Do you speak English and you want to learn Arabic the fun way? Then I would recommend to you ArabicPod. With ArabicPod, you can learn basic things like greetings, weather, and ordering food. ArabicPod is creative and attractive way to learn basic Arabic language by listening to conversations between Ehab Saleh (25 from Jordan) & Mohammed Moshaya (26 from Saudi Arabia). Ehab & Mohammed are also the creators and maintainers of ArabicPod. They are currently students at Brighton University (80 miles south London).
Early of 2007 Mohammad has started learning Chinese via podcast & found out that podcasting is a great method to learn languages. Mohammed & Ehab recorded their first podcast lesson in March 2007. You can watch their first lesson below ...
"Everyone who is interested in learning Arabic is our target, we found that people learn Arabic due to heritage where learners wants to learn their fathers language, others learn Arabic for business and work purposes, also people learn Arabic for religious reasons and some people say that they love the sound of the language and that’s why they want to learn it. We have learners from all over the word", said Ehab Saleh, co-creator of ArabicPod.
"We are looking forwards to seeing ArabicPod as a big company teaches Arabic for the entire word, the internet has no borders and we are hoping that this effort that is made totally by two Arabs in their 20s would reach high level and be a source for everyone wants to learn Arabic."
Warner Bros. To Open Theme Park & Cinemas In Abu Dhabi
What’s up doc? Quite a bit in Abu Dhabi after a developer yesterday signed a multi-billion-dirham deal to bring the creative energy of Warner Bros Entertainment to the emirate.
A joint venture was created between Aldar and the newly-established Abu Dhabi Media Company and the studio that brought us the Harry Potter and Scooby-Doo films and Bugs Bunny.
The massive entertainment project will include a theme park, a luxury hotel and multiplex cinemas on Yas Island, the formation of a joint fund to finance feature films and develop and produce video games, as well as the growth of new media in the emirate.
And that’s not all, folks… New Warner Bros branded cinemas will also be built in Abu Dhabi’s under-construction Central Market, Ruwais in the Western Region and Al Ain.
Abu Dhabi Media Company Chairman Mohammed Khalaf Al Mazrouei said: “From theme parks to hotels, this agreement will put Abu Dhabi at the centre of the world’s entertainment map.” Aldar will co-ordinate and oversee physical construction of both the theme park and the hotel. Both projects are expected to start in 2009.
Warner Bros International Cinemas will develop, design and manage jointly owned multiplex cinemas in Abu Dhabi, to be built by Aldar. Construction on the multiplex cinemas at the Central Market development has already begun and they are due to open in the first quarter of 2010.
The film production fund, a 50-50 venture, calls for the development and production of broad-appeal films, with Warner Bros retaining worldwide distribution options and rights on all such projects.
Separate from this arrangement, Warner Bros Pictures International will work with Abu Dhabi Media Company to develop and produce Arabic-language films for local and regional distribution.
Specifics about the cost of the deal were not revealed in the announcement. Emirates Today spoke with Osama Ghanoum, Aldar’s Media and Marketing Manager in New York, who declined to reveal details but said: “It is a huge multi-billion-dirham project.” The agreement was signed in the presence of Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who is also the Chairman of the National Media Council.
Warner Bros Chairman and CEO Barry Meyer said he was “thrilled to be partnering with Aldar and the Abu Dhabi Media Company on these exciting endeavours”.
“We are impressed by their… philosophy. It is a firstrate company, led by first-rate executives,” said Meyer.
News of Abu Dhabi’s agreement with Warner Bros comes after Dubai is set to invest Dh8 billion in a Universal Studios theme park for Dubailand.
Universal Studios Dubai was announced in April and developers Tatweer expect it to attract five million visitors a year when it is completed in 2010.
The Universal Studios theme park is expected to cover 1.9 million square meters, with the whole Dubailand complex spreading over an area of some 280 sq km, twice the size of Walt Disney World in Florida.
The theme park will feature attractions based on films such as King Kong and The Mummy.
Paramount Pictures has also signed a licensing deal, with Ruwaad Holdings in Dubai, for the developer to build rides and attractions based on its library of films and characters.Ruwaad plans to spend $2.5bn (Dh9.1bn) on the Paramount Pictures branded park.
Real estate, hospitality and tourism investment and development company Ruwaad Holdings and Paramount Licensing Inc. announced Monday June 25, 2007 a long-term licensing agreement in connection with Ruwaad's planned development of a Paramount Pictures-branded theme park in the United Arab Emirates. The planned development would be part of a $2.5 billion destination envisioned to incorporate boutique hotels and resorts, large themed retail areas and adjoining lifestyle properties.
Under the licensing arrangement, International Destination Brands Limited, an affiliate of Ruwaad Holdings will be responsible for funding development and securing a feasible site for the large-scale destination. Paramount Licensing will not invest funds, but instead provide access to Paramount Pictures' intellectual property library -- one of the largest of any Hollywood studio -- and its intellectual capital through the oversight of planning and design aspects. Paramount Pictures' legendary catalogue includes Academy Award(R)-winning films such as Titanic, Braveheart and Forrest Gump, as well as classic and current hits including The Godfather, Breakfast at Tiffany's, Grease, Saturday Night Fever, Top Gun, Mission: Impossible, Charlotte's Web, Nacho Libre, and Dreamgirls (a co-production with DreamWorks Pictures).
The Paramount Pictures-branded theme park would be the entertainment hub of the family destination, featuring rides, shows, and attractions based on its rich Hollywood heritage and library of motion picture titles. The theme park would benefit from Paramount Pictures' stable of new titles, which would provide the basis for the development of new rides and attractions. It would also be the first-in-the-world to have a unique blend of Hollywood, Bollywood and Arabian motion picture entertainment content to address the family entertainment needs of existing and future global tourism trends.
Ruwaad and Paramount Licensing are also exploring other development opportunities in select countries within the Middle East and elsewhere.
Marvel Super Heroes Part of New Dubai Theme Park In 2011
Al Ahli Group and Marvel Entertainment, Inc. announced Tuesday March 20 a partnership that will bring Marvel’s full library of Super Heroes to Dubai for a major new theme park destination being developed by AAG.
The Al Ahli Group is poised to bring the region’s first and only global theme park destination directly to the heart of the Emirates. AAG and Marvel are also in initial stages of discussions about additional projects throughout the greater Pan Arabia region.
Mohamed Khammas, CEO of Al Ahli Group commented “Marvel is a brand that is recognized globally via its ever expanding list of ‘Super Hero’ characters. Now, it won’t be much longer until the children in Pan Arabia and the world can experience new and exciting rides with Marvel’s Spider-Man, the Incredible Hulk, the Fantastic Four and many other Super Heroes right here in the UAE."
The Project will open in 2011 with a direct investment of over $1 billion USD.
