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Format: Standard Wall
Size: 28 * 38 cm
Block Size: Small Rectangle
Binding: Twine
Time Span: 12 months
Publisher: Kareh Printing Press

In some cases, you might be somewhat lucky to have some members of your family or even distant relatives in the place where you are going to. Although this is definitely a great comfort and makes it much more easier than starting all on your own; still, nothing feels like home. the traditions, values, and way of living that we were brought up upon in our homes and small towns soon fade away and seem out of place in this new place. Nothing has the same taste, nothing feels the same, there is and will never be any familiarity in those streets. Nothing can ever assume the quality and characteristics of “home”.

But despite all that, we are known to be travelers, we have been doing it for such a long time that it has become a part of our system. We get so comfortable where we live and we bring in a lot of our traditions and values and lifestyles and we try as much as possible to cluster to each other. Yet it is sometimes a shame and a sad thing to know that the population of the immigrants and those of their descendants exceed by millions the current Lebanese population. What’s worse is that many of those descendants have never had a chance to come see Lebanon and try to experience its charm and magic, what’s worse is that the majority of them can’t even speak Lebanese.

If I want to elaborate more in this subject, I can go on and on for days talking about the success stories, the touchy stories and the survival and excellence of the Lebanese all over the world. Maybe that’s why it has become so easy for us to immigrate, probably it’s because we know that wherever we will go, we will probably meet other Lebanese along the way. But I would rather talk about the dream that tickles everyone to go back home, I prefer if we all had the chance and that if we only go for our education and then come back home and try to change our circumstances there. At least this is my dream……..

]]> http://aslout.com/immigration/feed 0 http://aslout.com/immigration http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Aslout/~3/i2XL_qIwAEc/mar-sarkis-wa-bakhos http://aslout.com/mar-sarkis-wa-bakhos#comments Tue, 08 Dec 2009 14:54:06 +0000 Jihane http://aslout.com/?p=50 Saints Sergius and Bacchus were third century Roman soldiers. They were Roman citizens and high-ranking officers of the roman army. Sergius was an officer in the roman army, Bacchus an officer under him and both were serving under Maximian, the emperor, on the Syrian frontier. They died in 303 AD, Bacchus in Syria, Sergius at Resafa, Syria. They were commemorated as martyrs by the catholic, Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox churches. They were a secret Christians. Their feast day is October 7. They were one of the most famous examples of paired Saints. The popularity of the cult of Sergius and Bacchus grew rappidly during the early 5th century, in accordance with the growth of the cult of martyrs, especially military martyrs. They were venerated as protectors of the army. A large monastery church, the little Hagia Sophia, was dedicated to them in Constantinople by Justinian I, probably in 527. Sergius was a very popular saint in Syria and Christian Arabia.

Legend

According to the greek text “The Passion of Sergius and Bacchus”, one day, Sergius and his Lieutenant Bacchus were with the emperor when he entered the temple of Jupiter to offer sacrifice. They remained outside and refused to sacrifice to Zeus. The emperor ordered them to come in and worship. After they refused and their covert Christianity was discovered, they were publicly humiliated.The emperor Maximian ordered that the officers be stripped of their arms, dressed in woman’s clothes, and paraded through the streets. Then he sent them to be tried by the governor, who had them severly beaten that Bacchus died under the lash. The next day, he appeared to Sergius and encouraged him to remain strong. Over the next days, Sergius was also brutally tortured and finally executed at Resafa, where his death was marked by miraculous happenings.

Saint Sarkis and Bacchus parishes

These two Saints are still popular in the East, where their names are common baptismal name. Some parishes in Northern Lebanon:

• Aslout
• Basloukit
• Amioun
• Kousba
• Zgharta
• Kobayat
• Kfifen
• Qnat
• Tourza
• Hadsheet
• Kafaraabida
• Miziara
• Bcharre

Fruit

Commercially, there are generally two types of persimmon fruit: astringent and non-astringent.

The heart-shaped Hachiya is the most common variety of astringent persimmon. Astringent persimmons contain very high levels of soluble tannins and are unpalatable if eaten before softening. The astringency of tannins is removed through ripening by exposure to light over several days, wrapping the fruit in paper (probably because this increases theethylene concentration of the surrounding air), and/or artificially with chemicals such as alcohol and carbon dioxide which change tannin into the insoluble form. This blettingprocess is sometimes jumpstarted by exposing the fruit to cold or frost which hastens cellular wall breakdown. These astringent persimmons can also be prepared for commercial purposes by drying.

The non-astringent persimmon is squat like a tomato and is most commonly sold as fuyu. Non-astringent persimmons are not actually free of tannins as the term suggests, but rather are far less astringent before ripening, and lose more of their tannic quality sooner. Non-astringent persimmons may be consumed when still very firm to very very soft.

There is a third type, less commonly available, the pollination-variant non-astringent persimmons. When fully pollinated, the flesh of these fruit is brown inside -known as goma in Japan, and the fruit can be eaten firm. These varieties are highly sought after and can be found at specialty markets or farmers markets only. Tsurunoko, sold as “Chocolate persimmon” for its dark brown flesh, Maru, sold as “Cinnamon persimmon” for its spicy flavor, and Hyakume, sold as “Brown sugar” are the three best known.

Source: Wikipedia

1. Simplified local navigation within each of the Aslout.com areas (Profile, News, Photo Album, Videos, Contacts, etc.).
2. A cleaner, less-cluttered look.
3. More room available for page content.

An easier way to navigate and find information on Aslout.com

We began the redesign effort several months ago by analyzing how people use Aslout.com.  We looked at what features people use the most and pored over 5 years of data from usability research on the site. Armed with this information we began doing design explorations of how to better organize Aslout.com features, and make them more convenient to find and use.

We factored into this effort additional features we knew were coming. We narrowed down the designs to a few candidates we felt were strong contenders. We then prototyped these designs and performed testing tasks with the prototypes. We went through numerous iterations until we arrived at a design we felt worked the best.  One of the key features of the new design is that it allows much more space for page content – information about you and Aslout.

We are now doing limited testing of the new design. We are still iterating and would love to hear your feedback!  Feel free to leave a comment at the bottom of the page.