Pics of Salt

The Return to Aqaba and my Trip to Salt

Hey folks, I hope some of you are still reading, I haven't been giving my blog enough love recently. Last weekend was a three day weekend for Easter, and I decided to spend it in two of my favorite places: Petra and Aqaba. I saw many of the same things I saw the past two times in Petra, but I did get to see Petra at night for the first time. The Siq (pathway through the gorge to the treasury) and the large area in front of the treasury were dimly lit with candles. The cobblestones were particularly difficult with the lighting, but we all made it through without any twisted ankles (Al-hamdililah!) We were greeted my flute music and a man playing a Rabab (an ancient string instrument still heard often in modern Arabic music). The whole event was breathtakingly beautiful and made me step back and clear my mind for a very enjoyable hour. Aqaba is always relaxing, despite the flood of tourists. We stayed at a hostel called The Bedouin Gardens and it was quite adorable with flowers everywhere and two resident friendly cats. I left with a wonderful tan/ slightly painful burn and a fully relaxed mind.

As soon as I was back in Amman the stress returned when I remembered my two research papers, fortunately I'm currently halfway through one and (in sha-allah) will turn in two somewhat coherent essays on time. I spent the day today procrastinating in the best way possible in the city of Salt. Salt is an old Ottoman town built mostly in the 19th century. Unlike Amman, they've managed to keep and restore most of the old architecture (thanks to a very generous grant) and, as a result, is one of the most beautiful cities in Jordan. Most of the walking involved stairs (a few of which I managed to slide down *oops*) so at the moment I'm a little worn out. Unfortunately, since it the Muslim holy day, most things were closed down. We did manage to find an open Orthodox church, however, that apparently dates back to the 17th century. A lot of the city was built into a hill so the views at the top were astounding and quite unique because of the many beautiful minarets mixed with a half dozen church steeples. We finished of the day with a wonderful meal of hummus, baba ganoush, and lamb kebab at a little hole-in-the-wall restaurant. I plan to return very soon when more things are open and hopefully explore more of the wonderful buildings!

Petra pics

Petra! and more Petra!

Hey guys, sorry for the long absence, I've been pretty busy lately. Midterms are done and passed (al-hamdalilah!) and there's only 6 weeks left in the semester! Unfortunately, 6 weeks is hardly enough time to see everything there is to see and write two papers at the same time. But on the bright side, I saw so much over the past two weeks. Last Saturday mom and dad came to this great land to visit. We started out with a day trip to Jerash, and ancient Roman town north of Amman. We saw lots of beautiful ruins and some really cheesy sword fights and chariot races. Next on the itinerary was Petra. I had already gone to Petra the previous week with CIEE but I was so excited to go back and be a tour guide for my parents. The place is so expansive that I still didn't see everything in the two trips, and I think it would take at least 4 days to truly explore it completely. Both parents had a great time especially after we reached the high place of sacrifice after a grueling 45 minute walk up steps. The view was breathtaking and something I hope to see again.

We spent the end of the trip in Aqaba to warm up after a chilly Petra. The beach was absolutely beautiful and the hotel was fantastic (I was ecstatic when I found bacon in the executive lounge!). We all got a healthy dose of sun and felt pretty content after our three days there.

I was sad to see my parents leave, but glad I'll be seeing them again soon! I'm glad they made the trip out to see me, and even more glad that they had a good time!

The Ghost of Dawar Waha

This past week has been somewhat uneventful except for the mystical creature that's trying to kick us out of the apartment. At the beginning of the week, the boiler in the bathroom, quite literally, exploded as I was about to shower. The water was extremely hot, my roommate was quite worried when I yelped as the water hit me. Everyone had a good laugh about it, except me because I just wanted a warm shower. The next following days the hot water decided to work every other day, on the days that I didn't take a shower. On the bright side, I had some really shiny hair from all the cold water, but I was very happy when our guard Mahmoud finally fixed it. On Thursday night the power went out, so six of sat around a bunch of candles seance style convinced that the power would never come back because, well, this is Jordan. The next day, as Clare and I were making mac and cheese on the one burner we have that work the dial shot off the front of the stove and we're too embarrassed/afraid to call Mahmoud again because he doesn't really speak english, and every time he fixes something another thing decides to break. Fortunately, we've gone a few days without any problems and, in sha allah, the ghost has decided to take a break for awhile. The weather's getting warm, and the forecast is calling for 81 next week, which should make me feel a little better about the hell midterms that we're about to face. The Petra trip is next weekend, and spring break is coming up right after, al-hamdalilah. I very much need a break

Pics of Madaba (commentary located in the post below)

Biblical Jordan and Tea with the Bedouins

This weekend a group of about ten of us apartment kids ventured out to Madaba to see the biblical sites, and visit the hot springs. We left Amman around 5 on Thursday evening and, due to the ridiculous traffic and multiple random stops, we arrived in Madaba around 6:45. We arrived to a mostly quiet city that apparently closes down around dark. Regardless, we found a cute hotel and a wonderful restaurant downtown. If there was one thing I'd miss most about Jordan its the delicious family style meals with endless buckets of cheese, bread, hummus, and kebabs. Naturally, we went in search of some hubbly bubbly afterwards, and found a tiny shisha place with a very sweet owner. We called it quits early because the nightlife in Madaba is non-existant and we had to prepare for our long day ahead.

On Friday my roomies and I woke up around 8, grabbed a free breakfast, and headed out to see the famous Greek Orthodox church in Madaba where the oldest map (yet to be found) is located. The church was filled with a mixture of Canadian, Chinese, French, and German tourists. But, despite this tourist bubble, I absolutely loved this little gem in the middle of a small town. Next on the agenda was Mount Nebo at 2680 feet above sea level where Moses allegedly traveled to gain a view of the promised land that God had granted to the Israelites. God asked Moses to stay and this mountain until his death and so is rumored to be the burial site of Moses. We were fortunate enough to go up on a clear day because we were able to see for miles. The West Bank, Jericho, and the Dead Sea were all in clear view from the top point.

After Mount Nebo we traveled another 30 minutes to the Mai'n hot springs. The beauty of this natural phenomenon is overwhelming. Unfortunately the site was slightly tainted in my eyes because of the obvious gender discrimination. I decided that I won't wear a bathing suit again in public in Jordan unless I'm on a private resort. I understand that when traveling to a different culture, especially one so separate as Jordan, you must accept the differences in what's considered rude or inappropriate, but the staring is something I have trouble getting used to. Being the annoying feminist that I am, I couldn't stand the obvious discrimination. All the men were shirtless and in shorts, but if the women weren't completely covered (We didn't see any women over the age of 18 without a hijab) you got ogled or tisked at. But we all powered through it and enjoyed the healing waters anyway and walked away feeling refreshed.

On the ride back to Madaba the van we rented for the day overheated in the middle of a Bedouin farmland. When this happened I groaned and prepped myself to sit around until we got it fixed, but I was very pleasantly surprised when a nearby Bedouin farmer came over and offered us his home. We sat around on cushions on the floor in a room designated specifically for entertaining in a very small home. The man brought us tea and we all attempted to converse with him in our clumsy Arabic. In the end, I was very glad our car broke down just for this little piece of rural culture. It was the kind of hospitality that you would rarely find in the states, and it was a refreshing thing to see after leaving the hot springs.

Roman castles, beer pong, and stomach bugs

Last Saturday a large group of us CIEE kids piled into a tour bus to explore the Eastern Desert of Jordan, starting with a Roman caravan station called Halabat and ending at the Jordanian "wetlands" where the country apparently gets 1/4 of its water. Judging by the fact that the wetlands consisted of about 3 ponds (and that's being generous) I can now understand why long showers are a no-no. Overall the trip was quite enjoyable. The highest temperature that day was about 70 degrees and the castles were absolutely beautiful. Because Jordan has so much history to show off (and apparently very little legal problems) they have no problem with visitors climbing all over everything. It's a shame that this means the castles will eventually crumble to dust, but now its so much fun to be that close to something so ancient.

I've had some more time to explore Jordanian night life this week. On Tuesday we went to a hookah restaurant called Jaffra with really authentic live music. On wednesday, we found a nice little bar after a free jazz concert at a nearby hotel. And I found, wherever you may be in the world, beer pong is never impossible to find.

On a more serious note, the region is more in turmoil than ever before. As I was sitting in my archaeology class the other day we heard what sounded like explosions, our teacher assured us it must just be a nearby quarry. I found out later it was actually the Israeli army setting off bombs at a training camp for no apparent reason. Although this means nothing bad for Jordan at the moment, I've now had to accept that crazy shit is going on around here. My roommates and I have been sitting in front of the tv horrified about what's going on in Libya. My optimistic side hopes the Gaddafi will step down soon, but my rational side believes the people of Libya unfortunately have a long and bloody trial before them, but I hope everything gets better soon.

I'm sitting around writing this right now because I'm stuck at home as a cause of the inevitable stomach bug that I expected to eventually get when travelling to the Middle East. It's much better than yesterday thanks to a lot of rest and water!

For those of you who don't have a fb page here's some pics of the eastern desert

Apparently here it rains cats, but not dogs

The past week has been somewhat uneventful relative to the first two. Now that classes and the apartment are all settled life feels less hectic, but now I've had time to discover the many odd/awesome things Jordan has to offer. I found out that Jordan does not believe in animal control, so there are cats EVERYWHERE, and unfortunately one decided to die and/or be in heat outside my bedroom window. The noise has, as of now, stopped so I hope she has either moved on or improved her life in some way. I've also found lots of amazing food places around the apartment, including a place the sells amazing baklava and few cute little shawarma/falafel restaurants. They are surprisingly much cheaper than any American fast food chain that you will find, which are apparently considered fancy dining around here because they are the cleanest buildings you will find in the city.

I've worked two days at the archaeology library now and, although it is quite boring sorting pottery for 4 hours, the lunches they feed us are extremely fantastic and I've met some super interesting (although somewhat socially awkward) archaeologists.

Tomorrow I'm going on a CIEE sponsored trip to the Eastern Desert to check out some awesome castles starting at 8 am because, apparently, CIEE hates sleep.

"Belt your seat, we go in helicopter"

My life in Jordan is starting to feel much more stable because (finally!) I have a final class list. I tested into language intermediate II which is awesome because now I won't have to argue with Pitt advisors about credits, but may possibly be much harder than I think I can handle...I'm for sure in Archaeology of Jordan and Political Islam. Given the above quote is from my arch prof, I think this going to be quite the (interesting?) class, but slightly confusing since he doesn't really speak English. Political Islam is officially a shit ton of reading, but it looks like I'll learn a lot.

Along with my course load I've managed to secure a volunteer job at Amman's archaeology center, where anthropologists from around the world conduct their research on finds they've dug up in the region. I'll just be sorting pottery shards that a previous intern that apparently has zero organization skills. So the job is essentially pointless, but you have to start somewhere, right? (And I get a free lunch three times a week :-))

Us apartment kids are all starting to come together as a group, in the best and worst ways. We went out to a very expensive club last night, where we learned that Jordanians love to make fun of George W. Bush and that an American man should NEVER hit on a Jordanian woman under any circumstances. Surprisingly, we all made it out alive, most of us happy despite a few minor blood stains. As bad as that sounds, it really wasn't as bad as it was an interesting learning experience.

Tomorrow is our peer tutor orientation that begins bright and early at 8:30 am. It's supposedly super painful, so hopefully I'll get a great partner out of it.

Watching the superbowl, eating at McDonald's, and other such Jordanian things

On Sunday night/ Monday morning at 1:30 am 8 of us crazy CIEE students went to the nearby Marriott to watch the Steelers lose miserably and drink a lot of very overpriced beer. Despite these two set-backs it was definitely worth it and we all had a great time, especially when the delirium set in around 4 am. It was a great little taste of America in a city so much different from anything I'm used to. There was loud shouting from every part of the bar, TVs everywhere, and plenty of crappy beer. I felt like I had transported back to the US for those 4 hours, and felt very disoriented when I walked out into a very dark and very quiet Amman. The taxi drivers were quite annoyed at us crazy Americans who apparently have too much fun (even though at this point we were fully sober zombies). My roommate and I shuffled into the apartment at about 5:30 am, crashed quickly and went off to class at 9 am.

I was in a total haze that whole next day, but not so much that I didn't fully enjoy my area studies courses. My political islam is gonna be amazing. The teacher does a lot of research on feminism in the Middle East and has a fully secular point of view. The archaeology teacher, on the other hand, is slightly more biased. But I hoped to have a teacher that would let me see how teachers are different at the University of Jordan as compared to Pitt.

I ate at the McDonald's near the university this afternoon just for comparison sake, and found it to be exactly the same. I'm glad I have another resource when I'm feeling homesick. There is certainly not a lack of American culture around here, albeit slightly outdated, especially when it comes to music. Jordanians seem to think that N'Sync and the Backstreet Boys are still whats hip in the US. Fortunately, the Jordanian pop music is very entertaining, and I would rather listen to that in cabs any day.

Jordan is not a melting pot

Today was my first day of class at the University of Jordan. I had in my head all these images of what a traditional college campus looks like. I realized very quickly when I arrived that you can never make presumptions about Jordanian culture. I thought, "hey, these kids are my age, they're gonna be excited to meet international students and help us if we get lost." Problem number one: No one seems to know where everything is on campus, even if they're a full time student. The few girls that I did ask did seem like they wanted to help but, unfortunately, barely spoke English. Problem number two: the separation of gender and religion. Almost everyone was split into groups of two or three very social gatherings, but were only between people of the same sex and level of religious conservatism. There seemed to be an invisible wall between men and women that shocked me in an unpleasant way. This was the first time I really noticed I was in a completely different world from my own. I understand why the men here look at us American women differently, but to blatantly ignore people from your own country seemed so bizarre to me. Despite the difficulty of not being able to speak to anyone on campus, I eventually found my own way to the classroom 10 minutes late. On the bright side, I think I will survive my language course and I have a really great teacher.

My roommates and I went exploring after we got back from the University. We finally got our phones working, which is great considering how easy it is to get lost in a place with no maps. We also found some amazing bakeries (with baklava yummm) that we definitely be visiting very often.

Week 1: Taxi drivers don't speak English

So, I've almost officially made it one week in Jordan. I've still yet to get hit by a car, or trampled by the (supposedly) insane riots going on in the streets. But I have managed to get lost trying to find my way home in a taxi driven by an Arab who speaks NO english. We went around asking about five different extremely nice people for directions. About 5 JDs and 30 minutes later we did manage to stumble into our apartment with ten billion Carrefour bags. On the bright side, the apartment is bangin'!! We have two sitting rooms, a dining room, 3 bedrooms, and two baths. Oh, and a shit ton of awesome chandeliers. I'm sure it would be super awesome if it were warm here and we could have ragers but, as our higher ups in the program have warned us, the arabs know everything and will tell her everything. So, the three of us have decided to not be branded as the crazy American whorehouse, and keep the parties on the down-low.

My favorite part of the city so far are the beautifully preserved roman ruins. You can't walk a mile in Amman without hitting something left behind from their very ancient past. The mosques and the call to prayer were also a pretty cool part of the city in the beginning, but now that we've settled in to our apartment and realized the nearest mosque is right outside our window, its not so appealing (and also a little creepy) and 5 AM every morning.

Everything is great here, and I'll attempt to keep this updated every week. Jordan is not like Egypt, and I can assure you they wont be barricading us inside or shipping us home anytime soon.