'Eid al-Adha: "Educational Experiences, part 1"

Alright, I know that I'm a little behind, so the next few posts will be posted close together, so I can try to catch up.

Here's a little background information:

At the end of the Hajj, there is a big feast, called 'Eid al-Adha, or the feast of sacrifice. During this 3-day feast, everyone sacrifices a lamb, and the streets run red with blood (it is symbolic of Abraham almost sacrificing Ishmael in the Qur'an). Because it is such a huge deal, we technically got a week off from school. Classes were cancelled from the 24th through the 30th. However, we still had class with Dil on the 24th and 25th. But, on the 27th (the second day of the 'Eid), we went on a big trip...er, 'Educational Experience' (two administrators accompanied us, and Dil said that we don't take vacations, we take field trips and have educational experiences, and that the administrators weren't to hear our trip referred to as a vacation). 

During the 'Eid, things get really crazy, and by things, I mean the people (more specifically the shabaab), and Dil didn't want to risk anything happening (on the 26th, the first day of the 'Eid, we were under 'house arrest', meaning we couldn't go anywhere without a guy, even if it was daytime, and were just supposed to stick close to our apartment).

Anyway, the 27th, we left Amman, and went to Southern Jordan for the weekend. Now, you can't visit Jordan and not go to Petra, so, that was what we did. On our way to Petra, we made a couple of stops. We stopped at two Crusader castles. Karak and Shobak. They were old, crumbling, and pretty cool. It was fun to climb on them, and explore all the different tunnels. Actually, except for the crumbling castles, the area looks a lot like the Tri-Cities.

I was one of the only people who could pass through the door without bending over. My head cleared the door by about 1-2 inches. My friend Jimbo (standing behind me), who is 6'3, had to double over

 At Shobak, we were able to exit the castle via a smuggler's tunnel. It was super dark, and dangerous. The danger was because the stairs have been eroded, to the point where in some places the tunnel is rather smooth, and if you aren't careful you'll fall and slide. Three of the couples here have babies. One of the kids, Sadie, she's 1 yr old, really did not like the tunnel. She screamed almost the whole way. Part of it was the fact that the tunnel was so dark, and that she kept getting passed from person to person, and she really doesn't like being held by anyone other than her parents. At the end, we made a human chain and passed her up the ladder to her parents. The other two babies did really well (one didn't cry at all, and the other didn't cry until the very end when she hit her head on the ceiling). 

Ascending the stairs at the end of the smuggler's tunnel

Afterwords, we went to "Little Petra". If you couldn't guess from its name, Little Petra was carved by the Nabateans, and is like Petra, just on a smaller scale. Pretty much, it was a lot of random staircases carved into sandstone, that didn't lead anywhere. But, it was fun to climb them and then try to climb the rocks to get somewhere else. Even though it is nowhere near the scale of Petra, it is equally breathtaking, and I got some awesome pictures.

Standing on the edge of a cliff at Little Petra

That night we stayed in Wadi Musa. Near our hotel were a bunch of restaurants. My friends all went to one, that was more expensive and didn't have anything that sounded good to me, so I ended up going to a different one, all by myself. First off, I'll just say that going on my own (even though there were people from the program at the restaurants on either side of the one I was at), was not a great idea. But, I was safe and I got a really funny story out of it. 

So, I was at this restaurant, and the waiter guy took my order. Then, a different waiter, who was a lot younger, heard me speaking Arabic with the first waiter and asked me where I was from, and what I was doing in Jordan. I told him I was from America and was studying here in Jordan. He asked what I was studying, I told him Arabic, then he said that he was studying English and that we should talk more together and help each other. That right there put me a little on edge and on the defensive. Then he asked how long I had been studying Arabic, I told him I'd studied for two years in America and was spending a semester in Jordan. Then he asked what year I was in college, I said I was in my third year. He paused for a minute, then said, "So you're 20? You were born in 1992?" I said yes, and he asked, what month. I told him June, and he smiled and said "Oh, I"m older than you by six months", he looked down at my hands, and saw that I didn't have a ring on (I used to wear one, just because I could, but I can't find my ring anymore). He started to say something, but the other waiter showed me to a table. Yeah, he saved me from a potentially awkward situation. So, I was sitting at my table, all alone, and the young waiter who was hitting on me was kept busy, but he would look over at me and smile every so often. After about 5 minutes, I started feeling anxious, and texted one of the guys who was at a restaurant two places down, asking if he could come sit with me. I didn't tell him any details as to why I wanted someone there, but he came, no questions asked (I just love the guys in my program). He called me, and I was explaining where  I was, when the waiter who took my order, saw him on the phone, and then saw me on the phone too, and asked "He's with you?" I said yes, and he led my friend, Phil, over to where I was. The other waiter (the one who was 6 months older than me) saw Phil join me, and didn't look at me again the rest of the time I was there. I explained what had happened to Phil, who said he was happy to help. So, we enjoyed a pizza dinner, and our friend Michael (aka Saucy Mike) came and joined us too. 

I can look back and laugh about the incident, while at the time, I found it a little unnerving, but, it turned out to be the start of a great "educational experience". 

BYU Puppet Pals Platoon Warriors

Oh, here's a cool story, I am an official puppeteer for the Royal Health Awareness Society/ the Jordanian Ministry of Health (and a member of the BYU Puppet Pals Platoon Warriors, the other people couldn't decide on a name, so they threw it all together). The Queen has started an anti-tobacco campaign, and it is huge. It involves integrating anti-tobacco education into classes. One part of it, for kids K-2, is in the form of puzzles. The puzzles depict a scene that shows the dangers from smoking. They also connect to other safety programs in schools. The LDS church has a huge program specifically on health awareness, and are helping a lot on this project. One part of the program involves a puppet show. There are several puppet shows on various health topics (tobacco, alcohol, nutrition, personal hygiene  etc), the Ministry of Health saw the puppet show on tobacco in English, and said that they wanted that done in Arabic. So, the LDS Missionary couple, who are over here doing humanitarian work, came to the BYU students and asked for people to be part of it. I volunteered, and headed the project up, so essentially, I'm the director. We performed for the first time on the 20th, at a training seminar, for teachers who are going to be part of the anti-tobacco campaign. It was a hit. They all loved it. On November 4th or 5th, we're performing again at a school in Madaba (a town about 40 minutes away). As of right now, Queen Rania is scheduled to be visiting the school and will see us perform (unless something comes up and her schedule has to change). The anti-tobacco campaign really is the Queen's special project, it essentially is "her baby", so she is really interested in everything that is going on. We were told that she is really interested in the puppet show and that if she can't make it to the school to see it, then there will be another performance for her and other officials. So, the chances of me meeting the Queen of Jordan, are really high. One of my friends joked that if she loves it, then she might give me an "honorary princess-ship", because I'm the director and have done a lot of the work. Really, just getting to meet her, and maybe a picture would be enough for me (though, I'm not going to lie, and honorary princess-ship would be awesome. It definitely isn't something you see everyday on a resume). Also, the Ministry of Health wants us to do a puppet show on Personal Hygiene, and perform it in Camp Zataari, the main Syrian Refugee camp in Northern Jordan. They sort of have schools organized, and want us to perform for the kids, since hygiene is a big issue. Other students will be involved in that show, but, since I'm the director, I've kind of reserved the right to go too, since this project has become my "baby".  I'm definitely discovering a side of myself that I did not know existed.

Here's a link to the play:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=23zZxUzjhj8 

The little joys in life

I'm going to throw this out there, I have, hands down, the greatest paternal Uncle, ever!
***Note: I loved my Uncle prior to this, but this just raised him by ton of awesome-ness points

I got an email one day, from my Uncle Scott, asking if there was anything I had forgotten or anything I wanted from the States that I couldn't find here. Well, I, being the girl that I am, noticed that I hadn't been able to find any decent dark chocolate here. So, I told my Uncle, and without judging me, said that he would send some over for me with his friend who was coming to Amman. 

 I went and picked up the package/gift from my Uncle yesterday. It so totally made my day. First off, the hotel my Uncle's friend was staying at, was the nicest hotel I've ever been to. There were a bunch of fountains outside (and Jordan has a water shortage), and there was an automatic revolving door. There were security guards and I had to walk through a metal detector and have my backpack go through one of the scanner things, like at the airport, before I could actually go in. I was in school clothes with my backpack, and I felt so out of place. I got some condescending looks from some of the hotel workers. But, the security guys, and some of the older hotel workers were super nice and polite to me. The guy at the desk looked at me funny when I was so excited over the package, but I think he was a little amused, so if he got a smile out of my reaction, ehh, whatever, maybe it made his day too. Anyway, about this package, I was just expecting a few pieces of dark chocolate, and this is what I got: 

The guy working at the front desk handed this to me, and my eyes were huge when I picked it up

Fourteen bars of dark chocolate, yup, feel free to be jealous

Maybe it is a little mean to brag about what my Uncle sent me, but I mean, come on, who wouldn't? It is a pretty big deal.....at least to me it is.

It may seem like I"m blowing this out of proportion, but right now I'm half-sick and have pretty much been fairly miserable the past several days. **for those who have never been around me when I"m sick, I generally get really cranky, and my voice drops about an octave, so I sound very manly and can sing bass for a week or two**. So, this chocolate really was a bright spot for me. 

It amazes me at the joy we can find in simple, little things. It reminds me of the times I would take my nieces and/or nephews outside and one of them would find a leaf or a pine cone, or a "flower" (that was actually a weed) and they would be so happy with it. In some ways, I feel like a little kid here in Jordan. Not just because of my language skills, but also, this is my first time outside the US, and my first time living in a big city. So, everything is so new and a bit strange to me. I find myself enjoying the taxis, and the 'honking language' the drivers have here. Actually, it is the little joys like that, that make the tough things bearable. 

Me and my spoils

Marhaba.....the Magic Word

Growing up we're taught that 'Please' and 'Thank You' are the magic words. (As I'm typing this, I can hear a song from Barney about using 'please' and 'thank you', in the back of my mind) But, I have recently learned that while 'please' and 'thank you' may be the magic words back in the states, they don't cut it here in Jordan. Here, the magic word is....."Marhaba"

"Marhaba" is just one of the many ways to say 'hello'. Arabs are really big on greetings. ANd you can never just use one, you have to use at least 5 before you can go on to have an actual conversation. It's one of those things that can get rather frustrating to Americans/Westerners, since we're all about being direct and getting down to business right away. One of my professors said that in one of the conversations he'd had, the greetings alone took 5-7 minutes. Anyway, the point is, 'marhaba' is just a greeting, and it is one of the most common ones to use, even tourists can pick it up if they pay attention. 

So, yesterday was Friday, which meant it was like Sunday, so I had church. I go to church up in Irbid, which is about an hour away from Amman. I go up there with 5 other students and we get a ride from one of the missionary couples. Yesterday we went with the Youngbirds. Brother Youngbird was driving (oh, here's a background note, Brother Youngbird is probably in his late 60s to early 70s, and he looks it. His hair is thinning and graying, he's got glasses, and really does look like a grandpa), and we're just going along the highway, when a cop motions for us to pull over. Now, we have never been pulled over before. We had 9 people in an 8 person car, so we were a little worried. Brother Youngbird rolls down the window, and the cop walks up to the car, the first thing Brother Youngbird says is, "Marhaba". The cop looks at him for a second, then nods and waves us off. We all relaxed and didn't think much of it.

Coming back, we all were really tired. We had just eaten a ton of food at a member's house (again, Arab hospitality means that they stuff you full of food, and then have you eat some more), so we all were quietly slipping into "food comas". Except for Brother Youngbird, since he was driving. Well, we were on the road for probably 15-20 minutes, when a cop motions us to the side of the road, again. So, Brother Youngbird rolls down his window and greets the cop with a "Marhaba" (granted, this definitely is with an American accent, so it's kind of like a white person trying to speak Spanish). The cop nods, says "Go ahead", and waves us on. Now, we all were awake and thinking, twice in one day? What are the odds of that? We started making jokes about how 'Marhaba' was like saying "These are not the droids you are looking for", but instead "this is not the van you are looking for". (That was a Star Wars reference, for those who didn't get it) Someone said that he should try using that instead if we got pulled over again. Well, we go along for another 15-20 minutes, when we see two cars pulled over, each one with a cop talking to the driver. One of the cops sees us, steps away from the car, and motions to us to pull over. The cop goes back to talking to the driver again for a minute before waving him on. This time there were two cops, one was in uniform, and the other was a plainclothes cop. So, we're sitting there waiting, and I looked out the front window (I get carsick, and was already sick, so I kept my eyes shut and was trying to sleep most of the time), and I could see the uniformed cop, and he did not look happy. He just looked really cranky. So, the plainclothes cop walks up to Brother Youngbird's window. Brother Youngbird rolls down his window all the way, and the cop comes over and puts his hands on the car, on the window sill (I guess is what you'd call it), and isn't really leaning in, but just standing there. And then Brother Youngbird says, "Marhaba, what can I do for you today sir". The cop looks at him, glances inside the car, then nods, steps back from the car and says, "Okay, you can go" and waves us on. As we drive past the uniformed cop, he smiles, waves at us and nods his head. It was just so flippin' weird. 

A few minutes later, we're back in Amman, and someone says, "look, that guy has an earpiece, he must be a guard or a cop". I looked over, and there was this black, Dodge Charger with three Arab guys in it, they were in suits and they had the earpieces in, just like bodyguards or security agents do. Then we passed them and now we were next to a couple on a really nice, classic Harley Davidson motorcycle, it was really obvious that the Charger was following/accompanying whoever was on the motorcycle. We couldn't really see who was on the motorcycle, since they actually had helmets on (even though a lot of people don't), but there really aren't that many people who are important enough to warrant guards like that. So, could it have been King Abdullah and Queen Rania, out for an afternoon ride? Yeah, it could've been them, I'd like to think that they're able to spend a little time doing something normal.  

Anyway, so, somehow we defied the odds yesterday. Getting pulled over three times and each time being waved on. Moral of the story is, 'marhaba' is the real magic word. ;) 

Two weeks later.....

It's been two weeks since the accident at Wadi Mujib, and all I can say is that I'm doing fine. Physically, I still have a couple bruises, but nothing major. However, there has been this bug going around that I've caught, so I'm in the process of fighting of a flu/cold, which takes a lot out of you. But, I'm being smart and taking it easy. I was going to go to Mukawir today, but I decided against it, since I need the time to heal completely, and not make myself worse by going out when I'm half-sick already. However, I'm not the only one. This bug has been circulating among everyone in the program. I was the last one in my apartment to get sick, so I'm hoping that once we're all better, that we'll be done with sickness for the rest of our time here.