Class Trip

Marhabba.  Keif hik?  Classes are starting to wind down.  This last friday I went on a field trip for my Islam in the Modern Context class.  We started out in a town named Salt, about a thirty minute drive from university with no traffic.  There we visited two different mosques that also did have shrines for prophets. At the first mosque the shrine was of Joshua.  After Salt we proceeded to go into the Jordan valley.  The Jordan Valley is where a lot of the crops, citrus, and green areas of Jordan is located.  The scenery was very neat and it was a good change from the city.  Plus down in the valley the weather is warmer and so it was not cold.  We ended up visiting five different mosques and shrines for the whole day.  The five shrines were of individuals that are important to Islam, but at the same time some of these characters can be found in the bible (such as Joshua).  Each mosque had a different feel and different decorations than each of the previous mosques, but overall there were some similarities.  Plus because we were in the Jordan Valley we were driving parallel with the Israeli border.  In fact at one of the mosques we were only one kilometer from the Jordan River which is the natural border between Israel and Jordan.  We ended up about an hour and a half away from Amman in the Northern direction.  Again really close to the Syrian border. 

Would like to discuss a social issue that is really common throughout the Middle East.  This issue is the segregation of the sexes.  This segregation happens in just about every aspect of life.  An example is on campus guys are hanging out with guys, while girls are hanging out with girls.  It is not that common to see a mixed group of people talking together.  Plus in the cafeteria it is the same thing.  In the U.S. this is not typically the case, but here in the Middle East it is the norm.  This somewhat has to do with the religious aspect of the Middle East, but more importantly it is a cultural reason.  A funny example of this occuring is on the mini-busses that a lot of people take to school.  So guys sit with guys and girls with girls when possible.  Because these are smaller busses it does not always work out like that and so when someone gets off or on there is always a shuffle of the people who are not sitting by the same sexed individual.  One of my American friends here, she has nicknamed this the "Segregated Sex Shuffle."  So this segregation is extremely common in every day life, but for us Americans we don't always follow it.  I guess this just makes it easier to point out the foreigners, as if that wasn't easy to begin. 

So next week is the last week of actual material in our classes and than the week after that we start finals.  I am done with all papers and now just need to do one presenation.  This weekend there is a group of us going back down to Aqaba.  While there will get to do some more diving and to get out of the cold weather in Ammman.  Will write latter when I have time.  إن شاء الله          

طقس

The weather here in Jordan has changed significantly since we started this semester.  A good part about being from Arizona and coming to Jordan is the fact that the weather is pretty similar.  So when my host family was saying it was starting to get cold it was starting to get cold for me too.  Plus this last week it has rained a lot.  For Amman that is a surprise and even Jordanians are not used to rain.  For the next week the high temperature is going to around 14 degrees celsius (around 57 degrees fahrenheit ) while the low temperature is around 4 degrees celsius (around 39 degrees fahrenheit).  So these temperatures are a little bit cooler than what I am used to in Arizona.  Plus the houses here don't have central heating.  They do have space heaters that my family is usually huddled around at night while watching television.  Plus after I came back from vacation in each room there has been carpets/rugs that have been laid out on the floor.  Every room is all tile and so this makes it colder, but with the carpets/rugs it does help somewhat.  The cold weather is just starting and later on in December there is a small possibility of having my first snow day that cancels school.  Here in Jordan barely any snow cancels everything because the fact that people are afraid to go out in the snow.    

By the way Happy Thanksgiving to everyone.  Here the study abroad program is putting together a turkey dinner for us.  In fact I would rather be having pollo asado, refried beans, tortillas, and fresh salsa for Thanksgiving dinner, but turkey will have to do.  Then tomorrow I have a field trip with one of my classes and we are going to be visiting some mosques located in the Jordan valley.  I need to finish my last paper for one of my area studies class this weekend before it is due on Monday.  Well I should start doing research for my paper.  Will write later.  إن شاء الله  

Northern Jordan

So this past weekend I spent exploring some more of Jordan.  On Friday I took a bus up North to a town by the name of Irbid and then from Irbid hired a taxi to drive from Irbid to Um Qays and back.  My destination was Um Qays because this is a big mountain that happens to be on the border of Israel and Syria.  So the view from this mountain on a clear day one can even see as far as the Lebanon Mountains; however, when I was there it was cloudy so I simply saw Israel, Syria, the Sea of Galilee and the Golan Heights.  These views were pretty awesome and plus on top of this mountain it was a bigger Roman establishment so there were more Roman ruins throughout.  Plus these ruins were different than the other ruins I have seen in Jordan because the fact that these ones were darker colored.  Not exactly sure why but it could be because that far up North the terrain is more green and alive than some of the other places.  That is just one guess and am not sure how true. 

            On Saturday I woke up early and showed up to the University in order to go back to fix up the school in Aljoun.  Once we get up to the school we were split up into three different groups who each were given a classroom.  In this classroom we were given the task to paint the walls, but not just in plain white.  We were given multiple colors and told to draw stuff on the walls.  So in the classroom I worked on we put the Arabic alphabet going one way and then the English alphabet going the other way.  Plus we did the same thing with numbers (at least up to ten).  Plus some other items such as a sun, music notes, and a fish were put throughout.  It was pretty neat looking when we were done with the classroom.  After working for a couple hours we went and had lunch at a local family’s house.  Like always the food in Aljoun is really good and does have some more seasoning than the food in Amman.  For our cultural activity we ended up getting to go to the Dead Sea.  This was my second time there but it was the first time that I have been in the Dead Sea.  It is real interesting because the fact that you can’t sink at all.  There is so much salt that it does take a lot of force to get completely submerged and when that happens it is not fun because the salt gets in the eyes and mouth.  Plus at the Dead Sea you put mud all over yourself and let it dry and then proceed to get in the water in order to wash off the mud.  This mud basically is a natural lotion for the skin and does make the skin a lot softer.  It was definitely a neat experience to be able to swim in the Dead Sea at the lowest point on Earth. 

            Now it is Monday and so it is the second day of the school week.  I am done with Arabic classes for today, but this week is going to be a little busy.  I have two presentations today for my area studies classes and I need to get working on my second area studies paper.  Plus on Thursday it is Thanksgiving which is not really a holiday in Jordan, but the study abroad program is putting together a Thanksgiving dinner that we will be eating on Thursday at the restaurant on campus.  I will write later when I have time.  إن شاء الله

Vacation

Where to start...  Vacation here in Jordan was real fun and I had a blast the whole break.  First day me and a classmate hired a taxi to take us to the Dead Sea.  This lowest point on Earth is only about a fourty-five minute drive from Amman.  We were out there at about 3:30 and were told we needed to stay for the sunset by some people who have been out there before.  We did stay and it was really neat.  Plus from the Dead Sea you can see the country of Israel and off in the distance there was a thunderstorm happening.  So we proceeded to stay for awhile trying to get a picture of some lightning (I ended up taking about 250 pictures alone that night).  Becasue we did stay watching the weather roll in we were almost stranded at the Dead Sea with no way to get back to Amman.  Thankfully one of the shop owners along the beach was heading back in town and gave us a lift back to the city. 

Next day I woke up and met a friend at the South Bus station and we made our way to Rum Village.  Rum village is where the asphalt and the road ends before becoming beautiful desesrt.  To get to Rum Village we ended up taking a ride from someone, because the fact that the buses weren't leaving for another three hours.  This is because it was a Friday which is the day off for everyone because this is when Muslims attend mosques (church).  First night we stayed in the Rum Village itself and simply walked some ways in the desert.  That night we heard a lot of wild life such as the coyotes and camels making a lot of noise.  Next day is when we started our trek through the desert.  Basically this day we saw a couple fresh water springs, insriptions carved in the rocks, and the beautiful desert scenery.  That night and the next night we stayed at a camp in the middle of the desert and it was named Sunset Camps.  These night it was really quite and did not hear anything at night.  During the daytime we walked/ hiked for hours at a time enjoying the desert and peacefullness.  We did have a local guide who was only fourteen years old but he did know his way around and did not get us lost.  At night we had fresh tea waiting for us in the community tent and we visited with the other travelers.

After enjoying the time relaxing in the desert we procedded onto the coastal town of Aqaba.  In Aqaba we met up with some more people we know from Amman.  Our hotel was located about fifteen kilometres from the city, but a lot closer to the beaches.  Plus this is where the dive company we went through was located.  So basically here the days consisted of waking up for breakfast around 8:30.  Doing a shore dive at about 10:00.  Back at the hotel to relax and eat lunch.  Do another shore dive at about 3:00.  Go shower and head into town in order to eat more than just hotel food and visit the city.  It was a real nice set up.  Overall over a four day period I ended up diving six times.  Diving the Red Sea is amazing.  There is colorful coral, colorful fish, angel fish, lion fish, octupus, eels, pufferfish, sea urchins, clown fish, a sea turtle, lizard fish, small seahorses, a shipwreck, a tank, and more coral.  I did see everything that I have listed.  Plus my fellow travellers did enjoy the diving, and for them it was there first open water dives.  My dive buddy I helped out a couple different times to include switching masks while in about ten metres (everything was in metres and bar) because it kept flooding for him.  I figured I would be able to handle it better because I am a more experienced diver.  Once I got the mask on it worked fine for me and it was just fogging up the whole time.  Good thing it worked because that is the dive that we saw the sea turtle.  The shipwreck was neat to see, but compared to other shipwrecks I have dove it was just all right.  The tank was an interesting dive, and in fact the tank itself is in real shallow water and we saw it at the end of the dive on our way back to shore.  All the dives did include a dive master who knew where to look for the fish and the interesting creatures or plants.  Can't wait to get back to Aqaba to keep diving the Red Sea.  The city of Aqaba was simply another Jordanian city and nothing that special about the city.  Besides the fact that most people spoke English because it is a tourist destination.  One night I ate some real good fresh fish that was not that expensive.  The rest of the nights we ate food that is typical to find in Jordan.   

So my vacation in a quick summary was spent at the saltiest place on Earth, one of the dryest but most beautiful deserts, and than onto the very wet but gorgeous Red Sea.  It was a fun vacation and I did not want to come back to the city.  Now I need to get back into studying and continuing communicating in Arabic.  This week I will be working on my second paper for my other Area studies class and continuing the process of grasping the language.  Need to start doing homework and will write later when I have a chance. ان شاء الله
   

Pictures of Vacation

Between Iraq and a hard place

The title of this blog I have heard repeated multiple times by professors here at the University of Jordan.  This does describe where Jordan is physically located.  All around Jordan the countries seem to be always in some sort of conflict.  I put this title because this Saturday I was only about an hour and a half away drive from Iraq.  Out in the desert there CIEE took us on a field trip to go see some desert castles and go on a bike ride.  Besides reading the sign or looking at a map no one would know that we were that close to the country of Iraq.  Plus like I mentioned in a previous post, the most dangerous thing I will encounter is the traffic, and I do not see "Iraq and a hard place" affecting daily life.  In fact the other day there was potential for a tribal (Jordanians come from different tribes) fight and we were told to avoid the main gate at the University.  So as far as seeing the troubles of the other countries affecting Jordan it will most likely not happen. 

This field trip this last Saturday took us to two different "castles" that were used during the Umayyad period in Middle Eastern History.  Both were not that big but did have a lot of structure still standing.  At the first one we basically were allowed to explore whatever we wanted.  We basically walked through the small castle and took various pictures.  The second one was quite a bit neater because the fact that you could still make out the frescos that were all over the walls.  Plus at this one they were still building the castle.  Its a joke here that they started the castle back in the Umayyad period and still have not finished building it because construction takes forever.  In fact they were just restoring and trying to preserve the frescos.  After this castle we procedded to get on bicyles on go on a 25 kilometer bike ride through the desert.  Not much to see for the most part except for a lizard, mirages, and a stampede of camels.  Yep, only in the Middle East can one go on a bike ride and come across a herd of camels.  After the bike ride we got back on the bus and proceded to the village of Azraq.  There we ate lunch and than ended up at Azraq wetlands.  This area is the only wetlands in Jordan and used to be a lot bigger.  First part of this we walked through a presentation thing describing how the water issue in Jordan is a big issue.  Than we were able to see the wetlands and walk through them thanks to a bridge that was built.  It was neat to see, and plus we did see a water buffalo eating across the way.  After this went on the roof of the main building to see out across the whole area, and while up there I saw a herd of sheep walking down the road.  The herder looked like he was heading home and the sheep were following him the whole way.  After this we made the commute back home via bus.  It was a neat trip.  So this past week I have been taking midterms for each of my classes.  For Arabic that did include multiple tests such as written, listening, and speaking.  Finally done with that and now can enjoy the break. 

So today after my Arabic classes it is the start of the vacation.  We get the week off of school and get to do whatever we want to do.  Most people are traveling to different countries, but I figured there is still a lot to see in Jordan.  So I originally planned to go back to Dana Nature Reserve, Wadi Rum, and then on to Aqaba.  Well plans change especially here in Jordan since nothing seems to be set in stone until it is actually happening.  So it will be easier to get to Wadi Rum from Amman on a Friday instead of from Dana to Wadi Rum.  So basically I and my fellow traveler for the first part have decided to skip Dana and go to Wadi Rum and on to Aqaba.  Yes, I have already been to Wadi Rum, but last time I went there we were barely at the beginning of Wadi Rum.  There was still paved road and so this trip I want to get out in the middle of the desert with no paved roads.  Simply there will be sand, lots of stars, nature, some more sand, and possibly wild animals.  We are going to be able to spend the night out in the middle of the desert without a huge camp setup, but simply our tent and the guide’s tent.  Then on to Aqaba where we will meet up with some other people and in Aqaba we will be able to dive the Red Sea.  Diving the Red Sea is supposed to be some of the best diving in the world so it will be really neat.  Plus my dive partner (someone from my Arabic class) it will be his first open water dives after being certified a couple months ago.  Plus another friend is going to be getting certified from a dive master while in Aqaba.  So I told them that they are really lucky to be diving the Red Sea as some of their first dives. 

            So I will be gone all next week and I don’t plan on bringing my laptop.  It’s hard to get service in Wadi Rum, and plus there is a lot of sand in Wadi Rum.  I will come back with some good stories and quite possibly stories that include diving with sea turtles and hammerhead sharks.  Between now and then I will be relaxing and enjoying the desert of Jordan.  I will take plenty of pictures and will write when I get back.  إن شاء الله

Pictures of Eastern Jordan

 first castle

 egg found hiding in castle

 mosaics at second castle

 Right before the stampede

 Al Azraq is where the wetlands are located

 water buffalo