Back in the States!!!!!!

After a long tedious day on Friday and all day in planes/airports, I made it back to the States! I'm in New York right now, but I'll be heading back to Springfield tonight. YAHOO! It's been wonderful...

My list of things I never thought would be so freaking awesome when I returned:

1.) Being warm even though it's cold out :) (Partially my fault for only bringing a sweatshirt to Amman....)

2.) Being able to flush toilet paper.

3.) No street harassment! Better yet, haven't had to use a taxi yet! WOO HOO!

4.) AMERICAN FOOD! I've had Pad Thai and fantastic wings... Now, I need my deep dish pizza and a horseshoe, and I'm set.

5.) Christmas decorations!

6.) Speaking in English and people understanding me

7.) Western airports. Heathrow in London was gorgeous!

8.) No class! I know this is a generic, but with 23 hours of class a week, and with my oral defense, 3 papers, four written exams, and spoken exams done, it feels especially good.

9.) Snow. Ok, I know I'm going to complain about this in about two days, but the snow was just so perfect at pretty last night here. It was great :D

10.) Being able to call people FOR FREE! AHHHHHH!!!!!!!! INCREDIBLE! and texting too!

Almost done?!?

There is no way that in a week I'll be in Springfield with a couple weeks break before classes start for Winter Quarter at NU... I'm halfway done with finals, my last one is on Wednesday afternoon. Just three tests and a presentation to go.

I'm definitely getting reflective, but outside of my host family, I don't know how much I'll miss. Hopefully I can keep my language up in the States!

Israel and No Man's Land in the West Bank

The next day, Sunday, Zoe had school, so instead, after many failed communication attempts, Sarah and I met up to wander around the city again. We went to the Tower of David, a great old place with layers of history on top of each other and an interesting museum of the history of Jerusalem. Then, we enjoyed some amazing hot chocolate at a local café, and then proceeded to just hang out at Sarah’s hostel. Later, we found a vegetarian restaurant that really was more comfort food. Lasagna, cottage cheese and a plain salad never tasted so good! We ended the night at a local pub where we just sat and shared stories of our study abroad experiences.

Monday morning, Sarah and I went over to the Israeli National Museum, mostly to see the Dead Sea scrolls. A lot of the museum complex was closed for renovations, but it was totally worth it for the open parts. A massive scale model of the Old City from way back when was really neat, even if inaccurate, and the Scrolls and lots of similar ancient documents were absolutely incredible.

An explanation of our journey back to Jordan would take forever, but let’s just say it was not the normal route in an abridged version of the story. We pick up tickets to the King Hussein bridge at the bus station. Well, turns out the bus doesn’t tell you when he’s stopping at what stops. So, we miss our stop, as does another American wanting to go the same way as us. The three of us get off on the highway in the middle of the desert and wait for a ride to take us back. We catch a shared taxi of sorts, which take us to Jericho and, long story short, we end up taking the Palestinian way back to Jordan. Definitely was an experience, not as bad as the Israeli border, but you definitely feel the struggle of just daily activites for Palestinians. We end up making it back to Amman, with a few kinks, but no major issues, that night, ready (or not) for school the next day.

Israel and Palestine

Ok, so, the next day, after getting some much needed sleep, since the dinner went until about 1230, Zoe and I met up with Sarah in the Old City, where her hostel was, to explore the city more. We found a café, which was great; I had a lovely pizza sandwich! And then we explored the Jewish market, which was really awesome. And, sorry to say it, but the difference in cleanliness between that and any Arab market I’ve been in is astounding! It was so clean, butcheries had meat refrigerated (what?? How bizarre!) and the fruit all looked so good and fresh. After a walk around and then walk looking at some architecture, Sarah headed back to her hostel and I went back to Zoe’s to have some chill out time. I actually don’t remember what we did for dinner, obviously wasn’t memorable, but we then spent the night just hanging out with some of Zoe’s friends from the program. It was interesting to hear their stories and perspectives from life in Israel, since they’re so close to Jordan but their world is so far away.

The next day, Sarah, Zoe, Zoe’s friend Rob and I all met up to head over to Rammallah, arguably the most important Palestinian city, excluding Jerusalem depending on your political preferences. The Palestinian Authority is headquartered there, as are many shops. Again, it was bizarre that a town only a short 20 minute bus ride away was so different. It was entirely Arab, probably dirtier than Amman, not by much, and a lot smaller. We walked around getting a feel for the streets a little bit, realized we didn’t really know what to do there, but decided to visit Yasser Arafat’s tomb, which also happens to be where the PLO is headquartered.

I was pleasantly surprised with how nice the whole complex was. The tomb was beautiful, tasteful and incredibly respectful. The whole area had a really pleasant reverence to it, in sharp contrast to the chaos that constantly occurs in the area. We then went to a nice little café in the town center called “Stars and Bucks” which I thought was really cute. Then we decided to cross back over to Israel.

Now, there was essentially no security going into the West Bank. Going out is a different story. As Zoe told me, this border crossing was by far the most violent during the Second Intifada, and it’s arguably the most intense security border crossing. And there is a distinctly pro-Israeli and a distinctly pro-Palestinian viewpoint on the situation. I’m not going to say my view point, or that I adhere to just one view because I think the situation just can’t be simplified like that for a foreigner, but I’ll say more so what I experienced.

We walk up to the gate, and there’s probably 100-150 pushing their way into three small, single file gates. It literally looks like a cattle being herded into a cage for butchering, bars and all. It must be one of the most de-humanizing experiences I’ve ever had. There are no guards anywhere (apparently because during the Intifida, there was so much bloodshed here that none of the Israelis want to risk it. We pushed our way into the gates, but not without a significant amount of comments in Arabic from our fellow border crossers. Basically just derogatory foreigner comments, but a little harsher than usual. I wrote them off as the stress of the situation. Every 5 minutes or so, the gate allows maybe 5 or 6 people through per gates, so everyone is just pushing together until then, and when people go through, there’s a great surge forward Then, in between these surges, not just me, but Zoe and Sarah as well, were all grabbed by random Arab youth as we were packing into the gate. I became so livid. The boys continued laughing, as if they had never done anything. While I have felt only respect in all of my classes and in my homestay from any Arab man I’ve met, I’m used to disrespect on the streets. It’s just a way of life. But this sent me over the edge. I snapped off for about five minutes until I got my bearings. We pushed through the gate and made it to gate two, where we waited before we could have our bags put through a metal detector. There still were no live guards.

The same boys pushed ahead of us in line. I then went on a probably unwarranted blanket judgment rant about Arab men. The boys caught on that we spoke in Arabic after awhile and stopped being as harassing. But I didn’t care at that point because damage had been done. Then, I caught the glance of an Arab man in his late thirties near us. He obviously understood what I had said. And the look of shame in his eyes is one I will never forget. He genuinely just felt ashamed of the image that these boys were casting on Palestinian society. He quickly motioned for my friends and I to move ahead of him and told the boys to move behind us. We said that it was OK, we didn’t have to move, but it was nice to have that respect. We finally make it to the metal detector, throw our bags in, walk through and show them our blue passports, which of course, being American, is pretty much a go-ahead anywhere. So bizarre, when many of these people have to cross the border every day for work/family/food/things and they have a horrendous time, and yet being American gets you a free pass anywhere.

We head back to Jerusalem, and Sarah and I split off and visit the believed tomb of Jesus, which was really a beautiful garden, just such a peaceful place that we both needed after the emotional border crossing. Then, we went up to the Mount of Olives and saw an absolutely incredible sunset over the whole city. I really started to understand the sense of spirituality that people feel in this city. For centuries, religions, states and peoples have fought over this city. But just looking at it, I felt… just a feeling. I don’t know if I would say it was that this city is sacred, but it definitely felt like I could tell this city had a set-aside role in the world.

We then headed over to near the Old City to find some food. We ended up finding a great little pub, where I had amazing burger, and some nice Israeli beer again. It was just nice to relax for a little. We then met up with Zoe at what was supposed to be a discussion between the editor of the Jerusalem Post and the mayor. It turned out to be more of a public interview of the mayor, but was still somewhat interesting. We ended the night with a dance party in one of the student apartments. It was really fun, but after the long day, I was more than ready to crash.

Part 2: Israel

Sorry, it’s been a chaotic last few weeks with finals. But I’m gonna do an abridged version of what happened in Israel.

On the second day, after a confusing bus experience where I truly realized how useful Hebrew is in Israel (Who would have thought?), I met my Gamma Phi friend, Zoe, at her dorm at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, where she’s studying for the semester. It was so bizarre to be in a place with all students living together without parents. What? People live outside their parents’ home before they get married? No way…

So, Zoe, being a wonderful host, showed me around the Old City markets. It was crazy. The minute we walked through the Damascus gate, I felt like I was back in an Arab country, with trash on the ground and frequent male harassment included. Now, that’s not to say that every man harasses foreign girls in the Arab world. But I would say it’s not a crazy statement to say that it’s the majority of Arab youth, and sometimes old taxi drivers, that find young foreign girls to be easy prey. After I snapped off a few times in Arabic in the market though, the guys got the idea. But the market was really cool, saw a bunch of sites and the different quarters (Jewish, Muslim, and Christian). We went in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, where it is believed that Jesus was crucified. It was so beautiful, unreal. It’s massive, but just the amount of history behind it is incredible.

We walked around, and finally, we wove our way to the Western Wall. There was actually a military graduation of sorts when we arrived, so we watched for a little. Israeli military youth are everywhere. If someone feels uncomfortable around guns, I’m sure the first day or two in Israel is really uncomfortable. Since everyone in Israel is required to spend a time in the army (or national service equivalent), you see military men everywhere, and, depending on their job, many of them carry large, granted, unloaded, automatic weapons. It’s pretty intense.

After that, we headed back to Zoe’s dorm/apartment to get ready for Thanksgiving J The local Hillel had set up a Thanksgiving dinner for all the American students studying abroad there for a taste of home. It was definitely not a traditional dinner, but really fun. They had these crazy performers on stilts, and I enjoyed a great chicken/guacamole fajita of sorts, even though there was turkey and some of the more traditional Thanksgiving foods there. Then, there was an awesome concert-ish thing from an Israeli-Reggae band, which was great and kinda weird all at the same time. They also were very adamant about touting their Arak doused ice cream: AKA licorice flavored liquor ice cream. Not my idea of Thanksgiving, and I was not about to try the treat. Suddenly, the stilted performers became these raging fire dancers, which were entertaining and really fun.

Day 1 in اسرئيل

Not sure if I can recall nearly as much as I want to or condense every thing into the size of a few blog posts, but here I try:

So, last Wednesday afternoon, the 22^nd, my friend Sarah and I set off for the Jordanian/Israeli border. It was the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, so we got an extra three days off of school for a five day weekend, and most people in our program decided to travel in the region. I actually hadn’t really planned on traveling to Israel during my time in Jordan, even though Jerusalem is only a 45 minute drive away, minus border crossings.

So, we head off for the border. Now, for people with little knowledge about the Middle East, most countries here in the Middle East aren’t too big a fan of Israel. In fact, many, excluding Egypt and Jordan, will not accept you into their country if they see an Israeli stamp in your passport. I’ve even heard of people getting turned away at borders for having sticky residue on the back of their passports from what might be an Israeli sticker. Israel also isn’t too big a fan of certain passport stamps, but as long as you’re American and you can explain away the stamps as tourism, you’re usually fine.

The Jordanian border was incredibly easy and within a half hour-ish, we were on the bus to the Israeli side (they charge you for every mandatory bus between every crossing. So frustrating). But once we got to the Israel side, it was definitely much stricter. With constant threats, Israel simply has a lot more to worry about when it comes to who they let into their country. However, with American passports, it’s usually easy.

There were at least two or three security check points that I can remember, complete with metal detectors, bag scans. My overly stuffed backpack always required an extra search because they just couldn’t tell what all I had stuffed in there. This is a pretty good time probably to describe how intense Israeli security is. I literally went through a minimum of maybe 40 or 50 metal detectors and/or bag searches in my time there. Hotels, bus stations, historic sites: everywhere wanted to make sure that you weren’t carrying anything you weren’t supposed to. Usually, I wasn’t traveling with my large backpack, so I was easy in security, but, excepting the border, the security guards usually gave me a friendly laugh when they saw my oversized backpack. Granted most nice hotels in Lebanon, Jordan and Egypt have these detectors, and AUC had a check as well. But the fact that we were searched so often gave me a bipolar feeling: it seemed normal, but at the same time, it made me feel like I was always judged with suspicion. It was bizarre.

While Sarah and I went through a final verification process of some sort, we saw a bunch of official looking people running towards our initial security check point. We never found out what exactly happened, but now, looking back, it’s weird that we even found that weird. Security is just really intense, and people quickly responding to situations just isn’t that weird.

So, we load onto a bus that tells us it’s heading for Jerusalem: of course, we didn’t think to ask if it was East or West Jerusalem, but we’re just grateful to find an Arabic speaking bus driver. Throughout our time there, many Arabs we met, mostly cab drivers, were really excited, and obviously entertained, when we asked directions or made short conversation in Arabic. I’m sure they don’t encounter tourists speaking Arabic that often, due to the travel restrictions into Israel, and they really seemed to appreciate it.

But the bus drive through the West Bank was difficult. Not physically, it was maybe a half hour ride through really fascinating Southwest America with more hills desert terrain. But emotionally, seeing the gorgeous, massive Israeli townhouse settlements, juxtaposed with the Palestinian shacks that were falling apart with a massive barbed fence separating the two. Seeing both sides, thinking about the emotional state of living in either location, was just draining. It completely epitomized the extreme ideology of the conflict.

But we made it into East Jerusalem, and the bus driver was extremely helpful in finding us a cab to take us to West Jerusalem. While previously East Jerusalem was held by Jordan and is still claimed by Palestine as a part of the state, I could never actually tell a dividing line between the two. While a massive, somewhat also emotionally draining concrete wall, reminiscent of the Berlin Wall with intense graffiti, divides most of the West Bank from Israel, East Jerusalem blends into West. The best indicators of West and East Jerusalem were general Arab country indicators: lots of trash in the streets, signs in Arabic and general disrepair. I really felt in E. Jerusalem that I was just in a poorer version of Amman.

Suddenly, as the cab drove into West apparently, we saw so many Orthodox Jews, with intense beards, covered hair, wearing all baclk and lots of signs in Hebrew. It was the most abrupt intense culture shock imaginable. I have no idea why that hit me so hard, but I was so confused. How did this suddenly happen? What was this world? Did these people live on another planet?

The shock took another turn when we reached the bus station for our bus to Haifa. Welcome back to the Western World. It was essentially a more crowded Ogilvile in Chicago: a massive hub of transportation with four floors of fast food restaurants and shops. We hopped the first bus to Haifa, which was situated 2.5 hours away on the coast. The drive was surreal: real road lines and drivers who obeyed them. All of the chains I had missed, but all written in Hebrew. All the youth on the bus had their headphones on. The wealth the West: it was bizarre.

We checked into our super cute hotel, dropped our meager (but well stuffed) bags, and headed out to find a nearby restaurant. We found a great Arab-ish restaurant on Ben-Gurion street. Israel loves naming its streets after former leaders even more than American does! Arab streets have names, well, some of them… Sorta. They’re constantly re-named and you usually get around by landmarks: cabbies have no clue about street names. So, we got to kick back and we enjoyed salad, hummus and some nice Israeli beer. Up the street, we had a great view of the Bahai gardens, making me reminisce about the lovely Bahai temple in Evanston. By the end of the night, aka 11, we were well worn out and just wanted to get a start on our next day.

SO MUCH TO WRITE!

I have so so so much to add, hopefully I can put it all in here soon... I just spent the last 6 days in Israel (Jerusalem, Haifa, Rammallah) and there's SO much to share. But I'm back safe and sound, with way too much homework.

I'll be returning to Springfield on December 20th, which will be great but surprisingly difficult now... Hopefully I can update in the next day or two!

Last of the Joys of Cairo`

So, that Wednesday night, we decided to just hang out after the long day... Now, this next part would take a lot of explanation, but through a series of events, Andrew had a minor medical issue that night which led us to take the next day (Thurdsay) off from council. Now, that's not to say I really NEEDED to stay home with him... but it was just too good an opportunity to pass up. We pretty much just spent all day hanging out, playing card games and chilling in the hotel. We took a walk around later in the neighborhood of Heliopolis where our hotel was, finding a great super cheap smoothie place and a few neat stores. And then, once again, spent most of the night chilling and a little time prepping. That day totally gained my sanity back from the daily stress of class in Amman; I just needed a break.

The next day of council on Friday went really well. Through a series of fake events, Palestine declared themselves a state, and obviously, we, as Syria, were very excited about this. We held a fake press conference, blabbered about human rights and had an overall wonderful time. Late that night, we went out to an Egyptian restaurant downtown, then by chance, out to a local bar. Obviously, places serving alcohol are not commonplace at all, but this bar was up on the rooftop of a semi-crappy hotel, and it was actually really great just hanging out with all of our delegation, even if not for that long.

The next day, we woke up a little late and had to take a taxi to AUC. Big mistake. After a long 2 hours of insanity, we finally walked into council way too late. But it still was a good day, full of ridiculous-ness. Debate is so so so different here than in the states, but I can't wait to hopefully kill at our regional conference in February. That night, was of course another dance party. I still don't totally get it, but it looked fun, despite it being a little chilly. And no, obviously not chilly like Chicago weather, but still just a little cold for my light sweater and dress. We ended up getting Best Delegation for our council... Still not really sure how me and Andrew pulled that off... But that was sweet, even though we were immediately whisked away back to the hotel.

So, then I arrived here this morning on a 830 am flight, definitely not ready to say goodbye... But obviously I had to. Classes were fine, a little more tolerable today after the the last week. Only about three and a half weeks left. YESSSSSSSSSSS AMERICA!!!!

Cairo Continued!

There's so much to write about Cairo... So I'll try to fit everything in. Conference was jam-packed, so I had to wait until I returned to Amman today to continue.

So, after the Islamic Quarter, a group of five of us really wanted to return to the pyramids to really get close. So, after a long argument with the cab driver, who literally did a full hour circle around the Pyramids with them in plain sight just teasing us, we finally arrived at "Gallopers" the horse place. After another bout of extensive haggling, we set off for the pyramids. We had such INCREDIBLE views, got really close and even went into a few tombs (probably illegally). Two of us climbed a few blocks up the pyramids too. The pictures are great, hopefully I'll get to upload them later today.

Andrew brought my very gracious brother's computer with him, so now I actually can get in contact with the world on a regular basis! It was a lifesaver at the conference. I just realized I should probably explain the Model Arab League quickly. Well, the real Arab League essentially acts like the United Nations, only its members are only Arab states and it only makes decisions and passes resolutions about Arab issues (generally). Like the UN, it's pretty ineffective, but super entertaining. In Model Arab League, we represent these Arab countries and hold a fake conference on Arab issues (about the economy, human rights, political issues, etc.) Andrew and I were actually on a different council, the Union For the Mediterranean, which involves, like the name implies, mostly nations affected by the Mediterranean, so we had both European and Arab countries represented.

Opening ceremonies, which with our bus running on Egyptian time (literally anywhere from 15 minutes to 3 hours later than scheduled), we were late for, were nice, but we were all exhausted during them. But then, I have yet to have decided whether this was surprising or not, there was a massive dance party outside of the auditorium. WTF? We more stood around watching all the AUC participants get their Arab groove on. We, along with West Point, were the only American delegations, along with a French delegation. So, most of the Egyptian students knew each other from previous meetings about the conference. Which was fine, we definitely got to know people as the conference went on, but the first night we were just more in awe.

AUC is absolutely gorgeous. Gorgeous gorgeous. Jordan University seriously was so depressing today, when I remembered how great AUC is... But then I realized that my Arabic wouldn't be nearly at the level it now is if I had decided to stay there. Even though Egyptian Arabic is pretty different from the Jordanian dialect, I surprised myself by how easy it was communicating, even though fewer people knew English there... I came away feeling that I really have been learning useful things here in Jordan

So, then council started the next day. While both Andrew and I had been researching somewhat for the topic, but without knowing that we would represent the Syrian Arab Republic until a few days before, it was kinda limited. Plus, we both had papers due that week. But it ended up being really great. While we were both a little rusty remembering parliamentary procedure and just generally staying focused, it went pretty well. Syria pretty much is against everyone, so we were often in conflict, especially because this is the only body in existence to which both Syria and Israel are members.

So, the day went well, lots of debate about using European funding in southern shore countries to create and expand alternative energy resources, as well as natural gas pipelines. Why would Europe shell out a bunch of money for a bunch of crap in North Africa and the Middle East? Well, besides labor and resources being cheap there, the general idea is: they won't bomb us if they need us. Bizarre, borderline logical, thoughts. After a long day (10-6) of conference, we were more than ready just to kick back that night.

Football, litter and pyramids...

So much has happened in the last five days!! No time to list it all, but here's the highlights:

- Arrived in Cairo at 11pm the night of the MASSIVE World Cup qualifying football (aka soccer) match between Egypt and Algeria which was IN CAIRO. It was absolutely insane. Kids hanging out of car windows holding flags, standstill traffic because the youth were crowding the streets, horns blaring... Long story short, the traffic was sooo bad that I couldn't even get to my hotel. The cab driver only spoke Arabic, but I was really glad that my Jordanian dialect was easily understood. He found me a cheap hotel outside the madness. I stayed awake, somewhat terrified, until 2 am listening to the riots outside. Thank goodness that Egypt won, otherwise I have no idea what could have happened.

- Spent all day Sunday by myself waiting for the NU students to arrive. Spent four hours at the Egyptian Museum, pouring through room after room full of incredible artifacts. Tons of tombs, mummies... Everything. It was really interesting. I couldn't believe how some of the large pieces were even transported to the Museum, and the animal mummies (crocodiles, birds, dogs, cats)were really bizarre.

Spent way too much on a much needed American dinner in the Nile Hilton. I promised myself I wouldn't pay for any Arab food because I need a little bit of a break from that. But it was nice to see the great view of the Nile from the top floor of the hotel downtown. Of course, I had already checked into our hostel nearby, which was surprisingly nice considering that it was only 15 dollars a day. Great free internet.

- Monday was a great packed day; the NU group had arrived from Chicago on Sunday night. Andrew and I got up in time to head over to the Egyptian Museum for the early afternoon; I had told him it was a must-see. So, we headed over, and I showed him around the overwhelming number of artifacts. It was essentially the Louvre, but only of Ancient Egypt.

NEXT was the great part. We met up with the rest of the group to try to see the pyramids at sunset. Giza is only a 20 minute cab ride away, but once we arrived, the gate was due to close in 15 minutes. We went to a horse tour place that promised us to arrive before it closed. We hopped on horses, and literally began to trot/canter/gallop to the gate. Little boys, literally no more than 6 or 7 year old boys, ran with our horses to the gate. Unfortunately, we didn't make it in time, and we had to haggle with the horse company owner. Apparently, there's a way to see the pyramids from outside the wall perimeters from essentially giant sand dunes in the Sahara.

So, walking/trotting with the horses, whose boys let the more experienced riders take the reins themselves, we saw the pyramids. It was amazing. I miss riding SO much. It's impossible to find riding like this in the states; no stable would take on the liability of having inexperienced, unhelmeted riders take the reins. The little boys screamed at us to "Yalla!", essentially the Arab equivalent of GET GOING!. It was hilarious. But I got to trot, and even gallop, my horse a little bit. She was a little testy, but it was way too much fun to care.

So, the next day, we woke up somewhat early and went to the market in the Islamic quarter. We first walked around the tourist section, but everything was essentially cheap-made souvenirs that we had no desire to bargain for. So, we went to the real market: stores full of live chickens, butchers slicing open freshly butchered cows, and cheap felafel and other Middle Eastern foods. We didn't buy anything there either, but it was definitely an experience. And only emphasized further my strong desire for vegetarianism. I have been eating way too much meat off the bone in the Middle East. It's super healthy that so many things are cooked in the home here, but I'm pretty sure the emphasis on lots of meat and tons of oil counteracts any healthiness.

More to come!

Just an update

Nothing to exciting to update about... Lots of homework...

Oh, however, my motherboard (isn't that something only in bad sci fi movies?) in my computer crashed. Hopefully, through a series of lucky circumstances and some hard work from three wonderful people, I'll have another computer by this weekend. There IS a Mac re-sale store here with a genius bar, however, since it takes a whole month to ship in parts from Dubai, it was too big of a bargain to try to get it fixed here.

WHICH, having a computer is somewhat essential because I have my massive 10 page research paper ALL IN ARABIC due next week before my trip to Cairo. YIKES! Hopefully, it'll be fine.... I'm probably going to spend all day at an internet cafe doing research. I'm focusing on the conflict in France over Muslim women's clothing (the niqab, the "burkini" and the hijab) and whether the French truly feel that it isn't "French" to wear these types of clothing.

But without a computer, I probably am around more mentally at home. I've been heading to bed by 11 because it's FREEZING here now. Well, freezing is in the 50s and 60s. But when it's raining and you don't have sufficient winter clothes, it feels much much colder. Central heating just isn't happening here... I'm not sure if it's not cold enough yet or what, but the buildings are definitely much colder than they probably should be.

So, nothing exciting.... I'll be back in Springfield on Dec. 20th. So exciting!

In procrastination...

So, I'm in the middle of reading this article about Afghanistan elections (الانتخابات افغانستان), but I needed some distraction, so I thought I'd blog for a quick second...

Nothing too exciting this week, classes, the usual. In the language and culture program, one of the students caught swine flu, so they get a few days off class, but we intense immersion kids have to power through thursday and sunday of class. I'm still not used to having class Sunday-Thursday, and I still get confused when friends in the States are enjoying a lazy Sunday afternoon because that's 11 pm here when I'm trying to get my homework ready for my second day of class.

But I'm getting excited for my trip to Egypt in two and a half weeks. We'll be there competing in the International Model Arab League conference. Our delegation did pretty well at nationals in April this year, so hopefully this goes well too. I'm really excited for a week of pyramids and talking in ENGLISH!! Yay!

Wadi Mujab: Absolutely incredible!

Sorry that it's been so long to post! Midterms took up a ton of time last week, and things finally started to slow up. I haven't really had much exciting to write about because I've been doing homework practically 24/7. But, here's a few notes:

- Last Saturday, went to visit the Ajloun Castle, which was really sweet. Did a little hiking in a nature preserve there and visited a homemade soap factory.

- Last night, we enjoyed a lovely way too all-American bar at the Marriott here. I devoured a Caesar salad and some amazing cheese fries, and caught up on a little baseball. It was really great.

- BUT TODAY I HAD WHAT I'M ASSUMING WILL THE CLIMAX OF MY LIFE. It was incredible. Wadi Mujab is essentially this canyon with a low river running through it. But a better description is that this was nature's inspiration for the modern water park. Natural water slides, an amazing waterfall and cave within... It was a really strenuous, occasionally treacherous, 3 hour hike, but it was incredible. It was about an hour away from Amman. As we drive by, a massive body of water suddenly appears on our right: you always notice water in a desert. And our cab driver casually told us to say hello to Israel. Right there. And the Dead Sea. Just right there. It was amazing.

So, once we get to Wadi Mujab, we wait awhile, since this is the last weekend it's open before the flood season (hopefully! we need water!) and it might start getting cold. AKA, maybe below 75. Probably not. :) So, once our group is up, we all put on life vests, and then we're just pointed to hike. Luckily, one of the girls in our group had done this a few times before, but honestly, otherwise, it would have been a lot more dangerous. There are a few helpers for some tricky spots when you're hiking/scrambling upstream, but mostly, you're on your own. The water started out at mid calf but at points was chest level. It was amazing. Best hike I've ever done.

The water slides were cool on the way down, and there was even a solid 15 ft jump that I did into the water below. It was intense, but great.

I wish I had pictures! Bringing a camera, or anything, on this hike is nearly impossible because of the water. We left everything in the taxis before, and hiked in shorts or bathing suit bottoms and Tevas or sneakers.

In a few weeks, I'll be traveling to Cairo for the International Model Arab League conference for a week. Should be exciting! I'll post more later.

Jordan's pretty calm...

But as my oh-so-clever program likes to remind us all the time "It's stuck between Iraq and a hard place." hahahaha.

Not so funny. But you get the idea. However, it's interesting because, with recent drama in Israel ( here) and with the majority of Jordanians being of Palestinian lineage, many of them still having refugee relatives, the situation here has been a little tense. Now, it's still really safe, but today there were demonstrations planned for all over the city against the situation in Jerusalem. We were advised after call to pray at noon until a little after to avoid the streets.

However, all was fine, and a friend and I went out for local ice cream today to sit and catch up. She had Nutella ice cream, while I had chocolate cake. It was glorious. Especially with the beautifully sunny high 70s weather. I'm sooooooooo not jealous of Chicago weather right now. But it rained for the first time since I've been here two days ago. It was so fun, and such a novelty!

Class are fine... Kinda easy, yet time consuming, which is frustrating. However, as I realized with my full 15 minute conversation with my taxi driver today, I'm definitely improving in my speaking. Now, I just need to only speak Arabic with my host family. With my host mother being an Arabic as a Second Language teacher, it's always SO tempting to just slip into English. But I'm trying to get better!

In other news, in just over a month, I should (if NU gets its finances together) be heading over to Cairo for the International Model Arab League conference, which should be so exciting! A small group of NU students are flying from all over (Chicago, London, Morocco) to compete, and I can't wait!

Yay for Vacation on the Mediterranean!

It's been way too long!!

I know it's been much much much too long since I last posted... Life has been very busy.

After an incredibly exciting and amazing vacation, which I have to share in person, I'm back to school in Amman. Since Ramadan is over, there's a lot a lot more class. I now spend 25 hours a week in class, which is absolutely absurd for the only 16 credit hours I'm getting from here...

But hopefully, my Arabic been improving. I found internet access (well... sort of borrowing from a neighbor) in my house, so now communication is much much easier! My Skype name is trishakfaulkner if you're ever on-line.

I'm currently sitting in a lovely establishment called "Things & Wings" They apparently don't value their wings like we do, but their Buffalo Chicken Sandwich is to die for. Although I'm still craving a D'arcy's horseshoe...

So, about the food here... Yeah, I've always kinda known that I hate Middle Eastern food with a passion. I mean, I like hummus and most everything my host mom cooks is good, but I'll prefer a McDonalds hamburger or a good penne pesto over Maglubeh or Kebbeh any day.

Jordan is very very different post Ramadan. All of the food places are open, which is so nice, but the campus is PACKED. It's hard to get around with the tons of people getting around, but it's still better than how depressing it was before.

Also, I joined a gym, which is really nice and destressing. It's kinda far away, but luckily my friend lives in a house across the street from me and we carpool a lot.

Taxi drivers here are still horrendous, but not as bad as my vacation. As my friend in class said yesterday, many, not all, but most, taxi drivers are totally chilling in that deepest ring of hell with Hitler.

Here it is:

Sans Internet :(

Just wanted to give a brief update that I'm probably going to have limited internet access, if any, over the next week and a half. The Muslim holiday of Eid, which ends the month of Ramadan, is next week, and the university is going on break for all of next week. Unfortunately, the university is the only place I really get internet, and break will definitely a busy time. But if I get a chance, I'll update.

Classes are good, the pace is picking up a little bit which is nice.

I've attached a picture of my lovely camel, Henry/Henrietta. Not sure of the sex, but it was a good companion for 4 hours through the Wadi Rum mountains, and it'll be sorely missed.

Although I miss my puppies back home much more... Dogs are almost non-existent here, and the feral cat population just doesn't compare.

Pictures!

On the "4 Wheeler"!

I'm back!

Sorry that my internet is just absolutely horrendous: I haven't had access in a little while. I'm in a lovely little cafe that caters to foreigners, eating a plain margherita pizza. Life is good.

But I've also just had a crazy crazy weekend. We visited Petra, Aqaba and Wadi Rum, which are all great tourist sites in the South. Petra, with its ancient Roman ruins and great natural scenery and caverns, was amazing. It was exhausting hiking all day, but well worth it to go all the way to the Monastery, which was quite a hike. From one spot, a little bit more of a hike beyond that, was called "The End of the World", a mountain top where we were could see Israel beyond in the mountains. That night, we learned how to cook traditional Jordanian food, which our host families have been making for us, from a restaurant called "Petra Kitchen" there. The food was definitely welcome, although my slight dislike for Middle Eastern food before coming to Jordan has only gotten worse.

We slept in this great Bedouin camp ground under the stars that night, which was beautiful. Before, we sat with a few other Americans, actually from Chicago, having tea and swapping stories. It was a great night to lay out, especially in this camp hidden in a canyon-ish place. Around midnight, while we were staying up talking despite being exhausted, the moon finally crested the mountain next to us, illuminating all the ground around us. It was incredible.

Then, we had an early morning and drove to Aqaba the next day to enjoy the Dead Sea. From the boat we went on, we could see Israel across the sea, it was so surreal. We just enjoyed the boat for awhile, and some went snorkling to look at the coral. It was a great great day with wonderful weather, and we enjoyed some local fish in a restaurant nearby

That afternoon, we had what I would arguably say is one of the ten most bizarre experiences I have ever had (included in this list is getting picked up by the Mexican border police for getting lost walking in the median of the freeway, as well as a strange mega church encounter in Kansas City). We were told we were going 4 wheeling through the mountains of Wadi Rum to another traditional Bedouin camp we were staying that night. False. Sooooo false.

Our 4 wheelers? Junky 80s Toyota 4 wheel drive pick up trucks. They had benches with foam attached (see picture), wired, yes, wired to the truck. And off we went, driving through the desert: it was awesome. Especially because our driver was a little crazy, with a need for speed and a drive to beat the other trucks. We'd occasionally drive up sand dunes and loose traction, but it was all part of the fun.

Eventually, we made it to the camp, after an incredible desert sunset. We had a, surprisingly good, Bedouin dinner with great great great watermelon. They actually have watermelon with seeds, unlike America's horrendous, seedless fruit. We enjoyed another great night under the stars.

Next day, we spent on a four hour long camel ride. Now, it was a little unnecessarily long... but definitely an experience. We saw more of the mountains and saw some ancient drawings all around.

Ok, that was a pretty long post... Hopefully it won't be too long until I get to write again. Classes are kinda boring, but hopefully they'll be pick up soon. Starting on Friday, we have 10 days off for the Eid, which marks the end of Ramadan, so my friends and I are hopefully planning a big trip. I'll share details soon :)

Not eating from sun-up to sun-down... Not healthy.

It's been awhile since I last wrote, but the past week has just been way too busy. Classes have finally settled into a routine, and I've somewhat gotten used to walking all the way from the south campus engineering buildings to the north campus education building. My Arab media class has been really fun, but all of my classes are challenging, since they're only taught in Arabic.

I've been to three weddings now, and each is more crazy and different from the last. I was forced into an awkward photo op by the photographer with the bride at the last one: I guess the photographer thought that having a little American girl in one of the pictures would show the "diversity" of the attendees. Since when did adding a white girl add diversity??

I'm still adjusting to the lack of food during the day... I'll occasionally sneak snacks, but most of the day, I just don't have a place or time to eat. Thankfully, that'll all be over in two weeks when I can eat during the day again! The McDonald's across the street looks sooo tempting. Plus, then my classes will be spread more throughout the day, instead of concentrated earlier when everyone hasn't lost focus from lack of food or drink.

But my host family's wonderful, so so nice. Since the mom teaches Arabic as a second language here, she's been really helpful. My only problem is convincing them when I'm not hungry! There's always more and more food, and refusing food here is a sign of you disliking it. But I'm eating more than either of my host parents are! Hopefully, it'll all fall into a rhythm soon.

I've been heading over to this Western-style cafe called "Books@Cafe" for an occasional escape. They serve food and drink all day, the only restaurant/cafe/anything I've found that does this so far. They also have Internet, which I lack at home, and plenty of plugs, so it's been great for getting homework done that I couldn't get done at home.

Wrong Building, Wrong Time.

Today was the third day of classes, and it's still impossible to navigate UJ's campus, although it's getting better. Our class schedules have been changed three or four times, with buildings being incorrect, times being incorrect, but hopefully it's mostly settled. Today, we tried to find classroom 114; after being befuddled as to why there was no 114 between 113 and 115, we realized even numbered classes were on the other side of the floor. After switching over to the other side, we found 114 to be locked. We called our program's studies director: apparently, it was supposed to be -114: as in, in the basement.

But classes are fine, a little draining, especially now that our language pledge has taken affect and we're not supposed to speak anything but Arabic, which of course isn't totally happening... My contemporary Arab media class today was good. Hopefully, the pace of the program won't be too difficult. They said it would begin slowly, so I'm understanding most of what the teachers are saying now, but I'm a little nervous for when the real classes begin.

Hopefully, it'll be no problem.


Just wanted to add this link (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203706604574377163804387216.html). The Wall Street Journal and NY Times have been my escape from everything lately. Fantastic article.

No Internet at Home Right Now :(

So, I don't have internet at my home right now, and I don't have much time at the university right now for a post, but I think I'll try to give the highlights of the last few days.

1.) Went to a Greek Orthodox wedding in Madaba, about 30 minutes away. The couple cut the cake with a Sultan's Sword, entered to super dramatic Pirates of the Caribbean-esque music and all of the guests wore prom-dress-esque clothing. I was by far one of the most conservative there, since our program told us to bring clothing that could cover our elbows and knees at all times.

Whoops, never mind, I need to get off the Internet, but I'll update soon!

Scavenger Hunt!

Today was tiring, but definitely well worth it. We started off at 8 am with a surprise scavenger hunt in the city with groups of three. We had to find a difficult-to-spot bus station, take three forms of transportation, find a postcard with a camel on it and sent it to the CIEE CEO, buy three dictionaries, and make it back to CIEE headquarters by noon. All in Arabic. Without help.

It was a little scary (and we actually had the Jordanian student volunteer with us help us out a little bit) talking with people on the street to find directions, but everyone was super friendly. It was nice to get to know the city a little bit, but I still feel like I have so much work to do.

Afterward, we found out how we did on the placement test. I still get to be the program, yay! However, I didn't qualify for a class I really really need back at NU, so hopefully, since my score was borderline, I can convince the program to let me take the history course. I'm also taking Arab Media Communication, which should be interesting.

Today, however, was the first day I went the whole day fasting, simply because we were never really in a place where we could eat or drink. Honestly, I didn't really notice it as much as I thought I would... but once I got back to the hotel, it was difficult. It was VERY difficult later at dinner when I had to wait 30 minutes with food in front of me for the sun to go down. But dinner was incredible, at a really really fancy restaurant with our professors. I stuffed myself, and they kept bringing more food out! Everything was great.

Tomorrow afternoon, I meet and move-in with my host family. So excited!

Orientation :-)

It's been a busy few days in Jordan, but I finally have a little free time to write.

I moved into Al-Manar Hotel on Sunday, and we spent most of the day hanging out. Since it's Ramadan, we can't eat or drink during the day, and the tap water isn't drinkable, so we were definitely ready for dinner by 7:30. My roommate is from Columbia, and our room's been fun.

I met up with everyone for dinner in the lobby, and we had an awkward Al-Iftar (breaking of the fast) dinner. Then, after dinner, one of the guys in our group had already spent the summer in Jordan, so we went with him out to an American-ish diner where everyone had some hookah. It's kind of a tobacco smoking device... but it's not tobacco, it's like a fruit-type, water thing... Hard to explain. Our table got one with watermelon and one with lemon and mint, as we listened to a very loud, very bad Arab soap opera playing on the TV outside.

Then yesterday started bright and early at 8:30 a.m. We were picked up in a bus, and the tour guide babbled in Arabic while they took us around the city, showing us the important parts. We had lunch in a fantastic, eco-friendly restaurant where we had our first orientation session. It's really difficult when the instructors are only speaking in Arabic, most of us are only getting every 5 words, but it's helping. We played a few get-to-know you games in Arabic, which helped too.

We then toured a few of the major sites of Jordan, including an ancient Roman temple to Hercules and an Umayyad temple. We saw incredible sites of the city the whole day. We had dinner and stayed in at night in order to prepare for today's test.

That was pointless. The test was awful awful awful awful. At least everyone agreed... but I felt like all of my squiggle-knowledge just wasn't there... But oh well. Then, we spent the afternoon touring University of Jordan, which was one nice green spot in the city.

And then, we were exhausted. Really exhausted. We just had dinner a little bit ago, feel like we should go out... but it's just too tiring. Especially because we had to hide anytime we ate or drank during the day today. Time for bed... But excited for tomorrow's surprise field trip.

Finally here! عمان

Just to confirm, I'm here in Amman safe and sound. After a nice, sleep-filled plane ride and some great salmon ravioli (I highly recommend Air France, great food), I arrived early at the Amman airport. It was so strange flying into the desert: the sand was all golden, with the bright orange sunset making it shimmer. Of course, being classy and on top of their game, Air France cues the romantic "You're in a whole new world"-ish music as we land. After being mildly confused in customs, I was picked up by the family I'm staying with for the first night.

Today was the first day of Ramadan, so everyone here has been fasting from sun up until sundown. My arrival at sunset was perfect timing for the evening festivities, largely revolving around food. The Attieh family was incredibly kind and welcoming, offering me all kinds of foods. I'm not entirely sure everything I had, but it was all great. Egg drop-like onion soup, a cucumber-tomato salad, some kind of beef dish and another rice and lamb dish... Then, later, a great cream filled pancake dessert. (I almost spelled that desert... I really am in the Middle East).

Tomorrow, I'll be arriving at the hotel Al-Manar, where orientation is held. It's almost 1:15, and the household is still up: people stay up late during Ramadan. But I'm a little tired from my travel day, as well as staying up late packing last night. I'm more than ready to turn in and get ready for tomorrow.

Darn you, Charles De Gaulle...

Airports really aren't that fun... They can be, but not alone... We got at the airport around 9, maybe a little before, because Andrew's family's flight was heading out for JFK around 11. But my flight doesn't leave until 1:40... and for some reason, I felt a strong desire to be the first to arrive at my gate. Correction: my gate was packed when I arrived here, however, it was for the flight before mine to Malabo. Yes, Malabo. I had to look that up to even know where that is (Equatorial Guinea in the Western nook of Africa if anyone was wondering).

But, I should be in Amman at 7:10 tonight, about 11:10 Central Time. Sooooo soon! And still so much to do... So, here's one of my favorite pictures from Buddha Bar night as an up :)

Drink Me, I'm Famous

So, this was from Monday, but it was wonderful, so I'm going to recap.

Monday, while Andrew's family went to Normandy, I met up with my friend Deanna from Northwestern for the day. We met up near the apartment at Rue du Bac Metro stop, and then we strolled down Saint-Germain, looking for a morning crepe/wine place. It was lovely, and then we went to Le Montebello for lunch with Deanna's family. It's this amazing little place with great crème brûlée and mini raviolis. Andrew, his family and I actually went there last night again because it was that good. Then, Deanna and I spent a few hours enjoying walking down the Seine, being Parisian wannabes. We had way too much fun with our digital cameras, running into mimes, cute fruit stands and great views.

Finally, I was worn out, and I headed back to the apartment for a break. Later that night, Andrew and I enjoyed a cute little bistro down Saint-Germain. Then, we prepared for our first real night out in Paris to Buddha Bar, with me and Andrew meeting Deanna there. Buddha Bar is a chain all over, but amazing. My favorite drink list was "Drink Me, I'm Famous", from which both me and Deanna picked lovely champagne/orange vodka cocktails. Hippie, South Asian techno music blasted throughout the dim bar, it was great. Later, the bartender made us lovely "electric" cocktails.

Just wanted to put that

Sortie? Oh yes, Sortie...

The last few days have been a little crazy with how busy it's been... So, I'm going to try to post some of the more significant things that have gone on in the last few days..

Today, Andrew and I headed over to the 14th district (Paris is divided up into various districts that are used as popular reference points) in order to visit the Paris Catacombes, where millions of bodies were placed after the Black Death under neath the city in miles of underground tunnels. In the 19th century, all of these were arranged into disturbing works of art made of bones, and a few years ago, these were opened up to the public. It was a lot of walking, pretty creepy, but well worth it.

Then, we headed over to the Louvre to do the obligatory viewing of the Mona Lisa. It was more entertaining to watch the crowds than the painting, in our opinion, but still, all of the more than 30,000 works, as well as the beauty of the architecture of the structure itself, were phenomenal. All of the Egyptian sarcophagi, the Roman statues... it was ridiculous.

Well, I meant to post more, but tomorrow's another early day. We had a great Italian dinner, and finished off with a few drinks at a juice bar in the Bastille neighborhood. Hopefully, we catch up on a little sleep to make it through the week.

Croissants in the morning, wine for dinner...

Paris is beautiful and after a rough transition and lack of sleep on the airplane, I'm ready to go for the day. Went to the Eiffel Tower yesterday, heading to the Notre Dame and Sainte Chappelle today. My freshman year Medieval Architecture course actually is going to have a purpose in life! Everything is just gorgeous... and our apartment is incredible. Everyone speaks English, so no real problems there... but hopefully, we avoid the tourist trap of not having a real cultural immersion. Definitely had a lovely niche Italian dinner last night :)

Here we go...

So, I thought it'd be a good idea to start up my lovely chronicle of my next year of chaos abroad. Just as an update, I'm flying out of O'Hare this Thursday for Paris, where I'll be spending a week. Then, I'll be flying on the 22nd for Amman, and my program starts the 23rd.

Right now, I'm just trying to figure out how I fit my life into one 40 pound bag and a small carry-on... We'll see how that works out. The room is a mess, and there is way too much to organize.

'll be starting Skype up in a few weeks, but I'm working one step at a time. I'm just so so so ready to go after this ridiculously long and tedious summer, but I'm sure I'll miss horseshoes, Sonic and all the fun of Northwestern.

As of right now, I'm tenatively planning on flying back into the States on December 19th, but it really depends on money, travel options and a few other X-factors. If I do, hopefully, I'll be spending a couple weeks in Springfield as well as a couple weeks at NU.