TAIF's Intercontinental hotel was the center of much hustle and bustle this past weekend, with locals and visitors enjoying the three-day festival extravaganza put on by Jeddah's US Consulate. The festival began on Wednesday May 6 and ended on Friday evening, after completing a hectic schedule of art exhibitions, English language workshops, visa presentations, film screenings and culminating in an enjoyable musical performance by an American and Saudi group on Friday afternoon. There was much artwork on display within the hotel as well, with an exhibition on American art dominating the hotel's VIP and Banquet halls. The work by American artists and photographers sought to narrate the story of the American way of life, as well as reflect the lives of American Muslims and highlight positive aspects of their life in the US. Of particular importance was the idea that American Muslims enjoy the freedom to worship, work and live without facing any difficulties. Not everything was about art and culture, however. A specially-designated corner of the hotel was devoted to commerce and finance - geared particularly to local businessmen, as well as a booth for the promotion of tourism in picturesque Taif. English language workshops were hosted all morning on Wednesday and Thursday, taught by Robert Lindsay, a regional English language officer and Kenneth N. Nance, and instructor in English. Both workshops were extremely popular and attended by a number of teachers from Taif's University and the Wall Street Institute of English (WSI). “I found the festival to be much fun, giving me a chance to find out about other people and to accept them,” remarked Mohammed Ershad Ali, a training consultant from WSI, who found out about the festival from the institute and leaflets distributed in the city itself. “It has helped me in my line of work, as the two English workshops have taught me how to teach English - something that is new to us.” The festival was also a great hit with children, who attended film screenings, art workshops especially geared toward them and greatly enjoyed Friday's Telefrik Al-Kar water park ‘concert' and experience. Ammar Mohammed was one such child who attended the festival with his father to learn about ‘American culture'. “They gave us paper and color pencils and pens to draw with,” he chattered excitedly. “I was drawing mountains and he (the Consul General, Martin Quinn) asked me whether I was drawing the Al-Hijaz mountains or the Sarawat mountains. He was very friendly.” Like other children, however, Ammar's favorite part of the festivals was being given free t-shirts and caps as well as chocolate. “I will never forget this day,” he beamed. What the officials have to say US Consul General Martin Quinn was present at the festival at all times and made an effort to participate in every session. Speaking to the Saudi Gazette, when asked why the consulate was choosing small cities over the larger, metropolitan ones, he answered, “Our main consulate is located in Jeddah where we are often hosting events almost every week. We thought it would be a good idea to host events in towns and cities where we do not have much contact with local people.” He was particularly interested in working on the local population's perception of the United States. “We are providing educational opportunities, lectures about Saudi-US commercial ties, as well as accurate information about our country, to further develop our relationship with the Kingdom,” he said. Commenting on the artwork exhibited, he said, “.e have put the focus on Islam in the US, exhibiting artwork on the mosques in the US and people celebrating Islamic holidays such as Eid.” Quinn was also keen to point out the educational aspect of the festival. “We spoke to forty medical students as well as students of English and English literature and they are very interested in studying in the US,” he remarked. “We had a visa officer from Riyadh come over and address visa issues and we provided the complete team of press officer, visa officer, commerce officer as well as the consulate team.” Having met the governor of Taif, a number of local artists and businessmen, the Consul General was full of praise for the local population and the city itself. “This is a chance for us to see the city,” he said. “We come from Jeddah to see this very famous city with its historical palace - Shubra - and it is amazing to see the development that has happened here in the past few years.” The US Consul for Commerce, Jesse Lapierre praised Taif's commercial potential. “I think the city of Taif has very promising commercial prospects,” he stated. “The tourism industry is good and we would like to see more American companies come to work with Taif businesses and Taif's chamber of commerce.” The Consul General concluded the conversation with the idea that the festival would certainly be replicated in he future in Al-Baha or Yanbu.
