**note: I started writing this post a while ago and finished it on May 22.**
I first went to Wadi Rum at the end of September, about a month into this study abroad. I said then that it is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. I went to Wadi Rum again in April, spending the morning on a camel trek (my camel and I were the last ones in a caravan of about sixty- it was leisurely and idyllic), spending the night walking and stargazing, the stars especially brilliant due to a new moon. Sitting on top of an auburn dune, watching the sun set behind rose-red mountains, my original sentiment regarding Wadi Rum was confirmed.
The third trip to Wadi Rum occurred just a couple of weeks ago. For our last long weekend, four friends and I spent Wednesday evening and Thursday morning in Petra, and then headed out to Rum for two nights of desert camping. In Petra, we followed a second, smaller Siiq that brought us out near the Byzantine church (i.e. past all of the oldest Nabataean stuff), and then walked out the main Siiq, pausing only briefly to look at and say goodbye to the famous Treasury. Camping in Rum was fantastic, made infinitely better by the fact that two of our group members actually knew something about camping (for example: how to build a fire and then protect it from desert winds). Other fun parts of the experience:
- the food. Left on my own, I would have just brought a lot of bread, a jar of Nutella, a jar of peanut butter, and maybe a few apples. I'd be really sick of all of those things by the end, but it's sustenance and very easy to carry and prepare. However, 'D' had other plans for our cuisine, the most impressive of which had us roasting vegetables and chunks of fresh lamb (we found a butcher near Petra) over the open flames. Due to our lack of utensils or plates (we had a few spoons and a big communal bowl), we just took the chunks in our fingers and gnawed at them- a very fulfilling experience, actually, and promptly followed up with making smores.
- the Bedouins. To get to our campsite, we hired a driver from the Wadi Rum Visitor Center to take us out in his pick-up truck. My group consisted of two guys and three girls; one of the guys sat in the front and chatted with the driver. The first evening, we had three sets of visitors- the guy from the visitor's center (who had a campsite just around the mountain), the driver, and the brother & two friends of the driver. I am sure that our group was quite the novelty: college-age Americans who spoke Arabic. The third group drove up in the dark and asked if they might play their oud for us. As a note, the oud is a Middle Eastern instrument that belongs to the lute family. Anyway, being good pseudo-Arabs, we obviously couldn't say no, and so they sat around the fire with us and played and sang into the dark, starry night. We felt genuinely bad that we couldn't offer them tea (we had the pot, tea, and sugar but no cups), but alas. However, we made up for it. The next evening, in preparation for visitors, we cut off the bottoms of all of our empty big water bottles (to use as cups) and put a pot of water on the fire to heat for tea. Sure enough, the guy from the visitor center came over from his campsite to check on us and suggest that we move our tents into a slightly more sheltered area on account of the desert wind. While he walked off with the guys to discuss tent moving, the other three of us prepared tea, which we then drank while sitting around the fire as night fell. When he saw what we were using as cups, he laughed and remarked that it really was "Bedouin tea," although he did suggest that next time we boil the water with the sugar in it instead of adding sugar afterwards. Still, we were quite proud of ourselves, and must have been quite the novelty. Did you hear about those American kids? They speak Arabic and served a guest the obligatory tea!
- Sand dunes. D found a particularly large one free of vegetation while out walking, so we trooped over on Friday afternoon and climbed to the top. We spent the next hour or so rolling down it, dragging each other down it, and just lying in the soft sand playing the "what movie character would so-and-so be" game. Climbing up sand dunes is something of a work out, though, and we were tired by the end.
Wadi Rum, in a way, has formed the bookends of my time in Jordan. A month from the beginning, a month from the end. In the words of a friend, "coming to Wadi Rum always makes me think, 'this is why I love this country.'" How very true.
Monday, May 12, 2008
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Easter
This year, I celebrated two Easters. Easter #1, the Western Easter, occured while in Cyprus. Easter #2, the Orthodox Easter occured a couple of weeks ago. I have heard (although I haven't confirmed it) that Jordan's Christian population shows solidarity by officially celebrating Christmas on the Western calendar and Easter on the Orthodox one.
On Sunday morning, 'M' and I went together to a nearby Catholic mass in English. We were both hoping for something significantly more traditional and ritualized than the international evangelical church in Cyprus, and the service fulfilled that (despite, as M noticed, a lack of chanting and incense). It's worth noting that many of the churchgoers for the English service were South Asian (Sri Lanka, Philippines, etc); a lot of South Asian women come to Jordan to work in salons, spas, and as house keepers (i.e. more menial service jobs). If they speak a second language, it is usually English (not Arabic), hence coming to the English mass. Accordingly, in lieu of an organ or even a piano, the hymns were supported by guitar and tambourine. M, who has been to several English-language Catholic churches in Amman, said that it's the same at all of them- a large South Asian contingent and guitar/tambourine musical accompaniment. Still, the service was traditional enough and included fundamental aspects of an Easter service, so M and I left feeling fulfilled.
Back at home, my host family had spent the morning dusting and washing every nook and cranny to make the house even more spotless than usual, since Easter in Jordan means spent visiting or being visited. Earlier that week, three evenings had been devoted to making the special Easter cookies (ma'amul) to be served to every guest who came to my house, my aunt's house, or my other aunt's house (it was a joint project- many hands make light work). Alhamdulillah we had enough! (Actually, many had to be frozen and we're still eating them). When I got home on Sunday at about 2:30pm, my host father's brother, his wife, and their children were all there. Over the course of the day, there would be five groups of guests, until the rest of my family went over to my aunt's house to host more guests there (I took the opportunity to go to sleep).
A typical visit goes like this: guests sit down, receive napkins, get offered ma'amul and tiny cups of Arabic coffee. talk, talk, talk. guests then get offered several types of chocolate candy; they seemed obliged to take at least one of everything. talk, talk, talk. if the guests are still there, they are then offered tea as well. talk, talk. finally guests leave.
And then more come.
Mid-afternoon, my family and the current set of guests went over to my aunt's house for the big lunch. That morning, since I hadn't seen anyone cooking anything, I thought that perhaps people skipped a formal lunch on Easter in lieu to entertaining guests and eating cookies. As a result, I got lunch with M after the service instead of just getting coffee. Silly, silly me- what Jordanian family gathering would ever be complete without a huge meal? I had been right about nothing being cooked....but only because the families had decided to get take-out Popeyes (i.e. fried chicken, biscuits, mashed potatoes, and french fries), which is considered less of a cheap fast food here than it is in the States (in part because it's not that cheap). I survived the meal by taking the requisite small piece of chicken, couple french fries, and half a biscuit, and then keeping my plate filled with salad so as not to raise anyone's suspicion/concern.
Over the course of the day, I saw various aunts, uncles, and cousins. I recognized only some of them and knew the names of even fewer, but it was pleasant enough. By the end of it, my host sisters (who were doing all of the serving) didn't even bother offering my host parents or me the candy or coffee, since we'd had more than enough. This Easter was a far cry from my American family's "normal" celebration: Easter baskets, church, nap, afternoon dinner (normally with a ham as the center piece). Still, a good experience and one that I am very, very glad to have had.
Off to find food, more later. Yalla bye.
On Sunday morning, 'M' and I went together to a nearby Catholic mass in English. We were both hoping for something significantly more traditional and ritualized than the international evangelical church in Cyprus, and the service fulfilled that (despite, as M noticed, a lack of chanting and incense). It's worth noting that many of the churchgoers for the English service were South Asian (Sri Lanka, Philippines, etc); a lot of South Asian women come to Jordan to work in salons, spas, and as house keepers (i.e. more menial service jobs). If they speak a second language, it is usually English (not Arabic), hence coming to the English mass. Accordingly, in lieu of an organ or even a piano, the hymns were supported by guitar and tambourine. M, who has been to several English-language Catholic churches in Amman, said that it's the same at all of them- a large South Asian contingent and guitar/tambourine musical accompaniment. Still, the service was traditional enough and included fundamental aspects of an Easter service, so M and I left feeling fulfilled.
Back at home, my host family had spent the morning dusting and washing every nook and cranny to make the house even more spotless than usual, since Easter in Jordan means spent visiting or being visited. Earlier that week, three evenings had been devoted to making the special Easter cookies (ma'amul) to be served to every guest who came to my house, my aunt's house, or my other aunt's house (it was a joint project- many hands make light work). Alhamdulillah we had enough! (Actually, many had to be frozen and we're still eating them). When I got home on Sunday at about 2:30pm, my host father's brother, his wife, and their children were all there. Over the course of the day, there would be five groups of guests, until the rest of my family went over to my aunt's house to host more guests there (I took the opportunity to go to sleep).
A typical visit goes like this: guests sit down, receive napkins, get offered ma'amul and tiny cups of Arabic coffee. talk, talk, talk. guests then get offered several types of chocolate candy; they seemed obliged to take at least one of everything. talk, talk, talk. if the guests are still there, they are then offered tea as well. talk, talk. finally guests leave.
And then more come.
Mid-afternoon, my family and the current set of guests went over to my aunt's house for the big lunch. That morning, since I hadn't seen anyone cooking anything, I thought that perhaps people skipped a formal lunch on Easter in lieu to entertaining guests and eating cookies. As a result, I got lunch with M after the service instead of just getting coffee. Silly, silly me- what Jordanian family gathering would ever be complete without a huge meal? I had been right about nothing being cooked....but only because the families had decided to get take-out Popeyes (i.e. fried chicken, biscuits, mashed potatoes, and french fries), which is considered less of a cheap fast food here than it is in the States (in part because it's not that cheap). I survived the meal by taking the requisite small piece of chicken, couple french fries, and half a biscuit, and then keeping my plate filled with salad so as not to raise anyone's suspicion/concern.
Over the course of the day, I saw various aunts, uncles, and cousins. I recognized only some of them and knew the names of even fewer, but it was pleasant enough. By the end of it, my host sisters (who were doing all of the serving) didn't even bother offering my host parents or me the candy or coffee, since we'd had more than enough. This Easter was a far cry from my American family's "normal" celebration: Easter baskets, church, nap, afternoon dinner (normally with a ham as the center piece). Still, a good experience and one that I am very, very glad to have had.
Off to find food, more later. Yalla bye.
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