Hello All,
Dead Sea
The Dead Sea Spa and Resort
Looking over to Jerusalem
Well the past couple of days have been quite busy!! From trying new fruit (do you know how awesome it is to have local oranges? It is FANTASTIC! Also figs are AWESOME... really need to nab some more of those), going to the Taj mall twice (story to follow), taking a taxi all by myself, and taking a trip to the Dead Sea. Yup it's been a pretty awesome past couple of days!
I'm not sure if I have mentioned this before, but weekends here are Friday and Saturday. Therefore Margie was off on Friday and we decided to take a trip to the Taj mall to partake of the 70% off sale at H&M and have a Starbucks (yes, they have Starbucks here!). Unfortunately we didn't realize that stores do not open until 2pm on Fridays, after prayer, but we did get some delicious Starbucks. Once we returned home Margie left to go on a hike in the gorge of Wadi Mujib (sounds pretty sweet, and I think I will do one in the future) and I settled in for what I thought would be a relaxing evening in the apartment. Little did I know I would actually end up spending the rest of the evening at the Dead Sea with Whitney (the other current house guest) and her coworker Joel (who is from Canada... yay, Canadians unite). It is absolutely gorgeous! Seriously! It was a hazy day, but if you looked hard enough over the red sand hills you could see Jerusalem. Unfortunately I did not have a bathing suit, so I just dipped my toes in, but it was fun to watch the rest of the people float and spread the mud all over themselves and enjoy the scenery and soothing sounds. I would love to go back, when I actually have a bathing suit, but it is super duper expensive 25JD to gain access to a private beach from a hotel (mind you that does include a food voucher).
Today started out with a skype convo and breakfast with my sister; it's the first time I've used skype here and I wasn't disappointed... it was really lovely to see a familiar face! After that I took a taxi to go check out a possible apartment/roommate I found on an expat site. That was an experience! First of all it was the first time I have taken a taxi all by myself and then I mispronounced the landmark name and I was taken in the opposite direction of where I wanted to go. After a minor freak out/ realizing I was in the wrong place, I stopped to ask a different taxi driver where to go. This taxi driver unfortunately was already waiting for a customer, but offered to stop another taxi for me and give the driver directions; just as he was about to do that, his customer came back which resulted in a funny conversation:
Customer (a gentleman from Texas) to taxi driver- "Are you being mean to this young lady?" (said jokingly)
Taxi Driver-"No sir, I was just about to help her find a different taxi"
Customer- "Well that's not a way to treat a lady! You are going to give her a ride and for free!"
So I ended up getting a free ride to where I needed to go, with a older Texan gentleman (I say gentleman, because he even opened the taxi door for me) working in Dubai and in Amman for business. We had a lovely conversation on the way. I guess this gentleman always uses this driver when he is in Amman, and told the driver to give me his number and to take care of me if ever I needed anything. I am so thankful for the small kindnesses I experience everyday, it makes this place seem a little less overwhelming and more like home.
After the apartment visit, I decided to take another taxi to the Taj Mall. I really needed a few short sleeved shirts since it is not as scandalous here as I thought it would be and it's crazy hot here, as mentioned in previous posts. Taj mall was a mall; I do find shopping for clothes here a little disconcerting. The few stores I have been in tend to be male staff and they follow you around the store... I find it annoying in Canada when women staff do that, but here with male staff it really turns you off of shopping. So to cheer myself up/congratulate myself on the accomplishments I achieved today, I bought a frozen yogurt from Pinkberry and picked up some fruit from Spinneys (a grocery store... seriously one of my favorite places here). Then I came home to eat, have a nap, make some phone calls and write this entry. I am still thoroughly enjoying myself here, even though it still seems like a bit of a dream. I am also slowly becoming a little bit more confidant and independent, which is very nice as I feel like I am returning back to my normal self.
So for now
Love from Jordan,
Kate
Sunset at the Dead Sea
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