Ideas and Travelling

So many names The Hamsa, the Hand of Fatima or the Hand of Miriam is a special good luck amulet which is thought to provide defense against the Evil Eye. While possessing different names, this amulet of the Middle East has gained its popularity almost worldwide. Hamsa from Israel The ancient Middle Eastern amulet Travelling in the Middle East you are likely to come across this symbol. It represents an eye embedded in the palm of an open hand. The palm form usually looks symmetrical, i.e. with a second thumb replacing the little finger. The Hamsa: ancient and powerful The symbol is met both in Jewish and Muslim cultures. The origin of the palm-shaped amulet has been associated with Tanit, the Great Goddess of Carthage, as well. The words “Hamsa” and “Khamsa” both stand for “five”. The symbol is believed to have special powers to bring happiness, good fortune and health for its holder. Besides, the owner of the Hamsa might avoid all negative energies, such as ...

Good Luck Charms   Nazar bracelet, Bulgaria The blue evil eye amulet is believed to protect a person from bad luck, a headache or other negative influence caused by envious people. Amulet from the Mediterranean and the Middle East The evil eye amulet, or “nazar”, represents a round sphere. It is usually dark blue with the silhouette of an eye in the middle. Today it is made of glass or plastic and can be found in various souvenir shops. However, if you go around the Middle East, you can see the nazar in women's jewelry as hamsa bracelet or necklace, hand of Fatima pendant. Such things as door-knockers and plentiful embroidery may display the devil’s eye as well. Hamsa pendants. Nazar beads. Israel What is the nazar? While the Nazar Boncuğu is a Turkish name, it is not only a Turkish tradition of owing such amulets. That’s a cultural object widely spread in Israel , Egypt, Bulgaria , Greece , India and some other countries . Nowadays the nazar is very pop...

Maslenitsa or the Pancake week is a traditional Slavonic holiday. The celebration lasts for a week which is the last week before the spring Lent. Why is it a pancake week? The answer is simple. People cook and eat pancakes the whole week each day of which has its own name. Why do they make pancakes?  Well, a good pancake is supposed to be round and yellow like the sun up in the sky. Much earlier in the pagan times the god of Sun was very powerful and meant a lot to the ancient Slavs. Joyful week of Maslenitsa Maslenitsa or the Pancake Week is still a joyful week. Every day is special. Long ago Monday was intended for making a huge straw effigy of a woman. It symbolized Winter. On Tuesday people paid visits, went sledging and enjoyed bear performances. On Wednesday sons-in-law would visit their mothers-in-law who had to be nice to their daughter’s choice of life. On Thursday people would take part in jolly events like singing, fisticuffs, snowballing and various...

“Errare humanum est” Teacher: Please read an article about Einstein. Student: Oh, I know! I know! I have seen him in Van Helsing . Teacher: I can’t say you are right. Dr. Frankenstein is a fictional character. Einstein is a scientist. Student: Oh, right. The one with a tongue out in the poster. See? No matter how much you do in your life for the society, there is likely to be someone who remembers you thanks to commercial things which are not always really clever. I am not much surprised if Che Guevara is probably recognized as a guy from some T-shirt or bag which lucky tourist brings from some trip, even though Che was a revolutionist, diplomat, military theorist etc. Audrey Hepburn’s image representing a gorgeous lady with a cigarette is met everywhere from cell phone covers to enormous bags. Is it really right to remember the great actress, humanitarian, only as a pretty woman on your dress? Art, pencil craft The more you read, the more you learn. Howeve...

Eat a banana! Cheer up! The combination of vitamin B6 and some other hard-to-be-pronounced elements in a banana helps our body produce a natural chemical called serotonin. With its numerous useful qualities serotonin is also able to allay depression. Rich in vitamin B6, potassium, fibre, magnesium, calcium and iron, bananas contain zinc, copper and almost no fat. What is more, eating a banana reduces the risk of heart troubles, heart attacks or strokes not love affairs ;) A banana may be a great addition to any dessert from fruit salad to smoothie. Here is a simple recipe of Banana Cream . Banana Cream INGREDIENTS 1 cup milk or kefir 200 g cottage cheese 2 bananas candied fruit (to your taste) DIRECTIONS Blend milk, cottage cheese and bananas. Pour the mass into cups. Add candied fruit. Enjoy your meal! Coming in a variety of sizes and colours bananas are not only yellow. There are green, brown or red bananas. Cretan bananas are famous...

Many acquaintances of mine still wonder if I ask them not to congratulate me on Christmas in December. They cannot realize that Russian people do not celebrate Christmas Day on 25 December. Well, now I am going to tell you a story… Russian Christmas Once upon a time there was the Russian Empire. In the XIX century it had lots of Christmas traditions similar to European. However, after the Great October Revolution of 1917 there happened plenty of changes. Some changes concerned the calendar. The Julian Calendar was replaced by the Gregorian Calendar. Thus, Christmas Day was removed from 25 December to 7 January. The former Christmas customs and traditions were banned as the official policy of atheism was discouraging any religious praxis. Thus, a Christmas tree became a New Year tree, St. Nikolaus turned into Grandfather Frost (Ded Moroz) and the star of Bethlehem on top of the tree was replaced by the Red star. The Soviet Union collapsed in 1991 but the New Year celebrati...

The traditional Greek salad which you can order in Greece includes tomatoes, cucumbers, feta cheese, onion, olives, salt, oregano, olive oil and a piece of Greek sun. “Greek Salad” in other countries may also contain a bell pepper, lettuce and lemon juice. Today I want to share the recipe which I use when I recollect my Greek holidays.  For 3 servings you will need: INGREDIENTS 3 tomatoes 2 cucumbers 1 onion 1 bell pepper 200 g feta cheese 200 g olives 3 tablespoons olive oil head lettuce salt, pepper and lemon juice (to your taste) DIRECTIONS Wash vegetables. Cut coarsely tomatoes, cucumber and bell peppers (putting away the seeds). Slice onion. Let it soak for 10 min in a bowl with cold water. Put some leaves of lettuce on a flat dish. Make dressing out of olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Put ingredients into a bowl, except feta cheese. Toss with dressing. Put mass onto the flat dish covered with lettuce...