Asalamu Alaikum,

My name is Nour Alhraki, and I’m from Damascus, Syria. I lived there for 15 years before facing the reality of leaving due to the harsh war conditions. Leaving Syria was heart breaking, and to cope with that, I made sure I introduced as many people to my beautiful culture. The Jasmine scented streets, the fast flowing Barada river, the souqes, the old Arabic houses and their architecture, and all the delicious Syrian food.

WATANI represented the Syrian culture and traditions in such a beautiful and elegant way, and that representation is crucial in a day and age where all we hear when someone says “Syria” is “War” and “Conflict”. Changing that is important, and it’s our duty to represent and highlight our community in a time where many can’t.

So I’ll leave you with this. No matter where you come from, always show the beauty of your culture and traditions and replace the negative western views with beautiful ones.

–Nour Alhraki.