Youth

There isn’t much hope for the youth in Syria today. There are huge unemployment issues among the youth ages 15-24. The youth counts for 80% of unemployment. Females have a much higher unemployment rate than males. People in Syria are also waiting to get married due to the expense of marriage. A positive look is that Syria is working on getting rid of their national debt. Syria and Russia came to a deal which lessened Syria’s national debt by 80%. Syria’s production of oil has decreased as well.

Richard Street, Nader Kabbani, Yamama Al Oraibi. Responding to Weak Labor Market Conditions Facing Youth:The Case of Syria. August 22, 2006.

.http://www.araburban.org/AUDI/uploads/paper_19.pdf. (January 9, 2012)

Economy of Syria. January 8, 2012.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Syria. (January 9, 2012)

Syria's Protest

A wave of protest, to get their president to resign, started in Syria mid-March following the protest in Tunisia, which started in January 2011. President Bashar al-Assad supposedly sent out his troops on demonstrators. Their acts did not bring down the protestors. The United Nations believes the protests are on the verge of a civil war. Surrounding countries, such as Turkey, Jordan and Russia, who should be supportive of President Bashar al-Assad, have been criticizing the acts of the President. Syria was released from the Arab League due to President Bashar al-Assad’s ideas to strengthen attack on the protesters. On December 19, President Bashar al-Assad allowed Arab spectators into his country. 15o citizen were killed while the spectators were in Syria. “The U.N. estimates the death toll in Syria at 5,000; and estimates of detainees run from 15,000 to 40,000. On Dec. 14, 2011, U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called on other countries to intervene to help end the bloodshed. Through it all, Mr. Assad’s government has stubbornly clung to the narrative that it is besieged by a foreign plot.”

New York Times.Syria-Protests(2011-). January 6, 2011. News Article Online.

.http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterritories/syria/index.html . (January 7, 2011)

Dancing through Syria

To watch the traditional Syrian dance, click on this link below.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4d2AFKdGQg

Eaglefromsyria.Syria- Assyrian Folk Dance Group of Khabour in Syria. June 17, 2006. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4d2AFKdGQg ( January 5, 2012)


The Folklore Dance is one of the most traditional dances in Syria. Not only do the men dance, they dance with swords and canes. It is somewhat like the Dabka but not quite.

Folklore Dance in Syria Art of the Past. 2006. http://www.syriatourism.org/index.php?module=subjects&func=viewpage&pageid=2044. (January 5, 2012)

Artist

 Ahmad Elias

Ahmad Elias is a famous Syrian artist. He was born in 1954. Ahmad “graduated from the Faculty of Fine Arts, Damascus University, Internal Design in 1981.”

Ahamad Elias-Biography.Artid.2012.http://artid.com/members/ahmadelias/about/ (January 4, 2012)

http://www.google.com/imgres?q=Ahmad+Elias&um=1&hl=en&client=safari&sa=N&rls=en&biw=1206&bih=680&tbm=isch&tbnid=mNx1uQczpDhPbM:&imgrefurl=http://www.artbreak.com/ahmadelias&docid=AwxkYhhj1ZOrnM&imgurl=http://s3.amazonaws.com/artbreak/user_pictures/123039/1_inset.jpg&w=700&h=700&ei=RJMET6HgKZDbiAKEg7CYDQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=828&vpy=303&dur=380&hovh=225&hovw=225&tx=108&ty=116&sig=110115473274738196956&page=1&tbnh=142&tbnw=140&start=0&ndsp=21&ved=1t:429,r:12,s:0

http://www.google.com/imgres?q=Ahmad+Elias&um=1&hl=en&client=safari&sa=N&rls=en&biw=1206&bih=680&tbm=isch&tbnid=MQKpw4EEqp-yWM:&imgrefurl=http://www.artobolus.com/artists/elias_ahmad_147/index.php%3Fsec%3D184&docid=a-17fvF3-qMaRM&imgurl=http://www.artobolus.com/artists/elias_ahmad_147/elias_ahmad_147_2269_large.jpg&w=720&h=720&ei=bZMET8_2LtHbiAK8yKzFDg&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=196&vpy=271&dur=1783&hovh=225&hovw=225&tx=147&ty=111&sig=110115473274738196956&page=1&tbnh=142&tbnw=127&start=0&ndsp=21&ved=1t:429,r:8,s:0

Nizar Qabbani 

Nizar Qabbani is a famous Syrian poet. His poems were about love, religion, feminism, and Arab nationalism. His first collection of poems were the The Brunette Told Me. He wrote this first set of poems in his college years. His crowds always loved when he preformed.

Click to watch Nizar preform one of his poems

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-AMj67Q7RQ0

Nizar Qabbani.January 7, 2012.Wikipedia.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nizar_Qabbani.

( January 8, 2011)

Architectural Wonders in Syria

The Umayyad Mosque is one of the oldest mosques in the world. It is located in Damascus. The mosque was most recently restored in 1970. “The mosque holds a shrine which is said to contain the head of John the Baptist, honoured as a prophet by both Christians and Muslims. The head was supposedly found during the excavations for the building of the mosque. The tomb of Saladin stands in a small garden adjoining the north wall of the mosque.” ( Flood, Finbarr Barry 2000) This mosque is Islamic.

 Flood, Finbarr Barry. 2000. The Great Mosque of Damascus: Studies on the Meanings of an Umayyad Visual Culture, Leiden; Boston; Koln: Brill. http://www.islamic-architecture.info/WA-SY/WA-SY-001.htm. (January 3, 2012)

Crac des Chevaliers “was constructed in 1031 along the only route from Antioch to Beirut as a military stronghold.” It is one of the most well known castles in the world. “It can accommodate 5000 soldiers with their horses, their equipment and provisions for five years.” (Travel Tamed, October 6, 2011)The castle is located 700m above sea level making it very well protected from enemies.

Crac des Chevaliers, Syria. http://www.atlastours.net/syria/cracdeschevaliers.html (January 3, 2012)

Travel Tamed. Top 10 Places to Visit in Syria. October 6, 2011 http://traveltamed.com/places-to-visit-in-syria/ (January 3, 2012)

“Seleucus Nicator, the first Seleucid king in Syria,” constructed Apamea in 300 BC.(Apamea, 2011) It is located on the Orontes River bank. In the 12^th century the city was ruined by an earthquake. Although much of the city fell to ruins there is plenty to still see.

Apamea. Famous Wonders. 2011. http://famouswonders.com/apamea/ (January 3, 2011)