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FREEISSUE 03 15 March - 15 April 2013EnvironmentYour country is what you make itFor a green Algeriayou must actHistoryINTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAYMomentous Event orShallow Celebration?Interviewwith Nouria Hafsi“ My goal is seeingAlgerian women and menin equal partnership. ”ISSN 2335-1241EducationWomen’s educationand its role on societyFor her ... but not only!

For her…Woman is this mysterious creature that since its existence has puzzled men and has made themdebate among themselves its rightful place in society. It’s been said that women are too delicateand weak, therefore they are unable to depend on themselves; they are extremely emotional andoversensitive and for this reason, it is dangerous to give them decision-making roles; they havesmaller brains which makes them unintelligent and hence they are in no position to lead. Thesetheories and assumptions that have kept popping up since the creation of man are not so hardto fathom when they are made by men. It is normal and only natural for men to be scared of theopposite sex sharing the power with them. But having women promoting these ideas is what isreally dragging us down and causing all the problems. In fact, these theories and ideas would haveno weight whatsoever if no woman believed in them.We know that throughout history women have fought for equality, that women have beenoppressed by men and denied their rights. We all know that, no need to dwell on it. The realquestion is what have the rest of the women been doing while their minority mothers, sisters anddaughters have been fighting for their rights? The answer is, most of them have been destroyingtheir work. Shocking? It is true. When we say that society is unfair to women, wealways tend to forget that half of society is made up of women. As a matterof fact, the most influential part of how society thinks is women. It is awoman who is a mother; the mother is the closest parent to the childmost of the time, and it is she who shapes most of her children’s ideasand beliefs, not only based on what she says, but on what she does.Whenever a mother treats her male children differently than herfemale children, whether by giving more freedom to her boys orgiving less power to her girls, she is planting a clear idea in theirheads of what each gender’s place in society is supposed to be, andit all starts with the ‘my boy will grow up to be the best doctor inthe world, and my beautiful girl will grow up to marry the best doctorin the world’ cliché that dreaming mothers usually love to sharewith their children over and over throughout their childhood. Andwhenever a woman accepts being stepped on and walked over becauseshe believes women must sacrifice their lives to get the blessing of theirsociety, she is taking the work of her fellow women who are fighting day andnight for their rights two steps back.Dear mother, sister and daughter, since the main reason most of you are afraid ofclaiming your place in society, which is next to men and not behind them, is because you think youare too weak to deserve it, that your mission on this planet is to please men, and that you havenothing else to offer to the world but your body; 50/Fifty dedicates this spring issue to all ofyou to show you how women from all kinds of backgrounds have been breaking barriersthroughout the ages to lead the life they want. To make you understand that noone will respect or believe in you if you don’t respect and believe in yourself.You have everything to make the world a better place; don’t waste yourtime on earth blaming your miserable life on men when you have thechoice to fix it yourself.Love, 50/Fifty TeamAziza El KoleiE-mail: eaziza@50fifty-dz.com

Publishing Directorand Editor-in-Chief:Aziza El KoleiPublishing Assistant:Messaoudene NadjatCopy Editors:Muhammad A. Al MahdiLouise BensaidDaniela MifsudGraphic Designer:Mourad BouzidWriters/Contributors:Lardjane ImeneDaniela MifsudMuhammad A. Al MahdiValentina SommellaSara MohamedLouise Bensaid, Johanna HeilIlias Rima, Gabriel LosaAouachria AbderrahimUm Faiza, Nawal RemikiRazika BenzoukhKathleen Voss WoolrichWeb developerHarkat AmirWeb designerNour Abd elsamii50/Fifty MagazineCité Les Dunes, Villa N° 399,Cheraga, Alger, AlgeriePhone Number:+213 (0) 799 215 857Website:www.50fifty-dz.comEmail Address: contact@50fiftydz.comIndexInterview withNouria Hafsi“My goal is seeingAlgerian women and menin equal partnership.”SocietyDIVORCED andthe world keepsturningEducationWomen’s education, its rolein defining their social statusand its impact on societyEnvironmentYour country is what you make itFor a green Algeria, you must actEducationWomen’s education, its role in defining their socialstatus and its impact on societyHistoryINTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAYMomentous Event or Shallow Celebration?LiteratureNostalgia, love and disappointmentMemory in the Flesh (Dhaakirat al-Jasad)Feminism in Literature : Getting out of the cageSocietyDIVORCED and the world keeps turningColumn Gabriel Losa’s TheoriesWhere have they been the whole winter?A personal opinionThis is a man’s world. Not reallyShort storiesFlowers for JuliaMedicalOvarian cysts What are they?Professional Medical EnglishCreate a spring in your step!TechnologyTOP Three High-TechsInterview with Nouria Hafsi“My goal is seeing Algerian women and men in equalpartnership.”ArtJust for Her Les Ateliers Bouffée d’ArtInner Wheel -- Alger Esperance Club“Help us to help”FashionSpring TrendsBeauty CareThe Shampoo BarA traditional way to save your hairPoetryTourismA tourist’s story By Kathleen Voss WoolrichDearest AlgeriaDelicacycinema reviews

EnvironmentYour country is what youFor a green Algeria, you mGreen is the emblematiccolor of a healthyenvironment. To keepthe Earth balanced,awareness and monitoringmust be considered; evenpatriotism plays a majorrole in carrying out thisgoal. The human raceneeds to be surrounded byand covets an ecosystemthat is safe and sound. Tomaintain crystal waters,pure air and productiveland, optimum conditionsneed to be created. Citiesaround the world designprocesses and plans inorder to reduce GHG (GreenHouse Gas) emissions andconsequently lessen globalwarming.This article is going to highlight howpeople from different countries door do not protect their environmentand what the approaches are fordeveloping a good lifestyle for certainindividuals while the unresponsivenessof certain others leads to abandonedsurroundings. There are some cities in theworld that embellish their parklands, roads,houses …etc regularly and with perfectionsuch as, for instance, Calgary. Calgary islisted top of the cleanest places in the world.Algeria, by contrast, is still a far way frombeing ‘top of the heap’.The way they do it…Calgary is located in the south of theprovince of Alberta, Canada; between theRocky Mountains and the prairies, more than1000 meters above sea level. Bow and Elbow,the two flourishing rivers, run alongside theimpeccable city, which testifies to the rainyclimate of this continent.The ecological footprint, also known asthe environmental footprint, is a verycommon unit of measurement in developedcountries. It is the impact of a person, afactory or an activity on the environment.Household appliances, transport, electricityconsumption and excessive populationgrowth all contribute to green house gasemissions. It takes years or decades to changehuman actions, habits and daily routines.Nevertheless, Calgary, like a number of othercities, is doing its best to achieve it, in starkcontrast to many Algerians who ignore theimpact of their casual neglect on the climateof our planet. The effects of day-to-day

make itust actthoughtlessness on the ecological stabilityof our own beautiful country and others is, infact, a lot more destructive than those whodisrespect ecological policies are preparedto realize. Minor acts of ignorance such aslittering the roads with dirt even when trashcans are available at every street corner areindicators of indifference on a much largerand much more devastating scale.This is how we got here…Algerians want to live in luxurious, healthy andimmaculate places. However, most of themdo not lift a finger to actually improve things.Our dear country encounters a miserableand heart-rending deficit of ecologicalawareness. Many Algerians possess their owncar claiming individual transport to be morecomfortable than traveling by bus. Sure! Butto decrease Greenhouse gas emission rates,it would be more perspicacious to use publictransport. Nevertheless, Calgary implementspreventative programs to encourage itsresidents to share one car between differentpeople, use public transport, ride a bike oreven walk -which is beneficial to our health.If they must have a car, they suggest itshould be a well tuned. Furthermore, withregards to traffic lights, conventional lampswere retrofitted with Light Emitting Diode(LED), which consume, on average, 80% lessenergy and produce brighter light. Algeria,by contrast, still uses the less ecologically fitconventional model.In 2008, Calgary enlisted to use tallow asits main of biodiesel, which has a very lowecological footprint. To lower its ecologicalfootprint, Calgary undertakes severalprograms and has developed several policies,encouraging Calgarians, for instance, tobuy locally grown or produced foods thatnecessitate less transportation to reach theshelves of a supermarket, and therefore lessGHG is emitted into the atmosphere. Besides,avoiding processed or packaged food candecrease the carbon footprint. Processedfood requires more energy to prepare, whichmeans more pollution. In Algeria, importedgroceries are in great demand because theyare better-looking from an aesthetic point ofview. This is, however, a merely psychologicaleffect: the conditioned eye sees health,modernity and safety in the beauty of foreignpackaged products. But, in order to reduce,if only by little, the pollution caused by thefossil fuels needed to transport the food,we simply have to support our farmers andbuy local organic food. (This, incidentally, isadvisable not only from the ecological pointof view.)Small steps…Electrical energy has paramountrepercussions on our habitat. We rely on itin almost every daily action. For instance,in using household appliances such asfridges, microwaves, blenders, dishwashers,etc. Electronic gadget use usually requiresa lot of energy. Though house lamps wastemore energy than compact fluorescent lightbulbs, most Algerians are still using them.The use of compact fluorescent light bulbshelps to reduce GHG emissions. One of theprojects that Calgary undertook was ‘Targetminus 5’, which enabled the reduction ofGHG emissions by 50% in 2012 compared to1990. This project adopted the EnviroSmartstreetlight retrofit program, which tooktwo years to complete between 2003 and2005.The wattage of streetlight lamps wascut down from 200 watts to 100 watts onresidential roads and from 250 watts to 150watts on collector roads.What about garbage?The Algerians favorite subject! We hearabout it wherever we go, on the radio, onthe television, outside and it appears as atopic of women’s gossip. We must act now.It does not suffice to be satisfied with tellingourselves that other Algerians are making ourcountry dirty but stay arms crossed. We can’tkeep saying that we love our country withoutacting. We must hurry up, time is runningout! Eat less packaged food; throw away lessgarbage and recycle plastic bottles to makea little start to decrease our carbon footprint.Moreover, we need to think seriously aboutrenewable energy and set up more windmillsand solar panels. We do have to protect ourforests and inaugurate more parkland sothat the excess of Carbon Dioxide in the aircan be swallowed up during photosynthesis.Also, education and popular culture have ahuge impact on the ability to change things.So, of course, do government policies aimedat providing viable alternatives. While theseare indispensable, our little article shows youwhat you personally can do to make a startright now and right here.Unity is strength. Through unity of purposeand action we can manage the pollutionproblem and work things out so as to havethe most beautiful city in the world – and letthere be no doubt. But we must act NOW.By Siham Zamouchi

EducationWomen’s education, its role in definingtheir social status and its impact on societyOne dualism thatmarks out Westernthought and carries alot of significance, isdefinitely that of maleand female. The rolesof men and women,and collaterally ofeducation, are adirect concern tomany contributorsto Western thoughtand implied in that ofmany thinkers of non-Western origin.While the great philosophers questionedcertain assumptions central to the intellectualedifice of their societies, they affirmed others.Most of these thinkers being male, therelationship between the sexes as they defineit is often a hierarchical one, either reflectingtheir explicit position or implying that it isproper for men to dominate women.Given the fact that Hellenistic thought formsan important source of classical Islamic as wellas European philosophy and that Indian andChinese philosophers equally endorse a clearand strongly hierarchical distinction betweenmale and female with regard to their socialroles and the education geared to preparethem for these, the following short summarywill focus on the teachings of some influentialHellenic and European thinkers representativeof what has been (or lies at the root of) therecent century’s mainstream philosophy.Women are inferior to menin all ways, including intellectSocrates, to begin with, on behalf of Platodeclares that females will be reared and trainedalongside males, receiving the same educationand taking on the same political roles, thoughhe acknowledges that in many respects menand women have different natures. Platoadvocates the equal education of womenin all academic disciplines, but it would beinaccurate to think that Plato believed in themodern notion of equality between the sexes.Rather, he states that women are inferior tomen in all ways, including intellect. He believedthat within each class (of which, in his conceptof an optimally organised society ruled by thephilosophers, i.e. the [spiritually] learned, theexperts, as laid down in his “Republic”, therewould be three in all) the women are inferiorto the men. So, for instance, guardian women(representing the highest class in the societyadvocated by him) would be superior to menof the two other, lower classes, but inferior tomost men of their own class.Women are unfinished menAristotle believed that women are incompletecompared to men and that woman’s characterand disposition was in a way that of an«unfinished man». Women, he postulates,are weaker both physically and mentally,and should therefore resign themselves to apassive role allowing the man to dominate.One argument Aristotle used to support thisclaim was the idea that during reproduction,«woman is passive and receptive, while manis active and productive». On the groundsof this reasoning, Aristotle believed that thechild inherits only the male characteristics andthe woman is merely the soil, while the maleis the sower, receiving and bringing forth the

seed. Aristotle believed that reproductivefunctions were a determining cause in thestatus of one’s life, and in turn believed men tobe superior and women to be inferior, due totheir biological roles with regard to conceptionand reproduction. This also led him to believethat men were more intelligent and capableof learning than women. Although he heldthe belief that men were thus inherentlymore knowledgeable than women, hedid feel that women should be educated.Yet, since he believed that men were bybiological disposition able to learn and retainmore information than women, he deniedthat women should have the same type ofeducation.Women’s highest concernshould be her appearanceThe 19th and early 20th century’s thought,on which Freud with his psychoanalyticalschool and Nietzsche with his radical, as it were‘messianic’, renewal of Western philosophyhad a formative impact, remains, as did these,largely wedded to traditional roles for women,and the two genders in general, that hadpersisted since the times of the ancient Greeks.Like those of their predecessors, however,their arguments provide new twists on orjustifications for the old stereotypes.Freud argues that the distinction betweenmasculine and feminine is not simplypsychological or social but has biologicalroots that can be traced back to the maleand female sex-cells. He asserts that duringconception the male cell is active whilst thefemale waits passively. This distinction carrieswith it important implications. Apart fromthe unique prenatally determined biologicalbasis of gender identity implied in this, thesignificance of this thesis lies in the fact thatit would provide a scientific justification ofthe contrasting social roles allotted to the twogenders, with men and women being destinedto assume the traditional roles of head of thefamily and wife and mother, respectively.Nietzsche argues against efforts to provideequal education for, and otherwise recognizeand create more rights for, women. He claimsthat belief in equality between the sexes isa result of the triumph of slave morality andthat making women more self-reliant is oneof the “worst developments in the generaluglification of Europe”. Women have steadilylost influence since the French Revolutionbecause they have retreated from their properroles and functions in society. Men should betrained to be warriors, while women shouldbe trained to be a kind of recreation for thesesame warriors, he argues. Nietzsche continuesby saying that the woman’s highest concernshould be her appearance; she should be silentwhen it comes to politics, and should generallybe regarded as man’s property, as it were.Overall, he rails against the emancipation andeducation of women as contrary to their natureand cautions them not to imitate men in anyway.Women’s disqualification forcitizenship...There are, we are told, natural and irreversiblegender differences which preclude womenfrom any active participation as citizens. This isRousseau arguing. These differences originatefrom the women’s subordinate status in thefamily, which is mirrored by their (the women’s)disqualification for citizenship. This is becausetheir thinking, according to Rousseau, is ofpractical nature, useful in domestic situationsbut lacking the kind of judgement necessaryfor public activity. Rousseau, like all the otherthinkers discussed here, draws a parallelbetween the ‘natural’ and social roles andeducation. In his book Emile, Emile, the man,is taught to be the breadwinner and preparedfor citizenship while Sophie, the woman, is tolearn how to be a good wife and mother.Women act like children fora reasonIn her book A Vindication of the Rights ofWomen, Mary Wollstonecraft argues againstthe proposition that women are naturallyemotional and intellectually inferior. Hercontention is that the lack of intellectualdevelopment in women is due to thedifferences in educational opportunitiesbetween the two sexes. While men receive anintellectual, academic education, women areleft to be educated by society, which results inthe cultivation of emotional and feminine traits.For Wollstonecraft, this ‘natural disposition’ ofwomen is artificial; a consequence of the rolessociety lays down for them. Women are fondof dress and gossip, are helpless, emotional,and weak, and act like children not because itis their nature but because they are educatedor trained to be this way. The artificiality ofgender-typical behaviour patterns is stronglycorroborated by the anthropological studiesof Margaret Mead, whose influential (field)research work established the absence ofgender-typical temperament and dispositionin societies were temperament and dispositionare not defined by gender, as well as by Marx’spioneering social and economic studies.Moreover, it is borne out, to a certain extend,by Freud himself, who goes on to stress theinfluence of social customs in the formation ofgender identity and cautions against biologicaldeterminism, pointing out as well that the“preference [for] passive aims”, by which hecharacterises the female psyche, is distinctfrom passivity.Women as alluring objectswho pay homage to menThough conceding that men may be physicallystronger by nature [albeit this concept in itselfremains contestable], Wollstonecraft assertsthat men are not content with this but insteadseek to make women inferior in other ways andrender them alluring objects who pay homageto men. Women, traditionally, have beenplaced so low in society that Wollstonecraftsees them as having sunk below the levelof rational creatures. Out of ignorance andlack of purpose then, women are attractedto the attention of men and fall for it, as it isthis approving attention that validates themas social beings and provides them with anidentity, as it were.Consequently, society has adopted a mistakennotion of what female excellence is. Shepostulates that women should be educatedto be companions for men because if not,no progress toward virtue and knowledgecan be made. Women should have the sameeducation because “truth is common to all”and all, including women, have the capacity toreason -to apply reason in a constructive andeffective manner- if given proper education.“Mistaken education, a narrow uncultivatedmind, and many sexual prejudices, tend tomake women more constant than men” thusproducing women’s social personality.The solution to these flaws, she concludes, isto extend the same educational opportunitiesto women as are given to men. Furthermore,instruction should be co-educational, withrich and poor being educated together. ForWollstonecraft, to strengthen the femalemind by enlarging it is to end women’s blindobedience to male domination and living forpleasure. The best education, then, is one thatfosters understanding, strengthens the bodyand forms the heart.By Daniela Mifsud

HistoryINTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAYMomentous Eventor Shallow Celebration?“Woman is thecompanion of man,gifted with equalmental capacity...If by strength is meantmoral power, thenwoman is immeasurablyman’s superior...If non-violence is thelaw of our being, thefuture is with women...”Mahatma GandhiAn illustrious day which gatherswomen all over the globe isthe glorious 8th of March,which was given officialrecognition by the United Nations in1975 and is celebrated worldwide.On the 8th of the third month of the yearwomen from different countries anddifferent races, celebrate the triumph overlost rights that were regained through abitter and arduous struggle over decades.A glance back…It was first referred to as the” InternationalWorking Women’s Day”. Its roots go backto the 5th of March, 1857, when workingwomen marched for the first time, in NewYork streets, protesting against inhumanworking conditions. This resulted in somepeople getting injured and other beingarrested by the police. Fifty two yearslater in 1909 the Socialist Party of Americadeclared the 28th of February, as a “national“women’s day in the US. In August 1910,the representatives of the “InternationalLabor Movement” held a meeting inCopenhagen which was led by Clara Zetkin,arevolutionary Socialist in the German SocialDemocratic Party. The meeting ended withthe decision that an annual “InternationalDay of Working Women” should be held. Itwas decided that the 19th of March serve asa commemoration of events from the pastas well as honoring women who sufferedpoor working conditions. InternationalWomen’s Day, however, was not celebrateduntil 1911, at which time it was taken up bymillions of people in Switzerland, Denmark,Germany and Australia. In 1911, Russiantextile factory workers went on strike. Thisstrike came to be known as the ‘Bread andRoses’ strike, as their women famously

joined them, carrying a banner that read:“We want bread, but we want roses too!’.In 1917 women in Russia protested oncemore and went on strike for ‘Bread andPeace’. According to the Julian calendar(the calendar used in Russia at the time), thestrike took place on the 23rd of February.After much discussion the 8th of March wasdecided upon using the Gregorian calendar(which is the one commonly used today).The strike resulted in the abdication of the Czarand the attainment of Russian women’s rightto vote. The year 1945 marked the signingof the Charter of the United Nations, in SanFrancisco, that proclaimed gender equality.Ever since, the UN has helped to create ahistoric legacy of internationally agreedstrategies, standards and goals in order toimprove the status of women worldwide.The world celebratingAlthough this event is widely commemoratedand internationally recognized it iscelebrated differently in different countries.In Palestine, Turkey, Sri Lanka and othercountries women take to the streets toprotest, whereas in Armenia, Mongolia andBurkina Faso, for instance, the ladies takethe day off. This is also the case in Algeria,with the addition of exchanging of gifts andoften a festive event. In the United States ofAmerica, where the significance of this daytends to be suppressed to be eclipsed by“Mother’s Day” and the “mom cult”, peopledonate money to non-profit organisationsto help deprived women around the world.In England, festive activities and events arecombined with educational seminars, artexhibitions and interviews with inspirational-public or individual- personalities.Theatrical performances with women’ssuffering and oppression as their theme,poetry readings, song recitals andfilm showings are also held in Pakistan.A Momentous Event?People around the globe consider this dayan opportunity to honor women’s past,economic and political achievements aswell as to acknowledge the importanceof women in society. Moreover, otherswant to raise awareness about womenenduring domestic violence, which has beenincreasing all over the world over recentyears, especially in European countries..We also need to celebrate this gloriousday to help fight illiteracy which is rife,especially in Third World countries. Lastbut not least, it is proved that women aremore likely to suffer poverty. According tostatistics 70% of the world’s poorest peopleare women. This is due to wages inequalitywhich results in their receiving low salariesregardless of the fact that women performthe same work as men in several countries.A Shallow Celebration?No one can deny the facts mentioned above,yet just one day in a whole year does not solveall the problems of female subordinationand tyranny across the world. Furthermore,regarding the United Nations’ declaration“Stand Of Peace”, there is no particulareffort being made to raise awareness ofwomen’s suffering. This may be becauseoften women themselves are not overlyinterested in these events. This heroic dayis being mostly celebrated in a shallow waythat does not ennoble it in the right mannerto reflect the struggle of women throughhistory who fought persistently in order towin the right for a more humane treatment.Women have suffered throughout historyand are still suffering worldwide fromabuse, rape and lack of education. Thisprevents them from knowing that theyhave a divine right to be free as well as tobe treated as human beings with dignity.By Sebai Asma

Algerian ActionOffering a little help to thoseliving in AlgeriaAlgerian Actionis a smallLondon-basedcharity that aimsat offering helpto those childrenand families livingin Algeria that areexperiencing theeffects of poverty.Unlike many other parts of Africa,Algeria is not a Third World country. Itis a developed (and fast-developing)one. As a country, it possesses vastnatural resources and is no doubt a wealthynation. High unemployment rates and alack of suitable housing, however, meanthat almost one quarter of the populationare currently living below the poverty lineand in inadequate conditions. These are thepeople that Algerian Action aspires to help.The charity was set up by Emma Waller fouryears ago, after she spent a holiday in Algiers.Initially, the charity only provided clothingand other essentials to new born babiesbut over time, as more and more familiesreceived aid, it was realised that it was reallythe older children of poor families who werein the direst need of assistance, as the babyclothes could be recycled and used againeach time an infant had outgrown them,whereas buying new clothes in increasinglybigger sizes was a true problem for familieswith very little income. With that in mind,the remit of Algerian Action was expandedto include babies as well as children aged0-16 years. Today, the charity still providesclothing to this age group, along withthe elderly who have no family support.They also offer assistance to those whocannot afford basic items of furniture oressential repairs to their homes, in additionto providing food to those in severe need.Algerian Action has a wide networkof supporters from all over the worldwith approximately 1,000 donationsbeing received every month. The charitycurrently has 20 volunteers based in theU.K. and Algeria who help collect anddistribute donations and generally helpto promote the work of Algerian Action.Everyone involved gives their time andskills freely and nobody receives paymentof any kind for the help they provide.In addition to the charity’s general workof providing essentials to those in need,a number of special projects are regularlyorganized, including this year’s Eid Appeal,which has just been launched. The charityis asking for donations of small toys, sweets,balloons - all the things that childrenlove! It is planned that a total of 500 giftparcels will be distributed to children inAlgiers at Eidu’l Fitr. These children willlargely be from poor families. However,Eid gifts will also be given to childrenin orphanages and to some in hospitals.Funding has recently been secured to starta new scheme later this year, which willprovide fresh fruit on a fortnightly basis tofamilies in dire need. Initially the project willcater for a limited number of families and willbe gradually expanded to include all thosewho receive assistance from Algerian Action.If you would like to support the work of AlgerianAction in any way, to donate, volunteer, tohelp spread the word, or if you know a childor family in need, please do get in touch.For further information visit www.algerianaction.co.uk

LiteratureNostalgia, love and disappointmentMemory in the Flesh(Dhaakirat al-Jasad)Arab womenwriters haveshown theircreativity,literary taste andtheir aestheticability. Theywent fromwritingas anart towriting asa message.They were able to present theArab world through their literaryproductions and to express what wasinside them. Ahlem Mostaghanemiwas one of those revolutionary authors.She was named “Most distinguished Arabwoman” in 2006. She wrote for a reason andher works went beyond being just love stories.They were a portrait of a nation’s struggle.Mostaghanemi’s award winning novel, aMemory of the Flesh (Dhaakirat al-Jasad)was the first novel written by an Algerianwoman in Arabic. First published in 1985,the novel came to be very popular in theArab world and aroused worldwide interestwhen it was translated into other languages.The novel starts with the narratingvoice of Khaled, whohas lost his love andis writing his ownnovel in response tothe publication ofa novel written byAhlem, his formerlover. Khaled was apainter who foughtin the Algerianrevolution. Hewas a close friendof Si Taher, afreedom fighterand the fatherof Ahlem,w h o s ename wasregisteredby Khalidinsteadof herfather.After the Algerianrevolution, Khaled left for France andbecame a painter and a famous artist inParis. He was later reunited with Si Taher’sdaughter at an art Gallery in France. ForKhaled, Ahlem represents his hometown.Ahlem epitomizes all of Khalid’s memoriesof his childhood, hometown and family. Shebecame a portrait of Constantine, Khalid’shometown, and he soon fell in love withher. She made Khaled go back and forthbetween the past that was full of memoriesand the present that was full of love andpassion. But Ahlem and Khalid’s story wasnot only about love. It was also a story abouthopes, desires, nostalgia, disappointmentand the struggle between generations.Ahlem simply appeared in Khaled’s life tointerrupt his present. She connected himto his past and was able to build a bridgebetween him and his country. However,Khaled was soon disappointed as hesuddenly realized that Ahlem belongedto a different generation. A generationthat presented a Constantine differentto the one that existed inside him.“Memory in the Flesh” went beyond thescope of a love affair to talk about thestruggle of a country and the strugglebetween generations. The novel was allabout memories after the revolution. Itwon the Naguib Mahfouz Prize for literaturein 1998. Mostaghanemi made peoplerecognize the Algerian struggle againstforeign domination and the identity crisisthat dominates the ‘post-independence’nation. Thus, she was able to gainimportant status among the outstandingwomen writers around the world.By Imene Lardjane

LiteratureFeminism in LiteratureGetting out of the cageWomen have beenfighting for their rightsfor centuries. They haven’tbeen asking for muchbut merely to be treatedwith the same amount ofrespect men have beentreated with. Womentried so hard to make theirvoices heard.However, it often seemed that theonly thing that could make peoplestop and listen was literature.Literature has always been the mostpowerful weapon in women’s struggle foremancipation and has played a major partin the advancement of feminism over theyears. The written word elevated to the artof literature in its many forms is, of course,predestined to spark controversy, as somepeople may agree with a piece of work whileothers criticize it. In other words, a work ofliterature has the potential to get peopletalking, be it in praise or condemnation.In any case, people who communicate arebound to speak as well as listen, and if anauthor’s voice captured on the pages of abook has produced such an effect she hasachieved the one and exclusive goal of herart.A Doll’s HouseOne of the most important literary works inthe feminist context (though not written by awoman) is “A Doll’s House” by Hendrik Ibsen,a play about a woman named Nora who ismarried to a selfish, oppressive husband,and her search for “freedom”. At first, herdefinition of freedom exhausts itself in beingfree from her debt in order to fully dedicateherself to her family but in the course ofthe play she discovers herself as a personwith ambitions and needs of her own andbegins to claim a more thorough, sovereignkind of freedom, namely freedom from heroppressive marriage itself. Consequently, theplay ends with her leaving her husband. “ADoll’s House” was considered a disgrace inliterature by some at the time, as the notion

of a woman opting out of a social institutionas sacred as marriage seemed quitescandalous by the standard of the era. It maybe amusing to imagine the reaction of Ibsen’scontemporaries if they were confronted withpresent-day divorce statistics. Surely, we willnever know what they would make of it;indeed, keeping a marriage going is not aforte of our own contemporaries. Of course,to 19th century critics the question of howa husband treated his wife, as exemplified inthe play, was of no particular relevance. Norais, quite typically, hardly more than a pieceof furniture in her husband’s house. Andwomen, the “decorative sex”, as Oscar Wildeput it, were indeed “living inventory” in ages(not so long) past.A Room of One’s OwnAnother literary work that espouses feministideas was Virginia Woolf’s “A Room ofOne’s Own”, an essay in which the authorfamously asserts that a woman needs tohave “money and a room of her own if sheis to write fiction.” The iconic Woolf achievednotoriety by simply claiming financial andintellectual independence for women,centering her argumentation on womanwriters. A woman, she points out, needs tobe financially independent in order to beable to afford a place to call her own whichfor a writer is a very important preconditionto work, develop her creativity and turnout the masterpieces that a world whichdeprives her of this most basic sovereigntyaccuses her of not producing. Woolf arguesin her essay that women can create fictionas magnificent as that of Shakespeare. In atime when women were seen as creatureswith “limitations”, Woolf dared to assert, withall confidence, that given the removal ofeconomic limitations all the limitations thatcircumscribe women’s intellectual life wouldbe swept away and a 19th century womanwriter would be able to produce works thatequal those of the greatest playwright of alltimes. Woolf herself had received no formaleducation because her father believed thatonly boys of the family should go to school.So we can easily understand her frustrationas a woman, which clearly features as a keymotive in her life and work, having renderedher acutely aware of the importance ofeducation as the sine qua non in the woman’sstruggle for emancipation.It is obvious that under circumstances offundamental, socially cemented inequalityliterature is the only forum which allowsthe oppressed and muted to articulate thereality of their lives, and so literature has forcenturies been the only voice to advocateequality between men and women. We haveseen, from those two examples, how a manand a woman -two people from oppositeends of the divide, as it were- could think andexpress the same thoughts, perceiving thesame need for fundamental justice, based onthe realization that a society that suppresseshalf of its population can never develop to itsfull potential.Any girl today who doubts her worth orbelieves that her life or personal valuedepends on a man’s approval or financialsupport may read “A Room Of One’s Own”and be inspired, by the book, to realize thatwomen if they so choose are able to supportthemselves and attain full independence inall aspects of life. A woman who finds herselfprisoner of a husband who denies her theright of self-realization may find inspirationin Nora of the “Doll House” and draw theconclusion that there are no values for theirown sake, nor is there a prison wall thatcannot be brought down.Although many people in many cultureshave tried to silence women who demandtheir rights no one can ever silence literature.Literature will out-live men and womenboth and will live to bear witness to society’sinjustices in every age.By Sara Mohamed

SocietyDIVORCED and theworld keeps turningWomen in ourworld have toface differentchallengesthroughouttheir lives. Theyexperiencemoments ofeuphoria andothers of sadness.They learn aboutlife and from allsides.Since it is often said that women areborn to get married, many women feeltheir life has ended when the husbandpronounces the word “divorce”.Therefore, many girls nowadays dream ofgetting higher degrees and of showingtheir skills and their capacity to go forwardin their communities because they haveseen how society treats a divorced woman.That’s why they are doing everything tonot become dependent on men in caselife turns sour. Nevertheless, some womencannot bear to be divorced and cannot notcontinue their life because they lack thatwill and determination to carry on towardssuccess. However, there are still somewho have shown their strength and theirpower to be successful in their daily life. InAlgeria, for instance, the word ‘divorced’no longer holds the same weight as it didin the past - although many still considera divorced woman to be less of a woman,and therefore many stay in a miserablemarriage for the sake of economic and socialsecurity. For many Algerian women, it isimportant to know the value of a peacefullife if suffering, instability and violencebecome part and parcel of their life. In thiscase divorce is the only option and a realopportunity for them to get their lives back.As shocking as the idea of divorce sounds, itis not necessarily going to pan out harmfully.In fact, there are a lot of divorce successstories in our society. We do not know what

the exact ratio is with divorce successstories versus non-success ones.However, it is essential to say that thereis always light at the end of the tunnel.The Beginningwas Difficult, but…Saida D., 30 years old, with tearsfilling her eyes, told us how it wasdifficult for her at the beginning tohear others criticizing her because shewas divorced. Nevertheless, becauseshe felt that it was not the end of theworld, she decided to get her Bac(Baccalaureate), which she succeededin doing. After four years’ study atuniversity, she got her bachelordegree in Arabic language andliterature. Fortunately, she found a jobas a teacher at a secondary school sothat she could earn a living to providefor her young children’s needs,since their father appeared to haveforgotten about them. She neededto live instead of just passing time.Saida is proud of herself today; herkids and her work mean a lot to her.Life is a Battle!Roukiya B., 40 years old, is anotherexample of patience and success. Lifeto her is one long battle she has towin. Roukiya left school at an early agebecause of hard circumstances. At theage of 18, she got married; however,she did not know at that time that thiswas when her real suffering wouldbegin. Though she was tasting thebitterness of life each day, Roukiya was afraidof getting divorced because she believedthat she had to make a sacrifice for the sakeof her four children who would be a burdenon her and her family if she thought of askingfor her freedom from the frightening worldshe found herself in. Nonetheless, she couldnot continue thinking like that. With the helpof her neighbors, she succeeded in askingfor a divorce and putting an end to hertragic story with her uncaring husband. Inthe beginning it was so difficult for Roukiyawho decided to learn a handicraft so thatshe could protect her kids and to give thema chance to continue their studies. Weavingis the craft she feels at home with, and it hasgiven her the opportunity to change herbitter life into a colorful one. Her childrenare growing up in front of her eyes. Roukiyafeels that she really is a super woman. Thelove of her kids and her job keep her going.Change is Needed!Mounira M., 43 years old, told us that shehad not been happy for years. Arrangedmarriages are quite normal in her smallvillage, but her experience was so traumaticthat she could not bring herself to talk to usabout it. However, she did tell us that she isnow in a great place having picked herselfup and put away all her sad memories. Afterthe divorce, Mounira bought a small houseand started her own business selling secondhand furniture. She also built a nice familyand could finally enjoy her time with hertwo sons. Now, she is completely convincedthat everything happens for a reason.Life is full of many role models like Saida,Roukiya and Mounira who have facedhardships. Though they have differentcareers, characters and lifestyles, onething brings these women together: theywant a better future for their counterparts.They want to see real changes in women’sconditions in Algeria. They know thatAlgerian women are empowered and able tomake a significant change by themselves inthe future since their worries and dreams arethe same. We are not encouraging divorce.We are aware that one of the problems ofour age is that divorce and the institutionof marriage as such is often taken much toolightly -which in itself is the source of manyof the conflicts that necessitate divorce- andwe believe that parents should do their bestto keep their family together, but if stayingtogether is turning the family’s life into hell,women should not be ashamed to carry onon their own just like men do without beingafraid of people’s judgments once they realizethat that is best for them and their children.Razika Benzoukh

ColumnGabriel Losa’s TheoriesWhere have theythe whole winter?Dear 50/FiftyMagazine,This is a document ofextreme importance.I had a revelationand everybody hasto know about it.At first, I didn´tbelieve it either, butreality hit me like ahammer and mademe realize… mmm…something. I´m notsure what, yet.Iam trying to post this documenteverywhere and your magazine is aperfect place to start. You guys are wellknown already, have an open mind, lotsof readers and, to be honest, the otherpublications rejected me.A horrible strategy is being carried out by…to be honest, I have no idea about that either.What strategyam I talking about?For some reason, someone is hiding all thepretty ladies during the winter and releasingthem at the beginning of spring.It appears that during the winter all we seeis girls with sad faces, uncombed hair anddeformed bodies because of the numerouslayers of clothing they are wearing.But all of a sudden, as soon as the first raysof sunshine appear, so do they. Beautifulwomen wearing spring dresses, skirts,tops… haven`t you noticed that?You guys, wouldn’t you say that there areway more cute girls walking the streets ofthe city now than a few months ago?You girls, aren´t you way more jealouslately?

eenidiotic around girls and, in order to try tomake them notice us (or help us forget themafter they rejected us), buy more drinks?Maybe it is some idiotic plan to make fun ofus while our girlfriends give us a hard timebecause our mischievous eyes can´t helplooking at a pair of legs with a girl attachedto them.Perhaps it is one of those useless collegestudies to prove our IQ gets lowered by atleast twenty points in the vicinity of a hot girlafter long periods of solitude?I have to unmask this web of deceit!I have to tell everyone what I know.That isn´t much, to be honest. But, as youcould see, I have lots of theories!In order to save money on clothes, keep ourgirlfriends from dumping us, avoid going tohell on earth (the gym, of course) and, aboveall, to enjoy a nice view the whole year round,we have to find out what´s going on!The best thing to do would beto interrogate one of those girlsAsk them where they come from, what istheir purpose and where do they find suchshort dresses. But I face a terrible obstacle. Idon´t dare to.You would think I´m obsessed with women,that I have “issues”. Well, that is not true. Mymom says I´m a perfectly normal 43 year oldman, that I´m the most beautiful guy in theworld and that I can stay living with her allthe time I want.It’s this Machiavellianstrategy!Like I said, I still don´t know who or whyare they doing this (The North Koreangovernment, maybe?-, or the CIA, or secret(and for some reason hidden and inactive for30 years) parts of the KGB), although I havea few ideas:It could be a strategy intended to proveglobal warming. They know that our bodytemperature goes through the roof whenwe see girls. In this way, conservationistenthusiasts can show the world the earth isgetting warmer and warmer and keep bigcompanies from polluting it.Or maybe it is a plan elaborated by cosmeticsgroups and clothing stores to make regulargirls spend lots of money to look good andthat way give a boost to the economy.Speaking of looking good, another meanorganization that can make both genders actlike slaves to their looks are gym franchises.Regular girls will try hard to look like thosegoddesses that came out of nowhere and wemen will try to look good for them. We all willsweat like mad.What about a strategy designed by themanufacturers of booze to make us (more)

A personal opinionEvery day womenare reminded, inone way or anotherthat this is a worldpredominately ruledby men. Furthermore,women are alsoreminded of theirspecific role in society:that of being itsnurturer. For so manycenturies women hadto take care of themale-ruled societyand their offspring.This is a man’s wWho has never heard, andprobably more than once,the phrase “This is a man’sjob”?There are quite a few women though,who do not bear the stigma of thetypical woman. On the contrary, theyfit the profile very few men manage tofit. This is mainly for one specific reason.They are successful and they owe theirsuccess to their willingness to fightwhatever obstacles come their way.Bear in mind that most of these womenwere not born under a lucky star or inthe most favourable conditions. Mostof those who managed to imposethemselves on what could be seen asa “male playground”, have had to facechallenges from the day they were bornbecause of society, their families or theirsocio-historical conditions.Examples can be found almosteverywhere. These women are easilyrecognizable although much dependson the place where they live and thetype of society engulfing them. Mostof these women fight their own battles

orld. Not reallyevery day, from working and beingsingle mums, to being leaders trying tochange the world.She married scienceThere is one woman in particular thoughto whom this article is a tribute. She wasa scientist, a person that revolutionizedscience, who “survived” her sociohistoricalconditions, despite beingdeported to Auschwitz. Above all, shewas a person who dedicated her life tothe advancement of society and science.This scientist was called Rita LeviMontalcini and she was an Italianscientist who “married” science andmade it her husband for over 50 years.She decided not to have a husband andchildren but to make science her lifelonglove and passion instead. She alwaysbelieved in being a free woman, despitehaving been educated in a “Victoriansociety” (as it were), dominated by men.In that era, the role of women did notoffer that many possibilities. However,she always believed that men andwomen had an equal intellect with justa different approach.After having fought to represent womenin a field that is otherwise known as tobe dominated by men, she was neverdiscouraged. On the contrary, she alwaystried to stimulate scientific research insuch a way that both young people andespecially women were involved in it.Having thus been socially active as well,she tried to instil a sense of responsibilityin science towards society and peoplethemselves.Witness to this is thecreation of her foundation, aimed athelping, above all, women from Africa.This is achieved by giving them grantsto study which leads these women tobecome pivotal in their own countriesby taking leadership roles in all aspectsof their societies.Rita Montalcini, I believe, represents ablatant example of how the strength andstubbornness of a woman can overcomeobstacles. Most of the time obstacles areimbedded in how society conceives anddefines the role of women. Society easilyputs labels on them because they are inone particular situation or another.Her legacy..She died recently in Italy at the respectfulage of 103 years old after having being ascientist, a neurobiologist, a researcherand a 1986 Nobel Prize Winner forMedicine. The latter was due to herdiscovery of the NGF or “Nerve GrowthFactor”, a protein that is involved in thegrowth of the nervous system and is stillbeing studied. It has been demonstratedthat it can be used to cure specific typesof tumours.She once said: “The future of the planetdepends on the possibility to give allwomen access to education and toleadership. As a matter of fact, it is upto women to carry out the hardest taskof all but the more constructive yet: toinvent and to manage Peace”.I do believe it is indeed up to womento cover specific roles because theyare, in fact, very good and intelligentat bearing these so-called labels. Theypossess a specific intelligence anddetermination that comes from within,from the core of their identity -as humanbeings and as women-, and that is why,as Rita Montalcini said, they are able toovercome difficulties by creating andmanaging peace.By Valentina Sommella

Short storiesFlowers for JuliaWinter.Winter is a woman who lives on long afterher soul has died. Her heart is mute andheavy with bitterness. It begrudges theearth her stony sweetness and her flowers,her ever-fertile, fiery passion and the eternalvirginity of her longing. Thoughts flowslowly in winter. Their essence is the smokeof casually lit cigarettes and the hot steamof a kettle heated over the open fire in AbuGhassan’s winter dwelling, an empty oldcaravanserai into which he moves with hisfamily from December to March. Like thespirit of the summer, he retires there towait for the spring when the freedom ofopen deserts and precious palm-shaded,organge-scented oases is attained onceagain.Thirsty cattle our hearts are in the winteruntil one day the night breaks open and thesun of a summer morning stuns them as adelicate, soft breeze caresses their skin, lightas the touch of a bride on a wedding night.And how would skin and soul not burn withthe longing for this caress? What, indeed, islife but skin and soul?It is on a winter day resplendent with AbuGhassan’s open fire that Julia flares up onthe shores of my soul like a red flame. Onthe island of Cyprus, the island where allpaths cross, some hundred odd kilometresdistant from Abu Ghassan and the JordanianDesert, two pairs of eyes meet in a song. Forthe first time. Perhaps for the last. The linesof a French love song cover a life’s distance,from wide-eyed Mediterranean seascapesand palaces of the wind in the desert to thesnow-covered expanse of Soviet landscapes.From vastness to vastness; from the Eastthrough the West, to the East. All dreamsand all human hope gravitate to the sun.A man’s and a woman’s eyes. What else isthere? What else could there be? And nowJulia’s song adopts the blurred cadences ofEnglish speech and becomes a new song:«I am a woman in loveAnd I’d do everythingTo draw you into my worldAnd to keep you within...»Julia, whose voice is spring, whose eyesare summer. She is singing for him. Theaudience ceases to exist, and so doesthe distance between stage and viewer’sseats and everything beyond these wordsspoken as a song in this moment. Theirlives’ distances cover the distances of otherlives, the encounter of their eyes enclosesother eyes’ encounters. Foolish heart! Youare deceiving yourself and you know it. Andyet there is a moment whose existence noone can deny. And there is Julia. Julia of theblood of Roxellane, who was Hurem Sultan.Julia. What’s the words of a song? What, thesound of a name? «That which we call a roseby any other name would smell as sweet.»«Hurem Sultan», echoes the voice ofSulaiman Al Qanuni in meditative rapture.Sultan Sulaiman the splendour of whoseyearning was immortalised by the hand ofSinan. «What can you do?», he had askedher when she was first brought before himas a captive. «I read the Quran and I recitepoetry», she had answered, «But this alone isnot why I have come to this world.»«What else could there be to a woman’slife but read the Quran and recite poetry»,Mah-e-Devran, the padishah’s favourite,

had exclaimed in indignation and fearwhen her eyes encountered for the firsttime the Ruthenian pride in the eyes of herrival, their colour the crystal sharpness of amountain lake and their swiftness that of afalcon. A falcon like Sulaiman himself. «Sheshall tear your wrists», Mah-e-Devran hadwarned, «I am a dove. Prey on me. Tear mysoul to pieces. Love me. Whichever way youplease. My heart is your cushion. I aspire fornothing. What have I ever withheld but youasked for it and I gave it to you? Why thenare you turning your looks away from menow? Why are they resting on her?»Angrily the sultan had turned his head toface her: «Does a lover ask for justice?!»Roxellane had looked at her like one looks ata corpse, seeing through her, beyond her.«All my life», Roxellane had then addressedthe sultan, «all my life was a waiting. I am aworld that longs to be. Your hands are theHigh Porte and your eyes, the splendourof civilisation: driven, drunk, universal,merciless endeavour. I see you well. You arethe tide. But I am the clay that moulds thesculptor. Clay, marble, stone - it couldn’tmatter less. I am the swimmer that navigatesthe sea. My skin aches for your touch. Yet, Icannot be yours before you have seen me.»«What does it take for a man to see awoman?»«A life, Sultan» she had smiled, «or manylives.»«Who are you?», he had asked, intrigued andshe had remained silent, and her silence wasthe smile of a sphinx.«Hurem Sultan», he had pronounced herOttoman name for the first time, «HuremSultan of the rose-like smile. This is yourname in my heart.»«Call me Hurem Sultan and I shall respond.Yet, I am not Hurem Sultan.»«A slave like me!!!», Mah-e-Devran cried out,her heart a sparrow in the throes of death,«A slave like me and less than I!»«You are», Sulaiman had said with a firmnessthat belied the shock and the astonishmentin his eyes, «my fate.»«What I want», Julia notes down in her diary,«is already mine.»Her dancing, reed-like shape illuminatedby the silky softness of her flame-red dressis like a silhouette painted in sparks overAbu Ghassan’s open fire. Come and taste ofmy sweet black coffee, green tea with mint,kuftah in vine leafs, sweets with rose water,rice with almonds, shish kebab. Sit with usand let us reminisce. Come to the palace ofthe winds. I am a world that longs to be.«Mah-e-Devran is the woman that is nomore», Hurem Sultan smiles, «But my heartcalls her mother and I think of her withcompassion. I call her my sister, my shadow.There is a wall that limits us, love. This wallis the harem in whose sacrosanct chambersthe old law is guarded: your mother, Sultan,and your son. It must crumble and perishfor the High Porte to become the SupremePorte. For you, Sultan Sulaiman, to becomeSulaiman Al Qanuni, for me to become,through you, myself, whom you call HuremSultan.»«My heart grieves for them», Sulaiman sighs,«for they are my elders, my mother, my son.»«Does a lover ask for justice?!»«Ah», rises the sultan’s melodic, heavy voicelike a red flame in the deep of time, «Whatis this love that made Alexander cross theearth from one end to the other until he hadreached the Hindukush and become Dhu’lQarnain?»«It is I», responds Hurem Sultan, «I, Wholongs to be.»And Sulaiman Al Qanuni, having surpassedthe era into which he was born, abandonedthe limitations of the old code and disposed,with the melancholy firmness of the wise,even of the dearest among his enemies,raised Hurem Sultan to the rank of hisqueen, and when his hand had forced openthe fortress of Konstantinople and wasimmortalised in the beauty of the mosquethat bore his name, designed by the ecstatichand of his grand architect Sinan, heexclaimed: «Oh Solomon, I have surpassedthee! For thy falcon, Hurem Sultan, wasat my wrist.» And bowing in honour offriends and enemies fallen, Hurem Sultanremembers their souls: «Their grandeurand their smallness, their sorrow, theirtriumph and humiliation are immortal inus, for everything they have been lives ineverything we have become. Those werethe path and we, the goal, waiting to besurpassed.»«Hurem Sultan», Sultan Sulaiman’s voicesings over vermouth-covered steppes,descending like dew from the peaks ofCaucasian mountains and, echo-like, itreverberates on the waters of Volga, Dneprand Don and is mirrorred in the Euphratis,the Nile, the Red Sea...Julia bows, her smile the caress of a summernight. A red rose in the deep of time. Sherides on her audience’s applause like asurfer on blue-green waves -and hesitatesfor a moment before leaving the stage. Inthis moment their eyes meet for the lasttime and her looks communicate a rhetoricquestion.This, he realises, is the moment to bring herflowers. ‘One flower, one flower of all theflowers of this world, and I can come to thestage for our story to begin. Just one littleflower ya Abu Ghassan, and the world couldbe mine.’Julia turns back, leaves, immmortalisedin his heart, disappears behind the stageand has conquered. ‘What I want’, sheremembers her diary entry, ‘is already mine.Be it a temple, be it a song, be it a momentin a poet’s heart.’Just one flower ya Abu Ghassan...for love is aworld that is longing to be.And like the echo of a smile he feels thepresence of Abu Ghassan, his old friend,warming himself over the open fire on awinter day, and speaking words with thearoma of sweet black coffee, green tea withmint, shish kebab and sweets with rosewater: «What’s in a flower? That which wecall a rose by any other name would smellas sweet.»By Muhammad A. Al Mahdi

MedicalOvarian cysts, whichare fluid-filled sacsthat form on or inthe ovaries, mostcommonly affectwomen in theirchildbearing years,according to theU.S. Department ofHealth and HumanServices Office onWomen’s Health.Ovarian cystsWhat are they?Although ovarian cysts generallyaren’t cancerous, women whoexperience them are more likelyto experience pain and otherundesirable symptoms.What are the signs and symptoms?Signs and symptoms which are commonwith cysts include painful menstruation,abdominal pain and bloating, painful sexualintercourse, irregular periods, painful bowelmovements, and nausea and vomiting.What causes them?Functional cysts are the most common typeof cysts and these form during ovulationfrom excessive levels of oestrogen in thebloodstream.Polycystic ovary (PCOS) cysts,endometriomas (which are caused byendometriosis), cystadenomas, and dermoidcysts are all types of ovarian cysts which arecaused by things other than ovulation.Some cysts are hereditary but others havebeen attributed to a number of other causessuch as an altered immune system, insulinresistence, environmental toxicity, obesity,hormonal imbalance or poor diet.What can the doctor do?The Mayo Clinic suggest that there’s nodefinite way to prevent the growth of

ovarian cysts but advise women to undergoregular pelvic examinations to help ensurethat changes in your ovaries are diagnosedas early as possible.When women experience functional cysts,birth control pills may be recommended.No medical evidence has proven that birthcontrol pills prevent ovarian cysts fromforming but some doctors still prescribethem to women who suffer from thisproblem to suppress ovulation in the hopesof preventing cysts.It’s important to know that suppressingovulation will not prevent types of cystswhich form as a result of conditions and notovulation.What can I do to helpmyself?In addition to pelvic examinations, bealert to changes in your monthly cycle,including symptoms that may accompanymenstruation that aren’t typical for you orwhich persist over more than a few cycles.If you suspect that you could have an ovariancyst, it’s important to make an appointmentwith your gynecologist right away. Whilemost cysts are nothing more than anannoyance, others do require treatment. Thesymptoms of ovarian cysts also tend to besimilar to other conditions, so it’s importantto get a proper diagnosis.There is a plethora of information on theinternet about natural remedies to preventovarian cysts from forming, however, thisshould only be considered in consultationwith your healthcare provider and never as asubstitute for qualified medical advice.Some of the main areas suggested for thenatural prevention of ovarian cysts include:A Healthy DietAs a diet high in animal products and highlyprocessed foods has been show to affectfemale reproductive hormone levels in thebloodstream, these should be reduced.Many articles also advise a reduction of soyand dairy.Whole foods, nutrient dense food and freshraw fruit, vegetables and nuts should beincreased as these are high in fibre whichreduces excess oestrogen in the body.Avoid plastic containersAccording to some sources, drinking fromplastic bottles and eating from plasticTupperware containers can also increaseoestrogen levels!ExerciseExercise is one of the easiest and most naturalways to restore the body’s equilibrium.Supportive HerbsMaca root (Lepidium meyenii), Black Cohoshroot (Actaea racemosa), Dong Quai root(Angelica sinensis),Milk Thistle seed (Silybummarianum), Tribulus, aerial parts and fruit(Tribulus terrestris), Vitex, Chaste treeberry (Vitex agnus-castus), Wild Yam root(Dioscorea villosa) and Yarrow aerial parts(Achillea millefolium). These herbs belowhave been found supportive for supportingproper menstrual cycles, reduction inovarian pain, increased circulation to thereproductive organs and supportive of liverfunction.Castor Oil PacksCastor Oil Packs are an ancient therapy thathelps to cleanse and heal the body wherethey are placed. The castor oil has a drawingpower the clears the body of excess tissuesand toxins. Castor oil packs stimulate thelymphatic and circulatory system. Thelymphatic system removes toxins and wastefrom the area stimulated by the castoroil pack. The promotion of circulation bythe castor oil pack will also bring in freshoxygenated, nutrient rich blood to thereproductive organs, including the ovaries.This is vital to reducing and dissolving ovariancysts. Do not use during menstruation.Try DetoxificationAs some cysts are believed to be caused byan imbalance in the body, detoxificationtherapy has been suggestedLouise Bensaid

Professional Medical EnglishAnswers to the Case Study in Issue 2Welcome to the MedicalEnglish pages for boththe general public andhealth professionalsalike. Health questions,case studies, interviewsand health promotionto educate, challengeand inform.1. List the other clinical signs that maybe picked up during the preliminaryexamination that indicate the need fora more thorough examination of therespiratory system?- Nicotine staining (malignancy, chronic- obstructive pulmonary disease - COPD)- Unilateral wasting of small muscles ofhands (apical lung cancer)- Asterixis (hypercapnoea)-Pyrexia (infection, endocarditis)- Tachycardia (infection)-Dry, inflamed eyes (may be a sign ofautoimmune disease affecting the lungs)- Central cyanosis (hypoxia)- Lymphadenopathy (infection, malignancy)2. Why would it also be important toexamine the cardiovascular system?It is not possible to tell from the historywhether the increasing symptoms aredue to respiratory or cardiac or both. Alsoconsider mental health examination in viewof possible depression due to his increasingsymptoms and the recent death of his wife3. Why is the slow pulse rate ofsignificance here?Patient is taking Atenolol. It does not appearto be achieving the appropriate reductionin blood pressure and may be causingthe slow pulse rate, resulting in reducedcardiac output and fatigue. It may also beexacerbating COPD4. Assuming the examination ofspecific systems is unremarkable, whatare your differential diagnoses at thisstage?May be one or several co-existingpathologies:- Chronic uncontrolled hypertension causingonset of heart failure- Worsening COPD with heart failure- Ischaemic heart disease- Malignancy

Create a spring in your step!The cold, wet,Winter monthsare drawing toa close as weeagerly await theopportunity toditch our bootsand shoes for morepedal exposure.But how do we avoid the horrorsof excessive skin build up of thecuticle, dry and crusty skin, bunionsand calluses? And how we can do itwithout spending a small fortune?Step out in style with our tips for fit-flop andsandal season confidence:- SoakStart your pampering session with anessential oil foot bath to soften your skinand get you in the zone for some precious‘me’ time! Lavender and camomile are bothknown for their relaxing qualities. For amoisturising soak try 1 part honey, 2 partsmilk mixed with 6 parts of hot water........yummy!- Remember your nailsAfter soaking, apply a cuticle softening oil orcream and gently push back the cuticles.Try mixing equal measures of natural clay,cold pressed oil and a couple of drops ofessential oil and massage into the cuticlesbefore pushing them back using an orangewood stick or the nails of the other hand.Daily dabs of your chosen product on thenail base will prevent dry and crackedcuticles. Once your pedicure is complete,make a statement with your chosen colourof nail varnish.- ExfoliateUse a pumice stone, heel scrub or terracottascrubber to slough off the dry, dead skinfrom the bottom of your feet rememberingto focus on your heels, toes and ball of thefoot.Scrubs can be worked into the feet well andthen rinsed. A couple of simple home-madeversions include an equal mix of brown sugarand almond oil or the addition of sand toyour normal lotion. Lemons can also be usedto treat calluses by either securing the peelson your heels with bed socks or a bandagefor 2-3 nights or rubbing the juice onto theaffected area.- Hydrate / MoisturiseIt’s important to replenish the moisture lostby exfoliating to prevent dry, cracked andchafed skin as well as blisters and calluses.A good foot cream will leave your tootsiessilky soft and smooth. Shea and cocoa butter,glycerine and lanolin and olive oil are allnatural moisturisers.Let your favourite foot concoction workwonders whilst you sleep by moisturisingwell, then applying a pair of cotton socks.Whilst you drift off to the land of nod, yourmoisturiser will be working hard. Take carein the morning that your super silky solesdon’t slip you up! Prevent moisture loss bynot walking around barefoot, especially inthe cold.- Avoid smelly feetKeeping your feet clean and dry will avoidnasty odours developing. Avoid closedfootwear and synthetic materials wherepossible. A foot powder will soak up excessmoisture especially from between the toes.Corn starch can act as a cheap alternativeto commercial products and the addition offinely chopped fresh mint leaves will add are-vitalising ‘zing’!- ExerciseDepending on the type of footwear worn overthe winter period, tendons and ligamentscan become tightened or stretched.Avoid plantar fascilitis by rolling a tennis ballback and forth along the floor with the soleof your foot. A golf ball will deliver a deepermassage.Loosen any areas of tension within the footby raising yourself onto your toes and thenlower your feet back to the ground bendingyour knees.- Keep to a regular regimeWhether once a day or once or week, try tokeep to a regular regime and keep those feetand nails perfectly pampered.- Avoid spending a fortuneUse the internet to search for natural homemadefoot care products to ensure you canafford to invest in the stylish treads yourperky pinkies and precious pedal padsdeserve!!By Louise Bensaid

TechnologyTOP Three High-TechsInnovation and moreversatility in technologyand software solutionsare becoming increasinglyimportant as morepeople become exposedto touch screen laptops,convertibles and hybrids.Manufacturers arestarting to realize that itmakes sense for a deviceto support multipleinput types to enable theuser to select the mostappropriate input type forthe task at hand. Thereare, for example, taskswhich fit the «voice» inputtype (like when you’redriving or jogging andneed to operate handsfree)even though it maynot be the best input typeto use all the time.The same applies to the HP EliteBookRevolve, the first high-tech we’regoing to review in this month’sedition, which is designed to runMicrosoft’s latest consumer operating system(Windows 8). This new convertible device canalmost instantly transform from a notebookto a tablet and vice versa, making it a perfectchoice for people who primarily want to useit as a laptop and just have a tablet modefrom time to time. This convertible makesfar more sense than carrying around bothlaptop and iPad if you’re not a heavy tabletuser.The HP EliteBook RevolveThe HP EliteBook Revolve which representsthe ninth generation of HP’s line ofconvertible tablets is said to be aimed atbusiness and government professionals. Thishybrid gadget is made of plastic that encasesa magnesium chassis, plus a durable CorningGorilla Glass 2 for resisting scrapes andscratches. It features an 11.6 inch diagonalHD multi-touch display with completerotation to offer a tablet’s functionality. Afull-sized backlit keyboard has also beenfitted into the notebook and is packagedalong with a pen for input flexibility. Thislaptop weighs just 1.4 kg.It is fueled by athird generation Intel Core processor tofacilitate smooth functioning, 4GB of RAMupgradeable to 12GB, and up to a 256GBSSD, two USB 3.0 ports, a Display Port and afull-sized Ethernet jack, as we would expectfrom a device primarily designed for busyenterprise environments. In addition to allthe specs that have been already mentioned,the Revolve has a 720p HD Camera, dualmicrophonearray and DTS Studio Soundincluding CyberLink YouCam software thatenables easy face-to-face communicationand the creation of HD Web videos.The release date of the HP EliteBook Revolvehas been pegged for March this year in theUS.Virtual RealityThe second innovative technology tobe reviewed, which may well be termeda digital gaming revolution, or the nextfrontier for gaming, is «Virtual Reality»introduced by Oculus LLC. Oculus LLC is asmall technology company based in Irvine,California/US, founded by a team of virtualreality enthusiasts and hardware geeks inan attempt to help fund the developmentof their first product, the Oculus Rift. Theylaunched a kickstarter campaign which later

ecame an enormous success, raising over2.4 Million Dollars in funding from projectbackers and supporters around the world.The Oculus Rift is the first consumer pricedvirtual reality(VR)head-mounted gamingdisplay (HMD)with full head-tracking thataims to bring total immersion to videogames, along with a high field of view(FOV):more than 90 degrees horizontal and 110degrees diagonal with a resolution of 1280X 800, which is split between both eyesproducing the effective resolution, 640 X800. The device also includes VGA, DVI,and HDMI inputsfor maximumcompatibility as well as a USB interfaceused for sending tracking data to the hostmachine and for power, so there is no needfor an external power supply. The unitweighs approximately 220g. It has no built-inspeakers. Instead, users must resort to theirown headphones for audio output. But theultimate sensation is the Oculus Rift: its firstprototype is an open source project, whichmeans a shared schematics and firmwareallowing anyone to freely modify, build on,and improve the design. The 300$ (around24000.00 DZD) developer kit for the OculusRift is envisaged to be released this month.OuyaThe last but not least high-tech to introduceto our readers this month is anotherkickstarter-funded project code-namedOuya. This project has raised almost 8.6Million Dollars and ended up becoming thewebsite’s second highest earning projectin its history. Ouya is an Android-powered«hackable» gaming console featuring aTegra 3 processor, 1GB of RAM, and8GB of internal flashstorage. Italso includes a WiFi 802.11 b/g/n for betterconnectivity and Bluetooth 4.0, to connectto the wireless control pads which have twoanalogue sticks, a digital directional pad,eight action buttons, and a system button.As for the maximum resolution on big screen,Ouya has an HDMI output included for 1080pconnectivity. According to the company,Ouya is more than just a gaming console,although that is its primary focus and mainfunction. It is also designed for a wholebunch of other entertainment applicationsuch as, for instance, streaming competitivevideo gaming through the TwitchTV service.For anyone who didn’t support Ouya onKickstarter, the console is available for preorderon their official website ouya.tv witha release date expected to be sometimein March 2013. The console with a singlecontroller is priced at 99$ (around 7800.00DZD) and a second controller is optional,available for 30 dollars more. Shipping toAlgeria will cost an extra 20$ (1600.00 DZD)totaling 9400.00 DZD.By Ilias Rima

Interviewwith Nouria Hafsi“My goal is seeing Algerian womenand men in equal partnership.”Interviewed by Imene LardjaneThere are manyAlgerian womenwho go against thecomplexities anddifficulties thatanimate the positionof women in Algeriain order to take aproper status insociety and to makea change by provingthat women arestrong enough todo whatever theybelieve in. NouriaHafsi is just one ofthose women. Todayshe is interviewed toexplain how she isable to divide her lifebetween her job andher family.We have been hearing a lot aboutNouria Hafsi recently. How can youintroduce her as a woman?Nouria Hafsi is the general secretary ofthe National Union of Algerian Womenand a member of the National Rally forDemocracy. I am married and I have3 children. I do my best, and I keepfighting to defend the rights of women.I also love sports…I am a real footballenthusiast and I have been a member ofthe national handball team.How did Nouria Hafsi grow up into anactive Algerian woman? What role hasyour family played in all this?As I already told you, I love sports andI joined the handball team at a veryyoung age. So, I had the opportunity tomeet many women of different origins.This pushed me to be a fighter andmotivated me to help people. Regardingmy family, I was always free and able todo many things that my sister could notdo…I don’t know why, but it happenedlike that. For example, my sister wasnot allowed to go to the stadium towatch a football match, but I was. Thatwas a great experience! I went with mybrother to the stadium while my sisterdid not. Maybe my personality andattitude made it natural and acceptablefor them….My behavior made all thedifference! My family trusted me alot, and I was the first woman to goto a stadium in Saida and to be in thenational handball team. That was around1986 when I was becoming famous inSaida, and people enjoyed watchingme play……They just enjoyed seeingNouria in the stadium!You are famous for your challengingand leadership spirit. How is Nouria athome?When I was in Saida, my family used tohelp me create a balance between workand home. But when I came to AlgiersI had to do it myself. I do everything athome, just like any Algerian woman,from cleaning to cooking to helping mychildren with their studies.Do you find it difficult, as a woman, totake part of an important female unionin a world that is mainly dominated bymen?It is all about my personality. It’s simple:when you believe in something, youcan do it. I attended many conferences,and I met many strong women whohad a positive influence on my life,and then my education, attitude andpersonality help me to achieve whateverI believe in. To me, everything is possiblebecause I have met many obstacles butI never gave up….I fought, and I am stillfighting! Women have to prove that menare not always the strongest sex.How do you create a balance betweenthe professional Nouria and Nouria themother?Well, to tell you the truth, I sometimesfeel tired and stressed. I have a lotof work and I have to keep most ofit at home but I always find time formy family. My husband and childrenunderstand me….they know that I am amilitant.In your role as the general secretaryfor the National Union of Algerian

Women, what do you think about howthe position of Algerian women withinsociety has changed over time?The position of the Algerian womanwithin society has changed a lot andis still changing. Women are noweverywhere and they have provedthat they are good at everything. TheAlgerian government has passed manylaws to protect women and their rights.We just have to enforce laws and makewomen aware of their rights becauselaws are not enough and we have tochange the Algerian mentality regardingwomen. For instance, men think thatwomen cannot be leaders, but theyobviously can.How grateful is the Algerian woman forwhat Nouria has done for her so far?What have you done for her, in concreteterms?I fought for many laws and I enforcedothers. I help doing many activitiesespecially in rural places. We providenumerous classes for Algerian womento fight illiteracy. We make womenaware of many diseases….. We actuallyhelp women in many things. We try tointegrate them in social development,so we help them develop their projectsand create their own small companies.Imagine a woman with no diplomahaving her own company! That is oursuccess! In addition to that, our unionhelps women enforce their rights inpolitics. We push government to takedecisions regarding the law of quota.Presently, women account for 30% ofparliamentary roles. It is great to see146 women now in Government. Thisis a vast improvement on the 7% notexceeded in previous years.What are your ambitions for the next10 years? Is Nouria willing to do morefor Algerian women?I will never stop! I haven’t reached mygoal yet. My goal is seeing Algerianwomen and men in equal partnership.Now, I fight for the rights of women, andlater I will fight to make the Algerianwoman a partner of man equally sharingwith him in everything. Then, I will thinkabout letting young women replace me.I am convinced that this century is forwomen to shine, so I hope that therecould be the opportunity for a femaleAlgerian president in the near future.What is your ideal in life?Keep fighting! Life is nice, but hard. Wehave to fight all the time. As alreadysaid, this century is for women to showwhat they can really do and women areever-powerful, so we have to work hardto take advantage of all opportunities.

ArtJust for HerLes Ateliers Bouffée d’ArtThe aestheticspirit and the loveof what is nicealways dominatea woman’s life.Created in October2011, Bouffée d’Artworkshop (Breath ofArt) came to be oneof the rare workshopsdedicated just for her.Djazya El Mokhfi Belaloui, theworkshop founder and managercame up with the idea of creatingan art workshop that is 100%reserved for women. She made herworkshop a space for expressing one’s ideasand thoughts. Based on the love of art,the workshop provides a variety of artisticactivities like oil painting, acrylic, mosaicsand painting on glass, ceramics and wood.Bouffée d’Art works on the basis ofexchanging experiences betweenprofessionals and learners enrolled in theworkshops animated by experts in art.The workshops benefit from the mysteryand symbolism of Anissa Berkane, theexperience of Zakia Chaouat, the livelycolors of Samira Merabet and the relaxingatmosphere created by Medjda BenChabane.The workshop tries to combine basic artistictechniques with new disciplines. Newactivities like paper mache, silk painting,sculpting and pottery will be launched verysoon.The passion of art unites active women,housewives, retired women, youngstudents and children. Bouffée d’Art putstogether all artistic wonders to create afriendly atmosphere where women canrelax, explore their inner being and expressthemselves. It simply stresses the idea thatart is therapy.By Imene Lardjane

Inner Wheel -- Alger Esperance Club“Help us to help”Alger EsperanceClub (Hope Club,Algiers) is anAlgerian club, oneof many which fallunder the umbrellaof the all femaleInternationalInner WheelAssociation whichruns alongside theall male RotarianAssociation.The ‘Inner Wheel Association’ canbe found in over 100 countriesover the world with a membershipof 103.000, making it the largestfemale association in the world.Unlike other charities, Alger Esperance clubis composed solely of Algerian women whoare united by the desire to help any Algerianperson in need. Spreading hope over Algeriais the main objective of Mrs kamélia Khalfi,the club president who believes that helpingpeople is a duty.The club works on improving livingconditions in deprived areas by raisingawareness of disease and it’s preventionand by creating libraries for the benefit ofschools. It also provides assistance to thesick, elderly and abandoned children.Most of the club funding comes from themaking and selling of handcrafted jewellery,rag dolls and house linens. All the items,made by both volunteers and club memberswho are not paid for their efforts, are sold inthe club’s virtual shop “Ateliers Petites Mains”on Facebook.The club members also work on collectingand distributing donations. Their activitiesgo on throughout many cities in Algeria,and their aim is helping any needy person.Their belief is to promote help in Algeria andprovide equal opportunities to all people.By Imene Lardjane

FashionSpring TrendsBy Nawal RemikiLOW FLOUNCESKIRTThe low flounce skirtgives the trumpetskirt an update. Agathered panel orgodet constructionat the hem is used to createpoufed volume or a gentle flare;lengths can be mid-thigh to below-knee.Alternatives include a patterned bodywith contrasting flounce, or a cascadingruffle that follows a curved seam.The ladylike silhouette of a low flounceskirt contrasts nicely with boyish itemssuch as a boxy tailored shell or graphictee. Chunky striped sweaters introduce acozy collegiate look. Complete the flirtyensemble with a fitted leather jacket andankle high heels. And its the top fashionkey for this spring, especially this March.

THE APRON DRESSThe apron dress gets its name fromits bib-and-strap construction.Silhouettes are straight andworkwear-inspired or fit-and-flarefor a ladylike appearance. Backviewsvary from simple crisscross tomultiple straps for cocktail versions.Crisp cottons or linens are ideal for the day,while leather-and-lace give it a sexy eveninglook. Elaborate details like floral embroidery,patch pockets or stud embellishmentsprovide an authentic artisan vibe. Thetrans-seasonal apron dress can be worn onits own or styled over a simple knit tee orfeminine, sheer blouse. Patterned hosiery orknee socks add a playful dose of color to anotherwise neutral palette. Prim accessoriessuch as a structured bowling bag, slimleather belt or a pointy pump accentuate thecasual elegance of the polished workwearlook, perfect for the spring weather.

Beauty CareThe Shampoo BarA traditional way to saveyour hairWashing our hair has becomea science in itself. There aretoo many products for alltypes of different hair; longlists of chemical ingredientsto which some people areallergic. So we try somehome-made treatments, theywork for while, but are tootime-consuming, and whenwe finally think we havefound the perfect treatmentfor our hair, then the skin onour head starts troubling us.In amongst all this complexity a productwith a long tradition finds its way backto into the shops: the shampoo bar.“A shampoo bar! What is that?” This ismost people’s reaction when introducingthem to a solid soap bar for regular hairwashing. We are all used to soap bars forour bodies or laundry, but the idea of usingone for our hair seems a little bit strange.But this concept is not new. In the worldbefore plastic bottles were filled withartificial, manufactured liquid shampoo,people used soap bars to clean their hair too.Of course the ingredients of the soapthat we use for our body and those ofthe soap we use for our hair differ. Ourhair is in need of more nurturing care.Shampoo bars are a natural productwithout chemical substances added. Hencethey are free from sulfates and silicones.Now, why is thatimportant?Silicone and sulfates do stuff to our hair thatseems good at first but has undesired effectsin the long run. Sulfates strip the hair of itsnatural oils. They are found in dish washingupliquid and laundry soaps. I doubt that youwould consider putting these on your hair.With silicones it is not as simple. There is a

common misconception that all of them arebad for our hair. But that is not true. Whilethere are two categories of silicones; one typeis not better than the other because siliconesdo not actually benefit the hair in any way.In fact, silicones only give the “appearance”of healthier hair. All silicones have theeffect of coating our hair with a thin waterproof(hydrophobic) covering which buildsup to create a slick layer around our hairwhich serves some good purposes at first.Silicones coat the hair to make it appearsleeker and healthier, and help it detanglewhen combing. For example, siliconesfound in conditioners, hair polishers andfrizz taming products coat the strands tomake them “appear” more polished andeasier to comb. They also add a bit of weightto give fine, fragile hair some substance.Another benefit of silicone products is thatthey protect the hair from heat used whilestyling (blow drying, flat ironing or pressing).In essence, silicone-based products onlyprovide a temporary smoothing effect.With Silicone-based shampoo we treatthe symptoms but not the problem itself.Simply because we can’t get to it becauseof the thick silicon coat preventing thegood substances from reaching the hair,especially curly hair that needs nurturingoil to avoid frizz, dull and dry curls.Decision time betweena quick fix or a more caring andsustaining lookIf you want to opt for a hair treatmentthat penetrates the hair, helps it torepair and gain strength, then youwill come across some alternatives.There are already silicone and sulfate freeshampoos on the market and maybe youhave already tried one, consciously orunconsciously. I suggest that you turn thebottle around and have a look yourself nexttime you choose a shampoo for your hair.Since we are quite familiar with liquidshampoo, let’s see why shampoo barshave recently become popular again.A lot of customers advocate shampoo barsbecause they are made from moisturizingoils and gentle cleansers. Shampoobars are a far more natural product thantheir liquid counterparts. Many peoplereport that they are extremely pleasedwith the results they are getting, citingbenefits such as increased softness,better curl formation and, in some cases,elimination of the need to use conditioner.Using them couldn’t be simpler - get yourhair very wet and then massage the baragainst your hair in a light circular motionuntil you work up a rich lather. Some of mytest subjects (I mean friends) said it waseasier to rub the bar between your hands towork up a lather then rub your hands overyour hair. Work the lather into your scalpand rinse thoroughly. Be sure that you reallyget a good lather and rinse, rinse, rinse!Not a quick fixThe change will not happen overnight. Afterchanging from silicone-loaded shampoosto natural silicone-free hair treatment(liquid or solid shampoo) it will take a fewweeks before you can proudly present thefinal result. Silicones are water-proof andtherefore you can’t simply wash them out.Freeing your hair from the coat takes severalwashes. While getting rid of the siliconeleftovers you may have some unpleasantexperiences such as difficulties in combingyour hair, but it’s just because you are in theprocess of rebuilding the hair’s own naturalprotection. Finally, once the thick layer hasbeen removed, the new product can reachthe hair and actually provide deep treatment.By Johanna Heil

PoetryHere’s our selection of poems for this issue. We hope you’ll enjoy it.Tellin’ storiesBy Mitzi K. JacksonWind blowsdistant echoesOf pastimesLula byesmy yearning stretch the lengthOf a dancers reachexpandingand releasethrough these lonely hallsOf mirrorsdaytime and sunshineOnly a reality in my mindCause by roads leadAnd traveledthe darkness coversevery inchlike the coming Of sunsetsit’s been such a long timesince a man have looked mein my eyesand let me make his soul smilesee he tends to bedistracted by my smileand the joy, its perceivedto bring himdistractedby the beating Of myheart spothe tends to get lostin the dip Of my hiplineandthe glasses Of timemy legs makehis eyes get trappedin the curves Of my backhe get carried away withmotion my strides makebut my eyes….it has beensuch a long time sincea man has looked me inmy eyesand let me make his soul smileholding me closehe could feel and knowthe sound Of winterssnowmy aura comes outdisplaying a frosted roseto fast it didn’tdestroy its posethey can sense thestint Of mildew curtainshanging frompast gloriesmemories stitchedwithin every inchof the tapestryrich and full in colorshiiiiitin her hay dayshine gleamed Of hardwoodmapleflowin in betweenmolasseselixir for the high spiritedcobwebs covering the chandelierand arteriesOf a glorious vesselsunk at seataking with itall life elegance and mysteriesnow a shell so vastghost filled laughteras Catholics’ masson St. Patrick’s Dayfills the streets witha funeral marchon cobbled streetswhere musicspanits reachfarwith jazzand bluesdeep dark gospelspiritualsthat makes Haiti’sdrums laughjust take your time, look me in my eyesand feel my soul’s strengthgenerations Of lovestill fills the cracksOfinches coveringstone wallsmarble and ivorymy yearning stretch the lengthOf a dancerin motions…………..tellin’ stories*See my body be telling stories childmy arms stretch cross many of glorieslegs spans through many hot damnsand belly carry all mankind’s from north andsouth lineschild my breast done feed kingsraised many a stream, into vast oceansmy soul cries of songs that haven’t yetreached the mindbut you won’t know thislest you look me in my eyeswhere truth of creationcivilizations liescantaloupe as Ibaby, I promise to makeyour soul smile as brightas a child, listening to mommatelling stories

Rhapsody in Haiku/SenryBy Regis AuffrayTo the distant seaI.1) White swans are flyingAbove the river belowFrom this vantage pointIV.There was lonelinessSeeking someone to be withUntil I met you2) Like angels they flySeemingly with a purposeWhite swans through the mistAlone by the seaIt used to be you and meThis is not my choice3) Cold rain is fallingI crave the warmth of your lovePromised to meListen to the windIts sighs tell our love storySad though that may beII.I’ll always be thereYour own words when we first metI’m here and waitingIt’s a gloomy dayThere’s no sound to be heardIn the ghostly mistIII.As the river flowsIt seems to carry sorrowWhen I give my loveIt is unconditionalThe rest, up to you

TourismA tourist’s story By Kathleen Voss WoolrichIt’s been 5 yearssince I last saw youand I have missedyou so much. It’sdifficult for meto tell people mystory, the way I fellin love with you. Ihave a secret boxwhere I keep allyour old photosand have done thisfor years and years.Dearest AlgeriaThe suitcase in my closet hasnewspapers that I bought fromLondon that are over 150 yearsold which talk about your missingartifacts and the things you have beenthrough. There is a hole in my heart whereyou should be right now but are not.I met you in the Spring of 2001 on a trip toParis. I went to Paris as a teenager but hadnever been back before my mid thirties, Idecided to return. On a side street, near atrain station, I first found you. Your musicfilled the air and I felt myself dancingwithin. It was as if something had beenawakened and I was determined to findyou. I never had enough money to visityou but I dreamed of you. I met your sonsand daughters in the US and talked tothem and I began to dream of walkingwhere Albert Camus walked and whereAli La Pointe ran through the Casbah.In the winter of 2005, my great Aunt diedand I begged my mother to buy me aticket to go to Algiers. She surprised mewith 3 tickets and I took my family withme. I knew no one in particular therebut I decided that my teenage son andmy little daughter would accompany meto the white city. Dearest Algeria, I hadtruly missed you but I hadn’t met youface to face. I struggled to get out of theairport and to get to my hotel and even

when I got there, I was confused withall the traffic. I fell asleep in my clothes, Iwas so exhausted but my children wereready to explore. Over one week, wesaw the museum of the martyrs, wheremy son ran up and down the stairs andwas amazed by the soldiers. We atechicken in Kouba at Chicken Royale andit was the best chicken I had ever eaten.We walked through Tipaza and saw themonument and I dreamed somehowI could stay there forever. We went tothe zoo. I loved the stately palms andgardens and blue and white colors all overAlgiers. I decided that she was a city thatbelonged to me even though she was notmine, I could love her. I made a promiseto the pictures in the museum of themartyrs and looked up at them and toldthem that I would begin to tell the storyof Algeria to anyone who would listen.I went home and started a youtubechannel called www.youtube.comalgerianhistory and on that channel, Iuploaded traditional and contemporarymusic. I made documentaries aboutyou. Dearest Algeria, I even returnedseveral more times to see you butI have not had enough money norhave I been healthy enough to return.You belong to Algerians, beloved motherof Africa. I love you so. As a tourist, youprovided me with a beautiful canvasfor me to paint my dreams upon. Youare an immense book of dreams, ofcolors, of tastes and textures. You arethe gardens of Tlemcen, the mountainsof Oran, the Orange Groves of Kabilya,the boats of Bejaia. You are the bridgesof Constantine. You are the drums ofGhairdaia, the snow on the mountains,the lunar landscape of Tassilli N Ajjer.You, my dearest Algeria are a secretbox of pictures. You are for the touristwho can read about you before going,as there is so much more about youthan meets the eye. Renoir painted yourfields. Abdelkader rode across westernAlgeria to protect you. People died sothat you could be independent as youbecame free from from Colonial Rule.Dearest Algeria,Camus, Fanon, Yacine and Djaout areeverywhere I go when I walk down yourstreets. I can dream of you but I am nolonger a tourist. I am somehow part ofyour family now, my beloved Algeria. Iremain fi’l ghorba, even though it usedto be my home. It is still my physicalhome but my heart remains with you. Nolonger am I just a tourist, my beloved, mysecret picture box, my dearest Algeria.Love,Kathleen

DelicacyBy Um FaizaGratin de crêpessalées farcies(Savoury crêpe roll gratin)12 savoury crèpes:-1 1/4 cup flour-1 1/3 cup carbonated water (club soda,Vichy)-1/3 cup milk-pinch of salt-2 eggsFilling:-500g ground beef (I have used leftoverbrowned meat, drained of the fat)-1 large onion diced fine-2 courgettes, julienned, grated or dicedfine (I grated mine)-1 carrot, julienned, grated or diced fine(Igrated mine)-2 cloves of garlic-1 TBS Herbes de Provençe-Cheese (as much or as little as you like – Iused 1 cup Gyuyère)-Salt/ black pepper-Oil or butter for frying the crepes-Harissa to tasteBéchamel:-1 liter milk-¼ cup water-2 cloves of garlic-¼ cup (4 tablespoon) flour-Large knob of butter-Salt/black pepper nutmegMETHOD:1. Mix the crepe batter by combing the eggs, flour, milk, salt andcarbonated water.2. Allow to rest for 5 minutes.3. Heat a fry pan on medium low heat.4. Now fry off the crêpes in a little oil and butter mixture.5. Set the fried crêpes aside and cover.6. Now sautée off the onion until translucent.7. Add the other vegetables and raw meat (if you are using raw meat)8. Add in the seasoning and allow to cook on low fire.9. Stir occasionally.10. Set aside to cool slightly.11. Now prepare the béchamel as the filling cools.12. Add the butter and oil into a pan, then slowly add in the flourstirring constantly to form the roux.13. Once the mixture has thickened pour in the milk; stir.14. Add in the seasoning and reduce the fire to the lowest heat,simmer for about 10 minutes.15. After about 10 minutes, taste and adjust for the seasoning; setaside.16. Now assemble the crêpes by placing a small amount of the fillingone or two TBS in the center of the crêpe lengthwise as shown in thepicture.17. Now roll the crepes.18. Preheat the oven t 180°19. Seam side down cut the crepes into 4 or 8 – depending on thesize of pan you used to the prepare the crepes in.20. They should be about two fingers wide – little smaller then thegratin dish you will be baking the gratin in.21. Butter your baking dish, then arrange the crepe rolls in the dish.22. Then gently pour the béchamel over the crepes.23. The crêpes should not be swimming in the sauce but should belightly topped.24. The crêpes are the center star of the dish.25. Tap the baking dish gently against the work surface so the saucecan settle to the bottom of the dish.26. Bake for 30m.27. Then remove from the oven, top with the grated cheese.28. Return back to the oven for additional 10m to melt the cheeseand form a slightly golden crust.

Khoubz F’tir or Kesra(Algerian semolina galette)Yield: 2 large galettesPrep Time: 15 minutes (active) + 10 minutes (inactive) | Bake Time: 15-20 minutesIngredients:-1 cups - 250g semoule fine/semouletta (fine grained semolina, butnot semolina flour)-1 cup - 250g semoule moyen (medium grained semolina)-1/4 cup - 60mL of olive oil or table oil or melted butter (I used butterand oil)-1 tsp of salt.-1/4 tsp baking powder-1/2 tsp sugar-almost 1 cup - 230mL of tépid waterMethod:1. Mix the semolina, baking powder, salt and oil. Make sure the grainsare coated in the oil.2. Add water to the dry ingredients little by little. You need to adjustthe amount of water to obtain a dough which is not very soft, butnot too hardor crumbly either.3. Knead the dough a little, but not much. Just enough to make thedough smooth and even. Some people knead more. Others less. Ifind just a few minutes to get the dough homogenous and smooth isenough (for my taste).4. Let stand about 5-8 minutes. Explanation for this: although thisrecipe calls for yeast, the dough still requires a rest. This pause helpsthe semolina to hydrate. Indeed, semolina with much larger grainsthan flour, it takes time to absorb the water. Again, as for kneading,some people sometimes let stand 2 hours. Here too, my version isfaster, express from the use of baking powder.5. When the dough has rested, make small balls that you flatten byhand or rolling pin to a thickness of 1 cm- ½ in.6. Prick with a fork all over the galette. This will help the galette notfluff or swell.7. Bake on a Tefal non-stick pan or tadjine without any oil or butteron a low fire.8. Brown on both sides, but make sure the galette is baked all theway through - about 5 minutes in each side.9. Continous turn the galette, so it gets golden brown evenly withoutburning.10. Flip over and continue to bake on the other side.Khoubz f’tir is traditionally enjoyed with dates, and a glass or L’ben oroften served with tea or coffee. But is also delicious with jam, honeyor cream cheese.Beghrir chocoYield: 12 pancakesPrep Time: 5 minutes (active) | Cook Time: 8-10 minutesIngredients:-250g -1 cup fine or ultra fine semolina-120g - ½ all purpose flour-½ TBS instant yeast-1 package (10g - 2tsp) baking powder-pinch of baking soda-generous 1 tsp vanilla-250mL -1 cup milk-250mL -1 cup warm water-pinch of salt-2 TBS sugar-50g - 3 TBS unsweetened cocoa powderMethod:1. Add the liquids into a blender, then all the dry ingredients.Optionally use a stick blender.2. Blend for a few minutes until the batter is homogenous.3. Set the batter aside for about 15 minutes to proof.4. After the 15 minutes, you should see little bubbles forming fromthe help of the yeast. This is when you know the batter is ready touse. If there are no bubbles, then your yeast may be old.5. Turn on your fire and place your pan on the fire.6. Ladle in the batter into the cold ungreased pan. I use a small ladlethat is about 1/4 cup.7. After a few seconds you will see the holes appear. And is cook inunder a minute.8. Now remove from the pan and place on a clean kitchen towel orparchment. Do not stack them - they will stick!9. Repeat until you have used all the batter.Serve with the date syrup or honey + melted butter.

cinemaDon’t sit through the whole movie just to be disappointed. 50/Fifty offers you achance to check out the latest movies hitting the box office each month to help youdecide what’s worth watching.G.I. Joe Retaliation 3D29 March 2013 (USA)Starring : Bruce Willis - Channing Tatum, Dwayne Johnson and Ray ParkThis movie is another treat for BruceWillis to be appearing just twomonths after « A Good Day to DieHard » , which is scheduled to bereleased in February. Not only arethe Joes fighting their mortal enemyCobra but they also are forced tocontend with threats from withinthe government which jeopardizetheir very existence. With most ofthe Joes being assassinated in thecourse of the movie, the question is:will the remaining agents be capableof saving the world from totaldestruction?Jack the Giant Slayer1 March 2013 (USA)Starring : Nicholas Hoult, Stanley Tucci and Ewan McGregorA modern day fairy tale inwhich the long-standing peacebetween men and giants isthreatened when a youngfarmhand unwittingly opensa gateway between our worldand a fearsome race of giants.Unleashed on the Earth for thefirst time in centuries, the giantsstrive to reclaim the land theyonce lost, forcing the youngman, Jack, into the battle of hislife to stop them, and have hischance to become a legend.Admission8 March 2013 (USA)Starring : Tina Fey, Paul Rudd and Nat WolffAfter her big success in thecomedy series « The office », sheis making a come back in anothermovie and this time she’s anAdmissions officer at PrincetonUniversity. Tina Fey who is upfor a major promotion takes aprofessional risk after she meets acollege-bound alternative schoolkid. He might be the son she gaveup to adoption when she was acollege student, and that kid isnot quite your potential modelstudent!

eviewsThe Croods22 March 2013Starring (Voices) : Nicolas Cage , Ryan Reynolds, Emma StoneThe Croods is a prehistoriccomedy adventure that followsthe world’s first family as theyembark on a journey of a lifetimewhen the cave that has alwaysshielded them from dangeris destroyed. Traveling acrossa spectacular landscape, theCroods discover an incrediblenew world filled with fantasticcreatures -- and their outlook ischanged forever.The Host29 March 2013 (USA)Starring : Saoirse Ronan, Diane Kruger and William HurtThis is the future..andhumanity is all but extinct!The earth has been invadedby another species, whoerased the minds ofhumans to take their bodiesas hosts. But there are afew survivors who are stillfighting back. Even in thosedifficult times of peril andwar, though, love stories donot grind to a halt.Oz the Great and Powerful8 March 2013 (USA)Starring : James Franco, Michelle Williams and Rachel WeiszSome people want to be goodmen - but not Oscar Diggs.He wants to be a great one.When this stage magician ishurled into a fantasy world,the prophecy that all creaturesin OZ were waiting for comestrue and he must somehowtransform himself into the greatand powerful wizard. Plus, hismagic is the only thing powerfulenough to save them from theWicked Witch.