Ok. Its much easier to do this:
Go to this website to see pictures.
The end.
http://picasaweb.google.com/Truth.and.Beauty.Bombs/Amman
P.S. Tommarrow I'm going on a hike through the desert.
DID YOU KNOW? Jordan is set to be one of the top adventure tourism spots in the world?! I didn't.
Thursday, September 6, 2007
Vintage suburbia in West Amman
I know I haven’t updated as much or often as I did in Spain… However, perhaps that is a good thing. I could tell you of the ruined villas and secret hideaways of Jebel Amman or I could relate the eccentricities of my cousins. Though both these topics have elicited some degree of interest to me, the revolving allure of Amman occurs indoors.
Gardens is the improperly named dusty district where my friends are housed. From the outside it looked no different than the tiny boxy villa rowhouses, however the inside proved to be a complete break from 21st century realities. The walls were plastered with 60s stylized amber wall paper, as artfully spotless vintage couches dotted every room. The lighting was that dim honey that commonly cloaks antique Polaroids. They sent me on a tour of avocado coloured bathrooms and James Bond stylized beds equipped with built an antique radio…
The bubble of lost time extended itself not only to the interior design but also the very actions of the inhabitants. Coffee was served out of a French press, as everyone ate cookies and talked of how our respective families were doing. A girl was knitting in the corner as 50s stylized French pop drifted from hidden speakers. We found ourselves sucked into the past, and I felt oddly right at home.
Gardens is the improperly named dusty district where my friends are housed. From the outside it looked no different than the tiny boxy villa rowhouses, however the inside proved to be a complete break from 21st century realities. The walls were plastered with 60s stylized amber wall paper, as artfully spotless vintage couches dotted every room. The lighting was that dim honey that commonly cloaks antique Polaroids. They sent me on a tour of avocado coloured bathrooms and James Bond stylized beds equipped with built an antique radio…
The bubble of lost time extended itself not only to the interior design but also the very actions of the inhabitants. Coffee was served out of a French press, as everyone ate cookies and talked of how our respective families were doing. A girl was knitting in the corner as 50s stylized French pop drifted from hidden speakers. We found ourselves sucked into the past, and I felt oddly right at home.
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Week one
So much has happened, its truly impossible to recapture it. I decided pictures would do it best. For those of you that don't know, I got terribly ill and had to go to the hospital. I was well within 24 hours but hte medicine has made me absurdly thirsty and ADD. Therefore, I'm not going to write much expect explanation for the pictures.
One is my bedroom.
Some are just general pictures of Amman.
One is a photo inside of a cafe I will likely frequent a lot.
And the rest... seem explanatory.
cool.
*****UPDATE PICTURES WON"T LOAD****
One is my bedroom.
Some are just general pictures of Amman.
One is a photo inside of a cafe I will likely frequent a lot.
And the rest... seem explanatory.
cool.
*****UPDATE PICTURES WON"T LOAD****
Week one
So much has happened, its truly impossible to recapture it. I decided pictures would do it best. For those of you that don't know, I got terribly ill and had to go to the hospital. I was well within 24 hours but hte medicine has made me absurdly thirsty and ADD. Therefore, I'm not going to write much expect explanation for the pictures.
One is my bedroom.
Some are just general pictures of Amman.
One is a photo inside of a cafe I will likely frequent a lot.
And the rest... seem explanatory.
cool.
One is my bedroom.
Some are just general pictures of Amman.
One is a photo inside of a cafe I will likely frequent a lot.
And the rest... seem explanatory.
cool.
Saturday, September 1, 2007
Home again, home again?
September 1, 2007
Against a steep incline on a hill overlooking the Jordan University lays a boxy concrete villa surrounded by olive trees, grape terraces, and fig. My initial impression of dread and nervousness cloaked all beauty in a hazy rumble of my stomach. My given description of the family was only somewhat accurate:
Name Birth Sex Speaks English Occupation
Issa 1937 Male Yes Retired
Nawal 1947 Female Little Housewife
Carol 1977 Female Yes UN officer
Sylvie --- Female No Maid/housekeeper
Religion: Roman Catholic
Family name: Alam-Salman
Equipped with this meager knowledge I was expecting to be greeted by an elderly slow moving small household…. However, when I arrived the building was bursting with persons. The 5 children of Issa and Nawal lived within mere blocks… one even lives on the bottom floor of the villa. All have kids, all the cousins live close enough to visit every few weeks, and so I found myself with a typical Arab family – loud, noisy and full of love.
My first day was rather dull, but my second was disastrously dramatic. I awoke that morning to a cup of Turkish coffee. Moments later my stomach rumbled. Minutes after that, I excused myself to lie down. Within an hour I had Montezuma’s revenge, could not hold down any food without throwing up, and was dizzy with a 102-degree fever.
They called my coordinator and rushed me to the hospital. They diagnosed me with the vague but accurate “tourist bug” and stabbed my arm into an IV. For the past day and a half I have been battling that. Heavy drugs make me sleepy and yet I feel only nominally better… The fever has passed, as had the vom.
Tonight I’m to meet my cousins. Their relation to me is somewhat distant. They are my father’s first cousins children and family. I hope everything will work out and I desperately hope I will not feel sick when they come to pick me up.
Hope everything is well with everyone!! I have Internet from Sunday to Thursday sporadically. Feel free to send e-mails and such. If you begin the thread, I’ll respond. Much love.
Against a steep incline on a hill overlooking the Jordan University lays a boxy concrete villa surrounded by olive trees, grape terraces, and fig. My initial impression of dread and nervousness cloaked all beauty in a hazy rumble of my stomach. My given description of the family was only somewhat accurate:
Name Birth Sex Speaks English Occupation
Issa 1937 Male Yes Retired
Nawal 1947 Female Little Housewife
Carol 1977 Female Yes UN officer
Sylvie --- Female No Maid/housekeeper
Religion: Roman Catholic
Family name: Alam-Salman
Equipped with this meager knowledge I was expecting to be greeted by an elderly slow moving small household…. However, when I arrived the building was bursting with persons. The 5 children of Issa and Nawal lived within mere blocks… one even lives on the bottom floor of the villa. All have kids, all the cousins live close enough to visit every few weeks, and so I found myself with a typical Arab family – loud, noisy and full of love.
My first day was rather dull, but my second was disastrously dramatic. I awoke that morning to a cup of Turkish coffee. Moments later my stomach rumbled. Minutes after that, I excused myself to lie down. Within an hour I had Montezuma’s revenge, could not hold down any food without throwing up, and was dizzy with a 102-degree fever.
They called my coordinator and rushed me to the hospital. They diagnosed me with the vague but accurate “tourist bug” and stabbed my arm into an IV. For the past day and a half I have been battling that. Heavy drugs make me sleepy and yet I feel only nominally better… The fever has passed, as had the vom.
Tonight I’m to meet my cousins. Their relation to me is somewhat distant. They are my father’s first cousins children and family. I hope everything will work out and I desperately hope I will not feel sick when they come to pick me up.
Hope everything is well with everyone!! I have Internet from Sunday to Thursday sporadically. Feel free to send e-mails and such. If you begin the thread, I’ll respond. Much love.
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Pictures from Amman
* The language center is basically where all my classes are and where my educational life will be centered around when I'm there.
* The weird statue is the oldest human statue in the world. There was otherones that looked the same but had these creepy wide eyed faces but... I forgot to photo them.
* The rest of the pictures are of the old citadel of the city, pretty much everything from Roman ruins to Ummayyad ruins
Enjoy.
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