Captivating Stories about the Middle East

7 episodes

Curated by:
User profile pickerningcultures

Maybe you’re homesick for the Middle East, or just eager to hear beautiful stories from the region. Either way, we’ve curated a list of episodes that we promise will transport you there.


  • 1

    Neon Moss

    Dolly Parton's America

    41:35 | Nov 5th, 2019

    7 recommendations

    In this episode, we go back up the mountain to visit Dolly’s actual Tennessee mountain home.  But, can you ever go home again?  Dolly tells us stories about her first trips out of the holler, and shar...Show More

    kerningcultures recommended:

    Never would have guessed that Dolly Parton’s music would take us back to a village in Lebanon and full us with such warm nostalgia.

  • 2

    667: Wartime Radio

    This American Life

    1:06:54 | Feb 3rd, 2019

    11 recommendations

    Intimate and personal dispatches from two very different battlefields: A small town in the Syrian war. And the U.S. opioid epidemic. Each came from a DIY radio outfit. (Okay, one’s a podcast.)

    kerningcultures recommended:

    This episode left us feeling very emotional about the power of radio in a small Syrian town.

  • 3

    Bassem Youssef: Comedian

    Al Empire

    46:37 | Oct 3rd, 2019

    4 recommendations

    Bassem reflects on the moments that inspired him to leave behind 19 years in medicine for political satire, a show that was watched by 40 million people every week. Now, he tells us about what it’s li...Show More

    kerningcultures recommended:

    Candidly honest convo about reinventing oneself, by Egypt’s famous Doctor-turned-comedian.

  • 4

    Lebanon, USA

    Kerning Cultures

    26:20 | Feb 16th, 2019

    2 recommendations

    In 2016, Fadi Boukaram planned to visit 47 American towns named Lebanon by road. Then, in Lebanon South Dakota, he discovered that all these other Lebanons have more in common with the country than an...Show More

    kerningcultures recommended:

    A surprising history between 47 towns named Lebanon, and Lebanon the country!

  • 5

    Omar

    Tell Them, I Am

    14:54 | May 28th, 2019

    1 recommendation

    Omar Offendum is a rapper and poet. When he was 15 years old, his affinity for Arabic poetry came to life while reciting a piece during Nizar Qabbani’s memorial at Georgetown University in 1998. Learn...Show More

    kerningcultures recommended:

    A mesmerizing break down the art of Arabic poetry and lyricism.

  • 6

    #34: Dalia, Rice and Sugar

    Palestinians Podcast

    39:37 | Mar 29th, 2019

    1 recommendation

    In this episode of Palestinians Podcast you'll hear a beautiful and lyrical story told by Dalia Deak, a law school student at Harvard University. Dalia told a story about her grandparents at Palestini...Show More

    kerningcultures recommended:

    Lyrical reflection on what it means to be Palestinian (and a lovely ode to grandparents)

  • 7

    The Baklava Challenge

    Kerning Cultures

    49:18 | Jun 15th, 2019

    2 recommendations

    We asked you, our listeners what you wanted to hear next, and you said, “Baklava!”. So our team competed against each other to find the best baklava story: [03:55] Hebah’s Story: Harissat Al Halaby...Show More

    kerningcultures recommended:

    We love baklava so much we made an episode about it! Everything from record-breaking baklava in Turkey to mama’s baklava-gone-wrong in Lebanon.

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