Noteworthy

There is a small market about 10 yards from the front door of my building that sells necessities, plus a whole lot of candy and cookies. Each time I have gone in, the owner gives me coins from other places. Today, I got a Euro from Spain and 10 dinar from Saudi Arabia.

A Brazillian woman who owns a bikini shop in Aqaba is hosting an event at the Intercontinental Hotel tonight with a swimwear fashion show. This is only acceptible because it is in a hotel. The land of the foreigners is a little less Arabic (thus, I can also wear shorts at the hotel gym). I am getting henna painted on my hand by my work's helper/coffee maker/cleaner/serious lady who I am just starting to crack.

Rather than have an Arabic lesson this morning I went for coffee with my teacher. We had a lovely time, talking about marriage and relationships in Jordan, money and expenses and inflation, and work opportunities.

Speaking of Arabic, I am just starting to put together complete sentences. Some samples of what I can say:
I am hungry. I want to eat please.
Do you want to go?
There are 100 trees.
Where?
I am busy.
Are you free?
I am thirsty. I want to drink.
How are you? My name is Katrina. What is your name?

Gulf of Aqaba, Wadi Rum, Nawatef Camp, Wadi Ghuweir, Shoubak Castle (and making up for a long blog absence)

The amazing adventures that I've been having during my free time have been keeping me from posting pictures and writing, but I do want to share what I've been up to, so here we go...

To weekends ago, F and I had some visitors down in Aqaba. They arrived on Thursday night, and after a Friday morning stop at Gloria Jean's, we all went down to the Movenpick jetty to boat a glass bottomed boat that took us to Aqaba's South Beach. The air on the boat was such a nice change from the late summer heat. While cruising along, we were able to see the city from a different, and perhaps more idealistic, viewpoint. For the day, we were tourists, snorkeling in the Red Sea, eating lunch that was cooked on an on-board barbeque, and enjoying the company of other travelers (including two kind English gentlemen who were in Jordan on a singing tour). The highlight of the trip for me was diving from the second story roof of the boat, Edgartown Bridge style.



We passed the Aqaba Container Terminal. Watching those huge chunks of metal being moved around so easily reminded me of the Atari game where the hamburgers fell from the sky. (Dan, what was that?)

That night, we met up with a Peace Corps volunteer who is teaching in a small town a couple of hours away. His stories about Jordan contrasted with the peaceful day that we just had - Peace Corps volunteers are paid a wage that is comparative to the local population. They don't have the luxury of exploring a new facet of the country every weekend. I am very grateful that I can afford everything that I've shared here in this blog. (In case anyone is thinking of visiting Jordan - the wadi trips (including lunch and transportation) cost about $50 each. The day on the boat cost about $40, and scuba diving was a little more than $50.)


On the mandatory walk through the market with our visitors, we of course came across some ridiculous JC Penney castoff mannequins. And J, of course, got a photo.


Packing more into the weekend, we went to Wadi Rum the next day. This was where Lawrence of Arabia was based during the Arab Revolt. The rock formation you can see behind the visitor center is called "The Seven Pillars of Wisdom."

Rather than getting a truck to drive us into the desert, we chose to walk about 5 miles to the Rum Village. We passed by a $13/person buffet and had a great lunch at a small restaurant (hummus, bread, tabouli, salad, drinks) for just a few dollars a person. We skipped a camel ride and T bargained a truck back to our starting point for 5JD.

The bargaining went like this:
Guy With Truck: 20JD!
T: Ha! 5JD
GWT: 20!
T: 5!
[GWT then drives away. Wuh-oh.]
Guy With Different Truck: You need a ride?
T: 5JD!
GWDT: Ok!




Whew! Ok, keep going.

This past weekend, I met 10 friends from Amman somewhere near the Dana Biosphere Reserve. When I arrived at the Nawatef Camp it was dusk. There was a fire going with chairs all around, glowing lanterns lighting the paths to the goat hair tents, and some very friendly faces there to welcome me (and bring me tea!). Nawatef is perched at the top of a deep canyon and is one of the most serene places that I have ever been, particularly at that time of day.

The next morning, it was just as beautiful.


Friday, we hired a guide to take us through Wadi Ghuweir. The 10 mile hike started at the top of the canyon, and went from sunshine at the top to the shade of the canyon; from a flowing stream to a dry path; from hopping frogs to tip-toeing millipedes. The canyon walls reminded me of marble cake.



I spent a large part of the day talking with a new Iraqi friend who is living in Jordan implementing security training for individuals who will be working in Iraq. I am very thankful begin to paint a mental image of Jordan's neighbor to the east.




The weekend was capped by a trip to Shoubak Castle, or Montreal, a Crusader Castle built in 1115. The best part of the visit was a long tunnel that went from inside the castle, down into the caves, and down down down until it reached a ladder that led up to the street at the bottom of the mountain. There were also stone wheels in one or two of the rooms and what I can only guess were cannon balls.


Next up: more visitors from Amman this weekend and another boat trip since we enjoyed the first so much. And then I am heading to Amman on Saturday and I'll spend next week working, drinking Starbucks, shopping, and other such big-city things.

Wicked Wadi

In anticipation of the winter rains, we've been spending as much time as we can exploring Jordan's wadis, or canyons - Wadi Mujib in mid-September, then Wadi Hassa two weeks ago, and Wadi Kerak this past weekend. Even though all are within a 100 kilometer radius, each place has been unique. We've climbed up waterfalls, soaked in hot springs, and abseiled down canyon walls. Kerak and the abseiling has been my favorite trip so far because of both the newness of abseiling and the depth and beauty of that particular canyon.

The Kerak trip started with a two hour bus ride out of Amman and along the Dead Sea. We drove up into the mountains and were dropped off at the top of a steep trail that descended into the canyon. I was reminded of the road between Los Angeles and Pheonix, where the bareness is amazing but the rolling ups and downs and then sharp mountains give you something to wonder about.

After a few hundred meters, we reached the first of five waterfalls and got a quick introduction to repelling in the form of "just lean back and go!" I heard a couple of screams and more than a few swears from the people ahead of me, but I was able to control my own nerves by reminding myself of the trust that I had in the tour guides and my general "it probably won't kill me" attitude. (Sorry mom... it definitely, definitely won't kill me.)

The first and second drops were easily manageable - two to four times my height. Instead of hopping down the mountainside like so many videos of repelling show, we actually walked step by step down. It was easy to feed the rope through the metal loop attached to my harness, and just as easy to hold the rope so I would stay put. The initial step or maneuvering at the top of a drop was always the most difficult. I found myself in a precarious position at the top of a ten foot, dry repel when my left leg was reaching down the rock wall and my right leg was between the wall and my face. Not on purpose.

The hike was ten kilometers total, and we stopped halfway through the day to have lunch and hot tea beside a small yet tall waterfall. I wonder what it would be like to grow up beside a place like that. Every time that life got you up, you could celebrate by letting mountain water fall on your head. And every time that life got you down, you could do the same and remind yourself that you are alive. And you could also line the canyon with little plastic army men, or cowboys and Indians, whichever you prefer (to prepare for non-existent-bear attacks).

The landscape of the canyon changed throughout the day. This was most noticeable after lunch as we walked along a curving stream that was grassy and then rocky and the walls changed from white to orange to red to gray. I ran along part of the trail with a mountain-goat-like guide named Hussein (like Barack, or Sadam, as he put it). It felt good to move, particularly in such a spectacular setting. I've been happy lately, and I don't mean about anything specific. It's just a general feeling of enjoying each day and sporadic disbelief that I am here in this place.








I have to offer many thanks to Zach, a Fulbright friend, for the amazing photos. (On wet hikes like this one, someone carries a big plastic pickle jar with the necessities that can't get wet - a camera or two, cigarettes, a lighter for the smokes and to start a fire for the tea, and a first aid kit.)

*****

After the hike, I was able to spend a few more days in Amman. Saturday, J and I walked from Abdali to downtown where we came across a few surprising alleys, lots of silly mannequins (picture Jordan Marsh, mid-1980s, minus something important like hair or a hand or a leg), and a busy market for spices, fruits, and vegetables. A ten year old hawker waved J off as he tried to pay for two tiny hot peppers from a bucket of 500, and I was surprised by the boy's mannerisms and sense.







From the downtown area, which is at the bottom of a number of hills, we walked up a giant staircase to another area of town and met with some rug rats along the way. We had an enlightening conversation or two that went like this: RR: Hello! J&K: Well hello to you! RR: How are you!? J&K: Fine. How are you? RR: Fuck you!! Heh heh heh!!" These kids were between 7 and 12 years old, so I didn't take it too personally... And I remembered all of the snowballs and acorns that I chucked at passing cars on Jan Marie Drive when I was their age.

Other highlights from the past week:

- I started my Arabic tutoring session this morning. I now know about 50 words, which is a good start.
- I had a taxi adventure that involved being asked for a fare that was 5x what it should be, almost running out of gas, and hitting a curb while reversing 100 meters on a one way street.,
- F and I joined the health club at the Movenpick hotel and have found a place where I can comfortably wear shorts.
- J and I found an Indian restaurant with a small menu full of good food and, of course, Amsdel.
- I was at an intersection in Shmeisani and a man in the car next to me littered. Then the man on the opposite side of him got out of his truck, walked around the car, picked up the wrapper, and threw it back in the car. Admirable gall!
- (Oh yeah, and I went to work some of the days in there. Perhaps I will write about that part of my life soon, but there is so much fun to be had and so many pictures to take of more colorful things!)

What he said.

I was lightly reprimanded for not posting enough here and letting people know what I have been up to. So here, what he said:

Another Day, Another Dinar

(Is this allowed?)

Amman Weekend

Bootleg bonanza: 13 movies = 10JD = $14

Downtown Amman

Tinfoil heads. And Franco.

Wahid + Wahid + Wahid = 3

I am finally getting settled in Aqaba - I have an apartment, I've found a few good stores and markets, and I can figure out where I live and work without getting lost (sort of). Aqaba has been a little difficult for me to navigate (even more so that Amman) because the commercial district and the residential areas are completely separate. This means that on the way home, my landmarks are white three-story apartment buildings, beige three-story apartment buildings, and slightly-yellow three-story apartment buildings. Luckily, the mosque near my house has a blue top, so if I am stumped I can look for that.

This week will be my first full week of work, and things have been going well. I am working at a micro-business incubator that assists people both in starting new businesses and bettering existing businesses. A new business training workshop just started, with 26 participants. I was able to attend two nights of the training, and even though the instruction was entirely in Arabic, I understood a lot of what was happening. My organization seems to be well-received in Aqaba, and the staff does a lot of work to build awareness of our services. I am still working on figuring out my own role. Lately that has involved quite a bit of online Access training so I can design and build a fabulous (Arabic) database in the next few weeks.


Since moving in to our apartment a week ago, Frank and I have already had two visitors. I really enjoy the company, so I am looking forward to many more over the year. We also spent the a few nights with our friend Rami. We went to a restaurant called Jaffra for appetizers, and accidentally ordered an enormous amount of food. Lesson: when the waiter looks at you like he is confused, don't have two other people repeat what you just said. "Wahid hummus. Wahid hummus. Wahid hummus." = three hummus. The food below is only 2/3 of what we were served, and this is for three people.

Francisco and Rami

Sass.

I had a really great first weekend down here. Friday, F, J, and I went snorkeling in the Red Sea. At first I was wary of wearing a swimsuit, and next time I go to that particular beach I will probably wear a t-shirt and shorts. While there were a couple other women (tourists) wearing less than me, I still don't enjoy being stared at. I also don't want to make anyone else uncomfortable if I can avoid it so easily.

The Red Sea. Downtown Aqaba is to the right, the Saudi border about 10km to the left, Israel across the water to the right, and Egypt across the water to the left. What an amazing meeting of places!

On the way to the Saudi border. My sense of adventure failed me as I told J to turn around every 10 meters as we got closer to the checkpoint.

On Saturday, J and I went SCUBA diving with our new Australian dive instructor / friend. The day started with some paperwork and a description and demonstration of the equipment. Luckily, it was just the two of us and the instructor, so there was plenty of time to ask questions and no time waiting for other people to gear up. We walked from the dive center down to the water (me leaning forward 30 degrees to make up for the weight of the tank on my back), put on our masks, and under the water we went. My only problem with the dive was in the first five minutes (and the first two meters). I felt that my mask was too loose. I tried to use signals to tell the instructor that I was having a problem, but when I got the universal signal for "what" three times and he ignored my "I want to go up signal," I just went to the surface to take care of it. He told me that I am spastic.

After that, we went under and stayed under for about 45 minutes. We learned how to take the regulator out and clear it of water before we started using it again. We also learned how to clear a mask that is 1/4 full with water. And finally, we practiced adjusting our buoyancy by adding and removing air from our dive vest. (There is a word for that...B-something-D...) 12 meters (almost 40 feet) under the surface, the Red Sea is amazing. Tons of colorful corals and fish and enough light to see everything clearly - parrot fish, clown fish, little families of fish and big schools of fish. I hear there are also turtles, but we didn't see any this time. When I finally get Internet at my apartment, I am going to do the online portion of the PADI open water certification so I can do the rest of the dive training in the water. And then, to go on a dive will be inexpensive enough that I can go whenever I like. I am really looking forward to this part of living in Aqaba.

Other highlights from the past week: N stopped by for a quick visit when work brought her from Amman to Ma'an; F and I played ultimate frisbee with a group of locals and expats, finally getting some exercise; we stocked up on stuff for our apartment at the Chinese market; we started to navigate our 500+ television channels, finding at least four in English and one in Spanish; I am getting used to the 100 degree heat.

This weekend, we are heading to Amman to visit with our friends, have brunch with a kind host, and go on a hike. Looking forward to getting back to the big city for a bit...