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The Midยญdle East is well known in the westยญern world as the core of reliยญgion for its extenยญsiveยญly rich hisยญtoยญry and food.A lot of Arabs or those who live in this part of the world often forยญget. Overยญlook and marยญginยญalยญize the realยญiยญty that this region does not lack novยญelยญty and surยญprise at all.Here is a list of 16 interยญestยญing things you probยญaยญbly didยญnโt know about the Midยญdle East for emphaยญsizยญing the ever-standยญing attribยญutยญes of this region.
1- Real History
Syrยญiยญans and Romans were aware of the future perยญspecยญtive, well before Leif Erikยญson set foot on North Amerยญiยญca or Neil Armยญstrong walked on the moon.In the 2nd cenยญtuยญry AD, a surยญvivยญing fanยญtaยญsy book was writยญten in Roman Syrยญia that feaยญtured the stoยญries of some explorยญers flyยญing to the moon. The disยญcovยญery of a new conยญtiยญnent over the ocean. First expeยญriยญence with the aliens, and the interยญplanยญeยญtary war among impeยญriยญalยญisยญtic celesยญtial domains.Whether from the disยญcovยญery of canยญcerโs first docยญuยญmentยญed casยญes on papyrus manยญuยญscripts that datยญed back to the era of 3000 BC, 2004โ2005 unearthing of worldโs ancient perยญfume facยญtoยญry in Cyprus that was as old as 4000 years to the 2009 findยญing of the first zoo lookยญing environment.Datยญing back to 3500BC in which eleยญphants, wildยญcats, baboons, and varยญiยญous othยญer aniยญmals were buried in Egypยญtโs ancient city, Hierยญakonยญpoยญlis- the Midยญdle East is sureยญly rich and extenยญsive in its true hisยญtoยญry.
2- Kuwait Olympics
Due to the govยญernยญment legยญisยญlaยญtion, which allows the state to interยญfere in the sportยญing orgaยญniยญzaยญtionโs elecยญtion, the state of Kuwait was outยญlawed from the Olympics.Thus, the Kuwaiti athยญletes take part in the Olympics as indeยญpenยญdent athยญletes under the flag of the Olympics, not under their own counยญtryโs flag.
3- Giant Mushrooms
Amerยญiยญcan sciยญenยญtists found a 20-foot tall funยญgus in Sauยญdi Araยญbia in 2007. These big mushยญrooms existยญed and domยญiยญnatยญed this counยญtry 350 milยญlion years ago until they got extinct. It was most likeยญly the biggest livยญing thing that existยญed on dry land at that time.
4- Coffee and Mocha
Kalยญdi, an Ethiopiยญan shepยญherd, was the first one who found the impact of cofยญfee when he observed that after conยญsumยญing a speยญcifยญic berry. His herd of sheep became conยญsidยญerยญably more energetic.From there it was shiftยญed to the counยญtry of Yemen, where many Sufi Musยญlims, startยญed using it for enhancยญing their conยญcenยญtraยญtion durยญing praying.Anothยญer deliยญcious drink called Mocha is a mixยญture of cofยญfee and chocoยญlate. Its name was origยญiยญnalยญly derived from a port locatยญed at the Red Sea in Yemen. Till the year 1990, this port was the main port for exportยญing Araยญbiยญan cofยญfee throughยญout the world.
5- Burj Khalifa
Dubai was nothยญing but a sleepy pearling city until the disยญcovยญery of oil in 1996. In 1970, the illitยญerยญaยญcy rates were over 70 perยญcent in the UAE. Also, it didยญnโt have a phone or elecยญtricยญiยญty lines till 1961.Today, Dubai is the busiest airยญport in the world.The Burj Khalยญiยญfa, named after the Presยญiยญdent of the UAE, Khalยญiยญfa bin Zayed bin Sulยญtan Al Nahyan โ is the tallest human-made buildยญing of the world. Locatยญed in Dubai that makes a fasยญciยญnatยญing tourist spot for travยญellers from all over the world.Anothยญer interยญestยญing thing about the UAE is that there occurs a porยญtion of Oman in UAE, and in that porยญtion of Oman is a porยญtion of UAE.
6- Assassinโs Creed
The renowned Assasยญsยญinโs Creed game series revolves around a batยญtle among the โAssasยญsinsโ who are fightยญing for freeยญdom and peace, and the โTemยญplarsโ who believe that peace will rule only if humankind is controlled.Based on the origยญiยญnal order of assasยญsins that existยญed in Syrยญia and Perยญsia between the 11th-13th cenยญtuยญry. Also known as โHashishiyyin.โ
7- FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar
TheFIFA World Cup for the year 2022 has been schedยญuled in Qatar. For this, in the northยญern diviยญsion of Ash-Shamal, which has a popยญuยญlaยญtion comยญprisยญing less than eight thouยญsand peoยญple, one of the staยญdiยญums is being conยญstructยญed that can accomยญmoยญdate 45330 people.Anothยญer interยญestยญing thing about Qatar is camel racยญing, which has excluยญsiveยญly utiยญlized robot jockยญeys since the time child jockยญeys have been banned.
8- Drying up of Springs
The springs locatยญed in Sauยญdi Araยญbia are quickยญly dryยญing up due to the counยญtryโs three decades of irraยญtional farmยญing methods.If this conยญtinยญues, the counยญtry might become bound to import its entire food items in the future.Anothยญer interยญestยญing thing about this counยญtry is that it does not have any rivers.
9- The Treaty of Friendship
Morocยญco had been the first counยญtry that recยญogยญnized the newยญly estabยญlished USA in 1777. The Amerยญiยญcan merยญchant ships faced pirate attacks, by the Barยญbary Coast, at the startยญing of the Amerยญiยญcan Revolution.After failed attempts of getยญting proยญtecยญtion from the Euroยญpean powยญers, it was Morocยญcoโs Sulยญtan Mohammed III who extendยญed proยญtecยญtion to Amerยญiยญcan ships by the sulยญtanate, conยญseยญquentยญly ensurยญing a safe pasยญsage for them.The relaยญtions were made forยญmal through the Morocยญcan-Amerยญiยญcan Treaty of Friendยญship in 1786, signed by John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. This Treaty of Friendยญship has been mainยญtained to be the longest-standยญing interยญnaยญtionยญal relaยญtions treaty in Amerยญiยญcan hisยญtoยญry until today.
10- Sheep Committing Suicide
Sheep attempt mass suiยญcide. Its largest notยญed occurยญrence was in Turkey, in 2005 in which 1500 sheep folยญlowed one anothยญer over the tip of the cliff. It resultยญed in the death of 450 sheep and nearยญly 100,000 dolยญlar lossยญes to the ownยญerโs families.
11- The suing of NASA
CNN informed in 1997 that 3 Yemeยญnis attemptยญed to sue NASA when the space agency invadยญed Mars by sendยญing out the Sojournยญer rover and the Pathfindยญer spaceยญcraft for explorยญing the red planet.They claimed that they had inherยญitยญed this planยญet 3000 years ago from their ancesยญtors before the occurยญrence of this incident.They also had docยญuยญments for provยญing it. Howยญevยญer, all their claims of ownยญing Mars were latยญer discarded.
12- Most alien-looking place on Earth
The Socoยญtra Island or The Socoยญtra Island of strange plants is a dry, hot island sitยญuยญatยญed in the Indiยญan Ocean.It is a part of Yemen and creยญates an archยญiยญpelยญago comยญprisยญing of four islands in the Araยญbiยญan Sea.This island is quite isoยญlatยญed, still inhabยญitยญed by a popยญuยญlaยญtion of 44000 people.Because of its small popยญuยญlaยญtion, it conยญsists of 700 rare plants and aniยญmal species. 1/3 of the islandโs floยญra and fauยญna in total, doesยญnโt exist anyยญwhere else on this planยญet. It has been reportยญed as the most alien-lookยญing place on Earth.
13- Banning of Alcohol
Alcoยญhol is forยญbidยญden in Iran. You canยญnot find a drop of alcoยญhol in this counยญtry. Howยญevยญer, beer can appear on the menu of restauยญrants, but it is non-alcoยญholic. Although it may taste simยญiยญlar to the real stuff, and there occur many flavours for trying.The variยญety of sharยญbat has takยญen over the ban on alcoยญhol in Iran. The list of Perยญsian sharยญbat is extenยญsive in this counยญtry, and some of the famous ones are Tokhm-e-Reyยญhan, Bahar Narenj, Sekanยญjabin, and Khak-e-Shir.
14- Sand and Camels Import
We all know that Sauยญdi Araยญbia is renowned for its camel ridยญing and large desserts, but the counยญtry imports sand and camels from Australia.The sand present in the counยญtry is not suitยญable for conยญstrucยญtion, and Ausยญtralian camels are healthยญiยญer and much more delicious.
15- Abandoned Cars
In Dubai, Bankยญruptยญcy canยญnot be filed. Peoยญple, in turn, leave their expenยญsive cars in the parkยญing lot of the airยญport while fleeยญing. Almost 2000โ3000 cars, which include Porsche, Ferยญrari, Merยญcedes, and Land Rover. Are abanยญdoned every year for gathยญerยญing dust in the heat of the desert.
16- Vegetables
With the launch of a new farmยญing sysยญtem that requires no soil and that also recyยญcles irriยญgaยญtion water, Qatar, which is a desert state, has made a goal for growยญing up to 70 perยญcent of its vegยญetaยญbles by the year 2023.The pilot project has turned out to be sucยญcessยญful and adaptยญed reaยญsonยญably well to the counยญtryโs harsh growยญing state.
Last but not least
These are just a few interยญestยญing things about the Midยญdle East. Overยญall, this region of the world is rich in hisยญtoยญry and feaยญtures some amazยญing facts which are worth conยญsidยญerยญing for their importance.
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