Hey folks,
Life in Amman continues to go on. I have been able to meet a number of people in the last couple weeks, most of them Jordanian students. I am still generally surprised how nice the people here are. Almost of them think that it is very neat that somebody is trying to learn their language. Then when you tell them that you would like to live here because you love the culture and the people, they think that it is incredible. One of the most common questions that come up when you first meet someone is inevitably “why are you learning Arabic?”. It is not really an interrogative question, as much as it is one asked purely out of curiosity. The only downfall is that I have answered that question so many times it starts to become boring (on my part), so one time I just told them I was working for the CIA…my roommate was laughing pretty hard, but the other guy didn’t think I was joking. We thought it was funny anyway. The other questions that almost always come up when you first meet a person are: how long have you been in Jordan, are you married, and are you muslim (which I think is emphasized during Ramadan).
Speaking of Ramadan, it has been a pretty neat experience actually (besides not eating and drinking during the day, and actually the not eating is pretty easy, but not drinking water seems incredibly counter-intuitive). Usually I am able to go with my roommate to one of his friends house for dinner (called iftaar). I have never seen so much food on a single plate before. One instance there must have been at least 20 pounds of rice and probably 5 whole chickens on a huge platter, plus salad, sauce, yogurt, and other stuff I am forgetting…which may be reasonable for a large group, however, there was only four of us. The host kept telling me to “eat, eat!”. I tried to say no, but I learned no doesn’t mean anything. By the end I was the only still eating (slowly and painfully) and he told me that I was a good guest. I earned it. Ramadan is over in 5 days I think. It ends with a big holiday (of course). We’ll see how that goes.
Well, that is about all. I’ve gotta get back to work.
Take care everyone
This is a picture of Amman from Google Earth.
I know you can't see alot, but maybe someone thinks its interesting
5 comments:
Noah, it is good to hear from you. Praying for you here. Winter is setting in, and snow is on the ground. Hope you are well, and abiding in the Lord.
Hey Noah,
It's really good to hear from you. We are praying for you. Hope you are enjoying your time there and that you are learning the language better now that you are using it all the time.Jenn
Hey Noah. :o) The picture is kinda cool. It's neat to be able to see a little of where you are. :o) Hope you're doing good. Praying for you, Kassandra.
Thanks everyone for the posts...even small things mean alot
Hey, since you want us all to see the city, if you get the time and the inclination together at the same time, will you take a picture of the Safeway in/at/around/by Seventh Circle? Please!
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