http://www.al-duroos.com Arabic language lessons and learning resources Sat, 19 Jul 2008 05:47:38 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en This weekend, I am in Alexandria again.  This time, I am here for Wikimania 2008 -- this is the fourth annual conference for the Wikimedia Foundation, its projects, and other wiki projects. Now that I am studying Arabic, I am particularly interested in the Arabic Wikipedia.  The English Wikipedia is enormous ... http://www.al-duroos.com/2008/07/wikimania-in-alexandria/ I am getting far enough along in my Arabic program that I can now write paragraphs and short articles in Arabic. This one is about a trip taken with my university program to Sharm el-Sheikh. On the way, we stopped in St. Katherine's and hiked Mount Sinai. ... http://www.al-duroos.com/2008/07/%d8%b1%d8%ad%d9%84%d8%aa%d9%8a-%d8%a5%d9%84%d9%89-%d8%b4%d8%b1%d9%85-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%b4%d9%8a%d8%ae-trip-to-sharm-el-sheikh/ I have been in Egypt for a few weeks now. I am taking four classes in the Arabic Language Institute program at AUC: (1) Fusha (2) Writing (3) Colloquial (4) Spoken Colloquial. We also have the option to take extra curricular activities. I chose to take a ... http://www.al-duroos.com/2008/06/saqqara/ I have now been in Cairo for a few days and am adjusted. Yesterday, we had orientation for the Arabic program at AUC. I'm familiar with where everything is on campus, and what to expect with the program. I will be placed at the intermediate level for ... http://www.al-duroos.com/2008/06/settled-in/ This was my first full day in Cairo, most of which I spent getting oriented with my neighborhood (Zamalek) and the area around the university campus in downtown Cairo. There are numerous shops and restaurants in Zamalek, including a regular coffee shop nearby that also serves sandwiches and other ... http://www.al-duroos.com/2008/06/getting-oriented/ I have been extremely busy during the past few weeks, with moving out of my place in the U.S. and preparing for the summer program at the American University in Cairo. I left "yesterday" - June 2 in the late afternoon/early evening from Washington, D.C. Then, I arrived ... http://www.al-duroos.com/2008/06/just-arrived-in-cairo/ Religion is definitely important in Middle East countries, with Islam overwhelmingly dominant. Though, in Egypt, there is a minority Coptic Christian population. The word for "church" in Arabic is كنيسة (kanisa). This video clip comes from BBC Arabic, which talks about the Roman Catholic Church, which has built a ... http://www.al-duroos.com/2008/05/kanisa/ I was recently at a conference in Boston, which was about geography (جغرافي). It's because I have been traveling a lot and very busy, that I haven't been able to post. Anyway, while walking around the conference center, I noticed someone left a box on a table which had Arabic ... http://www.al-duroos.com/2008/05/kuwait-geographical-society/ For a few days, I am on travel for my job. I am in New Orleans and arrived here yesterday. When I got a cab (taxi) at the airport, the driver (سائق - sa'iq) was from the Middle East. So, I was able to say "thank you" ... http://www.al-duroos.com/2008/04/cab-ride/ I was at a local bookshop this week that carries Arabic-language books, movies, and other items. They have a selection of classic novels that are translated into Arabic, along with the English on the opposite page. I picked up a copy of "The Grapes of Wrath" (عناقيد الغضب) ... http://www.al-duroos.com/2008/04/the-grapes-of-wrath/