrants - people who leave their home countries for opportunity or safety," states a recently published report from United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), discussing why migration is a feminist issue. It goes on to point out that nearly half of these migrants are female, and that a large part of...

Sidab is a small village on the road between Muttrah and Muscat, the 'twin cities' of Oman. It hosts a small shop and several white-washed houses. A good number of pick-up trucks, donkeys, goats and kids roam the streets. Just across the road from a serene looking green domed mosque, you'll find a quaint little house. Its door is painted...

I can't help but feel a little awestruck as I am welcomed into Radhika Hamlai's studio. A bright room filled with sunlight, commanding sweeping views of low whitewashed villas and elegant minarets rising towards the sky, greets me.

Dates are the main agricultural crop in Oman and the country is the world's 8th largest producer of dates. They are offered with coffee and as gifts, they often break the fast during Ramadan, and apparently, they kept scurvy at bay for sailors in times passed.

Dates. You know, those little brown ones, hailed for their nutritional value, often found in 'healthy snacks'? Did you know that your healthy snack could be the result of a lengthy hand pollination process, and that knowledge of each date palm is passed down from father to son? Read on to learn more!

Years ago, when I had just moved to Damascus, I read Bridgid Keenan's Diplomatic Baggage, looking to bring some humor into organizing my life around water cuts, power cuts, petrol queues and empty ATMs. I knew that Ms. Keenan had lived in Damascus, and grown to love it. Her chapter was exactly what I was looking for, and indeed,...

The Norwegian bunad, often referred to as our national costume, springs from traditional pre-1800 folk costumes. Hulda Garborg was instrumental in investing folk costumes with cultural/political meaning, creating an outfit that has become a symbol of 'Norwegianness'.

The other day, the oldest one had a classmate over to the house. The friend's mum and I shared a cup of tea in the garden. We don't know each other well, so we talked about 'safe' topics, like, what are your plans for the summer holiday?