Zeit Boulos - now online

Zeit Boulos can now be ordered online. The interesting part? They managed to do a pitch perfect continuation of their - eternally running campaign. By eternally running I mean - and whereas I have no specific date in my archives - this goes back to 1998 or so.
OK, the line? "Iza de2et 3le2et" (once you taste it you get hooked up) dates back to the 90s (to my shame my first recording of it in 2012). Just for the advertising anecdote, the brand changed the line briefly with "Zeit Boulos, Boulos, Boulos" in honor of Lebanese basketball player Boulos Bechara's performance as partof the Sagesse team that won the first Asian title for Lebanese teams in 1999 - again for the reference it was Lebanese presenter Tony Baroud (himself an ex-basketball player) who initiated the "Boulos, Boulos, Boulos" catchphrase. Otherwise? A yellow background with an oil bottle was just the campaign since... forever.
So now that we established the credentials of the campaign, for their online - they added "heik heik 3ele2et tloba online" which translates as "now that are hooked might as well ask for it online". Again, the consistency of the campaign, which is almost unchanging as I said is truly remarkable. Because at this point, beyond the idea if the campaign is nice or not, it is simply "there" - immediately recognizable, totally in-your-face, and comforting to know it does not change.

Almaza, a typical Lebanese (celebrating) basketball

Ah - for a while basketball in Lebanon was huge, humongous. Then politics ruined it.

But hey here we are - a nation failing on all possible levels, with players having no electricity to train, some of them had left the country to better pastures, most of them had zero financing, a lot of them failed to come to training because there was no gasoline to be able to attend, and the list continues. So what does the national Lebanese basketball team do? Obviously, or rather not obviously, they went on to qualify to the final of the Asian Basketball Championship - by beating China (the clear expected winner) in the quarter finals, and Jordan in the semi-finals (two very close games where the Lebanese team eventually dominated).

So there you go, the players - specifically Wael Arakji - truly excelled it seems. Finally the Lebanese have a small glimmer of hope, joy, national pride, or what not. Everyone suddenly remembered basketball. Yes, the one that was ruined by politics.

Well, as with all events, Almaza rises to the occasion with "goosebumps" - as shows on a basket ball... 

If you wish to see the final match please head to this link here.