Al-Balad

         The work week here can get very boring. I work 8:00–4:00, I have lunch duty 3 times a week at 12:00, then from 4:30–6:00 I  supervise a co-curricular art activity for students, and then have dinner at 6:00. After dinner we usually hang out in the common area, and then study Arabic. To keep things from getting too monotonous, sometimes through out the week we go grocery shopping, or meet up with other staff members to hang out on campus after dinner. 

the market

The weeks are a bit frustrating because I don’t have any chances to leave the campus to experience Jordan, however, every once in a while I experience what a true Middle Eastern moment, even in the midst of so many Americans. I cannot even begin to fully describe what a magical, almost surreal moment it is when I am walking on the campus on a dark, cold, windy night during the night prayer. The prayer is broadcasted from the religious center on the edge of campus, but not very loudly, only loud enough so that when the wind carries it to my ears it becomes a faint melodic whisper. Walking alone in the dark and trying to focus on the prayer through the cool wind is truly beautiful.

The weekend did not come soon enough, however finally on Thursday night I left the campus along with the other Junior Fellows. Together we all went to the small town outside of campus, Madaba. We went to the same place that I went the last time I was there, a small restaurant. We spent our night eating, talking, people watching, and getting watched (foreigners really stick out in a town that small). Friday was not particularly exciting, I ate breakfast with friends and teachers, finally finished my book, and relaxed.

Saturday was the best day of the week. That morning I took a school shuttle to al-Balad, which is the local name for the old, commercial district of Amman. It is the original, oldest part of the city. It’s very raw, but beautiful at the same time unfinished sidewalks, grand mosques, dusty streets, tiny shops set up in dim alleyways, crowds of pedestrians, and lines of speeding traffic, with few, if any stop lights. Our first stop was one that I had been hearing about for sometime on campus now, a small store where they sold thousands of bootleg movies, this was a very fun experience. I then walked through the small streets, and into an outdoor market tightly squeezed between two buildings covered with drapes and tarps to keep the sun out, it was just the place that you would hope to find in Jordan. After working through a maze of people, and vendors yelling what goods they are selling, the road led us to one of the main mosques. It fairly simple and broad, with towering, intricate minarets on either side. 

the mosque

a street in the old city

Our last stop for the day was for food. We went to this small outdoor restaurant that is a very popular spot for people at the school. For about 6 JD, we got a plate of hummus, falafel, this bean and olive oil dip, tomatoes, pita bread, the sweetest tea I’ve ever had, and a coke, it was all so delicious, and perfect. 

We headed back to the school after a few hours, just enough time to grab a new book from the library, and rest up before the week ahead.