For Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge: Patterns, I am going multicultural!

November 2018: At a Chicago Sinfonietta concert celebrating the Indian festival of Diwali,  during the intermission, audience members (especially children) made their own Diwali patterns using glue and glitter on preprinted patterns. Here are two of my favorites.

December 2018: In Egypt, we visited Al-Azhar Mosque with beautiful Islamic patterns.

At a Christian church on Christmas Day, we visited a Coptic church known as the “Hanging Church” where there were many examples of Arabic influence in the décor inside the church.

January 2019: We visited the Church of all Nations in Jerusalem, Israel, next to the Garden of Gethsemane:
Floor tile patterns

Decorative gate in front of the church
In Old Jerusalem, we went to Temple Mount where the famous golden Dome of the Rock is located. The outside of this building is decorated with beautiful mosaic patterns in a style typical of Islamic art:

January 26, 2019: Back home again, our daughter got married at an interesting, eclectic venue (normally used as a photography studio) in which there are several one-person bathrooms, each decorated differently. My favorite was the one decorated with a Frida Kahlo theme. Here are some of the colorful Mexican style tiles on the floor:

I hope you have enjoyed these patterns from around the world!

For more about Al-Azhar Mosque in Cairo, Egypt, see Journey to Egypt: Part 4 – Visiting a Mosque and Celebrating Christmas in Cairo.

For more about the Hanging Church in Cairo, Egypt, see Journey to Egypt, Part 6: Coptic Churches & Ben Ezra Synagogue.

For Israel locations, I will be blogging about them soon!