Abdali and the Fleas

This morning we made the epic journey to Abdali, an area of Amman that houses a weekly Friday morning flea market. And this thing is the biggest thing you have ever not seen. It's like Goodwill on steroids, except outdoors and cheaper. We were in thrift shop heaven...as Nina said, all the hipsters at her school would have orgasmed on the spot. (Sorry for the vulgarity, but it's pretty accurate.) I came away with quite the haul - we're talking 5 dishdashes (traditional garb), 4 sweatshirts, a t-shirt, a scarf, and a winter coat all for less than 40 JD. And I only made it halfway through the place. Just wait till next Friday, when Operation Sweater commences.

Dear Prince Hassan Bin Talal,

It was very nice to meet you today, I am honored and amused that you remembered my blog post and requested to meet me. Hopefully this one will be less troublesome for your secretarial staff. If you do read this, kindly respond (or have someone do it for you, as I'm sure being a Prince is quite time-consuming - I wouldn't know), so I know the Jordanian government is doing it's job running internet searches with your name in them. I hope your meeting today was productive, and we were disappointed you could not join us for the policy forum yesterday.

Sincerely,

Audrey.

I met the Prince.

Continuation of the story:

Remember last time when I was sitting on my beanbag chair at work and didn't get to meet the Prince? Well apparently, since this is Jordan, they have people that run internet searches on the royalty to make sure there are no security threats or whatever, and they came across my blog post. Concerned that there had been some sort of problem, they contacted RHSC, and we all had a nice little chuckle over inter-cultural misunderstanding and misinterpretation.

So today after class Liz got a call from Enass, all of a sudden got really excited, grabbed my arm, and I knew. We ran to get a cab, and in our excellent Arabic told him to go b'sur'a (quickly!) and we ran into the building. Apparently the Prince was there for a meeting and when he arrived at the Center he asked if the girl who wrote the blog was there. So when I got there, he requested my presence (personally!) in the meeting and I went into the room with a government rep, UNHCR, CARE, and RHSC people. And the Prince. And he stood up, kissed me on both cheeks, he met Liz and Gena, and then we stood for a picture with him. All in all it was rather awkward but quite funny, the picture is not very good...we all look absurd and overly diplomatic but hey, what can you do.

So that was definitely the highlight of the day, and when we went back to school it was to watch our soccer team get whooped by the Palestinians. Yeah, shit happens.

irony. they have it here, too.

I was lucky enough to get a native's tour of East Amman (read: Palestinian camps) tonight. It was like a whole other city. It's full of neighborhoods with character and community and real life, and, surprise, poverty. The thing that got me, though, was the fact that from just about everywhere in this part of the city - 100% Palestinian - you can see the huge Jordanian flag. And from West Amman you can't see it at all. In any case, I am so glad I got to see that part of the city finally and insha'allah I will get to go back, maybe in daylight and maybe for a longer amount of time. It really was amazing - you could just feel the sense of community from the people on the street. As nice as people might be here in the West, over there in the East they are ten times nicer and it just seems more like a place to call home, despite all the hardships they face.

And the Weeks Just Keep On Coming

So needless to say the tattoo plans fell through primarily due to lack of designs and a paternal kibosh. Ah well, maybe in the future. The middle of the semester is coming and going in a whirlwind of personal disasters and midterms, but what else is to be expected, and my IR class is canceled for the next three weeks so I am wallowing in excess and unexpected free time. Tomorrow is the RHSC "Iraqis in Jordan" policy forum which HRHPHBT (I have to use code because the secretaries found my last post...funny story for a later date) may or may not be attending. I had to buy shoes for it so mom, if you're reading this, would you be interesting in reimbursing me the 69 JD / $ 100 I had to pay? It was for work so it was a necessary purchase. If not, really no big deal. Anyway as usual that is about the most exciting thing going on in my life, that and the new spandex capris I bought at the Adidas store in Mecca Mall! I'm very excited to break them in, and one can never have too much spandex.

Midterms, or imtihaanaat al-nisf al-fusul

Finally midterm week is over, we've had four Arabic tests this week: fosHa, listening, speaking, and 'amiyya. They all went pretty well which is nice, but I now just want to crash. The fact of not having slept well lately is really wearing and it makes me just not want to do anything except lie in bed. I've also watched all the movies I have so I probably need to go get some new ones.

The plan is to get tattoos tomorrow, but since my excellent idea was kiboshed (sp?) I now don't know what I want. I might do the chamsa/hand of fatima though, but I'm thinking really small and right on the wrist. The other thoughts were verses from a poem or from Alf Laila wa Laila (A Thousand and One Nights) ... there's a poetry verse in the first story that's kind of cool. It's hard to find something on command, and I haven't found anything that really resonates so I don't think I'll get a tattoo of any of those. In any case, we'll see if it actually happens or not, we tend to be quite disorganized vis. planning, etc.

This post is a bit of a ramble and a bit depressing, but I figured it had been awhile so it's about time. Insha'allah I'll get some sleep and maybe be able to post about happier subjects in the near future, ya'anee mustaqbal.

Friday Breakfast!

Now that Books@Cafe has reopened we can finally get the Friday Breakfast we've been craving these long weeks. 7.5 JD gets you more than one, even two people, can reasonably eat, and it's all absolutely delicious. An omelette, manakeesh, pancakes or french toast, fruit salad, toast, juice, and tea or coffee are all included and everything in generous portions. They skimp on nothing and thank God because we are some hungry girls...

Books!

Books@Cafe is open again and Jenna, Nina and I have taken full advantage of Friday Breakfast. We're outside on the terrace eating, relaxing, and pretending to try to start studying for midterms next week. The atmosphere here is so carefree and no pressure it's hard to be motivated. Reliable internet and good food are totally worth it though. The chaos that plagues the waitstaff creates a slow paced meal as long as you're willing to go with it. Definitely not the place for hungry eaters in a rush...

But we're all reveling in the glory that is Books after its brief Ramadan/post-Ramadan hiatus. Hamdul'allah, the oasis on Rainbow Street is back - maybe not better than ever, though, as the previously fully stocked outdoor bar now boasts ten soda cans and a couple bags of coffee.

Only in Jordan..

Liz and I were walking to work and when we got to the building, lo and behold, an armed guard, a silver BMW, and nondescript sedan with two blue police lights on top. Wouldn't it be funny, we thought, if the Prince (Hassan bin Talal) was here? He is, after all, the Chair of the Centre. Nah...not a chance. We go inside, go up the elevator, get out, and right in front of us are two more armed guards outside one of the conference rooms. Hmm...maybe... when we get to the office we ask Jenna who informs us that the Prince is indeed in a meeting with the entirety of the Higher Council (the umbrella organization through which RHSC operates). There's Hashemite Royalty less than a football field from where I'm sitting on this beanbag. No, it's not weird that I work on a beanbag. I want to catch a glimpse before he leaves, insha'allah.

Tashlich, a Little Late

From stuck in the middle (east)

I finally did my tashlich yesterday, in the Jordan River. Insha'allah God will forgive me the delay because I did it basically in the PL. Not every day you get to throw your sins away in the Jordan.
Back to real life again for another week. I'm starting to get sick which is utterly unfun, I can't sleep (ever) - quelle desastre - and so am constantly exhausted, and I realized I should probably start doing SOME homework so I don't fail completely. Ahh, the daily bore that is real life. I guess the good news is that the worst thing going on in my life is the lack of sleep. Everything else is going along quite swimmingly, the Arabic is finally coming out and the comfort level with all that is increasing. Hamdl'allah.

شوارع عمّان

יום כיפור

An easy fast to all...
These last ten days are supposed to be the Days of Awe, the days when we ask forgiveness for all our sins against others of the past year, and tomorrow the day when we ask our forgiveness from God. It is coming at an interesting time, just after the end of Ramadan (Rosh Hashanah fell on the first day of Eid - good timing!). In one sense, I guess it's a good thing. My stomach is prepared and I'm in full fasting mode, although I did eat the requisite large pre-fast dinner, even if it was a bit later than sundown. Ramadan, too, is the beginning of the Islamic calendar year, and as such also a time for reflection, resolution, and repentance. So I feel more like I've had 40, not 10, Days of Awe and more than enough time to reflect on my life.I haven't done any Tashlich, although I suppose I still could, although I can't find any running water, this being the desert and all. As always I haven't actually asked anyone's forgiveness directly, but hopefully through actions and words I will grow to be a better person this year. That is, of course, always the goal, isn't it? And I hereby ask forgiveness of anyone I may have intentionally or unintentionally harmed in the past year.

I'm certainly feeling the lack of community here, as much as Yom Kippur is generally a miserable day, I would much rather be sitting in synagogue that in class/work tomorrow. If only I had a siddur with me... or can you imagine, Jerusalem on Yom Kippur? And only 50 km away...

Yom Kippur

Tonight began Yom Kippur, holiest day of the year, and infamous day of fasting. As usual, got started late - finished dinner around 7:30, a solid hour after sundown. Whoops! Tomorrow will also be the first day in my life I've ever gone to school on Yom Kippur. That should be interesting or, more likely, really not fun at all. All's fair in love and the Middle East, though.

What Happens When 5 Year Olds Take Your Computer

intahat al-eid

Eid is over now, school begins tomorrow with regular full-length schedules (i.e. three hours of Arabic a day). Things will be open so we can eat during the day, the RHSC office will be open until 5, and dinner will not exist in my homestay. This should be fun - a whole new version of culture shock. Who's ready?

Eid Sayeed!

Ramadan is finally over, and I have certainly been eating like it. Mish mushkilah.

Am currently contemplating trying out the (only professional certified) tattoo artist/place in Jordan. It's pretty close to my house, and I think it'll probably be cheaper than the states. Maybe they'll do piercings, too.