Category Archives: Blog

زينب بنت علي

Posted on January 31, 2016 by admin

Sayyida Zeinab's shrine in Syria (Photo: Emily O'Dell)

I was very sad today to hear about the deadly blast near the shrine of Sayyida Zeinab in Damascus that killed at least 60 people. When I was in Syria visiting Sufi shrines right before the war began, I also visited the shrine of Sayyida Zeinab — a beautiful sacred space. It’s been surreal to watch so many of the places where I’ve spent significant amounts of time over the past 17 years in the Middle East, Africa, and Southeast Asia fall victim to such unspeakable acts of violence.

Shrine of Sayyida Zeineb in Syria (Photo: Emily O'Dell)

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निज़ामुद्दीन दरगाह / محمد نظام الدّین اولیاء

Posted on January 29, 2016 by admin

Shrine of Hz. Nizamuddin Auliya in India (Photo: Emily O'Dell)

Wishing all of the Sufis celebrating the 712th Urs of Sufi saint Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya at his dargah in Delhi a joyful and peaceful occasion…

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Mali in Oman…

Posted on January 28, 2016 by admin

Tonight in Oman (Photo: Emily O'Dell)

I was so happy to see Malian musician Salif Keita — the Golden Voice of Africa — in concert tonight at the Royal Opera House in Oman. He and his musicians gave a stellar performance. For the occasion, I wore pants and a headscarf that I had made in Mali while I was in Bamako studying Malian music and dance.

Midnight in Mali (Photo: Emily O'Dell)

The pants tonight turned out to be a perfect choice — since we ended up dancing in the aisles. The concert was a joyful marriage of two worlds I love so much — Mali and the Sultanate of Oman…

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Wadi Bani Khalid…

Posted on January 28, 2016 by admin

Wadi Bani Khalid (Photo: Emily O'Dell)

If you take a trip to the Sultanate of Oman, go for a refreshing dip at Wadi Bani Khalid. I recently took my family there and they loved it — nothing like swimming through beautiful boulders in warm natural spring water in January!

Pure peace (Photo: Emily O'Dell)

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Desert Dash…

Posted on January 28, 2016 by admin

Sand sprint (Photo: Emily O'Dell)

My brother enjoyed running up the dunes, while we were temporarily stranded at sunset in the desert of Oman…

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Car Trouble…

Posted on January 27, 2016 by admin

Uh oh (Photo: Emily O'Dell)

So, after an intense session of dune bashing, my family and I ran into some car trouble at sunset in the middle of the desert in the Sultanate of Oman. As you can see above, our driver embarked on a long walk to see how we might best maneuver our way out of the dunes — while my brother climbed up a dune for a better view…

Look-out man (Photo: Emily O'Dell)

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Titanosaur…

Posted on January 27, 2016 by admin

My friend Julie’s dad, Dr. Mike Novacek, was on the Late Show with Stephen Colbert last night to discuss “the largest dinosaur ever.”

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Yemeni Yumminess…

Posted on January 27, 2016 by admin

Yemeni Aqda in Oman (Photo: Emily O'Dell)

I enjoyed eating Yemeni Aqda — a vegetarian stew served with yogurt — while dining with family at Kargeen Cafe…

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نزوى

Posted on January 26, 2016 by admin

Exploring Nizwa in Oman (Photo: Robert O'Dell)

My family and I traveled to Nizwa to witness an early morning animal auction, before shopping for spices in the souq…

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جمهوری اسلامی افغانستان

Posted on January 26, 2016 by admin

Exploring mosques in Afghanistan (Photo: Emily O'Dell)

Though the U.S. was supposed to leave Afghanistan by 2017, top U.S. commanders are now indicating that the U.S. military will likely remain in Afghanistan for many years — even decades — to come…

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Tourism in Turkey…

Posted on January 24, 2016 by admin

Hagia Sophia in Istanbul (Photo: Emily O'Dell)

A recent NYTimes article looks at how tourism in Turkey is suffering in the wake of the recent terror attack near the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul. Bookings for Turkey were already down at the start of 2016, and now many tourists are canceling their travel plans as a result of the attack. Having spent a great deal of time in Turkey over the past decade studying Sufism and leading tours for Columbia University, I’m very sad to see terrorism affecting its tourism sector — it’s one of the best travel destinations in the world…

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Eagle Huntress…

Posted on January 24, 2016 by admin

Exploring Mongolia's Gobi Desert (Photo: Emily O'Dell)

I’ve been very fortunate to spend time the past two summers in Mongolia studying traditional Mongolian arts. I’ve come to feel quite connected to the land, people, and traditions of Mongolia. So I’m really looking forward to seeing Eagle Huntress, a new documentary currently being shown at the Sundance Film Festival — which features Aisholpan, a 13-year-old girl from Mongolia who bucked 2,000 years of tradition to become the first female to hunt with golden eagles…

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Market of the Future?

Posted on January 23, 2016 by admin

Exploring Isfahan, Iran (Photo: Emily O'Dell)

One of my favorite travel experiences in Iran was visiting the awe-inspiring mosques and legendary bazaar of Isfahan — a historic center of trade. With sanctions against Iran now lifted, Iran itself is being viewed as the marketplace of the future by European and American business executives and investors. Iran is working overtime to re-establish business ties with the rest of the world and sign new deals — the first shipment of crude oil to Europe is expected as early as next month. Markets, however, remain anxious about Iran’s re-entry into the global economy…

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Souq Surprise…

Posted on January 22, 2016 by admin

Souq shopping in Oman (Photo: Emily O'Dell)

While shopping in the souq of Nizwa last week in the Sultanate of Oman, my family and I came across this bag of dried limes — cherished Middle Eastern gems for flavoring soups and stews. From cooking cous cous in Fez to spice shopping in the souqs of Oman, we’re always on the lookout for a new food adventure…

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