Author
Articles by Javier Hughes
Society & Culture
How prayer times structure the day across MENA
Five daily prayers set to the sun's position, shifting a minute or two each day and by latitude: the adhan marks the hours, Friday's midday sermon reshapes the week, and prayer rooms are built into every mall and airport.
Javier Hughes
Society & Culture
MENA's grand museums: what to see, from the Grand Egyptian to Louvre Abu Dhabi
The Grand Egyptian Museum fully opened in November 2025 with Tutankhamun's complete collection on display; Louvre Abu Dhabi and Doha's Museum of Islamic Art anchor the Gulf's museum decade. A visitor's guide to the region's major museums.
Javier Hughes
Society & Culture
MENA's film festival calendar: what runs when, and why it matters
Cairo in November, Carthage in the same season, Marrakech after it and Jeddah's Red Sea in December: the region's festival circuit is now a fixed structure with real market power. A month-by-month guide.
Javier Hughes
Society & Culture
Why MENA's weekends don't match, and who moved them
The UAE went to Saturday-Sunday in 2022 to align with world markets; Saudi Arabia, Oman and Bahrain shifted to Friday-Saturday for the same reason a decade earlier; Egypt and the Maghreb simply differ. A map of the region's days off.
Javier Hughes
Society & Culture
Is the kafala system still in force in the Gulf? Here is what changed
The sponsorship system that tied migrant workers to employers has been substantially reformed in Qatar and Saudi Arabia since 2020: notice-based job changes, exit-permit abolition and the Gulf's first minimum wage. Where kafala still holds.
Javier Hughes