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.

Tea Time

Over the past few days, as a result of how insanely cheap fresh mint is here and my extreme aversion to coffee, Gwen and I have designated a tea time at about 5 or 6 everyday. While I was in Morocco, I had mint tea at least once a day, in the morning and often my host family had tea with different deserts around 5 or 6. Drinking mint tea in Morocco is not a solitary activity, unlike grabbing a tea from starbucks there is a social aspect to pouring the tea, the number of rounds the tea is poured, and even its preparation. When I got back to the U.S. I had every intention to try and make the tea at home, however MINT IS EXPENSIVE. Which is ridiculous because it is easily grown, but as a result of laziness and know how, I didn't really feel like buying a mint plant. After a while I also decided in my mind that it would be a huge task to make, and so I only made it once. However, after arriving in Jordan and finding that a pretty large amount of mint is only 20 cents, I have revived mint tea in Jordan. Though it is not the customary Jordanian tea, I am taking advantage of this access to cheap mint and tea and bringing in a little bit of Moroccan culture to my experience here. 

I am sure there are a few variations in the actual process, but I have chosen the simplest way which takes only around 7 or 8 minutes and barely involves any real work. 

Step 1: Boil the Water

Step 2: In a teapot combine the sugar, green tea, mint leaves and water. (The real way to enjoy this tea is extremely sweet there are no exact measurements but be extremely liberal with the amount, as for the mount of green tea I use about four packets for two cups of water, and I also stuff the pot pretty full with mint)

Step 3: Let the tea, sugar, and mint sit for about 4-5 minutes

Step 4: Before serving the tea, pour the tea into a glass and then back into the teapot about 4-5 times, I have seen up to seven but I am pretty sure they were just showing off. Whether or not this has an actual function I am not sure but its purpose is to make sure the tea is properly mixed. In Morocco the person doing this would usually be the head of the household.

Step 5: Pour the tea into the glasses, it is important to pour very high above the glass, which should create bubbles in the tea while pouring. I am also not sure if this has a purpose, but it looks cool and supposedly makes the taste better. 

Step 6: Enjoy your mint tea!

Moroccan Tea Culture

IT IS HOT!

So while I was well aware I was going to a desert, I don’t think I was quite prepared for how hot it is. The temperature is in Celsius, which means I have no clue how hot it really is so I decided to check google for the actual temperature and it is supposed to be 102 degrees Fahrenheit  TONIGHT, during the night time you know when it is supposed to be cold outside. AND my general outfits must include at least capris, NO SHORTs, and NO Tank tops, though it seems that in most parts of the city I can get away with a short sleeve shirt. Needless to say at soon as I get home I throw on shorts and at the moment I am contemplating laying on the tile floor. I am actually getting a little worried about Gwen, who is starting to forget English due to the heat. Luckily it is a dry heat with no humidity, but until I get used to the heat I may be grumbling a little. The heat also puts a major damper on exploring the city, because there is only so long you can stand to be outside. Which may explain the liveliness of the city at night, when it finally cools down a little.

Despite the heat I have been able to see some parts of Amman, which is unexpectedly an expansive city. The city is made up of huge hills, one after another, so you can only see how big it is when you are at the top of one. Gwen’s friends have been awesome, at taking us around the city. Of course I can’t help but make comparisons to where I lived in Morocco. I try not to but it is the similarities that make the differences so apparent. The neighborhood I lived in Morocco was a middle class neighborhood but in comparison is significantly lower income than the middle class areas of Jordan. Whereas Rabat had two McDonalds, on my street alone there is a KFC, mcdonalds, burger king, pizza hut and there are many other western chains throughout the city such as Starbucks, Papa Johns, popeyes, as well as many others. Today we went grocery shopping at a really nice grocery that could have been in any city in the US. At first I was frustrated by this and wanted somehow to see the real Amman, as if these areas were lacking some sort of authenticity. After awhile of feeling that way I realized how stupid I had been, sure there are many places in Amman that I will feel out of my comfort zone and will see no reminders of western culture, but I also have to realize that is not how all of Amman lives. By diminishing the experience of the middle class who experience a world in which western culture is a part of their everyday lives I over look a very important part of the society as a whole. I have to remember I have only been here a few days and there is plenty of time to see all the aspects of Amman. And the parts I have seen thus far are great, it’s not too often that across from the gas station by a major university do you find a herd of sheep.  For the time being I am going to relax and let things unfold in their own time and enjoy the fact that at the café next door your menu is on an ipad.

Our goods from the grocery including dates for around 3 dollars, and a huge thing of Hummus for around 1 dollar

My lovely hightech cellphone, an obvious upgrade from my iPhone

Our lovely sink, which this morning had no water coming out of it, and as Gwen informed me that just  happens sometimes living life in a water poor country

My Super Cute Apartment

Leaving for Amman

When June 11^th finally arrived, I was anything but excited. For some reason anxiety took over and all I could do was stress. Granted, I did only have 24 hours to pack and get ready to leave the country due to being a bridesmaid in a Wedding on Saturday. On Sunday I woke up completely exhausted and maybe a little hung over at 7 am to drive to Columbus from Lexington. When I got to Ohio I went over to my Grandmas for some AMAZING food including her famous ribs, which were more than worth the 7am wake up time. The rest of the day was filled with stress, stress, and more stress of packing and getting everything ready. Finally I settled in to watch Teen Wolf (Don’t judge me its good), with my brother and bff Sarah. When I woke up Monday morning I was still stressed, and kept feeling like I was forgetting something. In order to deal with the stress, I ate a lot of food. For my least meal I ate a chipotle burrito bowl, potato salad, oh and another one of Granny’s ribs. After stuffing my face, it was time to go to the airport.

International travel is always and experience, it is inevitable that by the time you land you are disoriented, tired, and feeling anything but clean. To add to it I had told Gwen the wrong pick up time, my flight landed at 1:30 and I told her 6:30. Even after we both had looked at the itinerary somehow we both thought it was at 6:30. I only realized it was the wrong time when I was on the plane to Jordan. At this point I also realized I don’t have her phone number, my only hope is that the Amman airport had free wifi and that she was on facebook when I landed. Of course when I landed there was no wifi, so with no idea what to do I went to go get my bags. On the way there I had to go through customs, and of course the security asked for my Facebook address, so that we could hang out while I was in Amman, totally normal. Since he was holding my passport at the time I told him it was the same as the name. Then quickly moved to get my bags and attempted to exit the airport, which took a few tries because I did not understand the point that they have to screen your bags before you enter the country. Finally, I got it and was able to leave the airport. AND THANK GOD Gwen was standing outside with her friend Amir to pick me up. She had been smart enough to check the itinerary again and realize that I got in at 1:30. As soon as I stepped outside all my anxiety went away, I was in Amman, Jordan and couldn’t be more excited. 

My new adventure in Amman, Jordan

Right now, I am sitting in an apartment that I am renting across from the main gate of the University of Jordan in Amman. I am renting it with my good friend Gwen from the University of Kentucky. It is a surreal feeling because I have yet to venture out in the city and for all I know I could walk out and be in Lexington. The only thing telling me I’m not is the 24 + hours of travelling. I keep thinking, how did I get here? I am a 21 year old recent college grad and somehow I ended up spending two months in Amman, Jordan with no study abroad program or structure really. And I think it’s a great idea. Luckily, Gwenny spent 7 months in Amman last summer and fall. She is also how this whole idea came about.

So how did I land a research assistant position and am now living in an apartment in Amman?

This whole idea started at a trivia night at the Mellow Mushroom in Lexington, Ky. We were sitting there talking about our summer plans, I had none and she was planning on going to Jordan for a summer internship. I, obviously super jealous, made an offhand comment that I wish I could go. After a few minutes Gwen came up with an idea, What if I came to Jordan and worked with a professor she had worked for the previous semester while she was in Amman. I of course thought this was the best idea ever, and from there plans started getting put in place. First she emailed the professor to see if there was still a position available and luckily there was! After that came the hard part of convincing my parents it was a good idea…

To their credit, I haven’t chosen the most traditional places to travel abroad, so I knew they would be open to the idea. I also knew that safety is always their number one concern, and with the recent movements around the area I was hoping they would have an open mind. I tried my best to convince them that Jordan is a very safe country. It was hard at times because in my mind I am thinking of all the less safe places I could choose to go, and not completely understanding their concerns. But as my sister finally broke it to me, “Mackenzie, you keep acting like you’re going to Florida, YOU ARE NOT GOING TO FLORIDA, you are going to a whole other country in the Middle East.” So after that I took a different approach and in the end somehow my parents agreed to the idea. And within a week I had a ticket for June 11^th to Amman Jordan. 

Went to the Desert, Went Crazy, and Came Back.

I have not had that much free time to do absolutely nothing but think and focus on my surroundings in a very very long time. I did not go to the desert and have a religious experience but I did make a very good friend in a Berber who plays the blues, writes about the desert, has a 6^th grade education, speaks 6 different languages, and is a little hamq (crazy). For a brief time I felt I had always been in the desert, and would never leave. Most of the time though I was questioning whether my sunglasses were really a tv screen playing back the most amazing views of my life. This trip has really brought home the fact that I am experiencing thing that most people will never get to. I am glad to be out of the desert, glad to be ALMOST sand free, but I have only been gone for an hour and I miss it already.

Trip time line

Day 1

Leave Camp (OMG in the Desert, Amazing)

Run Around Desert Barefoot and Watch Sunset 

Got to Camp eat Tajiin 

Listen to Music/ Look

Day 2

WAKE UP

Camel Ride

All Day at Some Random Desert Location... Things got Crazy

Nomad Village (Play with Baby Goats, Sit in Tent, Eat Cous Cous, More Jokes)

Day 3

Amazing Breakfast

Hike to Herd Camels/ Climb Trees/ Look at Fossils in my Jellabah

Back to the Village for Berber Pizza

Nap Time in Tent in the Desert, next to the Algerian Border

Camel Ride into the Desert 

Barefoot Hike to Oasis

Tea at the Most out of Place Surf Shack Ever

Hike Back to Camp

Tea, Dinner and Relaxation/ More Jokes

Finally Mustafa Plays the Blues

Day 4

5:00 am Camel Ride back to town, immediately after I "tossed my cookies".

Most Amazing starry sky ever/ Afraid of falling of my camel or my camel falling of a dune/ possibly could have "tossed more cookies" at any second 

Back to Town for Breakfast, Shower, and Goodbyes

LINK TO THE AMAZING COMPANY WE USED

My trip to the Desert

Our Breakfast

Merzouga, The edge of the Desert

The road to Merzouga was full of comical cultural interactions. The first leg of the trio we travelled by train to Meknes. Before getting on the train, looking in at the cars it was hard to figure out where we were going to fit. It took trying 3 different cars before we were finally able to squeeze in one.  Our large back packs did not make us any friends, but everyone understood. We stood in a packed hall way for about an hour before one of us found an empty spot in a compartment. The compartment was full of friendly Moroccans whom spoke to us in French and Arabic. Soon we were all able to sit in the compartment; the Moroccans began to pass all their snacks around. They would offer away all of their food before taking one for themselves. This act is a reflection of the society as a whole, where hospitality is number one. The group soon was showing us pictures of family and inviting us to their homes to taste their mothers cooking. While we never took up on that offer, the gesture was enough. After exiting the train, we rushed to get on the bus which was a 9 hour ride to get to the desert. Currently I am sitting in a sunny courtyard, full, happy and ready to start our camel trek. 

My Feelings on Cultural Shock in Morocco

I have this general feeling here that culture shock is hitting me slowly. Except for a few instances, Morocco has been an easy fit. The time moves slower and nothing is exact. Everyone is living the “Inshallah” lifestyle. No plans are concrete, and things will come about if God wills it. 

Low points of Morocco

While this was an atypical experience it had a significant impact on my morale.

Main points: 

walking by myself, 3  creeping men, last of 3 pushed the limits, cab saved me from an uncomfortable/ dangerous situation

Moral: 

Don’t look like a tourists and Walk by yourself

Week 3 or Maybe 4 in Morocco:

I have not been keeping up with this at all but I finally got some time to write things down. My introduction to what is going on around me is just beginning. At this point the major cultural divide is still the language barrier. My host family is where I am supposed to be learning the most yet I often find myself being so exhausted by the end of the day, searching my brain for Arabic phrases to communicate is the last thing I want to do. However, the effort is there and especially in daily settings my Arabic is improving. I also feel that in a family where everyone works long days, their effort and enthusiasm to push us to use Arabic is missing. The dynamics with the family is interesting. Two of the daughters are out of the house so there is just my one host sister, Sarah, host brother, Ayman, parents, and maid. For most of the day no one is home and the house is quite. Around 7 the whole house wakes up. The tvs come on and everyone is interacting except for our host brother, who is usually in his room. Our host brother also has never eaten dinner with the family, and I have had little interaction with him besides him changing the tv station to MTV Arabia. The rest of the host family usually eats together, except for my host dad who sometimes doesn’t. Dinner time is an experience that’s for sure. It usually starts with a medley of fresh vegetables. Then some sort of tajiin which starts off as an enjoyable experience but ends with me hiding the hoobz, Moroccan Arabic for Bread, from my host mom so she can’t force me to eat more. The tajiin is eaten with bread and your hands. The contents of the tajiin are packed into the bread for each bite. Which is perfectly fine with me because it is a much more efficient way of eating. Dessert is either an orange or banana, and randomly we will have cake or cookies. Sometimes there will be tea after dinner. Conversation goes on for about 20 minutes and then everyone goes to bed on extremely full stomachs. AND that sums up my experiences with my host family day in and day out so far. 

My First Entry from Morocco

Day 1:

I am writing this a week after it actually happened, which is probably a good thing or it would seem I was an angry, uptight traveler. What seemed at the time like a terrible cab ride/ country/ decision to ever come here, was actually just one very long day of travelling. This was my first time travelling abroad and being in an international airport. It started off with a delayed flight in Columbus, then running through the New York air port to make it just as they were about to close the doors. Luckily I made it on the plane and had a good flight to Lisbon. Once in Lisbon however things slowly went downhill. With no euros and no wifi, I was unable to get a hold of my program. This was a problem because the lovely staff at the connection refused to give me my boarding pass because I did not have a visa. Even though I explained multiple times that Morocco does not require visas for US citizens one particularly salty man was not going to budge. After about three hours of arguing, waiting, and confusion one of the workers help me devise a plan which involved leaving the airport and coming back in to check in at the main desk for my airline, not the connection desk. To my surprise this worked out perfectly. With boarding pass in hand, I headed to my gate for a 5 hours wait until my flight. The flight was quite the experience and definitely not an American airline. For a 1 hour flight we received a full meal and complimentary wine. After having a few glasses I was feeling pretty good and the views flying in to Casablanca were amazing. However, once I landed I went through the overwhelming process of actually entering a foreign country, including customs, exchanging money, etc. My program had arranged transportation which coming from the US my cab driver seemed a little more than sketchy. The whole experience was very isolating, between the 24 hours of travel and not really speaking the language I felt alone. Upon arriving at the hotel the best part was the CNN english channel, and then later the arrival of my roommate Caity. Who talks a lot but that was the best thing that could have happened.  

P.S. Reading this now I seemed super down about my trip, but that was just the first night and the weeks to come after were an amazing experience.

Day 2: Orientation

            Main point> No Drinking and Take a Cab home at Night

I Finally Got My Sh*t Together and Started a Blog.

So after a while of saying, yes, I will do a blog while travelling, I am actually starting one. Thus far my list of places is short including Morocco, Spain, England, and now Jordan, but at 21 I feel like that is a pretty good start. One of my biggest regrets after my 5 months in Morocco is not keeping a blog or actually writing in my journal. The journal entries that I did write bring back the memories in vivid detail while many of the rest get lost. In order for that to NOT happen on my trip to Jordan I will try to keep up with this blog. I want to start by posting a few of the journal entries I did write in Morocco and then jump in to my current experiences in Jordan. I will say my grammar is terrible so don't judge me to harshly. I am not exactly sure how this will turn out but here it goes...