A Sweet Dream....

This is me sneaking some contraband water during Ramadan, when drinking and eating in public before sunset is illegal. I don't think anyone saw me. Besides the photographer of course.

The other day I made an exciting trip to Cozmo to do some grocery shopping. This place has it all; macaroni and cheese, a huge selection of tea, a bakery, tons of pasta, a ton of British food [yay soup in a cup, porridge and vindaloo curry base] I would use my parentheses by the way, if I didn't spill some tea with honey on my computer, consequently rendering some of my keys out of comission. Cozmo also has a pretty decent ethnic foods aisle, similar to the ones I'm used to seeing at Krogers and Meijers in the US; a lot of chinese, Indian, Thai and Mexican. I had a good chuckle though when I saw Taco Bell salso in the ethnic foods aisle. For Jordan, it is 'ethnic' of course, it was one of the more subtle reminders that I'm not in the US anymore.

The possibility came up recently that I just be able to come home for about two weeks around the holidays. I'm excited for this for multiple reasons; I'll get to see a lot of people that I miss, I'll get to stuff myself with all things I have been missing [kettle corn, macaroni and cheese and sweet potatoes to name a few] and I'll bring back some stuff that I stupidly left at home. For instance, my super awesome camera that has a million features I can be creative with. Just when I'm starting to get back into photography, I don't have my best camera with me!

As I was taking nap today, I had a very vivid dream of driving my Honda Civic around in Toledo, passing the Barney's gas station and being filled with giddy excitement when I spotted.....Taco Bell! I'm pretty sure I drooled on my pillow as I dreamed of a grilled stuffed burrito with ten packets of hot sauce, cinnamon twists and a soda. When I awoke from my dream I was sorely disappointed. I mean really disappointed. I awoke to the realization that I'm still in Jordan and there is no Taco Bell here. Not even a Del Taco or anything comparable. I just wanted to go back to sleep.

Now most of you are probably thinking "Duh, you're in the Middle East, of course there isn't a Taco Bell!" But, check out the list of restaurants and fast food places that I've seen in Amman:
Fudruckers, Applebees, Papa Johns, Dominos, TGIFridays, Bennigans, Burger King, Popeyes, McDonalds, Kentucky Fried Chicken, some other fast food chain I can't think of, and rumor has it there is a Chili's that's going to open up soon. Sometimes it's the little things.....

On another note, guess what I found when I was going through some drawers in the dining room today? A SMOKE DETECTOR! Yep, that would have come in handy last Tuesday!! Ha ha ha ha.

Also, my camera mysteriously started to work again. It 'broke' about two months ago and as soon as I was finally getting ready to get it looked at somewhere, it started to work. This is awesome, I'm not complaining, just not what I was expecting. Kind of like that smoke alarm tucked away in the drawer with no batteries.

It's back to school on Monday, the lovely Eid break is almost over. Back to the busy teaching life and piles of grading. On the bright side, now that Ramadan is over, I'll be able to start a yoga class {cancelled during Ramadan} maybe do a dance class, go to a cafe after school and say adios to the nightmare traffic that ensued after school for the past month. Did I mention how thrilled I am that Ramadan is over? Not that I didn't enjoy the Iftars I had with friends {the breaking of the fast meal when the sun sets} but now life is back to normal. Allelulia.

A Smoking Hot Good Time....or Not

You know the old saying, "You never really appreciate what you have until it's gone?" Well, I've found this to be more true than ever when a fire erupted on the ground floor of my apartment complex and there was NO smoke detector and NO fire alarm. I sometimes even considered them to be a nuisance when they would go off because of steam from a shower or a baking catastrophe in the kitchen. Now that seems like a minor inconvenience. Let me explain.

On Tuesday, I was home alone sitting in front of my computer when the electricity went off. No big deal, I thought, it should come back on in a couple of hours. I only had one candle and my phone screen was the only source of other light but hey, no big deal. Suddenly I smelled something burning. Burning plastic.....I rushed to the kitchen to see if I left the stove on but everything was ok. I opened the door to the apartment and was hit in the face by a wave of smoke and an even stronger burning odor. At this point my brain turned off....

In this moment of panic, it seemed like a good idea to jump off my balcony, but after looking over the ledge, I figured that a third story jump was not a good idea. Crap, I'd have to run down the stairs. It was pitch black and smoky as hell. In another lucid moment, I ran out of the apartment in my tank top, using my phone as a light to guide my way down the stairs and using my other hand to hold onto the railing. It honestly didn't even cross my mind to cover my mouth or put on a sweatshirt.

I'm pretty sure I was one of the last, if not the last, people out of the apartment. The fire trucks were already there and there were tons of people in the street. I didn't even hear the fire trucks (did they even have their sirens on?) there was no smoke detector to warn me and I didn't hear anyone scream 'fire' or anything else to warn me. The system seems to be as follows: Inshallah you won't be sleeping, or if you are, the smoke or burning flames will awake you from your slumber. If you are awake, Inshallah you will realize very quickly that there is a fire and get the hell out before you are either burned or suffer from smoke inhalation. Inshallah, your brain will still work and you won't even think of jumping off your third floor balcony (2nd floor here in Jordan) and you will have the presence of mind to cover yourself up with something before running through a ton of smoke.

The good news is that the fire department arrived within three minutes and nobody was hurt. The family who was living in the apartment over the summer had just moved back to Bahrain the same day so nobody's belongings were destroyed either. Best case scenario for a fire really. Unfortunately all that smoke seemed to expedite the cough that was already starting. By the end of the night, I was really hacking up a lung and couldn't sleep. Gretchen says it sounds like I have emphesema when I cough. This isn't helped by the fact that I didn't shut the door when I left the apartment so our apartment was filled with smoke and a nice layer of soot settled on everything. Ironically, my room had the most smoke of all.

Before going to bed, I told Gretchen, "Hey, things can't get any worse!"

I spoke too soon, I really should have kept my mouth shut because a couple hours I spilled some tea on my laptop. Tea with honey. Sticky wetness on my laptop sent me into panic mode once again. Luckily there wasn't a lot and I cleaned it up pretty quick. My computer is still working although the mouse pad is busted. Thankfully my friend Ahmad picked up an external USB mouse and now everything is in working order. When I get paid in 2 weeks and can stop subsisting on rice and beans, I'll try and get the mouse pad fixed.

The next morning I went to see a doctor and on the way into the hospital, my favorite sandals busted. At this point I just started laughing. What else can you do at this point? So I walked in with my right sandal in my hand. After being diagnosed with a throat infection and having four medications prescribed to me, I just walked out with both sandals in my hand. What's the point of wearing one sandal, really?

The icing on the cake was when I went to school to get my visa extended. I was taking the day off due to feeling like crap and hacking up a lung. I was told it was a good idea to get my visa extended that day because it would be nearly impossible to get it done over Eid. So I showered and went to school, where I was going to get a ride to the police station and be accompanied by the HR person of the school who could take care of the details. When the guy looked at my passport and visa, he said that we couldn't just go to the police station to renew my visa since I had already been here three months. He would have to go through the Ministry of Interior to get my extenstion. And of course, this would have to wait until after Eid. My visa is currently expired but luckily I wasn't planning on leaving Jordan for the holiday anyway and the school will pay the '1 JD per day for every day my visa is expired' fee.

In the end, I can laugh at it all. It's all one big adventure. I have survived so far.

My First Weeks Teaching

Sorry I have neglected you blog....it has been a crazy two weeks since school started as I have been trying to cram my head full of new information; how to memorize 100 students names, how to make a lesson plan, how to teach effectively, how to make learning fun and how to manage a class. Not to mention that waking up at 6:00 am definitely takes some getting used to! Those who know me are aware that waking up at 6:00 is not something I'm a big fan of. If I wake up around 8 or 9 I usually need about 15 minutes before I'm coherent enough to speak. Waking up at 6 means I need about a half hour. Luckily Gretchen seems to be the same way so we're happy just mumbling a good morning to each other when we wake up and the conversation doesn't start until we've left the house after 7.

Before I was complaining about Ramadan because I can't go to a cafe or eat out before 7. Plus the bars are closed. I have since slightly changed my mind about Ramadan due to the fact that I will most likely be getting a nine day holiday directly following the end of Ramadan. And I sure could use the 9 day break after the lack of sleep and constant work. I've also more or less put my Arabic studies on the back burner as I immerse myself in figuring out the whole teaching thing. This vacation time will be a time for sleeping in, finally getting back into Arabic and doing some pleasure reading. As well as doing more reading on how to teach effectively, etc.

Although the last 2 weeks have been a bit stressful, there have been a fair share of things at school that brought a smile to my face or made me laugh. One of my students told me that I look like Pink, which at first confused me because I wan't wearing anything pink that day and I wasn't sunburned. Another student raised her hand to ask me a question after receiving instructions for an in class exercise. I walked over expecting to clear go over the instructions but I was met with a 'teacher, why are you wearing a headband on your neck?' That day I was wearing a big silver necklace that lies low on the neck and I guess could be easily mistaken as a headband. The best was when a student raised her hand and asked me why I wore the same skirt every day.....I guess three days in a row is when people start to wonder about your fashion sensibilities; even fourth graders! Next time I should ask why the student wears the same clothes every day.....the obvious answer being that they have a uniform. I don't know how well that would actually go over though. Maybe I'll just actually have to switch up my wardrobe.

How 5th Graders Develop their English Skills

My friend Gretchen and I have been sharing a lot of stories lately related to our new positions as grade school English teachers. So far, it's been pretty great as the teachers and staff are all very helpful and make a point to tell us if there is anything we need, just ask. It makes the task of teaching for the first time less daunting to be sure.

As I was discussing the curriculum with Gretchen she mentioned that the first story her 5th grade students were reading was about nuclear bombs and death. Naturally, I was curious and got ahold of the story. Before I even started to read the story, I saw what she was talking about. The title is Nuclear Disaster! and the middle of the pages displays a prominent orange and yellow photo of the nuclear mushroom bomb. No joke.

As I was reading the story, several phrases jumped out at me, for example: my father looked sick. Mainly he was beginning to be sick, but mainly I think he was distressed. Bodies, just dead bodies, they're all dead. The Johnsons, the Peters' - they were all in there, all dead. There were dead birds in the streets. Not exactly a cheery story for the students to be reading, much less during the first week of school. I can picture the first day of class...."Welcome to English students, I think we will all have an enjoyable and educational time reading about death and nuclear bombs."

In the corresponding grammar sections I found the following sentences. There is always a risk of nuclear war if countries keep nuclear weapons. There are some countries, including Britain, that still have nuclear bombs. Steve emerged from the cellar to find destruction everywhere.

No wonder people from other parts of the world often know more about world affairs and wonder why we cringe at the sight of violence on the news; they are exposed to these things in grade school!

Jordanian 'Meetings'

As it's the beginning of the academic year, we have been having a lot of meetings at the Ahliyyah School for Girls, where I have just started my position as a fourth grade English teacher. Many of the meetings consist of a handful of people in an office and are conducted as I would expect they would be. The surprise came when we had two huge meetings, or an 'Arab Pep Rally'.

I was a bit surprised when the movie clips from Dangerous Minds, and some other American movie meant to inspire us as teachers, played for about 20 minutes. At first it was a nice break from all the Arabic, of which I understood very little and was making my brain tired. But as the film clips dragged on, I just wanted to go home and take a nice long nap.

To inspire us further, there were at least three poems read, some of which were read by who seems to have been designated the 'official poem reader' because of his commanding voice. There was a poem about different kinds of birds, trees and I don't even remember what else.

The meeting wrapped up with a series of songs sang by different people, complete with a piano, microphone and some kind of electonic gadget. They were all in Arabic of course, and quite beautiful, and I'm sure I would have appreciated them more if I wasn't tired, hungry and extremely fatigued. Just so that the Westerners wouldn't feel left out, they also sang an Elvis song which was quite sweet of them. I have to admit that I perked up a little, as I could actually sing along.

Sometimes it can seem like a waste of time watching the movie clips, singing and listening to poetry, but I'm sure that once I start attending 'normal' meetings as we would expect in the States, I'll be complaining that I miss the singing and poetry!

Ramadan

I really shouldn't be complaining, as I'm not even fasting. I don't have to wake up at 3:30 in the morning to drink water and eat a light 'breakfast', what they call Sahur, so that I'm not famished and dehydrated in the morning. But it having all the restaurants closed before sunset and having all the bars and clubs for the month of Ramadan is definitely something to get used to. I love being able to get a nice schwarma or some hommos and falalal for about $1.50 in the middle of the day. I think I'll miss that more than the bars being closed as drinks are so expensive here anyway. It's also illegal to drink or eat in public before sunset but I can deal with this no problem. Just guzzle a bunch of water before leaving the apartment or school and I'm good to go.

This is the third full day of Ramadan and the spirit is in the air. The apartments, houses and even restaurants and stores are decked out in Ramadan lights. Some look like the white twinkle lights that are seen in the US during Christmas and some are shaped like the moon and stars. I haven't taken a taxi during the day yet but I've heard that the taxi drivers, and probably all drivers for that matter are more irritable as they are going without any drinks, food or cigarettes all day. And I thought that traffic on a normal day was crazy here....

On the other hand the streets are virtually empty when the sun sets so I can hail a taxi in an instant and cross the street almost without looking. We will also get out of school at 1:00 instead of 2:00 and there is a special Ramadan course in Arabic that I'm taking from 2:30-4:30 five days a week. So I guess Ramadan is not without benefits.

I've heard that there are special Ramadan sweets, similar to special treats that are usually reserved for Christmas (think fruit cake, egg nog, frosted Christmas cookies, etc.) most of which I haven't tried yet but will soon enough I'm sure. The one Ramadan sweet that I did try was Gedaya, which looks like a pancake and tastes pretty similar, just more chewy than American pancakes. Gretchen and I walked into a bakery and found the placed stacked with these 'pancakes' from wall to wall. Pancakes everywhere! Of course we had to buy some out of curiosity, and also because we love pancakes. So we got home and proceeded to drench them in syrup. Later that night we were notified that nobody eats gedaye this way; they are traditionally filled with nuts and or some kind of cheesiness that is hard to identify. Then they are fried and drenched in a sugar syrup. I tried this stuffed fried variation and wasn't a big fan of it actually. I'll stick to eating them 'pancake style' drenched in syrup and immediately enjoyed. I figure it's also better for my arteries this way. Just talking about this is making me thirsty, I'm going to go indulge in a tall, cold glass of water....

Getting Things Fixed Requires an Entourage

Several weeks ago, I noticed that some of the molding in our bathroom had just fallen down, and our couch already needed to be fixed, as well as one of our other bathrooms so we figured it was about time that stuff gets fixed. We arranged a time for the couch and molding to be repaired and before you know it, our apartment was full of people. There was one guy working on the couch, two guys working on the molding, one guy just sitting in a chair, maybe overseeing the quality of the work?, and the landlord and her mother. I thought it was odd that the landlord would come with her mother while things were getting repaired. After all, it must be quite boring to just sit around doing not much of anything. I later understood the reasoning....when women live alone, it's not apropriate here for repair men to be alone in the house with them. So, the landlord and her mother were here for cultural reasons, to make us feel more comfortable since there were men we didn't know working in our apartment. This almost made me feel guilty since I didn't feel that the women needed to be there but at the same time I didn't want to tell them to go home.

Shortly after the men arrived, I asked if they wanted anything to drink; water, soda, juice...I don't know why I didn't think of offering them tea, I've already been here 2 months and have realized that tea is as important to life as eating and sleeping! One of the men asked for tea so I went about boiling the water and asked how much sugar they wanted. I figured there was about a 0% chance that they didn't want tea. 3 heaping spoons of sugar for each mug! Just thinking about drinking that nearly gave me diabetes. I then put some biscuits and pastries on the table for them. You can see this Jordanian sense of hospitality has really rubbed off on me. I swear I almost felt insulted when nobody ate the biscuits and pastries. I was thinking, umm...is something wrong? I even worried that the tea wasn't hot enough when I tasted mine and realized it wasn't piping hot. Well, when I get back to the US I'll probably still say please and thank you all the time and I'll be super hospitable. A win win situation for people back home :)

The confusing part was when one of the guys asked if I had newspaper. My first thought was, come on guys, did you forget to bring a drop cloth to cover the floor?! Come prepared! Then he said 'selah' which I didn't know the meaning of at the time. Of course I learned a couple days later that it means prayer. After some gesturing I finally understand that it was time for evening prayer and he needed something to kneel and pray with; newspaper, a blanket, a rug, whatever. All of the sudden it dawned on me and I brought him a blanket. He and the 2 others proceeded to face Mecca and do their prayers...while Gretchen and I sat on the couch not quite knowing what to do.

In the end, it was a learning experience for both of us; always have tea, water and a blanket ready and try not to feel guilty when women come and 'do us a favor' by sticking around when men we don't know are working in the apartment.