The rectangular cinder-block construction you see here is pretty typical of the area, actually of the entire Middle East. There are some houses with fancy cupolas and archways, but they always come off as an uneasy compromises between flamboyance and the fundamental charmlessness of cinder blocks.

But while the houses are mostly nothing special on the outside, that leaves twice as much decorative energy for the insides, which are colorful and cozy.