So after three weeks, Jon and I are still without internet access. As such I'm getting to know the internet cafes around West Amman pretty well. At the cafe next to Qasid, I've made friends with a number of the employees. Today the Turkish bartender, Hazem, came over to my place with a whole ton of Turkish food that his sister prepared. Over our lunch, Hazem showed me all kinds of maps of Turkey and gave me a little background of the major historic sights in Istanbul. He has assured me that if I'd like to visit, his sister who lives in Istanbul would be more than willing to host me. I don't really have any plans to visit Turkey as of yet, but nice to know I'd have a place to stay.
After class yesterday, I went with my buddy Cody to check out his apartment. Cody lives in a district called Jebel Webideh, about a 15-20 minute walk to Downtown but the area has a neat small town feel. After taking a tour of the area, Cody's landlady, Alice, invited us in to her place for some chocolates and wine. As we were heading out, Alice invited Cody and I to the Orthodox Christian baptism of her friend's child next Friday. First, there will be a service at the church, which is a few blocks from Cody's place, followed by the baptism at the Dead Sea, and a big party. Should be a neat experience, and I'm obviously stoked to visit the Dead Sea!
The workload in class seems to be picking up each week. We've already had a couple quizzes, both of which I've aced! I've also been in contact with Dr. Fares Braizat at the Center for Strategic Studies, looks like I'll be starting my internship a week from today. Dr. Braizat's focus is in analysis of regional public opinion polls which gauge Arab perceptions of the West in the post-9/11 world. I'll be working effectively as his research assistant, beyond that I'm not sure exactly what my work will entail.
Monday, January 12, 2009
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
The Power Hut
Since I've settled into my new place, I decided to join a local gym as an incentive to get back in shape. I toured several places in both Abdoun and Shmeisani, to include Total Fitness, Fitness First, and "The Power Hut". The first two places were ridiculously expensive, with membership costing between 175-200 JD/month, all good and fine for Abdoun's finest, but not me and my roommate. Ultimately, I settled on "The Power Hut" in Shmeisani, which is more or less comparable to a Gold's Gym back home, and is only a five minute cab ride from my place.
Things are going well at the new place. The heating hasn't really been an issue since the weather has been balmy over the last week or so. We also have a space heater which we use in the living room. Unfortunately we think the space heater may be the reason we've blown a couple fuses in our place over the last several days. This has required a couple trips to visit the "Haaris" of the building, Ali, who speaks no english. Luckily I was able to use my Arabic to communicate that we had lost power and he got it back on in minutes.
Living so close to the Abdoun Supermarket has proven to be quite a convenience. It doesn't have everything, but you can pick up most of the essentials there. In fact, prior to last week they didn't carry loaves of bread. After making friends with the Store Manager he has agreed to stock the shelves with a few loaves of bread every couple weeks, just for me and my roommate!
Classes are going pretty well. We have just moved on to the primary Level 1 text which is more dense in terms of the grammatical instruction.
All for now.
Things are going well at the new place. The heating hasn't really been an issue since the weather has been balmy over the last week or so. We also have a space heater which we use in the living room. Unfortunately we think the space heater may be the reason we've blown a couple fuses in our place over the last several days. This has required a couple trips to visit the "Haaris" of the building, Ali, who speaks no english. Luckily I was able to use my Arabic to communicate that we had lost power and he got it back on in minutes.
Living so close to the Abdoun Supermarket has proven to be quite a convenience. It doesn't have everything, but you can pick up most of the essentials there. In fact, prior to last week they didn't carry loaves of bread. After making friends with the Store Manager he has agreed to stock the shelves with a few loaves of bread every couple weeks, just for me and my roommate!
Classes are going pretty well. We have just moved on to the primary Level 1 text which is more dense in terms of the grammatical instruction.
All for now.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
My First Apartment!
Hard to believe that my first apartment out of college is in Jordan of all places! No one could have told me two years ago this would be the case.
So I finally moved out of the hotel yesterday afternoon after my morning class. Fortunately my lowly Arabic skills sufficed so I could navigate for the cab driver. Unfortunately, in less than 24 hours at the new place, John and I are already dealing with several issues:
1) The place is freezing! We have one space heater, but will probably have to buy a couple more.
2) Despite buying a modem, and 3 month cable subscription Tuesday afternoon, our internet connection is all jacked up. Dealing with customer service at Orange has been a nightmare.
3) The power went out last night, and has not come back on since. Hopefully it will come back soon, otherwise we'll have to make a call tomorrow (can't today because of national holiday).
New Year's Eve was pretty uneventful, appartently a number of the bigger parties in Amman were cancelled due to the situation in Gaza. John ended up going to some Jordanian family friend's party, while I opted to stay in. Once the power went out around 9:30pm, I decided to venture over to Abdoun Circle. Most of the clubs and lounges had expensive cover charges, ranging from 50 JD (~$75), to around 200 JD (~$300). Instead, I decided to head over to the Sheraton near my apartment. There I met a guy from Louisiana who works as a helicopter mechanic in Iraq. Closer to midnight, we walked to the nearby Bristol Hotel which was hosting a couple parties. I opted to not pay the expensive cover charge and instead headed home around 11:30pm. Pretty lame New Year, I know, but I have no regrets.
I'm currently hanging out at the swanky Blue Fig Cafe in Abdoun, quite a different scene than what I've experienced at cafes elsewhere in the city. The place is packed with very well-dressed young people. Notably, there are a number of mixed sex groups hanging out and socializing.
The idea of addresses, and street names for that matter, are completely new to Jordanians. Most streets in middle class parts of Amman were given names only about 4-5 years ago. Instead, most people have things delivered to P.O. Boxes. I've opted to distribute my school address for incoming mail/packages (address below).
Qasid Institute for Classical & Modern Standard Arabic
22 Queen Rania St., Suite 300
Amman 11196, Jordan
My e-mail: geoffrey.dietz@gmail.com
That is all for now. More to come in the next couple days.
So I finally moved out of the hotel yesterday afternoon after my morning class. Fortunately my lowly Arabic skills sufficed so I could navigate for the cab driver. Unfortunately, in less than 24 hours at the new place, John and I are already dealing with several issues:
1) The place is freezing! We have one space heater, but will probably have to buy a couple more.
2) Despite buying a modem, and 3 month cable subscription Tuesday afternoon, our internet connection is all jacked up. Dealing with customer service at Orange has been a nightmare.
3) The power went out last night, and has not come back on since. Hopefully it will come back soon, otherwise we'll have to make a call tomorrow (can't today because of national holiday).
New Year's Eve was pretty uneventful, appartently a number of the bigger parties in Amman were cancelled due to the situation in Gaza. John ended up going to some Jordanian family friend's party, while I opted to stay in. Once the power went out around 9:30pm, I decided to venture over to Abdoun Circle. Most of the clubs and lounges had expensive cover charges, ranging from 50 JD (~$75), to around 200 JD (~$300). Instead, I decided to head over to the Sheraton near my apartment. There I met a guy from Louisiana who works as a helicopter mechanic in Iraq. Closer to midnight, we walked to the nearby Bristol Hotel which was hosting a couple parties. I opted to not pay the expensive cover charge and instead headed home around 11:30pm. Pretty lame New Year, I know, but I have no regrets.
I'm currently hanging out at the swanky Blue Fig Cafe in Abdoun, quite a different scene than what I've experienced at cafes elsewhere in the city. The place is packed with very well-dressed young people. Notably, there are a number of mixed sex groups hanging out and socializing.
The idea of addresses, and street names for that matter, are completely new to Jordanians. Most streets in middle class parts of Amman were given names only about 4-5 years ago. Instead, most people have things delivered to P.O. Boxes. I've opted to distribute my school address for incoming mail/packages (address below).
Qasid Institute for Classical & Modern Standard Arabic
22 Queen Rania St., Suite 300
Amman 11196, Jordan
My e-mail: geoffrey.dietz@gmail.com
That is all for now. More to come in the next couple days.
Monday, December 29, 2008
Apartment in Abdoun
So yesterday my buddy John and I signed a three month lease on a two bedroom apartment in Abdoun. As mentioned in my previous post, Abdoun is considered the cleanest, most upscale, and westernized district in Amman. John and I looked at a couple apartments in Sports City (close to Qasid), but ultimately decided that it would be advantageous to live elsewhere in Amman.
The apartment is situated on the top floor of a five story building, and features a nice wrap around balcony which will be great come Spring time (pictures to follow). The complex is about a five minute cab ride to Abdoun Circle, where one can find the upscale Abdoun Mall, as well as some of the nicer restaurants and cafes in the city.
Tonite I plan to pack up all my things, with hopes that we can move tomorrow afternoon. It'll be a shame to say 'goodbye' to the staff at Shuqaq al-Nabhan. The staff has grown pretty fond of me ("Mr. Geoff") in the last week and a half.
The apartment is situated on the top floor of a five story building, and features a nice wrap around balcony which will be great come Spring time (pictures to follow). The complex is about a five minute cab ride to Abdoun Circle, where one can find the upscale Abdoun Mall, as well as some of the nicer restaurants and cafes in the city.
Tonite I plan to pack up all my things, with hopes that we can move tomorrow afternoon. It'll be a shame to say 'goodbye' to the staff at Shuqaq al-Nabhan. The staff has grown pretty fond of me ("Mr. Geoff") in the last week and a half.
Friday, December 26, 2008
Christmas in J-Town
Merry Christmas to all from Amman! If anyone had told me last year this time that I'd be spending my next Christmas in a Muslim country, I'd have said they were crazy...
So I woke up yesterday morning at 5am to sun-up prayer calls, followed a little later by a call from Ahmed at the front desk wishing "Mr. Geoff" a Merry Christmas.
On Christmas Eve, my Jordanian contact, Malia Asfour invited me to Christmas dinner at her parent's house. Malia's family was extremely generous, I don't think I could have eaten much more than I did. Oddly enough, Malia and her two sisters are all married to Americans, naturally we had a nice little discussion about the NFL playoff picture. Dinner was served around 2:30pm, followed by a little dessert, then a trip downtown to pick up pirated DVDs. Malia's husband, Harry, had a list of about 75 DVDs to pick up, comprised of everything from Disney movies to the latest movies in the theaters. For all of 1 JD a piece, you can get pretty much any DVD your heart desires, most of which are good quality.
Following our trip downtown, I went back to the hotel and took a nap before meeting up with my buddy John. After stopping by the liquor store, we went over to our friend Alex's apartment. Alex hosted a little Christmas party of 10-15 people. Shortly after arriving I was introduced to a guy from Detroit who just so happens to be a junior at Miami!
Otherwise, everything else is going well. Classes are pretty much review, at least the first couple weeks will be. John and I are still looking for apartments on the side. We've started looking outside the Sports City area (near Qasid), in a district called Abdoun. This is the most upscale, westernized part of town. We've be dealing with this friendly South African real estate agent who is constantly joking about how Johannesburg is such a craphole. Anyways, hopefully John and I can settle on something this weekend.
So I woke up yesterday morning at 5am to sun-up prayer calls, followed a little later by a call from Ahmed at the front desk wishing "Mr. Geoff" a Merry Christmas.
On Christmas Eve, my Jordanian contact, Malia Asfour invited me to Christmas dinner at her parent's house. Malia's family was extremely generous, I don't think I could have eaten much more than I did. Oddly enough, Malia and her two sisters are all married to Americans, naturally we had a nice little discussion about the NFL playoff picture. Dinner was served around 2:30pm, followed by a little dessert, then a trip downtown to pick up pirated DVDs. Malia's husband, Harry, had a list of about 75 DVDs to pick up, comprised of everything from Disney movies to the latest movies in the theaters. For all of 1 JD a piece, you can get pretty much any DVD your heart desires, most of which are good quality.
Following our trip downtown, I went back to the hotel and took a nap before meeting up with my buddy John. After stopping by the liquor store, we went over to our friend Alex's apartment. Alex hosted a little Christmas party of 10-15 people. Shortly after arriving I was introduced to a guy from Detroit who just so happens to be a junior at Miami!
Otherwise, everything else is going well. Classes are pretty much review, at least the first couple weeks will be. John and I are still looking for apartments on the side. We've started looking outside the Sports City area (near Qasid), in a district called Abdoun. This is the most upscale, westernized part of town. We've be dealing with this friendly South African real estate agent who is constantly joking about how Johannesburg is such a craphole. Anyways, hopefully John and I can settle on something this weekend.
Monday, December 22, 2008
Orientation
Orientation went well on Saturday morning. The placement exam and interview that followed were used to gauge students’ existing Arabic skills. It looks like I’ll be placed in the Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) level one class, as was expected. Classes will be held from 8am-11 Tuesday-Thursday, as well as Saturday and Sunday. Since the program has apparently decided to change the students’ off days to Friday and Monday, I won’t be afforded a proper weekend unfortunately. It looks like Qasid has planned a number of day trips over the next few months, not sure however how I’m going to swing other trips outside Jordan.
There are a number of other Americans attending Qasid for the winter session. John, a recent graduate from Princeton, is also looking to move to another apartment over the next couple weeks. This afternoon John and I will be looking at a place that is a bit closer to school. One of the Qasid professors has introduced us to a British guy, named Hani, who works at Islamica Magazine, which is headquartered out of the same building as Qasid. Hani lives in a compound with his British family, and is looking to rent out a few rooms to Qasid students. John and I are scheduled to meet with him this afternoon, then take a tour of his apartment. It looks like this will be a much cheaper alternative to living in the hotel where I’m currently staying.
Yesterday I took a day trip to a small city northwest of Amman called Ajlun, home to the famous Ajlun Castle (al-Qar’at ar-Rabad) which was built in the 12th century on the orders of Saladin. Tomorrow I'll post some cool photos I took, as well as a brief historical overview of the castle and its significance.
There are a number of other Americans attending Qasid for the winter session. John, a recent graduate from Princeton, is also looking to move to another apartment over the next couple weeks. This afternoon John and I will be looking at a place that is a bit closer to school. One of the Qasid professors has introduced us to a British guy, named Hani, who works at Islamica Magazine, which is headquartered out of the same building as Qasid. Hani lives in a compound with his British family, and is looking to rent out a few rooms to Qasid students. John and I are scheduled to meet with him this afternoon, then take a tour of his apartment. It looks like this will be a much cheaper alternative to living in the hotel where I’m currently staying.
Yesterday I took a day trip to a small city northwest of Amman called Ajlun, home to the famous Ajlun Castle (al-Qar’at ar-Rabad) which was built in the 12th century on the orders of Saladin. Tomorrow I'll post some cool photos I took, as well as a brief historical overview of the castle and its significance.
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Abdullah from Safeway
Friday was pretty exciting as I made my first Jordanian friend. Yesterday evening I decided to stop into the Safeway before heading back to my apartment. Upon entering the supermarket, I was immediately confronted by a Safeway security official (oddly enough they have security officials at entrances to most supermarkets, malls, and brandname stores) who told me I needed to re-enter through the metal detector (most of which are dysfunctional anyway).
Shortly before leaving the Safeway, I struck up a little conversation with the security official. Speaking in broken english, he told me that he's always wanted to visit America, but that his wife has been a little apprehensive. Jokingly, I told him I could convince his wife that America would be very welcoming to friendly Jordanians. Five minutes into our conversation, my new friend, Abdullah, decided to invite me to eat with him at the KFC next door to Safeway (only later did I find out that this man was OBSESSED with fried chicken).
Later that night, I met up with Abdullah at the KFC where he very graciously paid for my meal. Our conversation basically consisted of me teaching him english, and him teaching me arabic. We also discussed some American pop culture, to include his favorite actors, Antonio Banderas, Sylvester Stallone, and Jean Claude Van Damme. At the end of our meal. Abdullah proceeded to spark one cigaratte after another. All told, I think he smoked about five marlboro reds in the course of half an hour. Before we parted ways, Abdullah cordially offered to host me at his home in the next week, insha'allah (God Willing), as he wants to introduce me to his wife. I'm not sure yet if I'll take him up on his offer, but in any case it was nice having good conversation with a Jordanian.
This morning I had my Qasid orientation which went very well. Orientation was comprised of a brief program and academic overview, as well as a placement exam and interview. I'll leave the details for a posting tomorrow night.
Unfortunately the internet access in my building is virtually non-existent. I'm thinking I will probably be moving to a new apartment in the next couple weeks.
That is all for now. More to follow tomorrow.
Shortly before leaving the Safeway, I struck up a little conversation with the security official. Speaking in broken english, he told me that he's always wanted to visit America, but that his wife has been a little apprehensive. Jokingly, I told him I could convince his wife that America would be very welcoming to friendly Jordanians. Five minutes into our conversation, my new friend, Abdullah, decided to invite me to eat with him at the KFC next door to Safeway (only later did I find out that this man was OBSESSED with fried chicken).
Later that night, I met up with Abdullah at the KFC where he very graciously paid for my meal. Our conversation basically consisted of me teaching him english, and him teaching me arabic. We also discussed some American pop culture, to include his favorite actors, Antonio Banderas, Sylvester Stallone, and Jean Claude Van Damme. At the end of our meal. Abdullah proceeded to spark one cigaratte after another. All told, I think he smoked about five marlboro reds in the course of half an hour. Before we parted ways, Abdullah cordially offered to host me at his home in the next week, insha'allah (God Willing), as he wants to introduce me to his wife. I'm not sure yet if I'll take him up on his offer, but in any case it was nice having good conversation with a Jordanian.
This morning I had my Qasid orientation which went very well. Orientation was comprised of a brief program and academic overview, as well as a placement exam and interview. I'll leave the details for a posting tomorrow night.
Unfortunately the internet access in my building is virtually non-existent. I'm thinking I will probably be moving to a new apartment in the next couple weeks.
That is all for now. More to follow tomorrow.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
