four days to go? it’s hard to believe that this semester is so quickly coming to a close. though i’m looking forward to traveling home, there are going to be some serious post-big-event blues to contend with.
junior girl at georgetown university, from providence, rhode island, off to study abroad in amman, jordan for the fall semester.
photos, videos, and stories from an adventure in the middle east!
photos, videos, and stories from an adventure in the middle east!
December 16, 2011
four days
December 10, 2011
November 26, 2011
birthday
luckily at least one of us five girls had a birthday during this semester. last night, we celebrated the birthday of julia, one of my housemates, as well as the seventy-fifth of our host-grandpa/landlord, imaad.
esmahan encouraged us each to invite a friend for the party, meaning that there would be at least twelve of us at the dinner… so enough food for twenty. little did we know, esmahan and imaad had also invited a bunch of their nieces, our program director, her husband and their two sons, as well as the resident director. very much a real dinner party.
it was amazing. and it cured my sadness at missing a real-thanksgiving feast (the one in the UJ cafeteria didn’t exactly feel like home, though i must admit, those mashed potatoes were pretty good). after some arabizi (a weird back and forth mix of arabic and english) and a not-declinable offer of arak, we headed into the salon to fill up our plates with esmahan’s spectacular cooking. the usual suspects were there - cardomom-pea-rice, baked chicken, tabbouleh - with some new ones, including spleen. though i can’t say i was brave enough to try it, i heard it was… chewy.
after all heading back for seconds, were were joined at our “kids’ table” by our program director’s son - a completely-wired six year old named sammy. after punching and jumping on our guy friends’ for a good fifteen minutes, in between howls of laughter and laps through the entire apartment, the boys fired back, with all of the tricks we used to have played on us. remember when your dad used to pretend to pull his thumb apart?
after trying to re-order to living room post-hurricane-sammy - a few lamps were knocked over, and all of the dozens of pillows were scattered across the floor - we were called back into the main salon, where the adults were enjoying their grown-up meal. we sang happy birthday to both julia and imaad, first in english and then in arabic, and then enjoyed our choice of homemade cinnamon-cake, a chocolate mousse cake, and a cherry cheesecake. the end to a fantastic meal that really felt like home.
November 26, 2011
November 20, 2011
a few more of kat’s photos from istanbul. these are from the grand bazaar - a bazaar in istanbul’s old city district. there are over five thousand shops in the winding alleys. spectacular.
(Source: gataluz, via emilywritingbackwards)
November 20, 2011
restlessness
four weeks to go, and as much as i am trying to focus on being here and taking in my surroundings, i’m having the most impossible time trying to concentrate. with america around the corner, i’m slipping back into my old mindset.
to illustrate: today, i’m standing in line at our usual falafel place to ask for our usual order of hummus, pita and falafel in a bowl. i’m waiting patiently behind a group of americans in our same program. finally, after they order and receive their (incredible) falafel sandwiches, i reach the front of the line. ready to step up to the counter, i inch forward, only to have two jordanian men beeline from outside, to right in front of me, demanding service. why do they do this? first, i am a girl. second, i’m a foreigner.
while a few weeks ago i would have smiled to myself and thought “ridiculous!” now my american i-stood-in-line-and-there-should-be-a-system-for-this frustration is surfacing. and the fact that i am completely helpless to demand an answer for why they cut the line, or why they hiss at me or stare shamelessly, bothers me again. the numbness that i had worked so hard to attain is faltering, and the frustration that i felt so acutely in september are coming back. not sure if i’m simply running out of patience? or starting to refocus on things back in america (internships… registering for classes… parts of my life in georgetown are starting to come back slowly but surely) and the norms in america?
today we took a survey for a UJ student about our experience studying abroad. the questions focused on the effectiveness of study abroad in creating cross-cultural understanding and promoting exchange of ideas and customs. while answering the questions, i wonder how exactly this experience, especially when i look back on it in january, or next july, or in ten years, will affect me: my goals, my career aspirations, my desire to return to this part of the world. only time will tell.
for now, we’re planning a few more trips to break up the last few weeks and keep our heads in jordan, or atleast in the middle east. tel aviv or cairo?
November 17, 2011
November 17, 2011
November 17, 2011
emily, julia and me post-fish sandwich, one of istanbul’s most famous traditions.
November 13, 2011
turkish delight
last night we returned from our nine day trip to istanbul. by leaps and bounds, this was the most spectacular trip i have taken. ever.
the two hour flight home was rough. after what was such a fantastic week, i had the sinking feeling that coming back to amman was going to be tough. though our break came at just the right time, right before total burn-out, it also set me back in keeping up a this-is-my-real-life routine here in jordan. the week is istanbul, though school- and work-free, seemed closer to reality that how it sometimes feels in amman. if that makes sense?
we did everything. each day we got up early for breakfast at the hotel (which was situated right at the end of the hippodrome, a park in the city with monuments, that sits next to the aya sofya and the blue mosque, two of istanbul’s most famous sights), went off for the day to see the city, returned to meet up for dinner, and headed out for the night.
the highlights:
- topkapi palace. we visited a real harem - the place where all of the concubines were kept for the ottoman sultans. i have never seen such beautiful tiling. deep blue and turquoise elaborately painted tiles lined all of the walls. it was absolutely stunning… i considered attempting to steal a tile from the sultan’s bedroom. may not have gone over well with the turkish police, but probably would have been worth it.
- a ferry cruise up the bosphorous. istanbul sits between europe and asia. between the european sides is the golden horn, and separating the european and asian sides is the bosphorous, which connects the sea of marmara with the black sea. sitting outside in the biting cold on the top of this ferry was perfect. bundled up, we took turns heading inside to warm up with turkish apple tea. stopping at several docks along the way, we finally made it up to the last town on our cruise. a fishing town, this area was chock-full of little cafes with fresh fish. bosphorous fish. caught that morning. ahhh! being in amman makes me miss the ocean. after our turkish lunch, we trekked up to the castle beyond the town, where we snapped photos in front of the black sea. i repeat: the black sea. the view was unlike anything i have ever seen. sitting on ancient ruins, looking out over istanbul in the distance, and to the other side, the expanse of the black sea.
- the asian side. we made our way to the asian side by ferry across the bosphorous. after disembarking, we walked to the bar/restaurant area of the city - the asian side is much more commercial looking than the area where we stayed. we stopped in a traditional pub - giant efes pilsen mugs and darts were involved in our afternoon. post-pub, we wandered around to find a restaurant for dinner, stumbling on the best dinner of our trip. fresh fish, delicious mezze and turkish wine. what more could we ask for?
i could write about our turkish adventure for days - more to follow…
RSS feed: http://pvdtoamm.tumblr.com/rss
1 of 6
Next page
