Østlendingen

"Dignity", our project in Maghdouche-Lebanon got a full page in the newspaper today. Nils Henning Vespestad, a dynamic journalist from "Østlendingen" newspaper is following our project with big enthousiam. We thank him for keeping our norwegian friends up to date with our activities and plans for the future.

We also thank the norwegian people for all their kindness towards the project. Their support means a lot for us.

We Need You !

Do you live in Maghdouche?
Do you do any kind of handcraft?
Do you crochet or knit?
Do you sew by hands or are you able to use a sewing machine?
Do you still remember from your childhood how to stitch on a canvas (petit point) or cross-stitch (point de croix) ?
If you do, then we need your skills.

Take contact with Georgette Hayek in Maghdouche and let us know who you are so that we can fix a meeting with you during our stay in Lebanon.
It could be nice to work together with you ...

Course #2 - Patchwork and Quilting - Kurs i lappeteknikk

Recycling has a big part in our "Dignity" project. We wish we were able to recycle anything and everything, but at the beginning we start with textiles, on the hope of being able to spread our activities in the future: " Dream big but start small !"

Gjenvinning er en stor del av vårt "Dignity"prosjekt. Vi skulle ønske at vi kunne resirkulere alt, men til å begynne med velger vi tekstil, og vi håper å kunne utvikle dette videre. "Drøm stort, men start i det små"

In this direction, we announce our second course.

Course Title: "Patchwork for Beginners..."
Participants Age: -----Over 15 years------
Pre-requirements: Colour Theory Course

Date: January 2009 (date and time will be decided during the colour theory course)

For registration , contact Georgette Hayek - Maghdouche
For more information about the course, send us an email.

Fingers crossed ! Kryss fingrene!

"Dignity" is on the way. From being an abstract idea to become a concrete reality, there is a long, very long way and it requires a lot of work and a lot of patience.

Finally, a small group of enthousiastic Maghdouche people was established in order to follow the project while we are in Norway.

"Dignity" er på vei. Fra å være en abstrakt ide til å bli en konkret realitet, det er en lang vei å gå og det krever mye arbeid og masse tolmodighet.

Omsider, en liten gruppe av entusiastiske mennesker fra Maghdouche er etablert og følger prosjektet mens vi er i Norge

The group had its first meeting last week. All the members filled and signed the application that formalizes our project which was delivered to the Lebanese authorities.

We keep our fingers crossed so that we get a positive answer as soon as possible.

Gruppen hadde sitt første møte sist uke. Alle medlemmene underskrev søknaden som formaliserer vårt prosjekt. Søknaden er levert til de Libanesiske myndigheter. Vi krysser fingrene at vi vil få et positivt svar så raskt som mulig.

As an act of appreciation for the Norwegian people, for their moral and economical support that our "Dignity" project got and is still getting, the group sent us this photo-card : " Dignity is on the way... thank you Norway !

In return, and on behalf of all the Norwegians that participated one way or another in making "Dignity" see the light, we thank back the group for all the efforts made and yet to come.

Som en måte å sette pris på nordmenn, for moralsk og økonomisk støtte til vårt Dignity prosjekt lagde gruppen denne plakaten : Dignity kommer - takk til Norge.

Som gjengjeld vil vi si på vegne av venner og bekjente, tusen takk til gruppen for all jobbing så langt og for arbeidet som kommer.

The Olive Season

Olive-picking season starts in October and continues until November. People of Maghdouche wake up early and head to their olive groves around the village to gather the fruits.

I remember from my childhood that climbing the ladder was restricted to adults, while us children, we were hitting the branches with a stick or picking from the ground, the "bad" olives which would be used for soap making.

Back home, after a long working day, leaves and bad fruits should be picked out while the fresh green fruits are divided into two parts: one part is to be consumed during the year as part of the "mouneh" or eaten fresh mixed with olive oil, lemon juice and salt (yummm !).

The other part is packed and sent to one of the local mills to be pressed and used as oil.

Olive oil plays a main role in the daily life of Maghdouche and lebanese people. Besides being a main ingredient in the Lebanese cuisine, it is still used as an alternative remedy for different medical conditions.

Photos by: Hanaa K.

Spread the Word... Dignity Spre budskapet

We have been blogging for a while now... Trying to familiarise people with our Maghdouche project: "Dignity" and how important art is in solving social, environmental and economical problems in the day to day life of human beings.

We have to admit that it was a little sad, during that period, to watch the counter of our blogg increasing slowly while most of our visitors were norwegian friends that support our project. That was wonderful... but we wanted Maghdouche people to join and to be more involved.

Until the rumour started to circulate among Maghdouche people and boosted our statistics enormously in the last three days. Such a wonderful feeling it is to realise that people still care for making a change, a better Maghdouche, despite our sad diaspora.

People of Maghdouche, wherever you are in the world, spread the word, let our "Dignity" project get to everyone and keep us energised by leaving us a comment under "kommentarer" so we know who you are.

På norsk i kortversjon:

Vi har blogget en stund nå.......prøvd å fortelle litt om hvordan det sosiale livet er.

Vi var litt lei oss siden "telleren" på blogsiden stod ganske stille.....men det har snudd etter at ryktene om bloggen begynte å gå i Maghdouche. Nå er det blitt mer fart, det er morro.

Vi har en oppfordring, spre budskapet om vårt Dignity prosjekt, bli med å holde energien oppe ved å legge til en kommentar.

Course #1 - Here We go !!!

Dear all, the first "Dignity" course is decided and planned !!! It is going to be a 20 hour colour theory course based on Johannes Itten colour theory. After the course, the participants should have a better understanding of how colours work together.

Course Title: "Understanding Colours"
Participants Age: ---Over 15 years----
Pre-requirements: ---------None---------
Date: 26th. to 30st. of December 2008
Timing: -----from 06:00 to 08:00 pm------


For registration , contact Georgette Hayek - Maghdouche
For more information about the course, send us an email.

News from the House - Nytt fra huset

Finally, we got some new photos from the house! Work is in progress. Now, using the metallic stairs instead of a ladder, we can easily access the roof terasse and enjoy a glass of wine or a lebanese coffee there and admire the beauty of Maghdouche's church and the vine trees that are covering the roof of every house.

Endelig......noen nye bilder fra huset. Det går framover. Trappen opp til takterassen er ferdig, så nå kan vi sitte der med libanesisk kaffe og nyte utsikten å alle vinstokkene som lager terassene om til grønne hager med druer.

As parts of the house are 100 year old, the walls needed to be handled properly. Applying layers of anti rain absorption treatment from outside is supposed to solve the problem.

Deler av huset er over 100 år gammelt så veggene må behandles riktig. Flere lag med beskyttelse mot fuktighet må til............

In addition, the old parts of the house were covered from inside by a certain kind of plaques with a very natural texture. In this way, we avoid having the problem that almost every house in Lebanon is having, and that is paint getting off the walls.

Perfect result!!! at least we hope and we keep our fingers crossed... For such a big bill, it should better be!!!

In anyway, after painting white, the light seems wonderful especially in the studio area and the space seems to be bigger. Good work boys!!!

Det blir lyst og flott. Det ser med en gang større ut ettter at det er pusset opp, det er så vakkert lys i disse to studiorommene. Flott arbeid!

Norge rundt - Around Norway

In an interview with the Norwegian Television (NRK), Trond Einar Solberg Indsetviken explained the importance of watercolour as a serious medium of painting and as a form of art standing by itself.

This form of art is what Trond Einar will be taking with him to Maghdouche. He will be trying to initiate a group of youngsters to this technique, both theoretically and practically. Furthermore, he is excited to see which direction his artworks will be developping when he is painting in Maghdouche.

Grapes of Maghdouche

With the beginning of October, Maghdouche is picking its last bunches of grapes. People usually save them to get a little taste of the summer at this time of the year... The summer was fine, the season was abundant and mother earth was generous as always.

Mothers of Maghdouche are done with the preparation of the "mouneh" which includes many products derived from grapes: raisins, vinigar, jam, molasse and wine...

For those who are unfamiliar with the word, "mouneh" is an old tradition in the lebanese culture. People dry or preserve different kinds of vegetables, fruits and grains to be used during the winter months.

Years of war in Lebanon gave the "mouneh" tradition an extra kick. People had to fill their cupboards with different products in case that the local shop around the corner is not accessible.