Back to School

The new quarter started on Tuesday, and today is the beginning of the first weekend. Unlike last quarter, every weekend is a two-day weekend, which is good and bad. Good, because I can spend more time revising and consolidating work rather than just finishing of homework that addresses new concepts. Bad because I am away from speaking Arabic for 2 days – you would not believe how bad that is for your spoken skills, trust me I didn’t either.

So my first class, skills, is at 8am. My teacher masha’allah is great. He’s funny, patient and easy going enough for you to feel able to be yourself in class. I really like the way he is conducting the class to, I’m finding it quite beneficial and we’ve only had two days.

My second class, sciences/grammar, is not until 1pm. Quite a gap! At least it enables me to get my skills homework done in the break between them. While we haven’t actually started any new material yet in this class, I know that the teacher and his methods are great, because my flatmate had him last term and learned so much masha’allah. Really learned it, not superficially. Al-hamdoulillah.

So those are my classes. Most of my day is now spent at school which is good when things get done, not so good when all the sisters are around to socialize with!

I’ll post my holiday stuff soon insha’allah – photos aren’t uploaded yet.

Ma’a salama

FYI: Incase you don’t notice, my entry on the trip to Aqaba is below.

Aqaba...

As promised, my account of Aqaba and my little adventure – all organised with the aid of the Lonely Planet Guide J

***

We left on Wednesday, early. Al-hamdoulillah we left early because we practically had to walk to the next suburb in order to find a taxi. That done we (one flatmate and another sister from the Hay who decided to join us at the last minute) had a 30min wait at the bus station. Unfortunately the bus was fully booked so they couldn’t change our seats so that we were together, so preggie (that’s what we call the sister who came with us, primarily because she is seven months pregnant) was sitting alone on the top level of the bus, while my flatmate and I were on the bottom. Lucky for preggie the person who booked the seat next to her didn’t turn up so she had two. The bus ride was pretty disgusting. None of the windows opened and all the men insisted on smoking pretty much constantly so most of the trip was spent trying not to be physically sick. There was a family of six sitting on the opposite side of the bus to us, and the older girl stared at me through most of the trip. About an hour before Aqaba, I happen to be looking out her window and he says “What’s your name?” So we had a nice little conversation. For a twelve year old who’s ESL she spoke very good English – she didn’t want me to speak Arabic to her so she could practice.

So we arrived in Aqaba and got off the bus only to be greeted by 34⁰ heat! Bah! It was so humid. Unlike Aussie men, Jordanian men find it amusing to watch women struggle with large suitcases which are obviously to heavy for them to lift from a bus holding area that is above their heads – have I mentioned at I can’t wait to come home (and yes Fint it’s the Arabs, they’re getting to me).

So we arrived at the hotel, lobby was nice, elevators were working, employee carried our bags – beautiful. Entered the room, not to bad – the colour scheme looked like it was something out of a Dr Seuss book – the bathroom was so tiny that if I stood against one wall and reached out my arm I could touch the other side lol. But, it was the only hotel that offered a triple, and it had air conditioning – perfect!

We lazed around for a bit, the bus ride was incredibly tiring. Then wandered off to see the water/beach, ate lunch, went shopping at Dream Mall, discovered Gloria Jean's (which had e all excited... the coffee on the shelf had a little sticker: "Made in Australia". I woul have taken a photo but the employees already though I was odd enough after I stole the chocolate sauce squirter and used 3/4 of it on my drink) and went home for a nap before dinner. We ate dinner at the Syrian Palace and it was fantastic. The seafood was delicious and the waiters were so friendly. To top it all, it was reasonably priced (for Aqaba). We staggered home ridiculously full, stopped by the souk for a peek, but resolved it was time to sleep.

GLORIA'S!

We had planned on the first day in Aqaba to go snorkeling, unfortunately that didn’t happen because all the cruises were cancelled, so we decided that we’d go to Wadi Rum. We asked at the hotel in the morning and they offered to organise something for us for 150JD (that’s A$300)! Politely we declined and decided to get the bus. So we arrived at the bus station at 8.30am and found the bus and asked the driver what time he’d be leaving. He said one hour. So we decided to get lunch to take with us and return. So we returned and sat and waited…and waited…and waited… 1 ½ hours had passed and the driver looked in no mood to move, so we asked him again. This time he said, 12:30 (it was 10am)! So we wandered to the shade and sat down to discuss what we wanted to do (a taxi to Rum costs 25JD one way – for tourists anyway). SO we were sitting and debating when the driver comes over, deciding that the wants conversation. He asks us what we want to see, and then tells us what we should see (he apparently grew up in Wadi Rum). After about 30mins he decides that he could put something together for us for about 40JD each… We bargain him down to 30JD and decide that we’ll go. The deal was this: he would transport us to Wadi Rum and back to Aqaba, we would get a guide for 4 hours and we could see whatever we wanted in that time. So he goes about organising. He tells us that we were to get on a different bus (since he still wasn’t going to leave until 12.30). We were to get off at the Rum highway junction where the guide would meet us. My companions were doubtful, so in true Aussie style I cajoled them into adventure! We got on the bus and off we went. After a solid 45mins bumping along the highway (desert all around), one check point and a hell of a lot of second-hand smoke, we tumbled off the bus at the highway junction and into the care of Abdullah the Bedu. Abdullah called the original bus driver who organised things so he could reassure us we were with the right Bedu, since about 6 others got off at the junction too, then led us to his ute. The three of us clambered into the tray and off we went through the desert on our way to Rum. About 25mins into the drive he pulls over and (pointing at Preggie) says we should get in the front because it was going to get really bumpy. I told the others to get in the front and I’d stay in the tray because otherwise one of us would have been in Abdullah’s lap – he wasn’t kidding, it was terribly bumpy! So we continued along the road for about two minutes, passed a check point with incredibly bored looking officers who didn’t even lift their heads as we passed, then he swerved into the sand – the purpose of this cross-country drive into the Rum protected area, we found out later, was to avoid the entrance fees charged to tourists.

The Bus

In Abdullah's Ute...Leaving the Highway Behind...

Lone Tree

Camel

Our fist stop was the Nabatean inscriptions.

Second stop was the sand dunes. Abdullah decided to point us in the general direction and then promptly sat down under a rock and slept. So we went down to the dunes. Took some pictures, climbed a little way, took more pictures. My flatmate and I decided that we would try and run to the top – I go ¾ of the way up and decided I’d sit instead (my flatmate stopped just behind me). We made Preggie take a pic from the bottom, and then we decided that we would move on. I decided to roll down the sand dune (since Abdullah couldn’t see us), which while fun resulted in my eating a lot of sand and collecting even more under my hijab and in my trousers. Abdullah woke as we returned, looked strangely at my sand encrusted hijab, said nothing, and we moved on.

Sand Dunes

General Rum Photos

Third stop was the canyon, which was absolutely amazing. Once again Abdullah pointed us in the general direction and then went to have tea in the tent with his Bedu friends which was nearby. We ambled over to the canyon, where it was about 10 degrees cooler in the shade, climbed as far through it as we could go with Preggie, took some snaps and returned to the Bedu tent where we drank tea and were slyly photographed by European tourists who obviously thought that we were from Rum – personally I would have thought that the speaking of English, western clothing and Nike trainers would have given it away… Apparently not. (Waiting on Photos from Preggie, I'd already filled the memory card by this point)

From there we were off to the small rock bridge – not enough time to get to the big one (I was a little sad at that). We had to climb awfully high which was a little hard for Preggie, but Abdullah was like a little mountain goat, he kept having to stop and wait for us which he found amusing. So we walked across the bridge, took many photos and then clambered back down. It was rather cute, insead of springing off quickly, Abdullah went about two metres then would turn around and watch with concern as we assisted Preggie to the bottom. After that we bumped back through the desert and were sneakily taken into the Beduin village in Rum (apparently foreigners were not supposed to be there) where the driver from Aqaba (the one who organised everything, his name is Zaid) reappeared. We desperately needed to pray because there was only 45mins left till Asr (not so problematic for Preggie and I as we were combining since we were travelers, but my flatmate happens to be hanifi and they are unable to combine), only to be told that the mosque in Rum does not cater for women. So Zaid said he’d take us back to the highway to get us on a bus back to Aqaba. So we are driving along and we turn into this little village and stop outside a little house. There is a beautiful little boy at the gate looking slightly bewildered at our arrival. Zaid tells us that this is his home and that we can pray here because (again) the mosque in his village doesn’t cater for women. So we tumble out of the car and are greeted by his wife and EIGHT children! Masha’allah such beautiful children. Zaid, after introducing us to his wife and children disappears off into another room with his older sons, leaving us with his wife, his girls, and the little boy. We quickly made wudu (which I felt really bad about since like everywhere else in Jordan they get very little water) and prayed. His wife was so cute, she made us tea and bought out a cinnamon cake that she had made, and then demanded that we eat it. Zaid’s eldest daughter Fatima engaged us in great conversation in English – she too apparently learns at school and has a really good command of the language masha’allah. Zaid’s wife was so insistent on plying us with tea and cake that we only just made the bus back to Aqaba! Two of the boys, one about ten and the other maybe about 14/15 drove us to the bus stop in the village – quite a sight for his friends that we encountered on the way, judging from their stunned faces – only to find that the bus was about twenty metres up the road having already left. Knowing that we have to be on that bus, they kindly sped up, overtaking it and stopped in front of it, forcing it to stop. We said goodbye and hopped on for the bumpy ride back to Aqaba.

We got back about 5:30pm. Showered, rested for half an hour then wandered back out for dinner. We went down to the “rich” tourist area of Aqaba, where all the 5-star hotels are looking for somewhere to eat. We happened on a wood-fire pizza joint and decided to stop. We ate, it was not in anyway delicious, and as usual was massively overpriced. Back to the souk – spent up a little storm – back to bed. A really long, draining day. Al-hamdoulillah.

View from the hotel... Those hills on the otherside are Occupied Palestine.

On our second day we organised to go on a glass bottom boat cruise and a snorkeling trip. The girls bought burqinis from “Dream Mall” (which incidently is not so “dreamy”). After much struggle, we finally found the boat and hopped aboard just as it was about to leave the marina. We sailed down the Jordanian side of the Red Sea, past Occupied Palestine and past the Egyptian boarder. We sat in the shade at the back of the boat as most of the European tourists had shed most of their clothing and were sunning themselves on the deck and smoking constantly. There wan’t much to see through the bottom of the boat because the water had gone cloudy, but the swimming was great! The water was so nice, and terribly salty. I got the other two girls to leave the safety of the boat so we could swim out a little. Preggie hang on to the lifebuoy though so our distance was limited. As people started to get out of the water we just kept on swimming – we decided lunch could wait, where else in Jordan were we going to be swimming anytime soon? Eventually we got out, changed (which was a feat all in itself) and went up to the deck for lunch… Boy was lunch fabulous! There was fish, chicken, beef, three different salads, dips and more. It was great food, and we were all quite impressed! The way back was nice, with the afternoon sun on us. Once again we sat on the lower deck, although this time it was to avoid the smoking only. I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many people smoke quite so much as I have seen in Jordan. It really makes you say Al-hamdoulillah for Australia and the fabulous legislation preventing smoking in so many places.

When we got back to the hotel we prayed and then ran off to dinner. We ate at the Syrian Palace again because the food was just too good. Then headed to the all-night souk for some shopping. I got a couple of lighter abayas for summer which were not terribly cheap, but cheap for Jordan, aswell as a couple of hijabs (although not as many as I would have like because I bought everything he had in the particular style, which was not much!). Then back to the hotel to sleep, and sleep we did.

On the last day we got up late, mopped around packing, trotted off to rustle up some breakfast from the bakery, returned already sweaty and feeling yuk (it was already 28⁰ outside). Ate. Checked out. Got the bus home, on which, thankfully, no one smoked. Al-hamdoulillahi rabbi-alamin!

So back “home” in Amman. Went to Abdoun for dinner, couldn’t be bothered to cook. Can’t wait to sleep.

***

So, my observations on Aqaba:

- The men are sleezy and have minimal respect (except for the Bedus)

- It is uncomfortably hot at all hours except between 2-4am.

- Everything is really pricy, even if you bargain.

- Your inability to escape the stench of cigarettes will drive you mental.

- After three months in Amman it is truly a blessing to see some green grass, some trees with leaves and… the sea.

Ma’a salama

Back "home"

Just arrived back from Aqaba... Had a wonderful time... Will post on it tomorrow insha'allah.

Hope everyone is well.

Umm Mariam - I will call you tomorrow insha'allah.

Love for all.

Ma'a salama

Maqaamat Trip & Catch Up

Again sorry…it’s been awhile. Finished the term on Thursday. Sat the exam. Al-hamdoulillah it went well, I say my marked paper today and probably 90% of it was correct (there was no grade on it yet though). So I’m pretty happy with that. We went out to dinner on Thursday night to celebrate. We had Thai and then Gerard’s – nutella crepes…mmm… Managed to get myself some Gloria’s (Gloria Jean’s) last night and it reminded me so much of home, which I am missing somewhat at the moment… I actually considered leaving… But I’m staying insha’allah.

Anyway, spent today shopping for presents for a friend here (who’s having a baby), and my teachers (one who had a little baby girl last week, masha’allah). So am now totally exhausted and cannot be bothered to make dinner. We also shopped for our flatmate who’s off to see her husband in Turkey for the break – I have never been so irritated by male shop assistants in my life, they stick to you like glue here, even after you tell them several times you are “just looking”. It’s creepy.

So yeah, as you can tell I’m not presently in Syria, I’m still in Amman. Hotels proved to expensive (high season) as all the budget ones were booked out. As it turns out, al-hamdoulillah we didn’t go, because a friend and her husband left today for Syria, and even though the wife has a visa, the Syrians wouldn’t allow them to enter the country. So Al-hamdoulillah. Since we’re not going to Syria, we’ve extended our visit to the South of Jordan – I’m really looking forward to some swimming and snorkeling insha’allah. Wish I had an underwater camera, apparently the sea life in Aqaba is amazing. Kheir Insha’allah.

About two weeks ago I went on a trip with the murid sisters to a couple of the maqams (graves) south of Amman, which was fantastic, and totally crazy. On the way to our destination, our bus driver decided that he would take the incomplete highway which is meant to link Amman to this particular area. So anyway, this highway is being built over a massive (and very very deep) valley and it was so foggy that you couldn’t see 50cm out of the bus windows and the driver is motoring along at about 70kmph and then suddenly there was a really large bang and the bus dropped about 10cm off an incomplete join in the road. So the driver decides that he will drive a little more slowly. I was looking out of the window down to the ground and you could clearly see that the highway was nowhere near being completed – there were large boulders all over the road, it wasn’t properly sealed, every 10 metres or so there was a small drop where the connection had not yet been complete, and there were long iron poles (the type you see in concrete buildings when they are being built, you know, the put them inside the cement – sorry don’t know what they are called) sticking out of the road surface. It was a miracle that the bus was not totally destroyed. So after about 30mins on this road, the driver decides that indeed he is on the wrong road (duh!) and decides to make a u-turn, great – except there is no u-turn bay and there is a median strip about 40cm high and a metre wide between our side of the road and the other. So the driver begins to make his “many-point” turn. All on the bus are slightly concerned, especially those of us at the back, who could see that if he reversed just a little to far, the drop into the valley below was a good 200metres! Finally we got turned around, and so the driver proceeded to drive back up the highway on the wrong side of the road (no way to get over the median strip) in the densest fog I’ve seen yet in Jordan… Naturally, we (the girls) were quite concerned, and so they (the murids) began to recite the burda, I simply closed my eyes and prayed that there was no truck heading in the opposite direction. We finally made it back to the road he was not supposed to turn off to begin with and were heading along at high speed once again. Salt was beautiful, we stopped on the road that wound its way down into the Jordan valley, the fog had cleared, the sun was out and we could see into Palestine. It was green – such a contrast to Amman. After our brief stop we headed to the maqams we had planned to visit – I’ll put the details of who, where, what at the end of this post insha’allah. We got back later than expected, but it was a really nice day (excluding the drive) al-hamdoulillah. So that was the trip.

***

Sorry this is all over the place, I have a massive headache – sugar withdrawal, I’m on a health kick…Again. *lol*

Insha’allah you’re all well.

Ma’a salama.

~ Video Coming Soon ~

Amman's Wildlife

Subhan’allah finally a day off! I can’t take six days in a row… On Sunday there will only be two weeks left of this quarter and it seems that they are trying to cram as many complicated concepts as possible into what little time remains. So yeah, I really don’t like اعْراب. And no, there are sill no mid-term marks – apparently they’ll be given on Saturday. I’ve been sick again Al-hamdoulillah. Caught the second round of the flu for the season, kindly transferred to me by one of my flatmates… Getting over I now, but I have the most disgusting cough… Al-hamdoulillah. I’m hoping it’ll start to warm up soon since we’re almost into Spring.

The wonderful thing I have learned about learning Arabic is that you completely lose your English language skills. The other night I wrote the word “cat” in my notes spelt “K-A-T”, of course I realized my error, use the white out to erase it and then write it again…and again, and again… It took four white-outs for me to successfully write “C-A-T”. Unfortunately that is not the only example. I am however, taking solace in the fact that it is not just me suffering from this odd disorder – one of my flatmates is just as bad!

So yeah, end of the quarter… Thinking I’m off to Syria with one of my flatmates (the other is off to meet her husband in Turkey for the break) and another two sisters insha’allah. We need to go to extend our visas – normally you can get an extension for another three months (after your first three) but unfortunately for us we’ll have overstayed our visas before the next quarter finishes. And since we no that we won’t have time to go during the quarter, we decided to go in the break instead insha’allah… I’m really looking forward to it – although not the wait on the boarder, apparently with an American/Canadian/Aussie/British passport the wait can be upto and beyond 6 hours depending on the mood of Syrian customs… We are currently in the planning phase, we’re thinking either bus to Jerash then cab to Syria or just getting a cab all the way to Syria… Much cheaper to get the bus, but more chance of issues being women traveling “alone” and all. Anyway we’ll see. If one of the other girls comes we’ll have a private driver from the area – which would be nice… Hmmm…

Now you’ll all be delighted to know that my contacts finally arrived! Yes I only waited three months for the Jordanian Postal Service to work it all out! So anyway, I took the day off school on Monday because I was really unwell and was blissfully napping when my phone rang (9am). Answered the phone and it was a gentleman from customs who convieniently spoke no English. So in my broken Arabic I deciphered that he was actually calling my from Customs and that there was a parcel for me and that I had to pick it up before 2pm or it would “be sent back”! Quite annoyed I got up and went downtown to the post office to retrieve my parcel. Get there and, like last time was told to go to room A. In room A there were two men who were shuffling papers around apparently looking for one with my name on it. One of the men looks up and says “there’s nothing here for you, go to room C”. So I told him, “I’ve just come from room C, please check again.” So he checks again, and lo and behold my little slip of paper is found (you just had to hear the pronunciation of my surname), he smiles sheepishly and demands my passport, marvels briefly at the fact I’m from Australia, then directs me into room D. In room D there’s no one… So I wait… and wait… and wait… And then finally a customs officer comes, then calls in three of his friends, all smoking – did I mention I was sick? – and tells me to open the parcel. I open it, I pull out my contacts. One of the (non-customs) men takes out one of the smaller boxes and decides that he wants to open it – i.e. take the contacts out – while I’m trying to explain to the customs officer just what contacts are, I’m trying to think about how to ask the guy to please stop opening the box. So the customs officer also marvels at the fact I’m Australian (and so obviously a convert) and then he says that if I didn’t come today to get the contacts he would have charged me a tax because APPARENTLY THE CONTACTS HAD BEEN SITTING THERE FOR THREE WEEKS! Just waiting innocently to be collected. Then he tells me that they had tried to call sooo many times but never received an answer, so I was fortunate that he was so nice that he wouldn’t charge me a tax. So then he directs me to room E (minus the package, they kept that with them) and I gave my passport to yet another man who looked at my passport and the slip of paper filled in by the first officer and stamped it. He then directed me back to room D where once again there is no one. So I wait… and wait… and wait… Then the customs officer and his friends return (still smoking) and he takes my papers and checks them. Then he tells me “This is my country and you are our guests so no tax for you”, to which his friend replies, “No, this is her country and we are guests” reference of course to the fact that I’m a westerner and that the west owns everything – I didn’t feel the need to clarify that Australia wasn’t part of America. So they laughed manically for a short while, finally give me my package and said I could leave. BLAH! Not how I wanted to spend my sick day. Plus all the cigarette smoke made me feel so much worse. But anyway, al-hamdoulillah I now have my contacts *yay*

Two other points of interest, both are related to animals.

Two nights ago I was walking hoe from seerah class and attempting to walk up a hill while eating banana cake under my niqab, when this little kitten ran out miaowing and running around my feet (really unusual, all the cats here are scared of people because they are treated badly). So anyway, I pat it a little and it started licking my fingers that I was eating the banana cake with. So I gave it a little cake and walked on. It ate the cake and ran after me. So I fed it more cake. It ate and then ran after me again. So anyway, it followed us all the way home (about 1.5km) and ate all my cake! It was such a cute little thing – got class again tonight, wonder if I’ll see it again… Wonder if I’ll get banana cake again!

The other animal story is not so cute… Prior to leaving home to go to seerah class, I was pinning my hijab in the bathroom – now all bathrooms and kitchens here have drains in the middle of the floor so you can squeejy them, like mopping but you don’t have a mop you have what looks like a car windscreen wiper minus the foamy bit to pushy dirty water around with for a bit. So anyway, I’m pinning my hijab and I can hear squeaking – neep, neep neep neep – I’m thinking, there are mice somewhere, must be outside, I continue to pin my hijab. The squeaking gets louder so I turn around and my bathroom drain pops up, so I immediately step on it to push it back down and there is resistance under my foot. I screamed and ran out of the bathroom. THERE ARE MICE IN OUR DRAINS! Now on’t get me wrong, I like mice, in fact my mice I had as a kid had babies and I loved them, but for some reason, mice that live in sewer-like drains I just can’t deal with. So anyway, now there is mouse-poison all over the house – I can’t wait to move… Did I mention I’m moving place – three weeks to go!

So In other news, we (flatmates and I) decided that we would invest in a blender, which we purchased today. I’m in love. No more spending 2 hours chopping parsley and mint for tabouli… If only I could find red chilli I could make sambal… I miss having real chilli in food.

Still waiting on Umm Rabi’ to get a landline! Unless you’re coming to join me get a wriggle on woman!

Getting excited to come home… I know, three more months…

Ma'a salama

Fancy-pants-ing Around Amman (well kind of)...

Salam all.

Enjoying another long weekend – not because of snow al-hamdoulillah. This is our last double weekend – considering that there is only 3 weeks left of the course and we don’t have that much homework at all for Sunday, it’s not to bad.

So as you can probably guess, the snow that was predicted did not eventuate – there was a little accompanied by a lot of hail and rain. The pics below are of the fog in the morning when we were walking to class – visibility was really low, the bread shop didn’t even open so I went hungry (no breakfast L).

So the week has been relatively normal, just studying and whatnot… Class has been more relaxed since the mid-term, apparently everything from now to the end is more revision… We haven’t got our marks back for the mid-term yet, but when asked about it the teachers don’t sound very positive at all – some (I think most) are considering a resit, especially the students here on scholarship because their marks go back to their unis. Anyway, we’ll see, probably get them back on Sunday.

So yesterday afternoon I decided that we (i.e. my flatmates and I) were going out for a little party to celebrate the end of the mid-terms (actually it was just an excuse to do something other than be at home). So we went to Abdoun Circle – known as the “mummy’s boy area” of Amman (well that’s what our teacher said anyway). It’s basically a really wealthy area with lots of restaurants, clubs, and cafes (most serve liquor) where the trendy-set chillax. Oh and lots of Jordanian boys drive around in their parents fancy cars making a lot of noise – pretty much like the city (in Sydney) is on a Friday or Saturday night…

So anyway, we dressed up, which was a feat being that it was so cold we still needed to be wearing layers of thermals (I know it’s hard to imagine, but it’s true) and went to dinner at a really nice Thai restaurant – where the beef red curry tasted just like Thai Hutt in Bankstown, but the sizzling chicken was heaps better. Initially we were going to have Italian, but we couldn’t find the place – which I’m kind of happy about because I can make pasta and pizza at home. After dinner, we went to a place called Gerard’s which had about 30 flavours of ice cream (I got tiramisu and strawberry cheese cake) as well as some awesome crepes filled with nutella (of which I had one). They did coffee and whatnot, but when crepes are on offer…

When we were leaving Gerard’s, and were walking up to find a cab, I mentioned (maybe a little to loudly) what one of my flatmates looked like she was our Aunty (she was wearing more conservative clothing and she’s a little older) and she was taking us out in an attempt to marry us off. Apparently most of the Jordanians in Abdoun speak good enough English to understand, even though my accent because I said it as we passed by a table of young blokes in another restaurant who seemed to think my comment was hilariously funny. Quite embarrassing – as I’m not sure that they would have understood the sarcasm. Our way home was not a fabulous adventure, our cab driver insisted on speeding through Amman like a maniac, and he was literally falling asleep at the wheel – every time he looked like he was going to nod off (i.e. eyelids were drooping and head dropped a little) I started to cough really loudly. So I guess your wondering why we didn’t just get out and find another cab? Just look back to my first or second post in Amman about waiting for cabs and you’ll figure it out. Anyway, we got home safely Al-hamdoulillah, didn’t sleep till really late, so I’m a little tired today…

Umm KJ: I was looking at photos of one of my flatmates nieces and subhan’allah she looks exactly like KJ (about 6months younger though). Same eyes, nose (I know the NOSE!) and lips subhan’allah it’s almost freaky. The little one has a Fijian daddy and an Indian mummy – I always told you KJ looked Fijian-Indian. Where by the way are my photos?

I’m actually looking forward to my visit home for Ramadan now – even though its months away, this term has really flown subhan’allah and I’m sure the next one is going to be exactly the same. Anyway, time to eat J.

Ma’a salama.

Update.

Salam all,

Again it’s been awhile – apologies, but there isn’t really that much to tell. We had our exam yesterday, which was a giant ball of madness wrapped in insanity. 4 HOURS! That’s how long it took me to finish. I forgot the most basic stuff (verb conjugations – I kept mixing past and present tense) which really bugged me because I had it down, I just could not remember them properly for the life of me… But other than that I think it went ok, not great, ok. Definitely not HD material…

So now that the exam is over and I have some time to relax (yeah right) we are supposed to be expecting heavy snow again tomorrow night, at least that’s what the teacher’s are reporting… *joy* I’ve checked online weather reports and there is no mention of snow, just rain – and I’m not feeling it in the taps yet, maybe in the morning… We’ll see.

The sky was so clear tonight masha’allah. Walking back from a gathering this evening all the stars were out, there was a hint of warmth in the air left over from the day, and the moon was so bright – the middle of this week is the white days, so its almost full. It was really beautiful masha’allah, I really wish we had a balcony big enough to sit on…

Actually it’s been really hard to get back into the swing of things since the uber-extended snow weekend. I’m really felling drained – probably because I’ve become the biggest study-junkie nerd ever. Really, all I do is study, all the time, it’s scary. I have to get back into my routine and I really need to catch up on my vocab insha’allah.

Anyway, so we went fruit shopping again on Friday, which was a lovely adventure. The cab driver took us on this really long drive to the middle of nowhere – when we saw the sign for Jerash we realized that he wasn’t just going the long way, but the WRONG way, which was kind of scary. So we (forcefully) told him to go to the place we wanted and he complied – although made a big show of being all cranky about it – like it was our fault. Anyway, so we got to the market and the fruit was good and cheap and that’s all that matters. Insha’allah tomorrow, along with memorizing two presentations I’ll be trying my hand at tabouli.

Went to the dentist after the exam for a check up – dental is soo cheap here, 5JD (A$10) for the check up. I was really impressed with the dentist to, masha’allah, she was really good. While I was a the dentist, there was obviously some very important person in one of the rooms, because there were about seven big, burly security men (who looked like secret police, or their equivalent) and a photographer (he had a really big professional camera) waiting outside one of the consult rooms, and outside the centre there were soldiers and regular police (all armed with very large guns) – quite odd, although I am getting more used to seeing men in uniforms with big guns in most public places. So, my visit to the dentist earned me a trip to Safeway (because it’s across the road) and I finally found kecap manis *yay* (but still no red chilli) food will actually have taste now!

So as you can tell, there isn’t much to tell. I’ll let y’all know hot I went in the exam (maybe) when we get them back insha’allah. In the meantime, please all make du’a for Allah swt to expand my brain’s capacity to retain information…

Insha’allah everyone is well.

Ma’a salama