hair trimmings and a picnic

Mr. Ahmed and I. He spoke zero English but he understands pantomime very well. I was impressed by his ability to balance the ash at the end of his ciggy and cut my hair at the same time.

It isn't summer until you get a haircut and have a picnic. The watermelon was perfect but Hamoudeh liked his ice cream better.

Late night runs for HIV tests and falafel

Some drama arose last week regarding our visa renewals while in Jordan. Apparently, the law changed three months ago and things are a bit more complicated. Now, one is required to get an HIV test and report the results to one's police station in one's area of residence. This news came at a terrible time for Annie because the test took 4 days for results and she needed to get it renewed the next day. Lets just say things got expensive and she wasn't too happy about all the Russian prostitutes that were also getting their blood drawn before her.

Living with Amman locals has payed off in so many ways. My host mother is a fountain of knowledge and she has connections all over the city. Anytime i need something or there is a place I need to go, my host mum tells me where I can find the best stuff for the best prices. I told her last night that I needed to go get tested for HIV and she immediately called up her friend who happens to be a doctor with connections at a near by Hospital. It was about 10:45 at night and she tells me "yalla, hayati."(come on, my life) and we rushed out the door. We loaded up the family car and we were heading towards the hospital when my host mom realized that we hadn't eaten our third meal of the day. She took us all to get the best falafel sandwiches in town. Al Quds on Rainbow Street really has the most delicious food. Their falafel was the late King Hussein's favorite. I must say that it is also my favorite. Their combination of pickles, tomatoes, tahini, and falafel is just heaven. They also grill the pita bread that wraps the whole meal up. Falafel sandwich is a quick meal that always hits the spot.

After Al Quds, we headed to the hospital for the test. Fidaa's friend, Dr. Samer, was really helpful and I was grateful to discover that he had talked the price of the test down for me. I had heard about the other interns' experiences with trying to find a place to get the tests done. Most of the interns out here have limited Arabic ability so everything is a little tough for them because they don't speak Arabic and they are not living with host families. I always find myself getting the best situations because of my host mum's savvy. I don't know what I would do without her.

Cool guy who made my falafel sandwich.

We all scream for TooT!

There is a berry that grows on a tree.

It can sometimes be white.

It can sometimes be a deep purple.

I love this berry.

I like to find the tree that grows this fruit called toot.

I pick the fruit......

with Fidaa

with Joud

and with my friends.

Tonight, I found this tree and picked the toot to for the family party.

No one ate my toot from the tree that belong's to only the people.

I ate the toot.

Weekend travels with only weekend friends

PETRA..............WADI RUM.................AL AQABA!

All very big destinations with reputations for awe inspiring sights. Last week, our program directors Ralph Brown and Malcolm Botto came into town to see Amman and check to see how all is going with our individual internships. So far, things have been going very well. I have been working in the MoSD headquarters, writing proposals, reading various documents, and just trying to figure things out. Some moments, I feel overwhelmed but after a task I always feel a sense of relief, accomplishment, and knowledge instilled. Good thing I think the work I am doing in the office is so meaningful because I will be at MoSD headquarters for at least two more weeks. The time is just flying by and the three day weekend helped with that.

Hitting up three amazing places in just three days could have been difficult but i think all was seen and all was done that could have been seen and done. Petra was ancient. The weather breezy. The souvenirs expensive. i have been instructed by fidaa to buy no more things with out her. She says that I always pay too much. I am grateful to have someone who always watches out for me.

Wadi Rum was a big night party. We ate lots of funny foods that could have been mistaken for American food but the hummus and pita made it all pretty Arab. There was a great big sitting area with pillows, a dance floor, and places for people's hookahs. Rule #1: Never leave your home without packing up your hookah(agila) with all of its accessories and tasty fruit-flavored tobacco. the night time was appreciatively cool and the air was filled with the smells of fruity smoke and bad techno Arabic music. A bunch of us went out to climb the giant sand dunes before bed. The dunes were cool and the wild dogs we ran into a little scary but Wadi Rum's greatest feature was its breathtaking views.

The Red Sea was the hottest but was the best place to see. We stayed in a very snazzy hotel that was situated well in the hot spots of the city. Aqaba was a hip beachy town with all the American treats one could ask for. The Seven Eleven had no Big Gulps but the McDonald's had Chokolat sundaes. The last hour we were in Aqaba a bunch of the guys and me went snorkeling. It felt so good to swim and to be out on a boat. It reminded me of being at Lake Powell with the family.

I spent the majority of my weekend palling around with a large group of boys. It was nice to have some American friend time and to enjoy the beauties of the ruins, desert, and sea.

Fidaa's Big Independence Day

Jordan celebrated its 64th year of independence from British mandate today.The streets were filled with people selling Jordanian flags and other patriotic paraphernalia. Last night, we watched as young men dressed in very fancy suits screamed out of their expensive Mercedes, Audis, and SUVs in excitment for the holiday. Independence Days are usually exciting days for their citizens but today was especially exciting for my host mom, Fidaa, because tonight she was able to shake hands with King Abdullah and Queen Rania.

Fidaa works for the Ministry of Education and was invited to a reception in honor of Independence day and the royal family. So, this morning Joud, Fidaa, and I headed out to go shopping for Fidaa's big night! We went to some very chic European stores and found the best suit. Then it was off to the salon for hair and nails. It was fun to see Fidaa get all dressed up and to see her excitement in the opportunity to meet her sovereign. The people in Jordan truly love there rulers, the Hashem family. King Abdullah's picture, as well as pictures of the royal family, are everywhere in Jordan. I am able to admire the Jordanian Malik everyday as I work in my office. Patriotism is alive and well in Jordan.

The case of the missing muftah.

In every job, there is always the chance of being blamed for something one did not do. Today's work incident was no different. I received a call from a fellow intern saying that she needed me at work very soon. I arrive to find our office locked and the key(muftah in arabic) to the office missing and no where to be found. Last Thursday, I received a call from my boss asking me who had the key to our office. She thought she had left her Iphone in our office from our meeting that we had earlier. I told her that we gave it to some tall computer tech guy...........I mean he just stuck his hand out and we gave him the key. He said he would take care of it.

Trusting someone with the key to all of your work and basically the only place you can be productive should not have been such a light decision. After over an hour and a half of wondering around the ministry and asking everyone who could know where the key is or where we could get a master key, the man (known as Malik) who we had given to the key to finally emerged from wherever he had been hiding. He was sneaky about this whole key incident and did not come forward and give us the key. Malik said that he gave it to our boss and told other people that and then this tough Arab lady got him to give it to us. It was such a weird moment. No reasoning behind it. But apparently, my boss thinks this whole situation was my fault and now we are not allowed to keep the key. We have become kindergarteners. But I am just glad to have gotten some work done today.

Pancakes arabi, dirty buses, and Mansaf feast.

In the Middle East, staying up till the early morning hours is very much the fashion. I sit up with my family here till 1 to 2 in the morning. We often eat our third meal of the day at Midnight. Last night, I was really craving some kind of warm breakfast food and Fidaa(my host mum) made pancakes for us all. Apparently, breakfast for dinner is not just a American thing. The flap jacks arabi really hit the spot. The kids liked to put ice cream toppings on their pancakes like chocolate syrup and strawberry sauce. I went traditional and stuck with the genuine synthetic maple syrup. Good choice.

As we were eating, I got a call from Aline ( the new intern from the U). She had made it to Amman and was interested in traveling with the group to the branch in Al Husn. We tried diligently to find a good meeting space that we both could locate. We decided to meet at C town( a mall/ grocery store about 5 minutes away from my house and 10 minutes from the bus station). Luckily, Lavon and Iwere able to find a taxi at 7:55(on the sabbath day granted) in the morning. It must have been written. We met the group and took a fancy Hijazi bus up to the Al Husn.

The small branch of Al Husn was an incredible sight to behold. Mostly Arab members were present. The meeting was held in both English and Arabic. I have never felt the spirit more than when I was listening to the sweet words of Huda (the primary leader in the branch) sacrament talk. Insha allah I will be able to go back up a few more times before I leave Jordan.

The bus ride back to Amman was not as smooth as the ride up. We got on the wrong bus and ended up paying for a tour of the three small roads we drove down. Eventually, the right run-down bus was found. You meet the best people at bus stations. We found a man who was Jordanian but had lived in Louisiana for years. He was peddling local tours of Jordan and gave us stolen pamphlets from the local hotels.

Later, a small Shahud( gypsy....panhandler child) came on the bus to beg. It was disheartening to see the state of this child who didn't even ask for money but instead grunted and moaned and stuck his hand out. No one gave him money( me included) I instantly felt regret. I then saw him outside below my window and i called, "Ya, walad( hey boy)". I handed him a package of chocolate biscuits I had bought for the trip to Irbid. He took it with no problem and ran off. The local men told him to say thank you but the small child refused. The situation in Jordan is hard on many. Unemployment is at 16% and one can see children walking through congested streets begging for piasters. It is difficult to know what to do sometimes in these situations but I am always up for giving food items to the kids. I just hope the kid liked chocolate.

Tonight, I was reminded how fortunate I really am. I have a family at home who loves me....and I have a host family who protects, cares for, and feeds me everyday. I was lucky enough to help Fidaa in the kitchen tonight as she prepared a Jordanian delicacy for us. MANSSAF! Manssaf is a special dish that is prepared for honored guests and on special occasions due to the high cost of the ingredients for the dish. I stirred yogurt sauces, sliced almonds, and watched Fidaa perform culinary magic throughout the cooking process. The meal turned out beautifully. Manssaf has a bold and impressive presentation in the way it is plated. Traditionally, manssaf is communally eaten by hand. I had a friend show me once how to eat "the right way" but I did not get the chance to try out my technique. I ate with a spoon. Joud told me that it is usually the men that eat it with there hands not girls. But maybe i will eat will my hands someday. As we all sat down to eat, I looked around and at the faces of the people around me and I realized how blessed I am to be here in Amman.