Feast in the MIddle East

The first question I am often asked as someone that speaks Arabic is “Can you teach me some swear words?”  For whatever reason, people would rather spew clouds of vitriol in every language of the rainbow than whisper sweet nothings. I get it though, I have been known to swear like a sailor particularly behind the wheel, when those angry words come out as effortlessly as a tulip on a spring day.  Whether you love swear words or hate them, they are a way to feel powerful in a sometimes powerless situation, and a great way to vent when no one is listening outside your thick car windows 🙂 However, I grew up in a loud yet conservative family. Meaning my parents always sounded like they were yelling even if they weren’t even fighting, it’s just an Arab thing.  But at the same time my mom would faint if she heard me swearing in public. I could just hear her in her slight accent,”Blanche, you don’t want people to think you have a sewer mouth, do you?!” Then there is my late grandfather and best friend, God rest his soul, who always told me “Blanche, show your class and not your ass.”  So, since I am in this quandary, I thought I would release a video on how to express your anger in Arabic without cuss words, which is very easy to do. You see Arabic has thousands of expressions for even the most insignificant things in our lives–the language and analogies are so rich and ancient. Feel free to use these 5 phrases when people piss you off. They don’t even have to know what the hell you are talking about, they will just know to back off 😀   Now if you really need to know some swear words,  or want more Arabic lessons in general, hit “like” on this blog or leave a comment, I just might think about it lol.