8 Weeks.

Work went as usual this week. I had a large project in which I had to gather, research, confirm, and organize a list of summer programs for sophomores and juniors. This list took quite a while to make, because I had to go through countless brochures and flyers from years past, and research the programs to make sure that they were still valid. The other reason that the project took a while was because I had to do it in addition to all of the other work that I usually do around the office.

I’m not sure if I have mentioned this in any of my previous posts, but one of the women that I work with in my office, Ala, is getting married in April, and this week she invited me to her wedding. I am extremely excited to go to a Middle Eastern wedding, I think it will be very interesting, and I’ve heard that they are very fun. 

I have been trying to keep up with the news as much as I can lately because of all that is going on in the Middle East. The situation in many countries is getting increasingly worse, and there are many articles from news sources in the states that have come up with countries that they feel are the next to fall to protests. In those articles Jordan has been listed. However, from talking with locals, and living here, I really do not see that happening anytime soon. Yes there have been protests in Amman recently, but they are all for the King but wanting the government reformed. In some of the articles they quoted people against the government, however in any country in the world, there will be someone who is unhappy with the government, so I don’t think it’s fair to pick one unhappy person, and quote them as if they represent the general feeling of all Jordanians. The other reason people are protesting is because of the increase in prices for food and water, which has been happening world wide. The protests have been very peaceful, the police pass out water and juice to the people so that they stay hydrated, and day usually ends in celebration. In the end, yes there have been protests, yes some people don’t like the government, and yes most Jordanians want to reform the government to give them more say, but I haven’t met any Jordanians calling for revolution similar to those in Egypt, Bahrain, and else where, because they love the King, they simply want their voices heard. 

My weekend wasn't very exciting, I didn't leave campus much because I was out of money. The highlight was on Thursday night, when one of the teachers had a birthday party at their house on campus and invited the Junior Fellows as well. The party was lovely, and I really enjoyed talking to the teachers (many of them are fresh out of college) as well socializing with other faculty that I had not previously talked to. 

In other news, this week I also agreed to run in the Dead 2 Red, a team race from the Dead Sea to the Red Sea. It’s on March 3rd, which gives me very little time to prepare. 

This should be...fun.