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ESWATINI: MUSIC AND DANCE
The traditional music of ethnic Swazis and Eswatini share many similarities to nearby South Africa. They also share some regional similarities with the southern part of Africa in general. Instruments...
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ESWATINI: THE FOOD
Spring might actually be here now as my kids’ spring break winds down to an end. For the first time, we actually took a short day trip during spring break. My son has a Famous Hoosier project and his...
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SWEDEN: THE LAND AND THE PEOPLE
Of course, there are always the more popular images of Sweden that come up for most people: Swedish meatballs, Vikings, Swedish fish, IKEA-broken marriages, buxom blonde bombshells, and the Swedish...
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SWEDEN: ART AND LITERATURE
Sweden has been inhabited for thousands of years, and it’s safe to say that art has been in Sweden for nearly that long. The earliest forms of art have been found in the form of cave drawings. We still...
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SWEDEN: MUSIC AND DANCE
For a long time, music in Sweden tended to be a hodgepodge of northern European musical styles: mazurka (Poland), polka (Bohemia and Czech), schottische (Bohemia), waltz (Germany), and the polska...
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SWEDEN: THE FOOD
Spring is truly here now. We’re heading into the last real month of the school year and things are winding down. Thoughts of summer break and moving into the house that we’ve been working on are ahead...
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SWITZERLAND: THE LAND AND THE PEOPLE
I used to get Switzerland and Sweden mixed up. Perhaps because they both utilize Germanic languages. Perhaps because they both start with “Sw” and I just stopped listened after that. Perhaps because...
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SWITZERLAND: ART AND LITERATURE
From its elaborate embroidery on their clothing to their wood carvings, Switzerland’s folk arts are pretty well known. Their embroidery was typically used on women’s clothing and accessories but is now...
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SWITZERLAND: MUSIC AND DANCE
Despite being a multicultural nation, there is something uniquely Swiss about their music. Not much is known about super early folk music traditions in Switzerland, but it’s thought that they utilized...
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SWITZERLAND: THE FOOD
It’s hard to believe that today is June 9, and my kids STILL aren’t out of school yet. (Their last day is the 13th.) And it’s also hard to believe that we’re STILL trying to finish up the final repairs...
View ArticleWorldly Rise Year End Stats -- 2019 Edition
It’s that time of year again, and it feels weird to start back up on this blog with an End-of-Year Stats post when I haven’t written on it for so long. But 2019 was at least a decade long. However…...
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SYRIA: THE LAND AND THE PEOPLE
You don’t have to be a news junkie to know that Syria has been in the news quite a bit over the past ten years, and especially in recent months. This area has long stood center stage in conflict, an...
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SYRIA: ART AND LITERATURE
Arts have been a part of this region for several millennium. Handicrafts and tools have been built and created since antiquity. Once Islam became the dominant religion of Syria, that impact on art had...
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SYRIA: MUSIC AND DANCE
At one time, Syria was the cultural center for Arab classical music, a center for musical innovation. Cities like Damascus, and especially, Aleppo, cultivated musicians and perpetuated traditional folk...
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SYRIA: THE FOOD
Well, I’m finally getting back to the blog. It’s taken me awhile to get back on schedule, but here I am. And with the moving and everything, I still can’t quite find everything I need, so it’s a little...
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TAJIKISTAN: THE LAND AND THE PEOPLE
Tucked in the corner of the grey areas of the map where its name may not be familiar to some, is a country surrounded by a snow-covered mountain backdrop. It’s a hidden gem for those who want to avoid...
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TAJIKISTAN: ART AND LITERATURE
Tajiks are very proud of their cultural history, and it’s very much tied to quite a bit of Persian history as well. In fact, many like to make the point that several of the great “Persian” artists and...
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TAJIKISTAN: MUSIC AND DANCE
The music of Tajikistan is fairly similar to the styles of other Central Asian countries, namely Uzbekistan. They even share many common genres and instruments. Their classical and folk music spans not...
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TAJIKISTAN: THE FOOD
We finally ended the year known as January and February came and went. Supposedly spring will come early (I’m not complaining about that), and it’s a busy time for both of the nonprofits I work with. A...
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TANZANIA: THE LAND AND THE PEOPLE
Several years ago, I tried reviewing books. I gave it up really quickly because it felt weird to ask an author for a book and review it publicly. What if I had an issue with a character and the author...
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