So we spent four fun filled, tiring, educating days in Jordan last week.
A few particulars about Jordan:
-It is about 95% Muslim
-It is ruled by King Abdullah, his picture is all over
Jordan
-Amman, the capital, is the cleanest capital in the world we were told, also
it is the center for trade and business in the Middle East since Jordan
A few particulars about Jordan:
-It is about 95% Muslim
-It is ruled by King Abdullah, his picture is all over
Jordan
-Amman, the capital, is the cleanest capital in the world we were told, also
it is the center for trade and business in the Middle East since Jordan
is pretty peaceful.
So our first stop in Jordan was Mt Nebo. On Mt Nebo there were
tons of school girls on a field trip!
They all crowded around us and loved us.
This one girl, Renat, especially became fond of me. She talked to me like crazy, her english was better than any Arab girl I have met here in Jerusalem. In fact, all
of the girls English were better than any teenager I have met here in Jerusalem.
I wonder why?
You could tell how happy these girls were, they were all smiling
and joking around with each other, so full
of life and love for one another.
I don't see as much zest for life in the children and teenagers here.
One reason could be because of the underlying tension due to the Israel/Palestine
conflict.
After Mt. Nebo we went to Madaba and then to lunch.
After this we went to Macherus which is where John the Baptist
was imprisoned by Herod Antipas and subsequently beheaded.
At Macherus we had an amazing view of the Dead Sea and the Judean wilderness. We drove on our bus that night to Petra where we were met with a slew of men dressed in armor and holding swords to greet us. They were all playing music and going crazy, it was
pretty special. When we went inside to eat dinner
the craziness didn't stop!
We had live music all of dinner; we all kept commenting on how
we felt like we needed to eat to a beat or something haha.
The next day we went to Petra!! Petra is a city built by the Nabateans before the time of Christ. Now all that is left is a series of tombs and the such. The two main attractions
in Petra are the treasury and the monastery, which are these huge ornate buildings serving as tombs carved into the sandstone. Have you seen Indiana Jones? The treasury is in it.
The thing that gets me the most about these
ancient buildings is how
people have always had amazing ingenuity. They built with no modern technology yet they still created something magnificant. Also, it has taught me how long rock lasts haha
We are not going to have any ruins from our day!
The next day we went to Jerash which may be Jershon from the scriptures.
Jerash was a really cool city with a great cardo (main street) and my favorite part
was the big Roman theater! At the theater there were tons of school girls again.
We all stood in the middle of the theater and danced and sang with them, it was soo fun!
They had these drums they were carrying around and
we all danced to the beat with them. It was such a good time.
I love that we have these awesome interactions with local people.
That night we went out in Amman for some free time.
I love Amman.
It is a really modern city with a really posh downtown and a posh suburbia with huge mansion houses. Our hotel was downtown, it was called Bella Vue and guess what?? We had the most amazing rooms. There are 3 royal apartments in the whole hotel, our group got them. So there were 4 people in this legitimate apartment with kitchen, washer machine,
dining table, 4 rooms, 2.5 bathrooms, jacuzzi tubs, entertainment center, etc. Haha so funny.
Me and my roommates didn't get the royal apartment but we did get the Prince Suite!
We had 2 bedrooms, living room, bathroom. It was pretty fun.
The next day we went to king Abdullah mosque which is absolutely beautiful. We then drove to the baptismal site of Jesus where Israel is on one side and Jordan is on the other side.
Guess what? I saw a dove while I was there which I
thought was neat.
We then ate KFC haha it was soo good. I love chicken tenders.
A lot of people were complaining and so I felt like
the kid in elementary school who was so excited for mashed potatoes and gravy day
while everyone else is like yuck gross!
I am not gonna lie though
those chicken tenders, and soggy fries hit the spot.
Mmmm.
Come backkkkk chicken tenders!!!
Only like 12 more days then I am going out to eat in America!!
I have no idea what I will eat first but I am excited none the less.
After this we had our 4 hour border crossing.
Ya NOT FUN!
I was in a delirium at one point and said
I am getting granky!!
(grumpy + cranky)
I said it on accident haha
So then we got home and ate and that was my trip.
I think we all decided that Jordan was to make us
excited to go home, we are done field tripping.
I feel emotionally, physically, spiritually exhausted.
It is a great feeling to know that I have exhausted myself while being here; I think
it means that I have gotten everything I could have out of this program and that
is a comforting thought.
Jerusalem is beautiful but I love my home and my family.
I cannot wait to get back to them and share with them
the things I have learned here.
I am excited to see what life holds for me next,
there are lots of unknowns in the future which is really
exciting.
I feel like Jerusalem has
given me a clean slate on which to build my life
and for that I will be forever grateful.
So our first stop in Jordan was Mt Nebo. On Mt Nebo there were
tons of school girls on a field trip!
They all crowded around us and loved us.
This one girl, Renat, especially became fond of me. She talked to me like crazy, her english was better than any Arab girl I have met here in Jerusalem. In fact, all
of the girls English were better than any teenager I have met here in Jerusalem.
I wonder why?
You could tell how happy these girls were, they were all smiling
and joking around with each other, so full
of life and love for one another.
I don't see as much zest for life in the children and teenagers here.
One reason could be because of the underlying tension due to the Israel/Palestine
conflict.
After Mt. Nebo we went to Madaba and then to lunch.
After this we went to Macherus which is where John the Baptist
was imprisoned by Herod Antipas and subsequently beheaded.
At Macherus we had an amazing view of the Dead Sea and the Judean wilderness. We drove on our bus that night to Petra where we were met with a slew of men dressed in armor and holding swords to greet us. They were all playing music and going crazy, it was
pretty special. When we went inside to eat dinner
the craziness didn't stop!
We had live music all of dinner; we all kept commenting on how
we felt like we needed to eat to a beat or something haha.
The next day we went to Petra!! Petra is a city built by the Nabateans before the time of Christ. Now all that is left is a series of tombs and the such. The two main attractions
in Petra are the treasury and the monastery, which are these huge ornate buildings serving as tombs carved into the sandstone. Have you seen Indiana Jones? The treasury is in it.
The thing that gets me the most about these
ancient buildings is how
people have always had amazing ingenuity. They built with no modern technology yet they still created something magnificant. Also, it has taught me how long rock lasts haha
We are not going to have any ruins from our day!
The next day we went to Jerash which may be Jershon from the scriptures.
Jerash was a really cool city with a great cardo (main street) and my favorite part
was the big Roman theater! At the theater there were tons of school girls again.
We all stood in the middle of the theater and danced and sang with them, it was soo fun!
They had these drums they were carrying around and
we all danced to the beat with them. It was such a good time.
I love that we have these awesome interactions with local people.
That night we went out in Amman for some free time.
I love Amman.
It is a really modern city with a really posh downtown and a posh suburbia with huge mansion houses. Our hotel was downtown, it was called Bella Vue and guess what?? We had the most amazing rooms. There are 3 royal apartments in the whole hotel, our group got them. So there were 4 people in this legitimate apartment with kitchen, washer machine,
dining table, 4 rooms, 2.5 bathrooms, jacuzzi tubs, entertainment center, etc. Haha so funny.
Me and my roommates didn't get the royal apartment but we did get the Prince Suite!
We had 2 bedrooms, living room, bathroom. It was pretty fun.
The next day we went to king Abdullah mosque which is absolutely beautiful. We then drove to the baptismal site of Jesus where Israel is on one side and Jordan is on the other side.
Guess what? I saw a dove while I was there which I
thought was neat.
We then ate KFC haha it was soo good. I love chicken tenders.
A lot of people were complaining and so I felt like
the kid in elementary school who was so excited for mashed potatoes and gravy day
while everyone else is like yuck gross!
I am not gonna lie though
those chicken tenders, and soggy fries hit the spot.
Mmmm.
Come backkkkk chicken tenders!!!
Only like 12 more days then I am going out to eat in America!!
I have no idea what I will eat first but I am excited none the less.
After this we had our 4 hour border crossing.
Ya NOT FUN!
I was in a delirium at one point and said
I am getting granky!!
(grumpy + cranky)
I said it on accident haha
So then we got home and ate and that was my trip.
I think we all decided that Jordan was to make us
excited to go home, we are done field tripping.
I feel emotionally, physically, spiritually exhausted.
It is a great feeling to know that I have exhausted myself while being here; I think
it means that I have gotten everything I could have out of this program and that
is a comforting thought.
Jerusalem is beautiful but I love my home and my family.
I cannot wait to get back to them and share with them
the things I have learned here.
I am excited to see what life holds for me next,
there are lots of unknowns in the future which is really
exciting.
I feel like Jerusalem has
given me a clean slate on which to build my life
and for that I will be forever grateful.
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