My week in Food

Sangria, on a roof top terrace, perfect.

Green Tea with Lemon and Jasmine, at an Amazing Tea House

Mixed Grill, Tomato and Beef, Hummos, and of to the left not in the picture Areis at Jafra in Balad, Amman

Fatoosh, Mandee Chicken and Rice at a Yemeni food place by our apartment 

The Best Falafel Sandwich ever consisting of Falafel, hummus, yogurt sauce, pickles, peppers, and probably some unknown stuff too

My Everyday Life in Jordan

In my last post I alluded to the fact that my life has been consumed by research, which unfortunately it has. So instead of overwhelming cultural immersion everyday, I get small bits because I most am doing a lot of work. However, I have not been completely oblivious to whats going on around me and I have to get out some point. These past few weeks I have gotten a feel for our neighborhood, ventured out a few times, and had some great food. 

Starting with my neighborhood, its right by the University of Jordan, so their are tons of students as some decent cafes to do work in. Gwen and I having been going to a place called October Blue that has great wifi for downloading true blood episodes/ doing real work, and the food is a strange fusion of sandwiches and Jordanian flavors. October Blue is an interesting place, as it is usually playing Dubstep at 11 am, which isn't the best for getting work done but it is so close to our apartment, has tons of space comfortable couches and tons of other students meeting in groups to get work done. The waiters are great but as most restaurants in Jordan take their time with most things. Unlike the U.S. experience of getting their ordering, eating, and leaving immediately after, in Jordan people like to take their time. At most place it takes quite awhile to get your menu, then you probably wont see your waiter again until you ask for the check which then also takes at least 20 minutes. Sometimes when they are pushing on 30 minutes, I am like really? But honestly I prefer it ten times better than the rushed attitude many restaurants  have in the U.S.

Besides October Blue we also frequent the electronic store to get minutes for our phones and internet, where  the workers vary between a middle aged guy, and a kid that seems to be around 13. He is always getting pissy with me when I give him large bills, meaning 5 JD for something that costs 1. Last time I went in the store I think he purposely gave me back all my change in coins, but I think he still like me. 

Our most visited spot is a corner store that has the basics but considering that really all I eat at home, is pretty good. The two workers whom I am assuming are father and son are great, and pretty much treat us like idiots which most of the time I am sure me wandering around a store that literally has one 10 foot aisle gives that impression. The son is possibly 16 tops, and usually says the numbers in English which helps kinda of but I still have to fumble around for change while Jordanians magically have the right amount immediately all the time. It confuses me. 

A few shops down from the corner store is a magical/evil place that sells the best/worst sandwich ever called the zinger. I am questioning whether I should describe it because I know there will be judgement, but its so good. Okay so a zinger is basically a sandwich that has a spicy fried chicken tender wrapped in turkey with melty cheese on top, with more spicy sauce and usually peppers and pickles. EEK it is scary, but I love it and its so close to my house, the man working there might also know us. BUT I do not get fries with it so thats a plus right. Anyways its pretty delicious. 

In all those are the important spots in the neighborhood, I need to take pictures but its hard to remember when you pass by these places everyday. 

Why is travel so important?

So I originally wrote this post about a week ago, and  lost it after the internet went out. In frustration I just did feel like finishing it at the time but I guess... I am over it so I will try again.
It has been quite a while since publishing a post, and I will admit that is largely due to the fact my life hasn't gotten pretty boring on the adventure front. Currently my life revolves around articles, articles and more articles on the research I am doing in Jordan. While I am learning TONS and gaining invaluable experience in producing papers of size in a time efficient way, it hasn't left a lot of time to gallivant around the country. So I could be write posts, but most of my day is spent writing or reading so by the time I get done with my real work the blog just hasn't been fitting in. However, I have been inspired enough to write one post that doesn't directly have to do with Jordan, but does tie into my experience here.

As mentioned in previous posts I have not always chosen the most traditional locations to travel as a 21 year old. While I know I am not unique because I have met many others my own age doing the same, and many going farther then I, it isn't exactly the norm in the Mid-West or South to venture to the Middle East. With two countries under my belt in the region I am feeling fairly comfortable. The transition to Jordan has been surprisingly easy. Though I admit I have had my moments of culture shock that have lead to a few temper tantrums (If you know me, you know I am mean temper tantrums in a literal way). Most of this has centered around the lack of individual mobility. Simple things like not having any bottled water in the house at night, after it is a "safe" time to go out, and dying of thirst until the next morning, etc. Most of these are faults of my own that I soon realize and now I always remember to get water during the day. However, the larger stuff has come much easier after living for 5 months in Morocco.

Now, transitioning from the U.S. to Morocco the first time around was no easy task, and it tool awhile for me to feel completely comfortable with in the society. The changes in my own attitude came slowly and I don't think I really noticed until coming to Jordan, and transitioning at a rapid speed. I really love the country already, I accept the things I can't change and incorporate a relativist view to about everything. I feel more confident, and definitely think I can make fun of all the American students just here for the summer even though I am in the same boat. Though I realize I am far from an accomplished traveler, I do think that I have gained invaluable skills from my time abroad enriching both myself and those around me.

I will be honest and say when I was first travelling abroad, I was terrified. Despite my background in anthropology and an extremely open family. I was scared to live in another country with pretty big cultural differences. I am sure I put on a pretty good front, that I was totally ready but I wasn't. And I don't really think you can be, and that's fine. The important thing is taking the challenges in stride. This not only goes for the traveler, but parents and friends. Living abroad is not only tough on the person living in a new culture but the people at home who, like my parents are probably just worried a lot. Besides the stress and worry though they also gain too. In a conversation with my dad the other day, we were talking about the possibility of me staying in Jordan, past the time when my roommate leaves, something he definitely was not open to before I left. But as a result of the things I have shared with them, they have also become more open to a new culture without living in it. My dad is always telling me random news about the region, something he may not have paid close attention to without me travelling here. Again I can't stress enough the benefits of going outside of your comfort zone, and introducing yourself to a new culture. It doesn't have to be a "non-traditional" location either, and for the U.S. residents it doesn't have to be an expensive trip across the Atlantic. There are countries to the south and north which are way more affordable.

Overall I get it, new things are scary, hell I am a college graduate and I have to somehow figure out how to live life after 16 years of being a student, and I am freaking out but I will figure it out. And I really mean this when I say that travelling abroad 100% helped me in dealing with that fear. Hopefully it will also help me find a job but that is a whole other issue.

Anyways to end on the words of a much better writer:
“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime.” ― Mark Twain, The Innocents Abroad/Roughing It

Kanafeh

I have good and bad news. The good news is I had the best dessert ever last night, the bad news is I didn't have my camera with me...But I will still try to put into words the deliciousness of this food and recreate the scene as best as possible

So it was about 10:30 in the evening when Gwen and I are picked up by her friend Amir to go get some coffee or tea to get out of the apartment for a bit. For the past couple of days we had been passing sweet shops, and as a glorified sugar addict I was dying to try some of the local desserts. The most well known sweet shop is called Habiba, and it didn't take long to convince them that we needed to go there. There are a few Habiba's in Amman but the original is in the section called Balad which is the downtown area, and a little sketchy at night. Luckily we had guy with us so it was fine. Anyways, we drive into Balad find somewhere to park which is almost anywhere, because I have yet to observe any sort of parking laws

Then in lit up alleyway with tons of people standing around with the rest of the streets being almost empty, we find Habiba and the line is out the door and filled with Shabab (Young Men who are most likely to yell things at you). Seeing this line Amir directs us to "stand somewhere safe" while he gets in line for the kanafeh. As Gwen and I post up against a well lit wall, next to a family (always the safest place to be) we watch plate after plate, of what I think to be a strange desert which I am not sure if I actually want to try.

Finally after a fairly long wait he comes back with three plates of the stuff, I still have no idea what it is but I take a bite anyways...... AND OH MY GOSH, it was good, like really really good. Basically what it is, is a layer of cheese covered in sugar that is baked so the cheese is melty and the sugar caramelized, topped with pistachios and a sugary syrup. Its way to much, but awesome at the same time, way to many calories to eat often but I have to go back at least once right? to get pictures.....

Even if the dessert hadn't been great, which it was, the atmosphere of the whole experience was well worth it. Here are some pictures I could on google images, the one with the large pan was actually taken at the Habiba shop.

What is an American

An interesting question, and I am not thinking of how it takes to get citizenship but what traits are representative of the title American. I ask this because multiple times I have been questioned on my American citizenship. The first time this happened was in Morocco, I was laying on the beach in Agadir which is largely frequented by Europeans and the Moroccan man, running the place we rented our lounge chairs from came up to talk to us, or really flirt with my friend Amelia. As the conversation started he asked what nationality we were and we all said American. At some point after we said that he turns to me and says, you are not American. At first I thought he was joking and just laughed it off. However, after he kept insisting I was not American, I got a little irritated and started to give him a list of reasons why I was American. I did just about everything short of showing him my passport. Why I am not sure, it’s not as if he was border patrol but I was a little annoyed that he kept insisting there was no way I was American. At one point he even made the point that he knows Moroccan’s who had been in the United States who could speak better English than me. The conversation got more comical from there when he accused our friend Robin of also not being American, saying she was a sweet polish girl, and that only our blond friend Amelia was a “real” American.
I am aware that even in the U.S. I have been asked multiple time, “What am I?” or someone will just throw out their best guess out there, which is always pretty random. Though I am pretty sure French or Italian are a stretch. I have gotten those, along with just about every other mildly tan people. For the record I am African American and Irish.

So Mysterious.

 By no means am I complaining about this confusion because in fact I blend in pretty well in the Middle East and North Africa. In both Morocco and Jordan when I am by myself, most people usually speak to me in Arabic first. After about a few minutes of my confused face staring back, I attempt to use some of the Arabic I know. Unfortunately Moroccan Arabic and Jordanian Arabic are basically two separate languages so I usually end up just trying English (typical American behavior coming from obviously not an American).  I have also gotten observations from friends here that, I just don’t look American.
So this brings me back to my original point of what is an American not as we see ourselves but as the world sees us, and unfortunately it seems it is through a very narrow frame. In most countries ethnic traits can still be associated with citizenship and national identity. The American melting pot just doesn’t fit in. Hopefully, as American society changes so does the international perception of the typical American. Until then I will enjoy not having to be accused of being an American tourist. 

Three Borders in One

So after a long day of running around Crusader castles and Roman ruins, we decided to make a trip out to the border of Jordan. I was skeptical and was thinking, I am about to go to a border, to see land that looks exactly the same as the land next to it but there is a "border" there so it is important... HOWEVER, that was not the effect at all. At area we went to, you are able to to see the border between Israel, Jordan, Israeli occupied Golan Heights and Syria. Oh and that huge lake over there named Lake Tiberias aka The Sea of Galilee.

 In order to get to this point, that is in a closed of military area you have to go through like 10  check points. The check points are slightly intimidating but the Jordanian military were extremely helpful in pointing us in the right direction. Ah, anyways we took a clip, in the video it had been a long day and we were pretty excited and nervous after going through all the check points so excuse the language, but if you can't hear the sound to the left is Israel, directly in front the rolling hills next to the lake are a part of Golan Heights and out to the far right is Syria! Over all it was a pretty cool check off the bucket list.

This Week in Jordan.

I have been a little slow at getting a new blog post. Mostly because I met with the professor I will be doing research with this summer and have tons of research to do already. I am currently taking  a much needed mental break. This past week in Jordan has been great; the temperature dropped into the 90s, finally got to go to the Irish pub (Murphy’s), ate more shawarma, hummus, falafel, and planned out our trips for the rest of summer. Today has been particularly nice, Friday being the equivalent of our Saturday there is no construction outside my window, the streets aren’t crowded, and overall it’s ten times more peaceful than most days. Gwen and I took advantage of this by picking up some goods at the small food shops near our house; we scored more hummus, some awesome pita, and almonds to go along with my dates.

If you haven't ever tried dates and almonds together before, DO IT!
The best way to eat them is by stuff the almonds in the dates after removing the pit.

The best pita I have ever eaten, bar none.

Our super awesome manual washer and dryer that
you have to fill up with water.

That is the extent of my week, most of it has been spent doing research but tomorrow I will be heading to Petra which is very exciting. Also, Gwen and I have been working on a post about what to wear in the MENA region for girls, because NO ONE TELLS YOU and as seasoned vets we want to share our insights.