Post-Iftar evening prayers
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
More Random Pics
Taken from around Amman...
I think I'll pass on the 4th item on the argileh menu...
So they didn't like it here, either...
Beekeeper's stand, Souk Jaara
15-year old painter, Souk Jaara
Rap throwdown I witnessed on Rainbow Street.
The big guy in the middle was taking on challengers who wanted to step up, both in Arabic and English.
Wait...they have this here?!
I guess this confirms my suspicion that there's no pork in SPAM.
What a whirling dervish looks like from above.
Wadi Hassa
Last Saturday, a group of us Amideast students took one final trip outside of town, to Wadi Hassa, a river (well, stream) valley located in the dry southern part of Jordan, 2.5 hours south of Amman and just south of Karak.
The trip was a water hike through a part of the upper canyon. After our bus ride down together with the rest of the tour group (a few other students and a group of locals), we began by hiking down to the valley then riding a small natural waterslide into a pool, and continued from there. A good 60-70% of the hike was spent swimming, wading, and fording the river, with the rest hiking through bamboo jungle and rockscapes surrounding the river. There were several places where we could stop and swim, a few waterfalls to go under, a couple of caves, a bamboo jungle in which we slithered through the shallow water like Rambo, and some ledges that we had to jump off of, including one that was around 10-12 feet high. With all of the water, we never got too hot.
Much to my surprise, there was not a lot of wildlife there. We saw some river/cave crabs (about the size of a small a'ama crab) and one small salamander or lungfish that was clinging to a rock near a waterfall. There were also many red dragonflies, a few hornets, and a Biblical swarm of flies.
Also ants, as I found out when I put my bag on top of their nest during our lunch break.
Unfortunately, none of us had a working waterproof camera, so the only pics I have are of the area around the bus that I took post-hike with my phone. Aaasif.
On the way back, we did the party bus routine again. Dumb Americans we.
Good times.
Da bus
The valley in the photo is Wadi Hassa
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Ramadan Stuff
So Ramadan has arrived.
Living with a Christian (مسيحي) (mesiiHii) family, not too much has changed at home.
However, some things are different around the city.
- First of all, it is illegal to be seen eating or drinking in public during the hours when the Muslim population is fasting (i.e., between sunrise and sunset), and it is also illegal, or at least deeply disrespectful, to be openly carrying food around during those hours. Generally, no booze, either (you should have seen the long lines at the duty-free shop on the last day before Ramadan when everyone tried to stock up), but there are limited exceptions.
- Tied into the above, most restaurants and bakeries, and many grocery stores, are closed during the day. Those that are open may only carry a reduced inventory of items. For example, only stocking tamar Hindi (tamarind drink) or qamar al-diin (apricot drink) and qataayef (Ramadan pancakes), rather than a full selection. Some fast-food places allow carry-out or delivery after 2 pm (for example, we ordered Ramadonald's last week).
- The above has probably resulted in the biggest impact on Amideast students, in that going out for lunch or a post-class fruit cocktail is now out of the question, and that our intraday eating and water-drinking are now confined to the student lounge and home.
- Shops generally are open only for reduced hours (generally 10-3 or 10-4 during the workweek, and 2:30-4:30 and after 9:30 pm on Fridays). My roommate Matt and I made the mistake of trying to go to Mecca Mall at noon on Saturday, only to find that the stores didn't open until 2:30, which led to us sleeping on the couches at the Starbucks (which remained closed even after 2:30).
- There is a little less traffic on the streets during the day (the morning commute to Amideast takes around five minutes less during Ramadan than before). From 7 pm to 9 pm or so, there is almost no traffic, including taxis, on the streets because most people are at home preparing for and celebrating al-ifTar, the breaking of the Ramadan fast.
- In some neighborhoods, you can hear someone drumming and yelling/singing to wake people up for al-suHoor, the morning pre-dawn meal. I could have sworn that I heard someone last Friday morning, but it could have been REM (the dream, not the band). If I can catch someone doing it, I'll try to record and post it.
- There is supposedly special programming on TV, but I haven't seen much of it yet.
- Kids play fireworks at night. From the sounds of things and my attempts to buy some off the streets, it seems that the main fireworks are small spark fountains and firecrackers, with some louder cherry-bomb-eqsue stuff mixed in.
- Some stores and homes are decorated with lanterns, and/or crescent and accompanying star combinations, which are often lit up at night. It seems that Ramadan decorations are increasing in popularity, although they are not nearly as ubiquitous as Christmas decorations in the US.
Some Ramadan decorations on the outside of a small restaurant in the neighborhood
قطايف (qaTaayif)
Qatayef, or "Ramadan Pancakes" -
these are small pancakes that are filled with either a sweet white cheese and cinnamon,
or with a mix of walnuts and other sweet things,
and then fried or baked,
and served with a sugar syrup that is used as a drip or drizzle
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