Ramadan in Beirut…

Last night, I attended Ramadaniyat Beirutiya–a cultural festival intended to “revive Beirut’s authentic Ramadan ambiance, while promoting the virtues of the holy month embodied in the values of brotherhood, sympathy, tolerance, solidarity, love, and peace.” Since I spent last summer on a Fulbright in Java studying religion, music, and martial arts, I was delighted to join last night with friends from the Indonesian Embassy (and one of my young Syrian refugee pals) to watch Indonesian music, dance, and martial arts performed in downtown Beirut. It was the perfect marriage of two lands that I love–Lebanon & Indonesia…