Just as an FYI I lost my computer for about two weeks and was unable to get on a computer for longer than five minutes so I haven't had time to update this...But as for an update it will start with Monday the 10th of November!
November 10th 2008
FYI I did nothing all day...so instead of giving you the basic one two three run down of a day I am sure you could guess the outcome of I will talk about Halloween! So on the day before Halloween I decided to go to a Halloween party at the American Embassy...My friend Lauren is a Marine and so we got into the embassy. Anyways I went as a princess. I know how third grade of me but that is kind of what I was going for...jordan just doesn't to me seem to be the place were being a sexpot for Halloween is a good idea...And besides the only person I find my self wanting to be half naked infront of is in a different country right now!
Moving on I met some really great people at the party which resulted in my getting invited to the Marine Corps Ball...Although the person just needed a date and knew that I was in a serious relationship I still turned him down...After all I did tell Garrett that if he were to go to the Ball and had to have a date I wanted him to bring the fattest and smelliest girl he could find...either that or go with a man! So yeah...didn't want to be a hypocrite or anything.
So on the actual night of Halloween I went to a CIEE party at one of the guys in the program apartment. It was actually really fun. I think all of the 60 people in CIEE were there. The party was crazy...but I didn't drink that night...I am pretty sure I was still hung over from the first party I went to the night before...Man did I ever get trashed at the party the night before...but lucky for me I got a ride home from a friend...and passed out on my bed...anyways back to the CIEE party...I met some really great people at this party as well...I met my new Arab friend and so now we hang out for coffee and shisha sometimes! Basically we argue about politics and such!
November 11th 2008
Okay so Tuesday again I didn't do much...I think I might have gone out with a friend but I am not even sure (writing this a few days after the fact). So I guess I will just talk about the party I went to the other weekend. Well let me start out with the whole of that past friday. First Jenna and I went and hung out with Abdullah and then after about three hours of smoking shisha and some amazing Kanafa Jenna and I then went to this party at the dead sea! It was pretty cool, but to be honest a bit weird. Cause there were like 3000 people there and Jenna and I were what seemed like two of about 100 girls that came to the party! YA HARAM!!!!! Anyways, after that we went to Jenna's friends farm for a couple hours...which aka resulted in me not getting home until about 6 o'clock Saturday morning!!!! OH and I injured my back at the party trying to ditch some creepy guy!
November 12th 2008
Drum roll please!!!!! I have nothing to say for this every day same old same old day! I realize that I don't often have much to say during the week! But come on!!! Can you blame me when all I do is just go to class and come home and study? Yeah I thought you would get the point!
November 13th 2008
Okay so Tonight I went out with Abduallah and Ashraf! Those two kill me I swear... We went out for Shisha (as always) and then we just sat around and talked. Ashraf doesn't speak good english and so I try to talk to him...but he is so shy around girls he always say the same thing to me not matter what I ask him! Abduallah on the other hand I spend half the night arguing with! I think he wants to save my soul...He thinks I am going to hell because I am not a muslim. He is convinced one day I will see the light! Hard to see that ever happening in my life! Anyways it was a fun night!
November 14th 2008
So tonight was my host sister's engagement party! It was pretty fun. The first party was for all men. I ditched the house during that time...and then after that was the all women's party and the women kept doing the zargarit. It was cool though and I watched my sister dance with her fiance and they arab danced and such! Anyways after that we had the real party. And that was fun we danced and listened to bad music! Haha anyways it was cool and after that I fell asleep.
November 15th 2008
So I didn't go to Karake today like I wanted to because I was so crazy beat from last night! Anyways basically I laid in bed all day and read my books for my class. Anyways I don't have much to say but On Monday I am going to Salt so maybe then I will have more to say.
November 16th 2008
So I learned something today. That I have a characteristic trade mark. Are you ready for it? So I was walking around campus and then I stopped to talk to a friend and all of a sudden they asked me if I broke up with Garrett...And I was like why the heck do you think that?...Turns out I had taken off my ring that I wear because I was doing Henna and forgot to put it back on for a minute...Never realized so many people noticed my ring...For the record I am wear the ring now...and my friends were making fun of me cause they said they thought it was perminately attached to my finger. haha who would have figured!
Anyways the day was really boring so I am going to end on that! BYE BYE
Sunday, 9 November 2008
Friday, 17 October 2008
Week 8
October 13th 2008
Well nothing of much interest happened today. I had to give a presentation about a story I read for my Women writers course, but other than that there is nothing all that great about my day. I went to the gym and worked my ass off. Seriously I feel like it is falling off. The computer at my house is not working because of the internet so my blog will probably suffer since I am paying to get on here and update this damn thing. Okay that is all for the 13th.
October 14th 2008
Well today seemed to be the day for me to lose my sanity in Jordan. I went to the teacher to talk to her about how she thinks I am doing in Arabic class. Because well frankly it is a guessing game in this country. Anyways, all though she tells me I am doing good I just feel so stupid and frustrated at times that I ended basically crying the entire time I was talking to her. She is such a sweetheart. I felt so bad for crying like that...and she just kept telling me that we were like sisters and sisters cry to each other. She really is an angel. She made me feel better. Even though I still get frustrated at times with this damn language...I knew it was going to be hard...but grr!
Anyways other than that nothing else happened on Tuesday!
October 15th 2008
Well nothing new except that we had a GLBT talk. And a guy came in to talk to us about what it is like to be out in Jordan. He owns one of my favorite cafes. Books at Cafe. It is such a cool place. Man I miss my gays. Anyways other than this nothing of much import happened. I found out today that I am goin cliff diving on Saturday. That should be fun! EK!
October 16th 2008
Well I went out with a few friends tonight. We basically just sat around though. Rovers was closed down because of toilet problems..eww...and so we just went to walkalat street and smoked some shisha. Anyways that is about all. Nothing too great.
October 17th 2008
Okay so a run down of this day...I made fried green tomatoes...yep that was it! Nothing else have I done today. Since I am going cliff diving tomorrow I just haven't done much except study. Anyways that is all for now I am out. I will have more to write for tomorrow I am sure!
October 18th 2008
OMG!!!! That was absolutely incredible. I went to Wadi Hasa which aka is one of the most beautiful places you could ever go to. So the trip started out with a 3 hour bus ride to this wadi. Once we got off the bus within three minutes of being on the trail you had to jump on to the first natural made water slide. You instantly slide into water way over your head and then you swim for a bit to a place where you have to jump off of a 30 feet rock to get to the next level of the Wadi. After that there is about five minutes of a dry hike before you are back in the water again. I swear some places looked like the most romantic thing in the world with all the rock forms over head and other places looked like you were going to get ate by a giant snake in the water as you are swimming or wading through cat tails. There were tunnels we had to swimming through and rocks we had to jump between and fall into the water below. IT was incredible. There was about 12 waterfalls total in the short place we did to get to the hot springs...and then we just relaxed there for a while. All and all the trip was great. I wish I could have had a camera for all of this, but it would have ruined my camera. We spent about 90% of the time in water. After all this was over though we got right back on the bus for another three hours home.
October 19th 2008
Nothing to report I had my speaking exam today. And I was so sore from the trip I took. Seriously though I am covered in bruises and my butt is black from a particularly nasty fall I had yesterday. Why don't I have any grace????
Well nothing of much interest happened today. I had to give a presentation about a story I read for my Women writers course, but other than that there is nothing all that great about my day. I went to the gym and worked my ass off. Seriously I feel like it is falling off. The computer at my house is not working because of the internet so my blog will probably suffer since I am paying to get on here and update this damn thing. Okay that is all for the 13th.
October 14th 2008
Well today seemed to be the day for me to lose my sanity in Jordan. I went to the teacher to talk to her about how she thinks I am doing in Arabic class. Because well frankly it is a guessing game in this country. Anyways, all though she tells me I am doing good I just feel so stupid and frustrated at times that I ended basically crying the entire time I was talking to her. She is such a sweetheart. I felt so bad for crying like that...and she just kept telling me that we were like sisters and sisters cry to each other. She really is an angel. She made me feel better. Even though I still get frustrated at times with this damn language...I knew it was going to be hard...but grr!
Anyways other than that nothing else happened on Tuesday!
October 15th 2008
Well nothing new except that we had a GLBT talk. And a guy came in to talk to us about what it is like to be out in Jordan. He owns one of my favorite cafes. Books at Cafe. It is such a cool place. Man I miss my gays. Anyways other than this nothing of much import happened. I found out today that I am goin cliff diving on Saturday. That should be fun! EK!
October 16th 2008
Well I went out with a few friends tonight. We basically just sat around though. Rovers was closed down because of toilet problems..eww...and so we just went to walkalat street and smoked some shisha. Anyways that is about all. Nothing too great.
October 17th 2008
Okay so a run down of this day...I made fried green tomatoes...yep that was it! Nothing else have I done today. Since I am going cliff diving tomorrow I just haven't done much except study. Anyways that is all for now I am out. I will have more to write for tomorrow I am sure!
October 18th 2008
OMG!!!! That was absolutely incredible. I went to Wadi Hasa which aka is one of the most beautiful places you could ever go to. So the trip started out with a 3 hour bus ride to this wadi. Once we got off the bus within three minutes of being on the trail you had to jump on to the first natural made water slide. You instantly slide into water way over your head and then you swim for a bit to a place where you have to jump off of a 30 feet rock to get to the next level of the Wadi. After that there is about five minutes of a dry hike before you are back in the water again. I swear some places looked like the most romantic thing in the world with all the rock forms over head and other places looked like you were going to get ate by a giant snake in the water as you are swimming or wading through cat tails. There were tunnels we had to swimming through and rocks we had to jump between and fall into the water below. IT was incredible. There was about 12 waterfalls total in the short place we did to get to the hot springs...and then we just relaxed there for a while. All and all the trip was great. I wish I could have had a camera for all of this, but it would have ruined my camera. We spent about 90% of the time in water. After all this was over though we got right back on the bus for another three hours home.
October 19th 2008
Nothing to report I had my speaking exam today. And I was so sore from the trip I took. Seriously though I am covered in bruises and my butt is black from a particularly nasty fall I had yesterday. Why don't I have any grace????
Wednesday, 8 October 2008
What now? WEEK SEVEN!!!!!!!!!
October 6th 2008
Okay so today is the day before my 21st birthday. You would think I would be looking forward to Tuesday, but anybody who knows me knows that I never look forward to birthdays...because well it is a day I can guarantee that I will be sick! Geeze why can't this be a tradition for breaking? But now. I could feel it coming on today!
I met up with Nada today. It was a quick and short meeting, but it was all the time we really had. She showed me where this cheap little place that I could get some pretty decent Shawarma at. It wasn't really a bad price. And it was close. Nada is such a cute little Arab girl. She is so soft spoken and everything.
Anyways after I left Nada I went to the Arabic club for the ten forms. Dr. Najeh was teaching it or I probably wouldn't have gone. Actually I don't think anybody would have gone had anybody else been teaching it. Najeh is crazy and so therefore everybody loves him!
Anyways not much else happened today. Just another adverage day in Jordan!
October 7th 2008
My 21st Birthday! Was nothing that I had hoped it would be. Actually it was mundane at best. Let's be honest...I turned 21 in a country that I could already drink in...which a bunch of people that I have only known for about 2 months.
I mean, my arabic teacher did embarrass me by making me get up in front of the class and then made everyone sing happy birthday to me...in Arabic and then she gave me cookies to pass out to the class. She really is a nice and cute lady, but I was so red!!!!!
Anyways, moving on later that night I went out to Dubliners with a group of my friends we spent about 2 hours there just talking and stuff. Nothing too special I had a drink but didn't get drunk! After that we went and smoked shisha. And that was the end of my birthday night.
Oh wait and my host mom made me Apple cake for my birthday! It was actually pretty good.
When it was all said and done though...21 was not that big of a deal!
October 8th 2008
Well as what I am seeing to be a trend for this week I really didn't do anything. In my Islam in the Modern Context class I guess I impressed a few people with my knowledge of Arab feminism. I was basically put on a panel almost with three other Arabic girls and we all debated and answered questions about Arabic feminism. It was actually pretty fun. But other than that I didn't do much...I went to the gym later. About killed myself trying to work out. I ran flat out for about 20 minutes. It was insane and then I walked for about 20 more. I swear sometimes I think I am on a mission to die on a treadmill...haha
After that all I did was go home and go to sleep...not very exciting I know. But hey that is my life!
October 9th 2008
Today was actually pretty interesting for me. Well in the beginning it was a bit boring just same old same old. But later in the day I spent three hours speaking Arabic with Nada. Well broken Arabic...but it made me feel good, because I understood what she said to me and I could talk with her mostly in Arabic. She says my Arabic is good. She also says I am very animated with my hands...Haha I feel as if this helps me talk some.
Anyways after that I went to this Iraqi and Palestinian music show. It was pretty awesome. They whole audience was really into it. We sang along and clapped and everybody was chanting different things...if was almost like a high school pep rally. Haha But it really was great.
Later that day I went out to dinner with some friends. We went to this cool as hell place for Iraqi food. Seriously they gave us so much food it was crazy. And the shisha was great. And I talked to the waiters in Arabic. They thought my Arabic was good too!
Anyways, then some of us decided to go to Dubs but they were having plumbing issues and so we went to Amigos. This was a loud bar, but hey I got a free drink complements of Mike...And then we ended off the night at another bar. A lot nicer but too expensive. I didn't stay long. And now I am home...watching illegal movies on the internet...
So GOODNIGHT!!!!
Okay so today is the day before my 21st birthday. You would think I would be looking forward to Tuesday, but anybody who knows me knows that I never look forward to birthdays...because well it is a day I can guarantee that I will be sick! Geeze why can't this be a tradition for breaking? But now. I could feel it coming on today!
I met up with Nada today. It was a quick and short meeting, but it was all the time we really had. She showed me where this cheap little place that I could get some pretty decent Shawarma at. It wasn't really a bad price. And it was close. Nada is such a cute little Arab girl. She is so soft spoken and everything.
Anyways after I left Nada I went to the Arabic club for the ten forms. Dr. Najeh was teaching it or I probably wouldn't have gone. Actually I don't think anybody would have gone had anybody else been teaching it. Najeh is crazy and so therefore everybody loves him!
Anyways not much else happened today. Just another adverage day in Jordan!
October 7th 2008
My 21st Birthday! Was nothing that I had hoped it would be. Actually it was mundane at best. Let's be honest...I turned 21 in a country that I could already drink in...which a bunch of people that I have only known for about 2 months.
I mean, my arabic teacher did embarrass me by making me get up in front of the class and then made everyone sing happy birthday to me...in Arabic and then she gave me cookies to pass out to the class. She really is a nice and cute lady, but I was so red!!!!!
Anyways, moving on later that night I went out to Dubliners with a group of my friends we spent about 2 hours there just talking and stuff. Nothing too special I had a drink but didn't get drunk! After that we went and smoked shisha. And that was the end of my birthday night.
Oh wait and my host mom made me Apple cake for my birthday! It was actually pretty good.
When it was all said and done though...21 was not that big of a deal!
October 8th 2008
Well as what I am seeing to be a trend for this week I really didn't do anything. In my Islam in the Modern Context class I guess I impressed a few people with my knowledge of Arab feminism. I was basically put on a panel almost with three other Arabic girls and we all debated and answered questions about Arabic feminism. It was actually pretty fun. But other than that I didn't do much...I went to the gym later. About killed myself trying to work out. I ran flat out for about 20 minutes. It was insane and then I walked for about 20 more. I swear sometimes I think I am on a mission to die on a treadmill...haha
After that all I did was go home and go to sleep...not very exciting I know. But hey that is my life!
October 9th 2008
Today was actually pretty interesting for me. Well in the beginning it was a bit boring just same old same old. But later in the day I spent three hours speaking Arabic with Nada. Well broken Arabic...but it made me feel good, because I understood what she said to me and I could talk with her mostly in Arabic. She says my Arabic is good. She also says I am very animated with my hands...Haha I feel as if this helps me talk some.
Anyways after that I went to this Iraqi and Palestinian music show. It was pretty awesome. They whole audience was really into it. We sang along and clapped and everybody was chanting different things...if was almost like a high school pep rally. Haha But it really was great.
Later that day I went out to dinner with some friends. We went to this cool as hell place for Iraqi food. Seriously they gave us so much food it was crazy. And the shisha was great. And I talked to the waiters in Arabic. They thought my Arabic was good too!
Anyways, then some of us decided to go to Dubs but they were having plumbing issues and so we went to Amigos. This was a loud bar, but hey I got a free drink complements of Mike...And then we ended off the night at another bar. A lot nicer but too expensive. I didn't stay long. And now I am home...watching illegal movies on the internet...
So GOODNIGHT!!!!
October 10th, 2008
Okay so first things I got up and went to Avacado with Mike, Cat, and David, but it was closed so we had to decided somewhere else to eat! We ended up at Abu Jabara which I think is a great place to eat. Mike thought so as well, but Cat not so much. After Abu Jabara Cat and I left and went to the movies in Mecca mall. We saw Tropic Thunder...yes I am aware it came out a while ago, but remember this is Jordan. It was a pretty funny little movie. And it really had a great cast of people...some of which I didn't recognize until they were pointed out to me.
After the movie Cat and I met up with Tanya at a cafe. I really do love the cafes here. The waiters just let you sit and take up table space for hours and end and they never force you to buy anything or leave. It really is great. One never feels rushed in this country...well except to cross the road that is...but that is another story entirely. So we sat there for about three hours just talking and such. After that we went to Cat's apartment and watch Cloverfield. That movie made me dizzy and when they said that it was between the Blaire Witch and Godzilla they weren't kidding. The worst movie I swear. After that I just came home and chilled in the house. Actually I went to bed rather early. About 11 or so. Nothing great there.
October 11th 2008
You know I had really hoped to be productive today and get up and go somewhere. Well I was sort of productive. I got up early to go to the gym. And I ran for about 30 minutes as fast as I could. And then spent 20 minutes or so working on my arms. So I was productive for a little while. But after I left the gym I was so worn out that I couldn't think to go anywhere else. Except that my head phones broke so I went on a wild goose chase...on foot...searching for a radio shack in sweifieh that my host sister told me about...then Nimer told me it was closed and told me to go to the one on Garden's...when I get to Garden's I found out that one was closed as well. So I called Ahmad. And Ahmad then tells me that all Radio Shacks in Jordan have been offically closed down. So then he tells me to go to PC ZONE. Can I state that if I didn't need my MP3 so bad I would have just gone home and gone to bed. But I did find this place rather easy with his instructions. God love Ahmad...he is just the most handy Arab!!! I swear he is my favorite CIEE person here. haha He is always getting me out of trouble...no wonder he thinks I am a trouble maker!!!
Anyways after the headphone ordeal and the gym today...I just didn't have the energy to do anything else and so I slept most of the day away. I eventually got up to do my homework and study a bit for my test on Monday. But that is all I did today.
October 12th 2008
Frankly today was just a little bit boring as usally...I did all of the same old same old...Class, conversation partner, and gym...nothing all that great to report. Sorry so short...
Tuesday, 30 September 2008
Ekk!!! Week Six!!!!
September 29th 2008
Okay so Monday was not exciting in the least bit...Well at least during the day. Didn't do much. Came back home and was planning on taking a nap, but decided it would be more fun for me to keep Nimer from sleeping...And so that is what I did...I bugged him...or tried to but it turned into more of him bugging me than me bugging him. Why is it that everybody has to find out just how ticklish I am? I mean Grandpa doesn't let up...Garrett doesn't let up...Nobody I ever worked with let up on it...and now neither do either of my host brothers...I spend most of the day smacking them for poking me in the side. Geeze oh brother!
Anyways, so that night after I realized that I got blown off by Tanya I called Cat and her and I went to the bar that everybody was at. Well I got pre "week before my birthday" tipsy. Haha...Nimer ended up being there too so I made him take Cat back to her apartment...I always got be the mother...not that she needed one, but I needed to make sure she was safe, which she was grateful for since she certainly didn't want to take a taxi after drinking! But we had fun and I tried a few drinks I had never had before...and they sure beat drinking Jungle Juice in Chi Phi's basement! Although I do miss dancing! But now that Ramadan is offically over there are plans in the motions to go check out the night clubs here...Not quite frat row in Btown but hey...it should be an interesting aspect of the social life around here!
September 30th 2008
Well since my plans for Eid have been offically ruined I didn't do much today. I did a little shopping and went with Cat to the movies. Later in the night I went and smoked Shisha with some people in Shemisani, but not too much of interest for my first day of Eid. What can I say other than most places are closed down during Eid. Cat and I went and saw Mama Mia...One of those movies that you aren't really sure if you liked. But hey we got to eat during the day time. I guess that is a plus. Not much more to report for this day.
October 1st, 2008
Okay so today some of the stores were opened and I was able to go and attempt to find some more clothes for me to wear in Jordan. I did buy a really cute skirt for like 10 JD, but other than that nothing exciting during the day time.
Later in the night I met up with Lauren and she introduced me to her friends Alex and Omar. We all decided to go to the "Eco Tourism Cafe" in downtown. If you are looking for cheap places to go down town would be the place to go. Seriously for all four of us and getting tea and shisha the bill was a total of 4 JD. That is so cheap. Too bad I don't have much taste for downtown! Not too mention the cheap bill gets forgotten when you take a taxi there at 2 JD per ride. All well. So we played Hearts. The one thing I really like about Jordan is nobody is in a hurry for you to leave there cafe. You can not order something for hours and just sit there and they don't care. I wish it were more like that in America.
October 2nd 2008
I met up with Abdullah today. At first we just went and smoked some shisha, but after that we went to this fast food ish place and eat Hummus, Fulle, and Falaful. (Spelling? not sure about it in English). This was my first time having all of these well except for Hummus...my host mom will tell you I eat that way too much! Haha actually it is one of the only things I eat!
Anyways, Abdullah took me on what would be considered a car ride tour of Amman and all of the places I haven't been so far. He just showed me how to get to different places and such! It was pretty cool. But nothing really much worth of a note.
October 3rd 2008
So today I decided to go for a walk-about. I walked all the way from the seventh cirle to Abdoun which let me tell you is a very far walk. I walked passed the Canadian embassy. Haha there was only one guard at the gate. Shows how threatened Canada feels.
Anyways I got hardcore stalked by this one guy driving in a car. He stalked me for about two miles when I was walking home. Finally I got out my phone and called Ahmad. Ahmad wanted to come pick me up, but I thought the guy took off. After I hung up with Ahmad the guy came back however, but he changed his car. It was so weird. Finally I ditched him. And I made sure he didn't follow me home.
Later I went out with some of my friends. I was walking to meet them and nother guy started to follow me. He was on foot. Finally I turned around and told him in Arabic that "I didn't speak Arabic well and I couldn't understand him...and then I told him Thank you BYE" he finally left me alone. But then another guy tried to follow me to meet my friends and I told him to go fuck his mother cause he was really annoying me. He left!
I spent some time with my friends and we all just talked about this and that. Nothing all that cool. So when I left surprise surprise I got followed again. This guy was persistant. I even gave him a fake number so he would leave. I told him I had a finance but he didn't care. It took me half an hour to get him to leave. But after he left these guys in this car kept trying to get my attention, but I just ignored them and they finally bugged off as well!
So all this tells me is that now that Ramadan is over my "don't stalk me veil" has been lifted and all the little boys now that they are allowed to think about girls again are dying for some action! Geeze oh pete somebody shoot me!
Haha...but I still love Amman!
October 4th, 2008
Saturday's is Amman are always rather uneventful. Seriously...I mean because I know I have courses on Sunday I just don't do anything. So basically I have nothing to report for my last day of vacation. I went to the gym this day and worked myself into the ground...Actually it was kind of fun...in a painful sort of way...Anyways after the gym I did nothing...so yeah big fun...not!!!
October 5th,2008
Sunday! Okay so basically I didn't do much today either. I went to classes...I was supposed to meet with Nada today but that got canceled because I had to go to a CIEE meeting. Which was basically were we spent an hour bitching about what we didn't like with our arabic courses and/or teachers...It was all very unproductive. Like I seriously couldn't have thought of a better waste of my time. I didn't feel like this meeting solved anything really. Anyways, after this I went to the gym and then came home and did 3 hours worth of Arabic homework! Wow my life is just so exciting!
Okay so Monday was not exciting in the least bit...Well at least during the day. Didn't do much. Came back home and was planning on taking a nap, but decided it would be more fun for me to keep Nimer from sleeping...And so that is what I did...I bugged him...or tried to but it turned into more of him bugging me than me bugging him. Why is it that everybody has to find out just how ticklish I am? I mean Grandpa doesn't let up...Garrett doesn't let up...Nobody I ever worked with let up on it...and now neither do either of my host brothers...I spend most of the day smacking them for poking me in the side. Geeze oh brother!
Anyways, so that night after I realized that I got blown off by Tanya I called Cat and her and I went to the bar that everybody was at. Well I got pre "week before my birthday" tipsy. Haha...Nimer ended up being there too so I made him take Cat back to her apartment...I always got be the mother...not that she needed one, but I needed to make sure she was safe, which she was grateful for since she certainly didn't want to take a taxi after drinking! But we had fun and I tried a few drinks I had never had before...and they sure beat drinking Jungle Juice in Chi Phi's basement! Although I do miss dancing! But now that Ramadan is offically over there are plans in the motions to go check out the night clubs here...Not quite frat row in Btown but hey...it should be an interesting aspect of the social life around here!
September 30th 2008
Well since my plans for Eid have been offically ruined I didn't do much today. I did a little shopping and went with Cat to the movies. Later in the night I went and smoked Shisha with some people in Shemisani, but not too much of interest for my first day of Eid. What can I say other than most places are closed down during Eid. Cat and I went and saw Mama Mia...One of those movies that you aren't really sure if you liked. But hey we got to eat during the day time. I guess that is a plus. Not much more to report for this day.
October 1st, 2008
Okay so today some of the stores were opened and I was able to go and attempt to find some more clothes for me to wear in Jordan. I did buy a really cute skirt for like 10 JD, but other than that nothing exciting during the day time.
Later in the night I met up with Lauren and she introduced me to her friends Alex and Omar. We all decided to go to the "Eco Tourism Cafe" in downtown. If you are looking for cheap places to go down town would be the place to go. Seriously for all four of us and getting tea and shisha the bill was a total of 4 JD. That is so cheap. Too bad I don't have much taste for downtown! Not too mention the cheap bill gets forgotten when you take a taxi there at 2 JD per ride. All well. So we played Hearts. The one thing I really like about Jordan is nobody is in a hurry for you to leave there cafe. You can not order something for hours and just sit there and they don't care. I wish it were more like that in America.
October 2nd 2008
I met up with Abdullah today. At first we just went and smoked some shisha, but after that we went to this fast food ish place and eat Hummus, Fulle, and Falaful. (Spelling? not sure about it in English). This was my first time having all of these well except for Hummus...my host mom will tell you I eat that way too much! Haha actually it is one of the only things I eat!
Anyways, Abdullah took me on what would be considered a car ride tour of Amman and all of the places I haven't been so far. He just showed me how to get to different places and such! It was pretty cool. But nothing really much worth of a note.
October 3rd 2008
So today I decided to go for a walk-about. I walked all the way from the seventh cirle to Abdoun which let me tell you is a very far walk. I walked passed the Canadian embassy. Haha there was only one guard at the gate. Shows how threatened Canada feels.
Anyways I got hardcore stalked by this one guy driving in a car. He stalked me for about two miles when I was walking home. Finally I got out my phone and called Ahmad. Ahmad wanted to come pick me up, but I thought the guy took off. After I hung up with Ahmad the guy came back however, but he changed his car. It was so weird. Finally I ditched him. And I made sure he didn't follow me home.
Later I went out with some of my friends. I was walking to meet them and nother guy started to follow me. He was on foot. Finally I turned around and told him in Arabic that "I didn't speak Arabic well and I couldn't understand him...and then I told him Thank you BYE" he finally left me alone. But then another guy tried to follow me to meet my friends and I told him to go fuck his mother cause he was really annoying me. He left!
I spent some time with my friends and we all just talked about this and that. Nothing all that cool. So when I left surprise surprise I got followed again. This guy was persistant. I even gave him a fake number so he would leave. I told him I had a finance but he didn't care. It took me half an hour to get him to leave. But after he left these guys in this car kept trying to get my attention, but I just ignored them and they finally bugged off as well!
So all this tells me is that now that Ramadan is over my "don't stalk me veil" has been lifted and all the little boys now that they are allowed to think about girls again are dying for some action! Geeze oh pete somebody shoot me!
Haha...but I still love Amman!
October 4th, 2008
Saturday's is Amman are always rather uneventful. Seriously...I mean because I know I have courses on Sunday I just don't do anything. So basically I have nothing to report for my last day of vacation. I went to the gym this day and worked myself into the ground...Actually it was kind of fun...in a painful sort of way...Anyways after the gym I did nothing...so yeah big fun...not!!!
October 5th,2008
Sunday! Okay so basically I didn't do much today either. I went to classes...I was supposed to meet with Nada today but that got canceled because I had to go to a CIEE meeting. Which was basically were we spent an hour bitching about what we didn't like with our arabic courses and/or teachers...It was all very unproductive. Like I seriously couldn't have thought of a better waste of my time. I didn't feel like this meeting solved anything really. Anyways, after this I went to the gym and then came home and did 3 hours worth of Arabic homework! Wow my life is just so exciting!
Monday, 22 September 2008
Wow!!! WEEK FIVE!!!!
September 22nd 2008
The knowledge has hit me that I am into the fifth week of my time in Jordan!!!! Wow time is flying by me so fast I don't even know what to think about all of it. So today I decided to spend most of my day speaking in Arabic. And while it was a bit hazy I did spend most of the day speaking Arabic. However, after I passed out I woke up and forgot I wasn't supposed to speak English so now tomorrow I need to start all over again speaking in just Arabic. But it is really cool I am paying more attention to what I say now and a good amount of my language is now mixed which is a good step. I feel like, although I am not sure if I have learned a lot more yet, that my language has become more practical. AWESOME!!! I really feel like after a year I am going to be pretty good at this Arabic thing!!!!!
Anyways, so today was like every other Monday. Just simply classes and more classes.
The reservations for our hotel rooms in Syria have been made now...which is great. It is going to be pretty cheap to get there only like 10 dollars and then 10 dollars a night at the hotel!!!
Moving along, this will be short I am going out with Elizabeth tonight! so
SALAAM
September 23rd 2008
Well lets see here not too much happened in this day. As a matter of fact it was really boring. My host brother was supposed to come home on this day, however, due to airports and trying to fly anywhere now a days he did not come back today. His plane was delayed for a whole day. Eww gross. But I guess they did put him up in a hotel in Washington DC because they plane got delayed. Anyways, Tuesday's courses, were well just that! Boring old Tuesday's courses. Nothing too much out of the ordinary. Yep that is all I have to say about this day. Oh yeah and the internet went out today. So it is going to be hard for me to update my blogs for a while.
September 24th 2008
Okay so first things first I went to all of my classes today. And in my Arabic class I found out that my first test is coming up the day before the Eid break! This sucks royally!!!! But all well I guess that gives me the perfect reason to hard core hit the books. After Arabic I had my other two area studies courses. Basically I sat around campus and waited for my classes to start. It was really bad though because my entire class was late to the Modern Islam course. We couldn't find where she had moved our class too. So we were constantly running in and out of different buildings. And I was on the phone bugging Ahmad to help us out. Anyways, we finally found were our class was going to be. And so I sat through yet another boring lecture. Only this time it was led by students.
Later that day I went home and slept off a good portion of the day. Some guy came by to try and fix the internet, but he never managed to. And then later that day....Nimer finally came home from the Airport. And this means that now I get free rides to the University each day!!!! Yeppie!!!! Anyways, later that night I went out with Katie for a bit and we just sat around and smoked shisha. And we talked about this that and the other thing. After I came back to the house Nimer invited me out with him and a friend of his and we went and go a late dinner. It was actually a really good late dinner. Thus far Nimer seems pretty cool. As a matter of fact I would say that him and I hit it off pretty well. He is so western in his mind set. We just spent most of the time joking around with each other.
September 25th 2008
Okay so as far as getting a ride in the morning goes. Well I am going to have to make Nimer leave a bit earlier. I was about 2 minutes late to my class. Not really a big deal because Najeh was teaching today. But still gotta get Nimer to leave earlier. Anyways, my courses. were pretty chill, but as I am sure some of you already know my day was not so chill. I got news that sounded like I was not going to be able to go to Syria, so I spent most of today freaking out and being in a bad mood. Later in the day I got to meet my conversation Partner. She seems like a really really sweat girl. Her name is Nada and she is 19. She is Muslim and just terribly sweat. She did make my day a lot better. We have plans to meet up for the first time as conversation partners on Monday. I am not allowed to talk to her in English, and her English is only about as good as my Arabic anyways, so it will be interesting.
Anyways, later Nimer and I went out to a bar. It was so funny watching him in that bar. Every five minutes he was getting stopped by somebody that knew him, and that he had not seen in a while. Arab men kiss each other on the cheeks as greeting. One on the first side and a million on the second side. It was just hilarious to watch. Anyways after we went to the bar we went and grabed some Shwarma. Which aka might just be one of my favorite Arab foods to eat.
I don't think we made it back into the house until at least 2 o'clock am. But my host mom doesn't care as long as I am with her son.
September 26th 2008
Okay I didn't do much today. Actually I really did nothing at all. Today was Nimer's birthday. And I really think he might actually be one of my favorite people I have met so far in Jordan. We just get along great. Between him and Tareq (the younger of my two host brothers, he is 14) I am constantly laughing at this house. That being said. I really am not even the slightest bit homesick. I mean granted I miss all of you, but to be honest I miss my Wasim! And I think it is because I don't get to hear from him much and I don't have the option of hearing from him much! Like I do with everybody else...Yeah I know I haven't actually directly talked to anyone but my mother, but see I can talk to you guys...if I had time! His birthday was a few days ago. I called his voicemail...I believe he is out in the field...and I sang him happy birthday on his phone...(I know I am strange...Oh and Nana if you are reading this Happy birthday to you too...sorry I just go my internet back today.) Anyways moving along!
Not much happened to day I went shopping in Mecca Mall and bought a few items of clothing, that is about.
Well that is all for now! I love you all dearly, and although I am not homesick I do miss everybody.
September 27th 2008
Saturday! Okay so things of note...nothing...what did I do? Well I did nothing...I think I went and hung out with Nimer for a bit, but other than that I studied for my up coming Arabic test and I slept! Sorry to say, but today was just another boring old day.
Actually I am writing this a few days after Saturday and I just don't remember Saturday much!
September 28th 2008
Sunday, back to school life! I had Nimer drive me to classes today...I wasn't late this time so that was good. I only had my Arabic classes today...Which were boring in the least! But surprise there right? Haha...I found out today that I can't go to Syria even though now my school says it is okay...I guess there was a bombing in Damascus and 16 people were killed and 100 were injured. So now I have no idea what I am going to do over the Eid break! I might go to the Dead sea for a day, but that is about it! I guess I will study Arabic! haha or not! I will figure something out...But I have to study cause my teachers gave a crap load of work to do over the break!!! Geeze!
The knowledge has hit me that I am into the fifth week of my time in Jordan!!!! Wow time is flying by me so fast I don't even know what to think about all of it. So today I decided to spend most of my day speaking in Arabic. And while it was a bit hazy I did spend most of the day speaking Arabic. However, after I passed out I woke up and forgot I wasn't supposed to speak English so now tomorrow I need to start all over again speaking in just Arabic. But it is really cool I am paying more attention to what I say now and a good amount of my language is now mixed which is a good step. I feel like, although I am not sure if I have learned a lot more yet, that my language has become more practical. AWESOME!!! I really feel like after a year I am going to be pretty good at this Arabic thing!!!!!
Anyways, so today was like every other Monday. Just simply classes and more classes.
The reservations for our hotel rooms in Syria have been made now...which is great. It is going to be pretty cheap to get there only like 10 dollars and then 10 dollars a night at the hotel!!!
Moving along, this will be short I am going out with Elizabeth tonight! so
SALAAM
September 23rd 2008
Well lets see here not too much happened in this day. As a matter of fact it was really boring. My host brother was supposed to come home on this day, however, due to airports and trying to fly anywhere now a days he did not come back today. His plane was delayed for a whole day. Eww gross. But I guess they did put him up in a hotel in Washington DC because they plane got delayed. Anyways, Tuesday's courses, were well just that! Boring old Tuesday's courses. Nothing too much out of the ordinary. Yep that is all I have to say about this day. Oh yeah and the internet went out today. So it is going to be hard for me to update my blogs for a while.
September 24th 2008
Okay so first things first I went to all of my classes today. And in my Arabic class I found out that my first test is coming up the day before the Eid break! This sucks royally!!!! But all well I guess that gives me the perfect reason to hard core hit the books. After Arabic I had my other two area studies courses. Basically I sat around campus and waited for my classes to start. It was really bad though because my entire class was late to the Modern Islam course. We couldn't find where she had moved our class too. So we were constantly running in and out of different buildings. And I was on the phone bugging Ahmad to help us out. Anyways, we finally found were our class was going to be. And so I sat through yet another boring lecture. Only this time it was led by students.
Later that day I went home and slept off a good portion of the day. Some guy came by to try and fix the internet, but he never managed to. And then later that day....Nimer finally came home from the Airport. And this means that now I get free rides to the University each day!!!! Yeppie!!!! Anyways, later that night I went out with Katie for a bit and we just sat around and smoked shisha. And we talked about this that and the other thing. After I came back to the house Nimer invited me out with him and a friend of his and we went and go a late dinner. It was actually a really good late dinner. Thus far Nimer seems pretty cool. As a matter of fact I would say that him and I hit it off pretty well. He is so western in his mind set. We just spent most of the time joking around with each other.
September 25th 2008
Okay so as far as getting a ride in the morning goes. Well I am going to have to make Nimer leave a bit earlier. I was about 2 minutes late to my class. Not really a big deal because Najeh was teaching today. But still gotta get Nimer to leave earlier. Anyways, my courses. were pretty chill, but as I am sure some of you already know my day was not so chill. I got news that sounded like I was not going to be able to go to Syria, so I spent most of today freaking out and being in a bad mood. Later in the day I got to meet my conversation Partner. She seems like a really really sweat girl. Her name is Nada and she is 19. She is Muslim and just terribly sweat. She did make my day a lot better. We have plans to meet up for the first time as conversation partners on Monday. I am not allowed to talk to her in English, and her English is only about as good as my Arabic anyways, so it will be interesting.
Anyways, later Nimer and I went out to a bar. It was so funny watching him in that bar. Every five minutes he was getting stopped by somebody that knew him, and that he had not seen in a while. Arab men kiss each other on the cheeks as greeting. One on the first side and a million on the second side. It was just hilarious to watch. Anyways after we went to the bar we went and grabed some Shwarma. Which aka might just be one of my favorite Arab foods to eat.
I don't think we made it back into the house until at least 2 o'clock am. But my host mom doesn't care as long as I am with her son.
September 26th 2008
Okay I didn't do much today. Actually I really did nothing at all. Today was Nimer's birthday. And I really think he might actually be one of my favorite people I have met so far in Jordan. We just get along great. Between him and Tareq (the younger of my two host brothers, he is 14) I am constantly laughing at this house. That being said. I really am not even the slightest bit homesick. I mean granted I miss all of you, but to be honest I miss my Wasim! And I think it is because I don't get to hear from him much and I don't have the option of hearing from him much! Like I do with everybody else...Yeah I know I haven't actually directly talked to anyone but my mother, but see I can talk to you guys...if I had time! His birthday was a few days ago. I called his voicemail...I believe he is out in the field...and I sang him happy birthday on his phone...(I know I am strange...Oh and Nana if you are reading this Happy birthday to you too...sorry I just go my internet back today.) Anyways moving along!
Not much happened to day I went shopping in Mecca Mall and bought a few items of clothing, that is about.
Well that is all for now! I love you all dearly, and although I am not homesick I do miss everybody.
September 27th 2008
Saturday! Okay so things of note...nothing...what did I do? Well I did nothing...I think I went and hung out with Nimer for a bit, but other than that I studied for my up coming Arabic test and I slept! Sorry to say, but today was just another boring old day.
Actually I am writing this a few days after Saturday and I just don't remember Saturday much!
September 28th 2008
Sunday, back to school life! I had Nimer drive me to classes today...I wasn't late this time so that was good. I only had my Arabic classes today...Which were boring in the least! But surprise there right? Haha...I found out today that I can't go to Syria even though now my school says it is okay...I guess there was a bombing in Damascus and 16 people were killed and 100 were injured. So now I have no idea what I am going to do over the Eid break! I might go to the Dead sea for a day, but that is about it! I guess I will study Arabic! haha or not! I will figure something out...But I have to study cause my teachers gave a crap load of work to do over the break!!! Geeze!
Tuesday, 16 September 2008
Week Four...OMG!!!!
September 15th 2008
I cannot believe I am into my fourth week in Jordan already. Wow!!! So Monday was anti-climatic as usual!!! Haha...Mondays are so long. In one of my classes we decided to watch a movie but since this is Jordan well that doesn't work so well. Technology sucks in this country. And the movie had poor sound and so I begged off early. I could hear anything. At all. So after my classes I went home and I decided to give Stella a bath. Who since Najwan left for South Africa (my host sister returning the 25th) the dog has attached herself to me. I think that is because I baby her. Everybody else just yells at her...including Najwan when she is home. The dog runs to me when I walk in the house and runs around the house only to come back to me to beg me to scratch her ears. Yep...That dog is adorable. So I gave her a bath cause my host mom said she stunk and put her outside...where she cried and cried...I bathed her and was allowed to bring her back inside...of course I have to vaccum her fur first...haha...Anyways that is all for Monday...PEACE!!!!
September 16th 2008
Okay well today was to say the least just another boring same old same old day. Ghada (my host mom) and I went after I finished at the University to a seamstress. The zipper on my black pants broke and Ghada showed me a place were I could get a new zipper put on my pants for a single JD. I think later in the year I might take my jacket to this woman and ask her to fix the whole in my pocket that has drove me insane for a year now...haha...seriously I love how cheap most things are hear. Any ways after I went to the seamstress with Ghada her and I went to a friend of hers place and then they proceeded to make my life miserable by forcing me to speak Arabic and stare at them in stupidity as they spoke to me in colloquial. Haha...but seriously I guess they are only trying to help...I just feel stupid. I am like a special child where I can answer their questions but I need like one whole minute to think before I can open my mouth. Anyways after that Ghada and I went to the Pharmacy and let me explain to you how much I love the Pharmacy in the Middle East. First of all medicine is cheaper here by far. And secondly and most importantly you do not need a prescription for anything. I told the pharmacist that I was trying to get rid of some acne and she walks behind the counter and finds me prescription strength acne medicine with erthromycin in it...haha it is too funny that I don't have to see a doctor to get these things.
Anyways that was pretty much it for my day. Not terribly exciting I know.
September 17th 2008
Wednesday! Is okay. I have all of my classes on Wednesdays. I absolutely love my Contemporary Arab Women Writers course. I love the way this class is set up. We just sit in class and discuss all kinds of feminist ideas. And let me tell you...my teacher is a crazy Arab feminist. Like she makes every feminist I have ever met in the states look like their swimming in shallow water. Anyways, not too much happened during my other class. We went back to watching that horrible Anthony Quinn movie that the sound was so bad in that I still couldn't catch what was going on. Thank God that movie is finally finished. Maybe now I will find so thing of interest!
Again not much happened today. I went out to meet Cat later in the night and got terribly lost due to her instructions. She had to come find me and then she bought me a drink since she got me lost. Haha...cosmopolitans are okay.
After I went out with her I went and hung out with Lauren. I met her Jordanian boyfriend and also met his cousin and we just sat and smoked shisha and I told them different stories about my taxi cab experiences. haha
September 17th 2008
YEAH WADI RUM!!!! So today I went to Wadi Rum. I met up with the CIEE people at the university and we proceeded to ride on a good bus for about 3 hours until we got to the Wadi Rum visitors center. We ate lunch at the visitors center and I personally thought the food was horrible. And then we went on a four hours long camel trek. That's right I know you are jealous. Anyways, Wadi Rum is gorgeous, but frankly I was more fascinated with my camel. Really though I had two camels. I told the tour guide that was with us I really wanted a friendly camel, but then I saw the baby camels and I told him I wanted a baby camel. And since the tour guide and I got along really well he made sure that I got to ride a Mother camel so that the baby was always around. My camel was a beautiful camel named Helwai (this means very beautiful in Arabic...no i did not name her because I thought this name was great for her) and her baby who was a month old was name Abdan. Abdan walked right next to his mother most of the time and when ever he would leave her side she would start screaming for him. I am pretty sure she was grounding him. He would always respond right away by screaming back at her. I am pretty sure he was asserting his being a big boy...haha Anyways, he would walk by her side and so I rode Helwai sideways and had my feet resting on Abdan's back. He would nibble on my toes. My baby camel spent a lot of time with his face in my face the second the mother laid down on the ground. Kamel (one of the other tour guides was on the camel that mine was tethered to which was Helwai's cousin, or so I decided since she was a girl) kept telling me how he wanted to eat Abdan...since camel meat was amazing when they were so young. I kept trying to convince Abdan to bit the crazy Arab in the butt. So Kamel and I had fun just arguing with each other.
After a while Kamel switched with the tour guide I knew better, Zuhair. Zuhair and I spent most of the rest of the camel trek talking about different Bedouins and such. Zuhair I guess is a fifth generation Bedouin. After the camel trek we stopped to watch the sun set over Wadi Rum. It was amazing as the sun sunk below the rocks.
We walked from that spot to the Bedouin campsite that we slept at for the night...now mind you this site is run by Bedouins but it has working western toilets. They sang for us and we had a party and stuff there. I am pretty sure the Spanish people that were there were thinking we were all crazy. They just sat on the side and watched the CIEE people party it up with the Bedouins.
After our little party and shisha smoking with the Bedouins people took off and did different night walks. I spent most of the night joking around with Ahmad. He was groaning because I am staying for a year and so I was pretending to be upset and then he was pretending to beg for me to forgive him. And Najeh was laughing so hard at the two of us. I told Ahmad I added spices to his life and he told me where other people added spice with a salt shaker I more or less dumped a bucket of spice on his life...haha
I went out side of the camp and was watching the stars later and one of the Bedouin works came up to me and sat besides me. Now being American as I am I think nothing of this. So I am having a broken Arabic conversation with him (he doesn't speak English well) and he says something to me I didn't understand. I asked him to explain and I realized he asked me if I was a wife. I told him no. Next thing I know he has put his arm around me. I am like oh brother. I put his arm back in his lap and then he is trying to hold me hand. I won't hold his hand and then he asks me to marry him. So then I spend another 10 minutes trying to explain to the 20 year old Bedouin that I can't marry him. Basically Garrett just became my fiance. Haha
After that I just hung around with a few people at the campsite and talked.
September 19th 2008
More Wadi Rum then Acaba...So we went on a 3 hour 4x4 ride through the desert. It was amazing and it was so much fun. We took a route that is considered to be the Lawrence of Arabia Route. Wadi Rum looks alot like Sedona except without the green part. My group kept trying to get the driver to go faster and faster.
After the 4x4 ride we drove to Acaba and went on a boat ride. The boat (more like a nice nice ferry/cruise boat) took us to the coral reefs. We got to go snorkeling and do some swimming. The water was crazy salty in the red sea, but amazingly warm and there was no under toe and you could float really easily. I went snorkeling and the Jordanians clean out old tanks and boats and sink them to make more coral reefs. So I went snorkeling around a tank. The fish were amazing. (Nana if you come to Jordan I am taking you here. You will love snorkeling here.) After that I just swam around in very salty water. Ahmad was cracking me up because he doesn't swim well but towards the end I convinced him to get in the water for longer. Saying I would save him. Well he was so excited because since the water was so salty he could float without much energy. By the time it was time to leave he didn't want to go he was enjoying the water so much.
Anyways, we stayed at another Bedouin campsite that night...this time in Petra. This site didn't have the singing but it was still nice. I spent most of the night talking to Najeh and Ahmad. And dancing around with Cat to no real music. Haha
September 20th 2008
Petra! First let me say that nothing will ever top this place. Every building there was cut out of the rocks and every building was only one piece. One piece...it was so intricately cut out that it was insane. So let me mention something before I go to far. The way Arabs run a historical site is hilarious. There aren't rules and every body does what they want there. We were making fun of the American system there...My first picked up a rock and threw it and then we decided to arrest him for breaking history...mind you it was just a dirt clod but the point is no way cared that we were climb all over the buildings...and such...there weren't rules like that there. Anyways there were donkeys everywhere...and vendors...I got offered a couple free donkey rides...but I didn't take them cause I didn't trust how free they really were. I mean people were paying to use the donkeys, I am pretty sure the guys that offered me free rides just wanted to see if I was an easy American girl...haha...so no donkey for me. Anyway, everybody walked the 900 steps to the building at the top. It was nice but I think next semester when I go again I will walk to other places. I don't need to kill myself twice and I mean that about killed me. It takes about 45 minutes to do the walk and it hurts the knees really bad...but it is worth it at least once. After that we had free time around Petra. About the time we needed to meet up at the bus I ran into Elexer. CIEE had paid for us to be able to ride the horses if we wanted to. (the only thing being you needed to tip) So Elexer and I decided to ride. The guy that I rode his horse was really nice. I told him I want to ride an Arabian horse. He said that all the Arabs to pick from weren't that good. He did have his horse though. Which wasn't the best Arab either but it was better looking than the rest. I convinced him to take the tourist horse and he let me ride his horse. I asked if I could ride the horse fast and he said I could. I kicked the horse into a canter and next thing I know I am going at a break neck gallop down the path. He jumped on his horse and caught up with me. I slowed my horse down for him and then him and I looked at each other an kind of gave a wicked smile to each other and then gave both horses their heads. We started racing down the path (by the way mom I was riding an English saddle and I didn't fall...or even slip, maybe because there was a blanket over the saddle but hey I don't care.). When we were done...he was laughing so hard. He gave me congrats. He said that he never let others ride his horse because most Americans who say they can ride can't, but he said I handled his horse really well. It was so much fun. He even offered to let me keep riding...I passed cause I had to get to the bus. I had left my friend Elexer in the dust. The only thing ungraceful about the experience on the horse was when I went to get off...Well my foot got stuck in the stirrup. oops!!! But I eventually got it unstuck! It was so much fun...oh and my horses name was Susana...After I rode the horses I think got on a bus for four hours to return to Amman. That was the end of my weekend. When I got back to the house I finished my homework for Sunday and then went to sleep early. I was beat!
September 21st 2008
Today was to say the least stressful. I had to fill out my request to travel to Syria today. That sucked. But we got it done and now a group of us are going to go to Syria on the 30th. For the Eid break. Anyways, I didn't do much today besides that. I had Arabic only. And today in Arabic we had to talk about our favorite poet in front of the class. Well my public speaking fear got the best of me and I had to sit down before I could say anything. My Arabic teacher understood better than any of my other teachers ever had in America and she let me sit down and talk where I didn't feel pressure because I was not facing the class. But I hard core freaked. I don't know why speaking bothers me so much when I look at people as a group. I can't do it in English either. (Remembering back to high school where I always started to shake in my classes when I had to speak in front of the class. I think it is getting worse as I get older. It makes no sense I was fine during drama being on stage...but then again I couldn't see the audience due to the lights on the stage). Anyways she was really understanding. After class I went and talked to her about it. She thought that I was just afraid to speak like that in Arabic I had to explain to her that it was a problem in my life in general. She told me though that I did really good when I stopped worrying about the people and that my speaking is long and detailed and that I said a lot of good things...(I was talking about James Whitcomb Riley..who isn't my favorite poet but I knew alot about him)...By the way this teacher doesn't speak English at all so I had to explain it all to her in Arabic about my public speaking anxiety. Finally she understood completely. She is such a sweet heart I tell you what. But I think I need to see a psychologist, specializing in Phobias, when I get home...I swear there is something wrong with me. I think I would rather be stabbed to death that give a speech...or better yet be put in a room filled to the no breathing poin with Moths than give a speech...or even sent to spend a day in prison with big Bubba, after he has seen a woman in 30 years, than give a speech!!! haha...Does this convey to You all how much I hate giving speeches? Seriously I was fine until I looked at the class. And then all these people who I know and can talk to normally all of a sudden became the scariest people in the world. AHHH!!!! I swear...Anyways that was the end of my day. Cause when I went home I just slept off the day!
I cannot believe I am into my fourth week in Jordan already. Wow!!! So Monday was anti-climatic as usual!!! Haha...Mondays are so long. In one of my classes we decided to watch a movie but since this is Jordan well that doesn't work so well. Technology sucks in this country. And the movie had poor sound and so I begged off early. I could hear anything. At all. So after my classes I went home and I decided to give Stella a bath. Who since Najwan left for South Africa (my host sister returning the 25th) the dog has attached herself to me. I think that is because I baby her. Everybody else just yells at her...including Najwan when she is home. The dog runs to me when I walk in the house and runs around the house only to come back to me to beg me to scratch her ears. Yep...That dog is adorable. So I gave her a bath cause my host mom said she stunk and put her outside...where she cried and cried...I bathed her and was allowed to bring her back inside...of course I have to vaccum her fur first...haha...Anyways that is all for Monday...PEACE!!!!
September 16th 2008
Okay well today was to say the least just another boring same old same old day. Ghada (my host mom) and I went after I finished at the University to a seamstress. The zipper on my black pants broke and Ghada showed me a place were I could get a new zipper put on my pants for a single JD. I think later in the year I might take my jacket to this woman and ask her to fix the whole in my pocket that has drove me insane for a year now...haha...seriously I love how cheap most things are hear. Any ways after I went to the seamstress with Ghada her and I went to a friend of hers place and then they proceeded to make my life miserable by forcing me to speak Arabic and stare at them in stupidity as they spoke to me in colloquial. Haha...but seriously I guess they are only trying to help...I just feel stupid. I am like a special child where I can answer their questions but I need like one whole minute to think before I can open my mouth. Anyways after that Ghada and I went to the Pharmacy and let me explain to you how much I love the Pharmacy in the Middle East. First of all medicine is cheaper here by far. And secondly and most importantly you do not need a prescription for anything. I told the pharmacist that I was trying to get rid of some acne and she walks behind the counter and finds me prescription strength acne medicine with erthromycin in it...haha it is too funny that I don't have to see a doctor to get these things.
Anyways that was pretty much it for my day. Not terribly exciting I know.
September 17th 2008
Wednesday! Is okay. I have all of my classes on Wednesdays. I absolutely love my Contemporary Arab Women Writers course. I love the way this class is set up. We just sit in class and discuss all kinds of feminist ideas. And let me tell you...my teacher is a crazy Arab feminist. Like she makes every feminist I have ever met in the states look like their swimming in shallow water. Anyways, not too much happened during my other class. We went back to watching that horrible Anthony Quinn movie that the sound was so bad in that I still couldn't catch what was going on. Thank God that movie is finally finished. Maybe now I will find so thing of interest!
Again not much happened today. I went out to meet Cat later in the night and got terribly lost due to her instructions. She had to come find me and then she bought me a drink since she got me lost. Haha...cosmopolitans are okay.
After I went out with her I went and hung out with Lauren. I met her Jordanian boyfriend and also met his cousin and we just sat and smoked shisha and I told them different stories about my taxi cab experiences. haha
September 17th 2008
YEAH WADI RUM!!!! So today I went to Wadi Rum. I met up with the CIEE people at the university and we proceeded to ride on a good bus for about 3 hours until we got to the Wadi Rum visitors center. We ate lunch at the visitors center and I personally thought the food was horrible. And then we went on a four hours long camel trek. That's right I know you are jealous. Anyways, Wadi Rum is gorgeous, but frankly I was more fascinated with my camel. Really though I had two camels. I told the tour guide that was with us I really wanted a friendly camel, but then I saw the baby camels and I told him I wanted a baby camel. And since the tour guide and I got along really well he made sure that I got to ride a Mother camel so that the baby was always around. My camel was a beautiful camel named Helwai (this means very beautiful in Arabic...no i did not name her because I thought this name was great for her) and her baby who was a month old was name Abdan. Abdan walked right next to his mother most of the time and when ever he would leave her side she would start screaming for him. I am pretty sure she was grounding him. He would always respond right away by screaming back at her. I am pretty sure he was asserting his being a big boy...haha Anyways, he would walk by her side and so I rode Helwai sideways and had my feet resting on Abdan's back. He would nibble on my toes. My baby camel spent a lot of time with his face in my face the second the mother laid down on the ground. Kamel (one of the other tour guides was on the camel that mine was tethered to which was Helwai's cousin, or so I decided since she was a girl) kept telling me how he wanted to eat Abdan...since camel meat was amazing when they were so young. I kept trying to convince Abdan to bit the crazy Arab in the butt. So Kamel and I had fun just arguing with each other.
After a while Kamel switched with the tour guide I knew better, Zuhair. Zuhair and I spent most of the rest of the camel trek talking about different Bedouins and such. Zuhair I guess is a fifth generation Bedouin. After the camel trek we stopped to watch the sun set over Wadi Rum. It was amazing as the sun sunk below the rocks.
We walked from that spot to the Bedouin campsite that we slept at for the night...now mind you this site is run by Bedouins but it has working western toilets. They sang for us and we had a party and stuff there. I am pretty sure the Spanish people that were there were thinking we were all crazy. They just sat on the side and watched the CIEE people party it up with the Bedouins.
After our little party and shisha smoking with the Bedouins people took off and did different night walks. I spent most of the night joking around with Ahmad. He was groaning because I am staying for a year and so I was pretending to be upset and then he was pretending to beg for me to forgive him. And Najeh was laughing so hard at the two of us. I told Ahmad I added spices to his life and he told me where other people added spice with a salt shaker I more or less dumped a bucket of spice on his life...haha
I went out side of the camp and was watching the stars later and one of the Bedouin works came up to me and sat besides me. Now being American as I am I think nothing of this. So I am having a broken Arabic conversation with him (he doesn't speak English well) and he says something to me I didn't understand. I asked him to explain and I realized he asked me if I was a wife. I told him no. Next thing I know he has put his arm around me. I am like oh brother. I put his arm back in his lap and then he is trying to hold me hand. I won't hold his hand and then he asks me to marry him. So then I spend another 10 minutes trying to explain to the 20 year old Bedouin that I can't marry him. Basically Garrett just became my fiance. Haha
After that I just hung around with a few people at the campsite and talked.
September 19th 2008
More Wadi Rum then Acaba...So we went on a 3 hour 4x4 ride through the desert. It was amazing and it was so much fun. We took a route that is considered to be the Lawrence of Arabia Route. Wadi Rum looks alot like Sedona except without the green part. My group kept trying to get the driver to go faster and faster.
After the 4x4 ride we drove to Acaba and went on a boat ride. The boat (more like a nice nice ferry/cruise boat) took us to the coral reefs. We got to go snorkeling and do some swimming. The water was crazy salty in the red sea, but amazingly warm and there was no under toe and you could float really easily. I went snorkeling and the Jordanians clean out old tanks and boats and sink them to make more coral reefs. So I went snorkeling around a tank. The fish were amazing. (Nana if you come to Jordan I am taking you here. You will love snorkeling here.) After that I just swam around in very salty water. Ahmad was cracking me up because he doesn't swim well but towards the end I convinced him to get in the water for longer. Saying I would save him. Well he was so excited because since the water was so salty he could float without much energy. By the time it was time to leave he didn't want to go he was enjoying the water so much.
Anyways, we stayed at another Bedouin campsite that night...this time in Petra. This site didn't have the singing but it was still nice. I spent most of the night talking to Najeh and Ahmad. And dancing around with Cat to no real music. Haha
September 20th 2008
Petra! First let me say that nothing will ever top this place. Every building there was cut out of the rocks and every building was only one piece. One piece...it was so intricately cut out that it was insane. So let me mention something before I go to far. The way Arabs run a historical site is hilarious. There aren't rules and every body does what they want there. We were making fun of the American system there...My first picked up a rock and threw it and then we decided to arrest him for breaking history...mind you it was just a dirt clod but the point is no way cared that we were climb all over the buildings...and such...there weren't rules like that there. Anyways there were donkeys everywhere...and vendors...I got offered a couple free donkey rides...but I didn't take them cause I didn't trust how free they really were. I mean people were paying to use the donkeys, I am pretty sure the guys that offered me free rides just wanted to see if I was an easy American girl...haha...so no donkey for me. Anyway, everybody walked the 900 steps to the building at the top. It was nice but I think next semester when I go again I will walk to other places. I don't need to kill myself twice and I mean that about killed me. It takes about 45 minutes to do the walk and it hurts the knees really bad...but it is worth it at least once. After that we had free time around Petra. About the time we needed to meet up at the bus I ran into Elexer. CIEE had paid for us to be able to ride the horses if we wanted to. (the only thing being you needed to tip) So Elexer and I decided to ride. The guy that I rode his horse was really nice. I told him I want to ride an Arabian horse. He said that all the Arabs to pick from weren't that good. He did have his horse though. Which wasn't the best Arab either but it was better looking than the rest. I convinced him to take the tourist horse and he let me ride his horse. I asked if I could ride the horse fast and he said I could. I kicked the horse into a canter and next thing I know I am going at a break neck gallop down the path. He jumped on his horse and caught up with me. I slowed my horse down for him and then him and I looked at each other an kind of gave a wicked smile to each other and then gave both horses their heads. We started racing down the path (by the way mom I was riding an English saddle and I didn't fall...or even slip, maybe because there was a blanket over the saddle but hey I don't care.). When we were done...he was laughing so hard. He gave me congrats. He said that he never let others ride his horse because most Americans who say they can ride can't, but he said I handled his horse really well. It was so much fun. He even offered to let me keep riding...I passed cause I had to get to the bus. I had left my friend Elexer in the dust. The only thing ungraceful about the experience on the horse was when I went to get off...Well my foot got stuck in the stirrup. oops!!! But I eventually got it unstuck! It was so much fun...oh and my horses name was Susana...After I rode the horses I think got on a bus for four hours to return to Amman. That was the end of my weekend. When I got back to the house I finished my homework for Sunday and then went to sleep early. I was beat!
September 21st 2008
Today was to say the least stressful. I had to fill out my request to travel to Syria today. That sucked. But we got it done and now a group of us are going to go to Syria on the 30th. For the Eid break. Anyways, I didn't do much today besides that. I had Arabic only. And today in Arabic we had to talk about our favorite poet in front of the class. Well my public speaking fear got the best of me and I had to sit down before I could say anything. My Arabic teacher understood better than any of my other teachers ever had in America and she let me sit down and talk where I didn't feel pressure because I was not facing the class. But I hard core freaked. I don't know why speaking bothers me so much when I look at people as a group. I can't do it in English either. (Remembering back to high school where I always started to shake in my classes when I had to speak in front of the class. I think it is getting worse as I get older. It makes no sense I was fine during drama being on stage...but then again I couldn't see the audience due to the lights on the stage). Anyways she was really understanding. After class I went and talked to her about it. She thought that I was just afraid to speak like that in Arabic I had to explain to her that it was a problem in my life in general. She told me though that I did really good when I stopped worrying about the people and that my speaking is long and detailed and that I said a lot of good things...(I was talking about James Whitcomb Riley..who isn't my favorite poet but I knew alot about him)...By the way this teacher doesn't speak English at all so I had to explain it all to her in Arabic about my public speaking anxiety. Finally she understood completely. She is such a sweet heart I tell you what. But I think I need to see a psychologist, specializing in Phobias, when I get home...I swear there is something wrong with me. I think I would rather be stabbed to death that give a speech...or better yet be put in a room filled to the no breathing poin with Moths than give a speech...or even sent to spend a day in prison with big Bubba, after he has seen a woman in 30 years, than give a speech!!! haha...Does this convey to You all how much I hate giving speeches? Seriously I was fine until I looked at the class. And then all these people who I know and can talk to normally all of a sudden became the scariest people in the world. AHHH!!!! I swear...Anyways that was the end of my day. Cause when I went home I just slept off the day!
Monday, 8 September 2008
Week Three
September 8th 2008
Well I had classes again today, as I will for the rest of this week, until Friday when my weekend begins. Did I mention that a weekend in Jordan is Friday and Saturday? For some reason this makes a difference to me. I am so used to having Sunday off that it feels like a new sort of punishment to have to get up on a Sunday and go to school!
Moving on so today I met my third Arabic teacher. She seems cool. And she like all the others speaks only in Arabic, but she is so animated that it is hard to miss her meanings with things.
After Arabic courses today I did the most American thing that could be done in Jordan and that was go to Subway and eat during Ramadan. Okay I was really hungry. And I ate the ice. Needless to say it caught up with me. Not too badly, but I won't eat the ice again! (If you don't know what this means, well just never eat the Ice in Jordan, or drink the water for that matter.)
So I started my two Area studies courses today as well. Both courses seem like they are going to be a blast. My first course is Arab women writers and it is a look at fictional novels and how they represent feminism in the Arab world. There is a lot of reading for the class like seven novels, but it sounds really interesting. And my teacher well she seems very nice and really wants people to learn. Also we have Arab women writers come in as guest speakers and we even get to write our own stories and such. My second area studies course is Islam in the Modern Context. This is going to be a great class. This will be my first religion studies course that is taught from the perspective of a believer. And she is the cutest woman ever. I can't help but smile at her. She is an older lady, but you can tell she has such faith that it really touches me. And she talks so passionately. Anyways, this course seems like it will be cool as well. We even have some field trips and guest speakers in it.
Overall I am really looking forward to my semester in Amman.
I am planning a few things for this weekend. And I found a different horse riding place that lets you take the horses out for an hour for only 12 US dollars!!! Tell me that isn't great!!!
Oh and I am looking into going Ballooning in Wadi Rum. I just sent an email asking for prices. That would be so awesome if it isn't expensive. Seriously it seems like nothing is too expensive in Jordan.
Setember 9 2008
Now that it is Tuesday and I am fully settling into my class schedules and such. I can offically say I am bored. Actually today I did meet someone. A native Jordanian. She is a grad student in Math. She wants me to help her with English and says she will help me in return with my Arabic. And let me tell you after we did the stupid listening exercise today in Arabic I swear I need help. Of course everybody in that class was lost. It was like going to an auction where the guy was saying words instead of numbers. CRAZY!!!!! Anyways, Tuesday was kind of boring. Later in the night Kat and Elizabeth and I all went to our favorite little hookah haunt. Haha Oh and the weirdiest thing happened. We were walking down the road, and mind you Kat is blonde so it isn't like I look like the strangest thing these dark Jordanians have ever seen, but anyways, we were walking from al manar and this guy who was walking with a group of his friends. Stops in his tracks when he sees me and only about two feet from me stares at me with the oddest look in the world on his face like he just didn't understand. I of course just keep walking and then about 10 feet down the road Elizabeth busts out laughing and says so silly little obnoxious little comment.
Oh and the Taxi driver pissed me off a bit on the way home. But all was well in the end. Always they trying to take my money!!!!
September 10th 2008
Another round of classes seriously I love my classes but sometimes I just get so bored with having almost three hours of Arabic at once. My Arab Women Writers class got cancelled which didn't do me much good since I still had to stick around for my other class after that.
Anyways later in the night a group of us went out for Lisa's birthday. It was fun. We went to a place called Jabri and had wicked mad crazy good dessert. Like chocolate death!!!! And then we went to a place on Rainbow street that sold alcohol during Ramadan so that Lisa could have herself a very expensive "I just turned 24" drink! We hung out there for a while and just talked about this that and the other thing. It was all pretty chill nothing to special.
September 11th 2008
Thank Allah it is Thursday!!! Okay so I had Arabic courses in the morning and then in the after noon I really did nothing. I found this site online were I could read books on the computer for free. So mostly I read the Twilight series. Anyways, so later that night Tanya, Lisa, Elizabeth, Jackie, and I all got together and we went to Wakalat and just chilled out around there. Mostly we were making plans for Friday. We had decided to nixe the horses this weekend and decided to make a sure trip. Elizabeth, Lisa and I decided to go to Jerash. Tanya and Jackie had already been. So nothing really great to report for Thursday.
September 12th 2008
Okay so today we got on a bus and we went to Jerash. Let me start with...mom you would not be able to ride a bus in this country. Mr. Toad's wild ride has nothing and I do mean nothing on the bus rides around here. They move in and out of cars honking their horns every five seconds. It was so scary!!!! I thought I was going to die. One guy actually fell out of his seat and smacked his head against the metal of the other seat. However, I was already creeped out by this guy expecting that he was going to kill us all at anytime. I am not kidding I am glad we got off the bus when we did and Lisa was having the same feeling about him as I did. He also pissed off the bus guy when he didn't pay when it was time. Some tourist woman paid for him. It was all a bit weird.
Anyways so we got to Jerash and once at the ruins we walked through the market-tourist like shops. And everybody there kept promising to give me the Jordanian price because I spoke Arabic and I went to the University, not the tourist price. Oh and I got to bargin that down to which is what I do. Haha at least in this country.
Moving on...we got horribly hussled by a group of kids at the ruins. But they were so cute. We had to take pictures with them. Seriously I refused to buy anything from them. Lisa gave them a dollar after we got annoyed with them and told them to go away. Of course it was the police that really scared them off. After that this other kid decided he wanted to be our unwanted tour guide. I told the girls he was gonna want money and we had to get rid of him. He didn't take suttle hints. Finally I got bitchy and told him to leave. He asked for a tip and I told him I wasn't tipping him and he got mad and said maybe my friends wanted to tip him. I told him they couldn't cause I had all the money. I told him if he wanted a tip that badly I could ask the police if it was okay. He didn't like that much. But he still stood and argued. Finally I scared him off cause I kept talking about the patrol and as he left he told me I was a horrible person. (Seriously what is it with me and beggars at tourist spots. First france and now here!!!! haha)
Moving on, we went to this other ruin where we met some really nice Jordanians. We talked to them for awhile and they were impressed that we were students here. My friend Lisa actually walked on the wall of on of the ruins. I did not do this because let us face it I do not have the greatest balance and with all the uneven stones on the thing I knew I was going to fall to my death. Hell I was scared to death for Lisa. She didn't look like she was all that confident about it, but she made it across with the help of the Jordanian. And they gave her a cheap little braclet because they said she was so brave. I agree! She was wearing flip flops and she was about 40 feet up on top of this ruined wall!!!!!
Anyways, after that we took a bus home from Jerash and that was basically the end of the day.
September 13th
Because I am a lazy bum after yesterday I did nothing today but hang out around the house. Seriously I think I did a bit of homework and then remained lazy and just read my silly look book all day long. And tried not to get too hot. The weather here is horrible. Seriously, I am so glad though that it isn't too bad at night. Actually it has really started to cool down at night. Anyways I went to be early because I had class on Sunday.
September 14th
Class!!!!! I can't stress to you how boring it feels to sit in the same classroom for three hours. I mean I love Arabic...but it is just too much at once I think. The teacher drags on and on and by the end of it I am ready to hang myself. But that is okay...I guess that is what I came to this country for. So anyways Sundays are my slow days. I only have Arabic on this day. So after class I went home for a while and then I decided to go down town. Which would have been a fine idea if it wasn't for my damn taxi cab driver. My host mom is right...they are monkeys!!! So I get all the way down town and the meter reads that I owe 1.89 JD. I hand him two JD and ask for my change, but he refuses to give me my change saying that his meter is set lower than it should be. This irritates me, but after making on discussed noise I just go out it was only 10 quarish anyways. I slam the door of his car in my anger and he yells at me, "Don't slam my fucking door." (mind you this is right in the middle of down town) well this pisses me off. So I get into a fight with me taxi cab driver. Of course he knows he is in the wrong so he can't do much but yell. I turn around when he yells at me and my American kicks in. Let me tell you. I scream "Fuck you...If you are so damn worried about people's reactions then fix your fucking meter." He yells back at me and then I look back at him and spit out something like "Asshole" as I walk away. The people are staring and one man is laughing his ass off. Of course at this point American Alisha dies off and I remember where I am. But still so pissed I called my host mom and she was like why didn't you say "Kis ummku" which means like "Go fuck your mother" haha I love my host mom!!!!
That was my exciting day.
Well I had classes again today, as I will for the rest of this week, until Friday when my weekend begins. Did I mention that a weekend in Jordan is Friday and Saturday? For some reason this makes a difference to me. I am so used to having Sunday off that it feels like a new sort of punishment to have to get up on a Sunday and go to school!
Moving on so today I met my third Arabic teacher. She seems cool. And she like all the others speaks only in Arabic, but she is so animated that it is hard to miss her meanings with things.
After Arabic courses today I did the most American thing that could be done in Jordan and that was go to Subway and eat during Ramadan. Okay I was really hungry. And I ate the ice. Needless to say it caught up with me. Not too badly, but I won't eat the ice again! (If you don't know what this means, well just never eat the Ice in Jordan, or drink the water for that matter.)
So I started my two Area studies courses today as well. Both courses seem like they are going to be a blast. My first course is Arab women writers and it is a look at fictional novels and how they represent feminism in the Arab world. There is a lot of reading for the class like seven novels, but it sounds really interesting. And my teacher well she seems very nice and really wants people to learn. Also we have Arab women writers come in as guest speakers and we even get to write our own stories and such. My second area studies course is Islam in the Modern Context. This is going to be a great class. This will be my first religion studies course that is taught from the perspective of a believer. And she is the cutest woman ever. I can't help but smile at her. She is an older lady, but you can tell she has such faith that it really touches me. And she talks so passionately. Anyways, this course seems like it will be cool as well. We even have some field trips and guest speakers in it.
Overall I am really looking forward to my semester in Amman.
I am planning a few things for this weekend. And I found a different horse riding place that lets you take the horses out for an hour for only 12 US dollars!!! Tell me that isn't great!!!
Oh and I am looking into going Ballooning in Wadi Rum. I just sent an email asking for prices. That would be so awesome if it isn't expensive. Seriously it seems like nothing is too expensive in Jordan.
Setember 9 2008
Now that it is Tuesday and I am fully settling into my class schedules and such. I can offically say I am bored. Actually today I did meet someone. A native Jordanian. She is a grad student in Math. She wants me to help her with English and says she will help me in return with my Arabic. And let me tell you after we did the stupid listening exercise today in Arabic I swear I need help. Of course everybody in that class was lost. It was like going to an auction where the guy was saying words instead of numbers. CRAZY!!!!! Anyways, Tuesday was kind of boring. Later in the night Kat and Elizabeth and I all went to our favorite little hookah haunt. Haha Oh and the weirdiest thing happened. We were walking down the road, and mind you Kat is blonde so it isn't like I look like the strangest thing these dark Jordanians have ever seen, but anyways, we were walking from al manar and this guy who was walking with a group of his friends. Stops in his tracks when he sees me and only about two feet from me stares at me with the oddest look in the world on his face like he just didn't understand. I of course just keep walking and then about 10 feet down the road Elizabeth busts out laughing and says so silly little obnoxious little comment.
Oh and the Taxi driver pissed me off a bit on the way home. But all was well in the end. Always they trying to take my money!!!!
September 10th 2008
Another round of classes seriously I love my classes but sometimes I just get so bored with having almost three hours of Arabic at once. My Arab Women Writers class got cancelled which didn't do me much good since I still had to stick around for my other class after that.
Anyways later in the night a group of us went out for Lisa's birthday. It was fun. We went to a place called Jabri and had wicked mad crazy good dessert. Like chocolate death!!!! And then we went to a place on Rainbow street that sold alcohol during Ramadan so that Lisa could have herself a very expensive "I just turned 24" drink! We hung out there for a while and just talked about this that and the other thing. It was all pretty chill nothing to special.
September 11th 2008
Thank Allah it is Thursday!!! Okay so I had Arabic courses in the morning and then in the after noon I really did nothing. I found this site online were I could read books on the computer for free. So mostly I read the Twilight series. Anyways, so later that night Tanya, Lisa, Elizabeth, Jackie, and I all got together and we went to Wakalat and just chilled out around there. Mostly we were making plans for Friday. We had decided to nixe the horses this weekend and decided to make a sure trip. Elizabeth, Lisa and I decided to go to Jerash. Tanya and Jackie had already been. So nothing really great to report for Thursday.
September 12th 2008
Okay so today we got on a bus and we went to Jerash. Let me start with...mom you would not be able to ride a bus in this country. Mr. Toad's wild ride has nothing and I do mean nothing on the bus rides around here. They move in and out of cars honking their horns every five seconds. It was so scary!!!! I thought I was going to die. One guy actually fell out of his seat and smacked his head against the metal of the other seat. However, I was already creeped out by this guy expecting that he was going to kill us all at anytime. I am not kidding I am glad we got off the bus when we did and Lisa was having the same feeling about him as I did. He also pissed off the bus guy when he didn't pay when it was time. Some tourist woman paid for him. It was all a bit weird.
Anyways so we got to Jerash and once at the ruins we walked through the market-tourist like shops. And everybody there kept promising to give me the Jordanian price because I spoke Arabic and I went to the University, not the tourist price. Oh and I got to bargin that down to which is what I do. Haha at least in this country.
Moving on...we got horribly hussled by a group of kids at the ruins. But they were so cute. We had to take pictures with them. Seriously I refused to buy anything from them. Lisa gave them a dollar after we got annoyed with them and told them to go away. Of course it was the police that really scared them off. After that this other kid decided he wanted to be our unwanted tour guide. I told the girls he was gonna want money and we had to get rid of him. He didn't take suttle hints. Finally I got bitchy and told him to leave. He asked for a tip and I told him I wasn't tipping him and he got mad and said maybe my friends wanted to tip him. I told him they couldn't cause I had all the money. I told him if he wanted a tip that badly I could ask the police if it was okay. He didn't like that much. But he still stood and argued. Finally I scared him off cause I kept talking about the patrol and as he left he told me I was a horrible person. (Seriously what is it with me and beggars at tourist spots. First france and now here!!!! haha)
Moving on, we went to this other ruin where we met some really nice Jordanians. We talked to them for awhile and they were impressed that we were students here. My friend Lisa actually walked on the wall of on of the ruins. I did not do this because let us face it I do not have the greatest balance and with all the uneven stones on the thing I knew I was going to fall to my death. Hell I was scared to death for Lisa. She didn't look like she was all that confident about it, but she made it across with the help of the Jordanian. And they gave her a cheap little braclet because they said she was so brave. I agree! She was wearing flip flops and she was about 40 feet up on top of this ruined wall!!!!!
Anyways, after that we took a bus home from Jerash and that was basically the end of the day.
September 13th
Because I am a lazy bum after yesterday I did nothing today but hang out around the house. Seriously I think I did a bit of homework and then remained lazy and just read my silly look book all day long. And tried not to get too hot. The weather here is horrible. Seriously, I am so glad though that it isn't too bad at night. Actually it has really started to cool down at night. Anyways I went to be early because I had class on Sunday.
September 14th
Class!!!!! I can't stress to you how boring it feels to sit in the same classroom for three hours. I mean I love Arabic...but it is just too much at once I think. The teacher drags on and on and by the end of it I am ready to hang myself. But that is okay...I guess that is what I came to this country for. So anyways Sundays are my slow days. I only have Arabic on this day. So after class I went home for a while and then I decided to go down town. Which would have been a fine idea if it wasn't for my damn taxi cab driver. My host mom is right...they are monkeys!!! So I get all the way down town and the meter reads that I owe 1.89 JD. I hand him two JD and ask for my change, but he refuses to give me my change saying that his meter is set lower than it should be. This irritates me, but after making on discussed noise I just go out it was only 10 quarish anyways. I slam the door of his car in my anger and he yells at me, "Don't slam my fucking door." (mind you this is right in the middle of down town) well this pisses me off. So I get into a fight with me taxi cab driver. Of course he knows he is in the wrong so he can't do much but yell. I turn around when he yells at me and my American kicks in. Let me tell you. I scream "Fuck you...If you are so damn worried about people's reactions then fix your fucking meter." He yells back at me and then I look back at him and spit out something like "Asshole" as I walk away. The people are staring and one man is laughing his ass off. Of course at this point American Alisha dies off and I remember where I am. But still so pissed I called my host mom and she was like why didn't you say "Kis ummku" which means like "Go fuck your mother" haha I love my host mom!!!!
That was my exciting day.
Monday, 1 September 2008
Week Two
August 30th 2008
Nothing of much import happened on this day. Basically I just hung out with the family. And coughed my poor lungs to death. I have had this horrible cough for the last few days and it shows no signs of getting any better. I spent most of this day sleeping! Yeppie...so boring!
August 31st 2008
Okay so today was the nastiest day of my life. It started out okay. I had to take an Arabic placement exam and then sit through a long explanation of Ramadan. But later in the day I took a taxi home. I had the driver drop me off at the grocery store that was no more than a block from my house. As I was walking toward my house this Brown Van was in front of me. The Van started to slow down and stopped right as it reached me. Now I didn't stop or anything, but I turned my head to the side and looked into the van and OMG it was so gross. There was this man driving the van and he had unzipped his pants and was holding all of his junk out for me to see and smiling at me. I about threw up on the spot. I couldn't even think of something to say. I just kept walking toward my home. EWWW!!!!!! Of course now in retrospective I just laugh but how gross. Now before my family decides to be like I knew the middle east was bad. Please remember this could have just as easily happened in America and this was the first less then respectful thing that had happened to me since I came to this country.
Anyways, later that night I went out with the family and met even more of the family. They all seem like very nice people. We sat on the porch for hours and just talked about this that and the other thing. But to be honest I sat on the porch in a daze for most of the night trying to understand what they were saying in the fastest Arabic I had ever heard in my life!
Anyways that was my day. Not to interesting!
September 1st, 2008
While this was the first day of Ramadan it really wasn't all that exciting. Mind you my family is Christian so we do not celebrate and thank god we don't fast either for this month. Seriously though this was a rather boring day. I had my registration appointment with the RD and signed up for which classes I would be taking this term in Jordan. After that I just sat around campus with Tanya and Elexer and we made complete tourist of ourselves. Taking pictures of this that and the other thing.
Later I sat around and chilled with the family. Not too terribly exciting. Watched a few Arabic series. They are all different for the month of Ramadan.
Anyways, I have this cough and it is killing me. So tomorrow I have to go to the doctor. :( Doctors equal bad!
September 2nd, 2008
I went to the doctor today and I must say it is an experience unlike any other. I mean seriously. I go to this doctor and first we sit in his consultation room. Which is like this hostile room where he asks you what is wrong. Or better yet he asks your host mom what is wrong until she tells him just to ask me. haha. Anyways, then he took me behind this curtain where there was this tiny little room that he uses to examine you in. He had me sit on the table. And hands me this pink piece of cloth and tells me to cover myself up. Now mind you I am wearing long pants and a loose shirt. WHAT THE HELL WAS THERE TO COVER!? Anyways he then precedes to exam me. Which was the cheesiest examination of my life. Cough here, breathe there. And then after two minutes says he is done and goes back into the consultation room and gives me antibiotics and an inhaler. But he never told me what was wrong just to take this! How jank is that!!!!!!
Anyways, the rest of my day has been me sitting around and helping Tareq with his homework.
Oh and I had fried chicken? haha
September 3rd 2008
Another boring day at the University. Actually we really did nothing this time. We got our Arabic placement test results. I got placed into the fourth level and only the fifth level is higher. I think I am going to try and replace myself into the fifth level. I just think that I could have done better and that I was a bit on the nervous side. I mean it had been awhile since I had seen any of that stuff. I just simply don't want to sign into a class and two weeks down the road be bored in that class.
Anyways so last night Elizabeth and I decided to forsake our old shisha smoking spot and try out a new area of the city. We decided to go to the sixth circle and attempt to find somewhere else to hang out. Well as it turned out we ended up walking all the way to the seventh circle and found this area called Wakalat St. It was pretty cool. Kind of like a strip mall but not really. Anyways this place is like really happening with the locals. So we found this shisha bar and smoked some jamaica haha. Anyways, I didn't realize where we were at and when we were leaving I took a taxi back to my house that turns out was almost literally next door. Man did I feel stupid!!!! My taxi cab cost 30 cents basically!!! I told my host mom what I did and she just thought it was the funniest thing in the world that I decided to take a cab from Wakalat street! Oops chalk another one up for the foreign girl!
Anyways hope fully this weekend we are going to take a trip to somewhere out side of Amman so maybe I will have something better to write about!
September 4th 2008
Today was the last day of our orientation. Finally! And let me tell you it was as boring as all of the other days. Actually so boring in fact that I don't remember it enough to talk about. But in the evening I finally got my scared little friend Tanya to come out and play. Haha. Really I just bugged her until she decided to risk the scary taxi ride and come smoke shisha with Elizabeth and I. We went to Wakalat street again. And this time I found the bridge that I could just walk over and I was not stupid and I didn't take a taxi!!!
Okay the end of that day!
September 5th 2008
Again another boring average as hell day in Amman. A few of us decided to go to the movies. But other than seeing Hancock this day is not all that great. Kat and I did spend a little bit of time planning a trip to go to the Arabian Horse Club and go riding. They are supposed to be some of the best Arabs in the Middle East! Or at least in Jordan. Hopefully that is part of what I am going to do next week.
September 6th 2008
Miscommunications I was supposed to go to Uym Qais with a few of my friends. But Elizabeth didn't hear me correctly when I said I really wanted to go and she thought I said I didn't want to go. So now hopefully I am planning on going next weekend with Kat. Can you believe my luck? This is seriously why I always travel alone. It is so much easier. By the time I called Elizabeth she was all the way in Irbid with Lisa! Geez!!!!! Anyways I am over it now. Mean while I went on my first jog since I got to Amman! OMG I am out of shape. And FYI to all of you who think Jordan is so unsafe I feel safer running through Amman than I do through Bloomington.
September 7th 2008
Today was my first day of Arabic class. OMG...Okay first of all I am not going to try and switch into another class. My class will do just fine. I don't hear english at all for about three hours every single day! Wow OMG I have never been in an arabic class that they didn't teach in English. I mean this is good. But a bit on the over whelming side at times. However, I am keeping up. I know what is going on. Which is all that matters. But also the other reason I decided not to switch is that I really enjoy my teachers alot so far. Anyways, that is all I have to report for this day. And this I guess makes the end of week Two!
Nothing of much import happened on this day. Basically I just hung out with the family. And coughed my poor lungs to death. I have had this horrible cough for the last few days and it shows no signs of getting any better. I spent most of this day sleeping! Yeppie...so boring!
August 31st 2008
Okay so today was the nastiest day of my life. It started out okay. I had to take an Arabic placement exam and then sit through a long explanation of Ramadan. But later in the day I took a taxi home. I had the driver drop me off at the grocery store that was no more than a block from my house. As I was walking toward my house this Brown Van was in front of me. The Van started to slow down and stopped right as it reached me. Now I didn't stop or anything, but I turned my head to the side and looked into the van and OMG it was so gross. There was this man driving the van and he had unzipped his pants and was holding all of his junk out for me to see and smiling at me. I about threw up on the spot. I couldn't even think of something to say. I just kept walking toward my home. EWWW!!!!!! Of course now in retrospective I just laugh but how gross. Now before my family decides to be like I knew the middle east was bad. Please remember this could have just as easily happened in America and this was the first less then respectful thing that had happened to me since I came to this country.
Anyways, later that night I went out with the family and met even more of the family. They all seem like very nice people. We sat on the porch for hours and just talked about this that and the other thing. But to be honest I sat on the porch in a daze for most of the night trying to understand what they were saying in the fastest Arabic I had ever heard in my life!
Anyways that was my day. Not to interesting!
September 1st, 2008
While this was the first day of Ramadan it really wasn't all that exciting. Mind you my family is Christian so we do not celebrate and thank god we don't fast either for this month. Seriously though this was a rather boring day. I had my registration appointment with the RD and signed up for which classes I would be taking this term in Jordan. After that I just sat around campus with Tanya and Elexer and we made complete tourist of ourselves. Taking pictures of this that and the other thing.
Later I sat around and chilled with the family. Not too terribly exciting. Watched a few Arabic series. They are all different for the month of Ramadan.
Anyways, I have this cough and it is killing me. So tomorrow I have to go to the doctor. :( Doctors equal bad!
September 2nd, 2008
I went to the doctor today and I must say it is an experience unlike any other. I mean seriously. I go to this doctor and first we sit in his consultation room. Which is like this hostile room where he asks you what is wrong. Or better yet he asks your host mom what is wrong until she tells him just to ask me. haha. Anyways, then he took me behind this curtain where there was this tiny little room that he uses to examine you in. He had me sit on the table. And hands me this pink piece of cloth and tells me to cover myself up. Now mind you I am wearing long pants and a loose shirt. WHAT THE HELL WAS THERE TO COVER!? Anyways he then precedes to exam me. Which was the cheesiest examination of my life. Cough here, breathe there. And then after two minutes says he is done and goes back into the consultation room and gives me antibiotics and an inhaler. But he never told me what was wrong just to take this! How jank is that!!!!!!
Anyways, the rest of my day has been me sitting around and helping Tareq with his homework.
Oh and I had fried chicken? haha
September 3rd 2008
Another boring day at the University. Actually we really did nothing this time. We got our Arabic placement test results. I got placed into the fourth level and only the fifth level is higher. I think I am going to try and replace myself into the fifth level. I just think that I could have done better and that I was a bit on the nervous side. I mean it had been awhile since I had seen any of that stuff. I just simply don't want to sign into a class and two weeks down the road be bored in that class.
Anyways so last night Elizabeth and I decided to forsake our old shisha smoking spot and try out a new area of the city. We decided to go to the sixth circle and attempt to find somewhere else to hang out. Well as it turned out we ended up walking all the way to the seventh circle and found this area called Wakalat St. It was pretty cool. Kind of like a strip mall but not really. Anyways this place is like really happening with the locals. So we found this shisha bar and smoked some jamaica haha. Anyways, I didn't realize where we were at and when we were leaving I took a taxi back to my house that turns out was almost literally next door. Man did I feel stupid!!!! My taxi cab cost 30 cents basically!!! I told my host mom what I did and she just thought it was the funniest thing in the world that I decided to take a cab from Wakalat street! Oops chalk another one up for the foreign girl!
Anyways hope fully this weekend we are going to take a trip to somewhere out side of Amman so maybe I will have something better to write about!
September 4th 2008
Today was the last day of our orientation. Finally! And let me tell you it was as boring as all of the other days. Actually so boring in fact that I don't remember it enough to talk about. But in the evening I finally got my scared little friend Tanya to come out and play. Haha. Really I just bugged her until she decided to risk the scary taxi ride and come smoke shisha with Elizabeth and I. We went to Wakalat street again. And this time I found the bridge that I could just walk over and I was not stupid and I didn't take a taxi!!!
Okay the end of that day!
September 5th 2008
Again another boring average as hell day in Amman. A few of us decided to go to the movies. But other than seeing Hancock this day is not all that great. Kat and I did spend a little bit of time planning a trip to go to the Arabian Horse Club and go riding. They are supposed to be some of the best Arabs in the Middle East! Or at least in Jordan. Hopefully that is part of what I am going to do next week.
September 6th 2008
Miscommunications I was supposed to go to Uym Qais with a few of my friends. But Elizabeth didn't hear me correctly when I said I really wanted to go and she thought I said I didn't want to go. So now hopefully I am planning on going next weekend with Kat. Can you believe my luck? This is seriously why I always travel alone. It is so much easier. By the time I called Elizabeth she was all the way in Irbid with Lisa! Geez!!!!! Anyways I am over it now. Mean while I went on my first jog since I got to Amman! OMG I am out of shape. And FYI to all of you who think Jordan is so unsafe I feel safer running through Amman than I do through Bloomington.
September 7th 2008
Today was my first day of Arabic class. OMG...Okay first of all I am not going to try and switch into another class. My class will do just fine. I don't hear english at all for about three hours every single day! Wow OMG I have never been in an arabic class that they didn't teach in English. I mean this is good. But a bit on the over whelming side at times. However, I am keeping up. I know what is going on. Which is all that matters. But also the other reason I decided not to switch is that I really enjoy my teachers alot so far. Anyways, that is all I have to report for this day. And this I guess makes the end of week Two!
Friday, 29 August 2008
My First Week
This is for those of you who are ready to strangle me because I have said nothing or very little to you about my trip so far in Jordan. Well first let me state it is not because I don't love you or even because I don't have the time. It is more because well frankly I haven't done too much of note as of yet. But I am going to tell you what have done now if only to keep people from hating me when I get home.
August 24th 2008
Okay so to begin with my flight to Amman was very uneventful. The only odd thing I found in my flight to Jordan was that the flight from JFK to Amman was filled, and by filled I mean like twenty or twenty five people, with people from the program. It was so funny really. So I sat next to this girl named Lisa, who on a later note became one of the girls here I hang out with the most. Anyways, Lisa has no Arabic under her belt so everybody is constantly giving her new words to remember. She is a great person. She had just studied in Poland right before she came here. Of course like most people she is just here for the semester.
The only other person I really talked to on the plane was name Elexer. He is also on the program and like me he is here for a year. He has studied Arabic somewhat. (Oh as a side note only two people on the program are Majoring in Arabic in the University, myself included). Elexer is a religious studies major.
Mostly I talked to these two people or attempted to sleep.
Okay so that was my flight in a nut shell. Moving on to the airport. First let me just say that Jordanian men are not these horrible beasts that people make them out to be. As a matter of fact it is cracking me up so much just how much they just want to help. Always ready to help you with your bags. Push your cart for you. Frankly I have never been treated so nice by Airport workers.
When you walk out of the airport you are instantly hit with the smells of Jordan. And let me tell you it is the greatest smell ever. (As far as I have seen so far the city smells amazing even in the poor parts) Everywhere smells of shisha and of flowers. Especially Jasmine. This city is one of the best smelling major cities I have ever been too. And let me tell you I expected it to smell horrible.
I was met by the CIEE people and they took all of us to the hotel by Van. It was a very cramped and very very hot ride over to the airport. And Jordanians drive like nut jobs. They have no concept of lines on the road and they use their horns way too much.
After we threw our stuff into our rooms we went on a walkabout around the area of Shemaisani.
Our group was about six people and after walking around in a large circle we went to a place to eat food. And being the silly Americans that we were we went to a coffee shop thinking there was food there. There wasn't. But here is the funny part. When we asked the guy if there was food he went down the road and ordered Arabic food for us. It was funny. And the food was so cheap. Food is really cheap in Jordan.
Oh and I got some Shisha while at the cafe. And the shisha in this country is so much better than the USA could ever get.
My roommate, Katie, and I went to bed in the hottest room ever. And I think we both about died in our sleep. (I figured out how to work the AC the next night thank god)
Anyways that was day one.
August 25th 2008
Okay so this day in the beginning was a bit on the boring side. Basically we all got into these really nice buses and went to a room in the Children's Museum in Amman. (We didn't get to see the museum though). Anyways we had our first orientation meeting. Very boring and the first of many. All we did was talk about rules and play "get to know you games". Moving on from this.
After the Orientation meeting we all went to the King's Automobile museum. It was pretty cool. Especially if you like old cars. All of the cars were in perfect condition. But as all of you know I have very little appreciation for cars. But even I fell in love with one of them. It was a bright red 2002 Ferarari (spelling?).
After this we went to one of the many Mosques of Jordan. It was a beautiful Mosque that was just built. They made all of the girls cover their hair before they entered and we had to put these black robes on over our clothes. Seriously it was an amazing building. There was gold everywhere. And the rugs we amazing. But the most amazing part of the mosque was the air conditioning. It is so hot in Amman. I considered becoming religious just so I could soak up the AC. Seriously Pheonix looks cold next to this place. However the locals say this is not normal at all.
After the mosque we went to see some of the other old touristy spots. We went to the temple of Hercules. And we went to the museum that has the dead sea scrolls. It was all pretty cool. And we also went to the Roman theatre. On the way to the Roman theatre we walked down the worst sidewalks ever. I am serious they suck in Amman. They are broken and slick and some are very steep. I tried to climb to the top but the steps were so weird I was terrified I would turn into the graceful person that I am and fall on the stairs and kill myself. As a resault I only made it two thirds of the way up before I got really dizzy and had to make a very slow decent down. (If I can figure out how to post pictures I will post pictures of this place)
Anyways, the only thing I really learned from all these touristy spots is that covering your head does make you cooler. Heck even the guys were buying covers for their head.
After all these we went to a fancy dinner that CIEE took us too. It was okay. But cheap Arab food seems better.
Finally at the end of the night a group of people and I went out and smoked Shisha.
August 26th 2008
The only thing worth note about this day was that I finally got to see the university. This day was all boring and I do mean boring orientation stuff. We did get a tour of the univerrsity, but I thought I was going to die because it was so hot.
Oh and on this day I really got to know Elizabeth and Tanya who so far with Lisa are the girls I hang out with most.
August 27th 2008
The morning of this day was also a bit boring. We just heard more rules and security issues. And all that silly jazz. Basically Jordan is a safe safe place. In the afternoon we were sent on savenger hunts with a local. My group consisted of Tanya, Farah, and Peter (Peter tried out for the olympics in swimming and only missed going by like one spot). Anyways we had an easy savenger hunt that took us all of an hour and then we went to get pizza and ice cream to waste the other five hours of the savenger hunt we had left. Farah was our local and she was amazing. She was a really sweet girl. And basically this savenger hunt just proved how much the locals are just dying to talk to us. Every body I have met on and off the street so far has been incredible and they all just want to help and make sure than we have great things to say about Jordan.
August 28th 2008
We get families!!!!
So on this day we finally got to know about our families. And let me tell you. I got the best family ever! I have two brothers about the ages of 22 and 14 and a sister (who I share a room with) about the age of 28. I have a great Arab mother, Ghada, but I don't have an Arabic father. He died.
My family is very modern and they are Christian. And yes they do have a western toilet (thank GOD) (Oh there are no western toilets at the university...that was an experience let me tell you!)
Anyways, my family really includes me and treats me like I belong to them! As a matter of fact my mother tells me all the time I am no different then her other daughter.
August 29th 2008
This day was nothing too special. I hung out with my family for awhile and then I went to Mecca Mall with Tanya, Elizabeth, and Lisa. This mall is huge and shames anything in the US. We got so lost. It has like 6 floors. It is crazy.
Oh and I also went and got a pedicure. It was so good. And it was cheap. Now my feet don't look so bad from working at summer camp. Haha
Anyways that is about it. Oh except for the fact that my host mom threatened me that if I didn't eat (when I wasn't even hungry) she was going to call Rana on me (the housing director). So I ate and I had this stuff I don't remember what it was called but it was this mix of herbs and you dip pita bread in it and it is so amazing!
And for dinner we had shawarma which was amazing. It is like chicken and this white sauce that I am not so sure what it is.
August 24th 2008
Okay so to begin with my flight to Amman was very uneventful. The only odd thing I found in my flight to Jordan was that the flight from JFK to Amman was filled, and by filled I mean like twenty or twenty five people, with people from the program. It was so funny really. So I sat next to this girl named Lisa, who on a later note became one of the girls here I hang out with the most. Anyways, Lisa has no Arabic under her belt so everybody is constantly giving her new words to remember. She is a great person. She had just studied in Poland right before she came here. Of course like most people she is just here for the semester.
The only other person I really talked to on the plane was name Elexer. He is also on the program and like me he is here for a year. He has studied Arabic somewhat. (Oh as a side note only two people on the program are Majoring in Arabic in the University, myself included). Elexer is a religious studies major.
Mostly I talked to these two people or attempted to sleep.
Okay so that was my flight in a nut shell. Moving on to the airport. First let me just say that Jordanian men are not these horrible beasts that people make them out to be. As a matter of fact it is cracking me up so much just how much they just want to help. Always ready to help you with your bags. Push your cart for you. Frankly I have never been treated so nice by Airport workers.
When you walk out of the airport you are instantly hit with the smells of Jordan. And let me tell you it is the greatest smell ever. (As far as I have seen so far the city smells amazing even in the poor parts) Everywhere smells of shisha and of flowers. Especially Jasmine. This city is one of the best smelling major cities I have ever been too. And let me tell you I expected it to smell horrible.
I was met by the CIEE people and they took all of us to the hotel by Van. It was a very cramped and very very hot ride over to the airport. And Jordanians drive like nut jobs. They have no concept of lines on the road and they use their horns way too much.
After we threw our stuff into our rooms we went on a walkabout around the area of Shemaisani.
Our group was about six people and after walking around in a large circle we went to a place to eat food. And being the silly Americans that we were we went to a coffee shop thinking there was food there. There wasn't. But here is the funny part. When we asked the guy if there was food he went down the road and ordered Arabic food for us. It was funny. And the food was so cheap. Food is really cheap in Jordan.
Oh and I got some Shisha while at the cafe. And the shisha in this country is so much better than the USA could ever get.
My roommate, Katie, and I went to bed in the hottest room ever. And I think we both about died in our sleep. (I figured out how to work the AC the next night thank god)
Anyways that was day one.
August 25th 2008
Okay so this day in the beginning was a bit on the boring side. Basically we all got into these really nice buses and went to a room in the Children's Museum in Amman. (We didn't get to see the museum though). Anyways we had our first orientation meeting. Very boring and the first of many. All we did was talk about rules and play "get to know you games". Moving on from this.
After the Orientation meeting we all went to the King's Automobile museum. It was pretty cool. Especially if you like old cars. All of the cars were in perfect condition. But as all of you know I have very little appreciation for cars. But even I fell in love with one of them. It was a bright red 2002 Ferarari (spelling?).
After this we went to one of the many Mosques of Jordan. It was a beautiful Mosque that was just built. They made all of the girls cover their hair before they entered and we had to put these black robes on over our clothes. Seriously it was an amazing building. There was gold everywhere. And the rugs we amazing. But the most amazing part of the mosque was the air conditioning. It is so hot in Amman. I considered becoming religious just so I could soak up the AC. Seriously Pheonix looks cold next to this place. However the locals say this is not normal at all.
After the mosque we went to see some of the other old touristy spots. We went to the temple of Hercules. And we went to the museum that has the dead sea scrolls. It was all pretty cool. And we also went to the Roman theatre. On the way to the Roman theatre we walked down the worst sidewalks ever. I am serious they suck in Amman. They are broken and slick and some are very steep. I tried to climb to the top but the steps were so weird I was terrified I would turn into the graceful person that I am and fall on the stairs and kill myself. As a resault I only made it two thirds of the way up before I got really dizzy and had to make a very slow decent down. (If I can figure out how to post pictures I will post pictures of this place)
Anyways, the only thing I really learned from all these touristy spots is that covering your head does make you cooler. Heck even the guys were buying covers for their head.
After all these we went to a fancy dinner that CIEE took us too. It was okay. But cheap Arab food seems better.
Finally at the end of the night a group of people and I went out and smoked Shisha.
August 26th 2008
The only thing worth note about this day was that I finally got to see the university. This day was all boring and I do mean boring orientation stuff. We did get a tour of the univerrsity, but I thought I was going to die because it was so hot.
Oh and on this day I really got to know Elizabeth and Tanya who so far with Lisa are the girls I hang out with most.
August 27th 2008
The morning of this day was also a bit boring. We just heard more rules and security issues. And all that silly jazz. Basically Jordan is a safe safe place. In the afternoon we were sent on savenger hunts with a local. My group consisted of Tanya, Farah, and Peter (Peter tried out for the olympics in swimming and only missed going by like one spot). Anyways we had an easy savenger hunt that took us all of an hour and then we went to get pizza and ice cream to waste the other five hours of the savenger hunt we had left. Farah was our local and she was amazing. She was a really sweet girl. And basically this savenger hunt just proved how much the locals are just dying to talk to us. Every body I have met on and off the street so far has been incredible and they all just want to help and make sure than we have great things to say about Jordan.
August 28th 2008
We get families!!!!
So on this day we finally got to know about our families. And let me tell you. I got the best family ever! I have two brothers about the ages of 22 and 14 and a sister (who I share a room with) about the age of 28. I have a great Arab mother, Ghada, but I don't have an Arabic father. He died.
My family is very modern and they are Christian. And yes they do have a western toilet (thank GOD) (Oh there are no western toilets at the university...that was an experience let me tell you!)
Anyways, my family really includes me and treats me like I belong to them! As a matter of fact my mother tells me all the time I am no different then her other daughter.
August 29th 2008
This day was nothing too special. I hung out with my family for awhile and then I went to Mecca Mall with Tanya, Elizabeth, and Lisa. This mall is huge and shames anything in the US. We got so lost. It has like 6 floors. It is crazy.
Oh and I also went and got a pedicure. It was so good. And it was cheap. Now my feet don't look so bad from working at summer camp. Haha
Anyways that is about it. Oh except for the fact that my host mom threatened me that if I didn't eat (when I wasn't even hungry) she was going to call Rana on me (the housing director). So I ate and I had this stuff I don't remember what it was called but it was this mix of herbs and you dip pita bread in it and it is so amazing!
And for dinner we had shawarma which was amazing. It is like chicken and this white sauce that I am not so sure what it is.
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