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Home > All Topics > Languages > Arabic Language Meetups Everywhere > ~*NYC Int'l Arabic Language & Culture Social Meetup Club*~
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Meetup Ratings and Featured Comments

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Number: 102 recent ratings

Average: 4.75

"I think it's important for non-Arabs to come and experience people like themselves who have been labeled something else. It is a very positive feeling."

Robin Bossert (May 1, 2008)

"mumtaz!"

Alexis (Apr 22, 2008)

"I REALLY DONT KNOW HOW MICHAEL RIEGELMAN DOES IT. HE ORGANIZE THESE AMAZING MEET UP AND ALWAYS FIND THE RIGHT PEOPLE TO LEAD THEM. I ALWAYS LOOK FORWARD TO THE NEXT MEET UP WITH THIS CLUB. I NEVER EVER DISAPOINTED AND ALWAYS 100 TIMES BETTER THAT WHAT I EXPECTED TO BE. ON THIS PARTICULAR MEET UP I LEARN SO MUCH FROM OUR GUIDE AND TO BE A PART OF A DELAGATIONS NOT YOUR STANDARED TOUR WAS AMAZING. ALSO TO SHARE THIS WITH ANOTHER MEET UP GROUP GAVE ME THE CHACE TO MEET SOME NEW AND AMAZING GUESTS THANK YOU SO MUCH LATINSOUL127@YAHOO.C OM"

KEN LONDONO (Apr 16, 2008)

"I'll be back for more!"

April (Apr 15, 2008)

"It's a great friendly atmosphere, all genuine people who share the same passion and interestes, very cozy and family like."

Hosam Farrag (Apr 12, 2008)

"This is one of the most diversified group with an Active Modir"

Riad (Apr 12, 2008)

"It was a great event.I got to meet a lot of people."

Tamer (Mar 21, 2008)

"What a great movie. I learnt so much. Thank you so much for passing on the info about this event."

Leila (Mar 13, 2008)

"It was much fun chatting with Michael and Assad, they made my friend and I feel welcomed. Big hugs to Michael (( ))."

Jennifer (Mar 12, 2008)

"It was real good, my fiance and I enjoyed it very very much. The comedy was a fantastic touch, the dabke was great, I wanted to get up there and join them. But, I must say....that last performance (Sebreena) was terrible. She lost focus on what the event was about and concentrated on promoting herself and that sorry note she called music. Other than Sabreena the "me me me" witch, everything was great, and what a great cause it was for. Cant wait for the next one"

Fahid Assad (Mar 12, 2008)

"Super job Michael - thanks"

Roberta G (Feb 18, 2008)

"Thank you Michael for making this event happen, I would love to do it again!"

Reva (Feb 17, 2008)

"Everyone was very nice and sincerely interested in each other. I never felt like a stranger at any time during the meet up. Even though we didn't know each other, it never seemed that way. I wish we could do this once a month. It was so much fun."

Nahara (Feb 17, 2008)

"very welcoming.. "

mohamed shaheen (Feb 16, 2008)

"I enjoyed meeting everyone and would love to keep going"

cheryl (Feb 16, 2008)

"This is a very nice group with a great organizer"

nikki (Feb 16, 2008)

"I like the fact that there are different types of events, I've enjoyed every one so far. Thank you Michael for organizing this meetup."

Johanna (Feb 11, 2008)

"BRAVO"

Patrick Sullivan (Feb 8, 2008)

"Rock on and keep up the good work!!"

Carla Almaz (Feb 7, 2008)

"Jamal came - thank you! Had a bunch of great dancers."

Morocco (Feb 6, 2008)

"The organizer is very enthusiastic with good intentions."

Lisa Vives (Jan 30, 2008)

"nice way to stay alert to going-ons in NYC"

munerah (Jan 30, 2008)

"Meetup Group is great!"

Nidal Ghanim (Jan 29, 2008)

"An excellent group! I'm so happy to be a part of it! I think the great vibe stems from the amazing moderator. I've become so much more interested in the Arab world (and Arabic!) thanks to this group. "

Erick (Jan 15, 2008)

"It's always fun meeting up with folks who are interested in the Arabic language. There are people with different levels of understanding the Arabic Language and Culture and everyone gets along just fine. Awesome group of people, very genuine, colorful and never a dull moment. Come join us!"

Dino (Jan 9, 2008)

"So diverse in events."

DeNaDa (Dec 11, 2007)

"This is a truly fun and spirited group . They put up with my sketchy post-Bahrain Arabic which for that I am most grateful!"

Staci Strobl (Dec 9, 2007)

"This was my 1st visit to the UN & it was very good, very informative. Sorry I wasn't able to stay for dinner."

Michel (Dec 7, 2007)

"Friendly, intelligent, welcoming people!"

Rachelle (Dec 7, 2007)

"The Arabic Language and Culture Club is a lovely community full of gracious people."

David Greene (Dec 1, 2007)

"It was so much fun meeting new people with the same hunger for culture and knowledge! What a great event at the UN."

Juliana (Nov 30, 2007)

"great leader, micheal; great tour operator, and cool environment. felt rite at home. thank you very much. steve lefler"

steve lefler (Nov 30, 2007)

"lots of fun. Plenty of events with something for everyone. "

stuart (Nov 12, 2007)

"i really want meet and exchange some convercations with the members when we meet!!!!!"

fatima zegrani (Nov 10, 2007)

"Friendly people and relaxed atmosphere...Great group to hang out, have fun and watch fantastic bellydancers."

Sara Ismail (Nov 10, 2007)

"A group of the most intellegent, fun and caring people in NYC"

Wendy (Nov 9, 2007)

"Thanks for posting so many great events."

Saira (Nov 1, 2007)

"Willingness to practice and learn a language is the willingness to learn about other people with diverse background enriches our prespective towards the world and us as effective individual in our communities and provide us with that uniquness that each and everyone of us carry along the way. "

Muna Osman (Aug 14, 2007)

"Personally, I would like more of these types of events since I know no arabic."

Sheri (Aug 8, 2007)

"How did my social life come to revolve around you people? I don't know, but you're all great."

Dorothy (Aug 6, 2007)

"Diverse, friendly people."

Fongyen Lin (Aug 4, 2007)

"Great forum!"

Hussein Saddique (Aug 4, 2007)

"The movies were pretty good. However, I felt they generally provided a watered down version of the harsh reality. It might just be that original movies that capture the daily suffering of palestinians are too graphic and traumatic to show to a Western audience."

Suliman (Jul 14, 2007)

"Best club of all!"

Nicholas (Jul 14, 2007)

"What a great group of diverse, intelligent and exciting individuals!"

Kimberly Shamey (Jun 23, 2007)

"Excellent event- thanks!"

Nadia (Jun 23, 2007)

"Was a great event. "

SA (May 18, 2007)

"Very active "

Emad (May 15, 2007)

"Awesome group."

Cynthia (May 12, 2007)

"Intersting"

ouali (May 12, 2007)

"Cool group"

Shalom (May 12, 2007)

"great meetup group"

Tamas (May 12, 2007)

"THIS WAS my first experience with the club and i was impressed by the diversity and openness of people who didnt know each other from before. "

dragomira (May 12, 2007)

"i'm grateful to the group for pointing me in the direction of this performance, but with only 6 of us RSVP'd out of a hundred, i didn't even bother to look for others. guess i should have gone to a small event first, and made friends, then i would have recognized people! but even if it's not really an Arabic Language & Culture club social event, this kind of experience is wonderful for experiencing both language and culture. I hope that you note more things like this on the calendar!"

whetstone (Apr 22, 2007)

"Met several wonderful people and looking forward to meeting more. I like the idea of combining meetup groups, expanding interests. "

Kelly (Apr 17, 2007)

"Summed up in one word: Super!"

Jessica (Apr 15, 2007)

"I love it!"

Hayya (Feb 24, 2007)

"it a great group/ the organizer is nice person"

hossam (Feb 8, 2007)

"The members are very friendly"

amal (Jan 7, 2007)

"the group itself still rocks"

nicole (Dec 2, 2006)

"The best!"

Houda (May 28, 2005)

"Great!"

Karen Kriegel (Sep 14, 2006)

"This meet up has a very diverse group of people from different walks of life. It was a really good experience. Thanks a lot."

Luis (Nov 5, 2006)

"all member are so friendly. I loved all of them. I enjoyed a lot. Thank you guys for giving an opportunity to meet friendly and nice people.I will look forward to your next meetup"

Cem (Nov 5, 2006)

"Only thing I think is you should have had an end time so I could have planned better. And maybe a stretch break! But you did a great job teaching! "

Deb (Oct 25, 2006)

"I'm a new member so I can't say much until I actually meet the people on the group."

Hitesh (Oct 6, 2006)

"i want to participate more -- hey i still have to learn the alphabet too!"

slugluv1313 (Sep 17, 2006)

"everything went well--good mix of people. thanks to the organizers for putting together a great event."

dina (Aug 20, 2006)

"Hearing the words pronounced allowed me to fine tune the vocalization of letters not used in the English language. "

Insaan Solorzano (Aug 17, 2006)

"So far the meetup group is really good. I haven't been in the group very long but I like it so far."

Jade ELhaddad (Aug 17, 2006)

"The folks were very nice...the DJ Ibrahim...I didn't get to meet Michael though...I think i missed him."

Tony (Aug 12, 2006)

"it is a good opportunity for networking, making social and business connections as well as improving your grasp of the language -the only complaint has to do with my particular situation, I miss a lot of events and/or arrive late or have trouble finding venues due to the fact that I am coming from Staten Island."

Laura Brose (Jun 2, 2006)

"A nice bunch of people. Pleasant. "

Arthur (May 6, 2006)

"the meet up group was great all of you are cool thank you for this eforts you're doing for the group"

nadeene (Apr 14, 2006)

"I met so many friendly people at this event. I enjoyed that aspect of the event very much :)"

EricaLeena (Apr 14, 2006)

"Shukran yaa Modir El kabir n' yaa DJ for having this hafla. Mike, you chose the right event. I am so happy, man!! Thanks for all of my friends who came and say goodbye....almost cried at the end of the nite coz all y'all are real fun folks to hang out with!!! I know I will not meet another individual like each of ya. N' Mike...yeah, will not keep in touch with ya so that will get ya n' some folks down in Cali to hunt me....then...we go chill and cruise the boardwalk of those famous beaches....OH YEAH, Far OUT, DUDE !!!!"

Boufendi (Apr 14, 2006)

"Not everyone showed up but the people who did were very nice and we had a great workshop. "

val (Apr 12, 2006)

"I quit looking for new events online because I know that the best ones are already posted on the message board. Please keep those emails coming. "

Karin V. (Apr 7, 2006)

"This is a great, active meet-up group."

Rebecca Schiffman (Mar 31, 2006)

"This is a great Meetup group. The people of the group are wonderful"

Mustapha (Feb 10, 2006)

"very helpful in connecting with events of interest I might otherwise have missed."

Suzanne (Jan 28, 2006)

"I had a really good time. The group is fun, social, spontaneous and very accomodating. Even though every one had different backgrounds, it seemed like they all contributed to one goal: Uniting in their appreciation for Middle Eastern culture."

Muna (Jan 6, 2006)

"It was my first meeting, will attend again! See you there!"

Mona (Nov 30, 2004)

"Everyone was so dedicated and diligent in their efforts."

Nora (Jan 11, 2005)

"I look forward to attending as many events as I can."

Brita (Sep 26, 2005)

"Lots of very nice people."

molly (Sep 6, 2005)

"Thanks to Jamal; he is doing a great job!"

F-ny (Aug 8, 2005)

"Looking forward to participate in many other activities of the Club. Thanks to the Organizer and his Assistants for all opportunities provided! "

Anatoly Zoubanov (Aug 5, 2005)

"Have met some really good people here."

Al (Jul 28, 2005)

"Very enthusiastic group. I liked the people."

Jim Lai (Jul 27, 2005)

"It is a great group. The organizer is wonderful. He puts in a a lot of time and effort to keep the group motivated and interested, and are informed of a lot of great events around town in addition to help with Arabic"

Jamile (Jul 13, 2005)

"Great! I really enjoy meeting people in this group. Thanks so much. "

Atsuko Nishimoto (Mar 27, 2005)

"I have had the best experience with the arabic language meet up group. The leader is excellent at advertising events and the people I have met so far are friendly and great. I am very glad that I joined this meet up group."

Nicole R. Kilburg (Jan 25, 2005)

"Great group, I was impressed by the level of learning at which everyone truly is, while each claim the opposite."

Hosney (Jan 11, 2005)

"Fun!"

seriesgal52 (Nov 25, 2004)

"Very interesting & enthusiastic group"

Stephen M. (Nov 19, 2004)

See all member comments

About this Meetup







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نادي نيويورك لغة و الثقافة العربية

نادينا يهتم بجمع شمل العرب و كل الاشخاص المهتمون بالغة و التقافة العربية في مدينة نيويورك العضيمة نحاول في نادينا ان نغير الافكار السلبية المتخدة عن العرب من بعض الناس
نحاول ايضا ان نصنع قناطر جديدة من الصداقة الثفاهم بين كل افراد هذا النادي




Journey Beyond Travel is proud to offer a variety of quality Morocco tours.
We arrange active, cultural, and adventure trips for small groups or families
who want a customized itinerary. Our tours of Morocco are vastly different
than anything else you will find, guaranteed.


UN Arabic Language Class Website!



SUGGEST A LINK!









We're an extremely diverse group of people who come from a wide variety of ethnic, social, & religious backgrounds.


We come together for Weekly Meetings to practice communicating in Arabic as much
as possible. Complete Beginners do not fear! You must start somewhere! We
have many native fluent Arabic speakers from all over the world - some are tutors -
who are Very Eager to help you!


We also attend cultural events pertaining to North Africa & the Middle East. Some past events include the annual NYC Arab American Comedy Festival, a concert by renowned musician Marcel Khalife @ NYC's Town Hall, several art gallery openings, such as the recent 'Made in Palestine' exhibition and last years 'Nazar - Photographs of the Arab World' reception at Aperture, as well as numerous lectures by renowned speakers
such as Dr. James Zogby.


Newcommers are welcome at Any of our events. Please go through our website & look around. Also, check out the links below- there are some Great Resources for anyone interested in Arabic Language & Culture!


My name is Michael Kim 'Jamal' Riegelman. I'm the Modir/Director of the club. I
can be reached via eMail @ Riegelman@UN.Org, or my Cell @ (347) 523-3937



A photo taken at al'WaHa Arabic Village, where I worked teaching Arabic for the summer (2006)

A LITTLE ABOUT ME

I served as a Peace Corps volunteer (Environment Sector) in Morocco, completing my service in 2003. This is where my interest in & fascination of Arabic Language & Culture began. I'm proud to be a founding staff-member of CLV's al'WaHa Arabic Village, a Language & Culture Immersion Camp in northern Minnesota. Currently, I work at
United Nations Headquarters in NY in the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, Force Generation Service. I'm also an Experienced & Certified ESL Teacher
(CELTA trained). I reside in Hell's Kitchen, Madhattan! To view my complete Bio,
please go to Wafin.com's 'Moroccan of the Month' for April, 2006



I had the opportunity to meet with President Bush & the King of Morocco, Mohammed VI, while working at the United Nations during the 58th Session of the General Assembly (2003)






OUR CLUB IN THE PRESS



Aramica Newspaper Article (Adobe PDF)

al'WaHa Arabic Village NPR Article


BBC Radio Broadcast - Click on 'American Muslims - Sunday, August 21st'

- 2:54 minutes through the broadcast, we were incorrectly identified as NAAP

Les Babouches Restaurant Article

Wafins 'Moroccan of the Month'











Nibras Arab-American Theatre Company - NYC










NY Arab-American Comedy Festival Website




Get ALL the al'Kitab textbooks, CDs, DVDs & more!


Type Text In Arabic & Paste It Into Email!







Middlebury College's Intensive Arabic Program -
regarded by some as the best in the Country





How to get Arabic TV Channels via the DISH NETWORK


Excellent Language Exchange site! Includes most major languages


Al Jazeera in English!



BBC News - in 43 Different Languages!


Network of Arab-American Professionals











TAMKEEN: The Center for Arab American Empowerment!




Learn to cook Moroccan Style in Fez!


Habibi - Gay & Lesbian Arabic Club


The Rabat Hash House Harriers is an international social club. We're
multicultural, outgoing, & equally family-oriented & adult-oriented!



an Intercultural, Social & Sport Organization founded in 1990


Rent a House or Riad in Fez, Morocco!













M'oudswing - Arab Music n'Jazz!






Maqam World is a non-commercial, educational web site dedicated
to helping musicians understand the maqam or modal system
used in classical Arabic music




Iraqi Maqam Singer & Santur Player/Jazz Trumpeter & Composer



Marcel Khalife's Official Website



Middle Eastern Art & Culture Art Gallery in Soho, NYC!



The Oded Halahmy Foundation for the arts is a non-profit
cultural organization created to fund original artistic expressions
of peace and hope in the Middle East, the United States and around the world

"May there be peace in Iraq, the Middle East, and around the world"
















American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee






















Welcome to Turning Point For Women & Families - a New Community
Based Social Services Agency Serving the Muslim Community In New York








Turkish American Multicultural Foundation






Project Hope is a Non-Profit Volunteer Organization whose goal
is to provide a participatory, educational space for
war-affected children in the Near East






















Children of Abraham: a Muslim/Jewish Friendship Organization



Members are Palestinians & Israelis who've lost loved ones in conflict.
They've held numerous dialogues & taken several joint actions for
Peace, continuing to do so, despite & in the midst of the turmoil now
gripping Israel & Palestine




The Families Forum, as the expanded group of about 500 families is called,
seeks to solve the ongoing conflict between Israelis and Palestinians through
dialogue and mutual understanding. We call on all parties to promote
reconciliation as the only way to reach true co-existence and peace




Just Vision increases awareness about Palestinian and Israeli
non-violent, civilian-led efforts to build a base for peace in the Middle East




Muslim Greeting Cards!















The Arab American National Museum is the first museum
in the world devoted to Arab American history and culture







The High Atlas Foundation (HAF) is a nonprofit 501c(3) organization whose aim
is to establish community-based projects in Morocco that local people
design and manage, and that are in partnership with government and
non-government agencies. HAF was created by Peace Corps Volunteers
and staff who served in Morocco




'Al-Waha' - Concordia's new Arabic Language Village!



OFFICIAL UNITED NATIONS WEBSITE
- in English, French, Spanish, Russian, Arabic & Chinese!







Arab-American comedian Dean Obeidallah's Website






Moroccan National Daily Newspaper