July - Ramadan, Wadis, and Desert Castles

So sorry for the massive delay in my posting - life has been stuck on fastforward and I'm just now making the time to sit down and think about everything I've seen in the last couple weeks! I'm going to do my best to write about it all but I'll use pictures to guide my memory. 

Wadi Dana

Last weekend Savannah and I traveled down to Wadi Dana with Wild Jordan - an offshoot of the Royal Society for Nature Conservancy (RSCN). They host all-inclusive trips to their various nature reserves around the country - places like Wadi Mujib, Ajloun Forest, and Wadi Dana. The campsite was incredible - located on a cliff overlooking the entire reserve. We arrived just as the sun was setting and got into the back of an open air jeep/van that drove us down to the campsite. We settled into our tents and sat down for a huge dinner of Jordanian mezze dishes (the equivalent of Spanish tapas) and rice with chicken. I spent the evening staring up at the stars...truly spectacular out there. The next morning we set out for a hike. Me being me, I assumed that the advertised four hour hike would be challenging, something that would really stretch my legs. I was so wrong. Jordanian hiking  and camping seem to be lacking in the strenuous, nature-y, and adventurous categories. It was more like a nature stroll with a little rock climbing at the end. Sure, it took four hours...but only because we had several young children with us and a couple who had to stop for cigarette breaks along the way. I'm going to need some good long hikes up Cold Spring Trail when I get home...I can't really complain about the slow pace because it afforded me a lot of time to take in the soaring views down through the canyons. 

View from the highway

View down to the campsite

Campsite

Family!

Mom and Garrett are here! I took a taxi out at midnight to pick them up from the airport and had a hilarious English/Arabic lesson with my taxi driver. We spent the 45-minute ride pointing to things and saying the words in our respective languages, and repeating for pronunciation. There really isn't an Arabic equivalent to the English "p" sound, so any word with a "p" just turns to a "b" - case in point: bibsee = pepsi. Teaching Mohammed how to say airport and airplane was quite a challenge...the closest he got was saying something that sounded like "arbor." Oh well.  So, after hugs we hopped in a taxi and were back in Amman by 3am. The last week has been a beautiful experience of reliving my initial excitement and awe of this city. Sitting at Old View Cafe and looking over the city lights, winding through the crowds in the balad, flying through the streets with a crazy cab driver. Am I already feeling nostalgic about this place? 

Ramadan!

In other news...Ramadan Kareem! Ramadan began Thursday, July 19th and the difference in daily life is incredible. Walking down Rainbow street at 9:00am is like walking through a ghost town. Here's a link to one ex-pats take on the whole thing...a bit cynical, a lot funny: http://davidmarshallfox.wordpress.com/2012/07/20/calling-a-spade-a-spade-ramadan-is-the-worst-month-in-jordan/ I'm actually really enjoying the peaceful and quiet days and find that I can notice a lot more of my surroundings when there isn't quite so much noise. But...we're only a week in :)

Desert Castles!

Saturday morning we rented a car and I SUCCESSFULLY drove us through Amman and on to the Desert Castles. This is no small feat and I am extremely proud of myself -- don't worry, we signed up for insurance just in case. The castles were incredible, all very different and unique from one another. 

Qasr Mushatta

Dust Devil!!

Mom playing chess with a Bedouin man. Incredible. 

Qasr Harraneh

Ancient Arabic graffiti 

Qasr Amra

Qasr Amra

Right turn: Iraq, Left turn: Saudi

Qasr Azraq - famous post of Lawrence of Arabia

Rocks on rocks - no cement here!

Still have more to catch up on - another trip to Jerusalem with an incredible tour of Hebron, an insane 6-hour border crossing complete with individual questioning, the Amman Citadel, and now on to Petra and Wadi Rum. For now, I'll leave you with a saliva-inducing photo of my favorite dish at the  Yemeni restaurant near the University. I'm craving it more than ever now because I can't eat there for my lunch break anymore...oh Ramadan! 

This morning Savannah and I went to the weekly flee-ish market in Abdali. We bought pants. Colorful, printed pants. We went a little crazy - but for 1JD each who can resist?

Unknown. Unknowable.

Stares. I could physically feel them on me as I walked by. It’s never been this bad. Skirt down to the floor, scarf strategically draped just so as to cover everything but my forearms, dark sunglasses covering nearly half of my face. Have you no shame? What the hell are you looking at? I will certainly attempt to maintain my sensitivity to cultural relativism and do justice to my anthropological background, but excuse me if I slip for just a moment – I’m feeling frustrated. Sitting at the calmest café I have found yet, Caffe Strada just off Rainbow, I have time to reflect on the world around me while Radiohead and Bon Iver attempt to soothe me. I sit at a corner table next to a wall of windows watching men, cars, men in cars, and the occasional woman pass by. Sipping on an iced latte and waiting for my salad to arrive, I begin to ruminate on what exactly happened on the walk from my apartment to the café. I can’t help reflecting on an article I read in an old issue of JO magazine. The article initially caught my attention for its feature photo: a Barbie-esque doll stands in a cage, being poked and prodded by sticks held by male hands. As a foreign woman in Amman I can relate. Walking down the street I draw attention. My blonde hair alone is probably enough to turn heads – but there seems to be something else in those unrelenting stares. I feel like a strange bird behind a chain-link fence at a zoo, on display yet untouchable, unknowable. Men are also aware of my inherent unknowable-ness. In general, women are unknowable to men post-puberty and pre-marriage. This is the period of time when segregation of the sexes is heightened, and is not resolved until marriage. There is no flirting in public and dates are creatively disguised as group gatherings of friends. There is really no forum for men to learn about women from women. So they stare at us, perhaps attempting to extract knowledge about these mysterious creatures with their eyes. In my case, as a foreign woman, however, the potential for a Jordanian man to ever know me does not ever really exist. Here’s how it generally goes: He will stare. I will keep my head down to avoid eye contact. He will say something to his brood of friends, or leer out the window of his car, maybe even grab a photo with his cell phone camera. He might say something dirty, might call me something dirty, but I can’t understand and will continue walking, only to return home and gripe about it to my roommate. I am unknowable to this man. We will not speak. We will not get to know each other. We will not sleep together. We will not even know each other’s names. I am unknown. I am unknowable. Since arriving I’ve had many thoughts about appropriate behavior and gendered expectations. I've noted that in public women are held accountable for their physical appearance but men don’t seem to be held accountable for much of anything. As a non-Muslim foreigner I certainly do my best to dress modestly in public but there is absolutely no reason for me to cover. I can't help thinking that it could make walking down the street a bit more bearable some days.