Sunday, August 14, 2011

Goodbye, Jordan :(

So... guess who's leaving Jordan in less than 12 hours! Ahhh, I'm so going to miss it! It was a wonderful, wonderful, wonnnderful journey, and I look forward to coming back here again soon, ka khairee. There are many things I won't miss, and there are many things I'll miss desperately. Among the former: the roads (you been to Pakistan? You know how crazy the drivers and the roads are? Ahhh, well, Jordan's ones are almost as bad!), the taxi drivers, the men (!!! You been to Pakistan, you say? Yeah, well,
you know how the men there stare at you even when you're covered from head to toe, like you are in Swat? Yeah, well, times that by infinity, and that's how Jordanian men are! Surely, not all, just like in Pakistan. But more than most!), men honking at you even when their wives/daughters/sisters/other close family members are sitting right by them in the passenger seats (like, what the hell, yo?! I'd butcher my man if he did that!), the SMOKERS!! (as I've said in another post, over 70% Jordanians smoke, and they have no respect for people nearby them, so they'll smoke in your face even if you don't want them to), the random filth on streets (disgusting stuff, sometimes as bad as Pakistan's), the unclean restrooms (and sometimes, the water doesn't even work on the toilets, so you're screwed if you do something you can't pretend you never did), the sidewalks (!!! Oh. Em. Gee. World! You'll be walking on this side walk and it'll have trees and plants in the middle and there's *no* space for you to walk! How does that work, man?! And they're sooo narrow, too! Ugh.), etc., etc.

But despite the negatives of the country, just like the negatives of all countries, Jordan is beautiful, and it's worth visiting at least once in your lifetime. Its positive points outweigh its faults, so don't let me scare you! Also, Jordan is the first country I've been to outside the U.S. (Pakistan doesn't count since I was born there, y'know.) It's also the first country I've studied in, the first I've received a scholarship to -- so it's always gonna have this special place in my heart for these reasons. But the positives of Jordans include:

~ the amazingly kind and hospitable people
~ the bargaining at shops :D (Watch me getting something that costs 25 for 10 JDs or less! haha)
~ the hillls! (Remember when I said Amman, where I am right now, is built on 7 hills? Ahhh, I'm gonna miss them!)
~ the majestic buildings all over Jordan
~ the live concerts
~ the ancient ruins that remind you of your humanity, your strength, your weakness, everything you're made of, everything you can never be, everything you can be any time, your Creator
~ the beeeeatiful clothes and shoes and hijabs/scarves and hijab pins! (Got me millions!)
~ the fashionable women! (I'll talk about this in detail soon)
~ Ramadhan time - ahhh totally worth an experience!
~ the halwiyats (sweets)... my God, they're to kill for! Remind me to buy a few more for my family before I leave! :) Kunafas are the most popular and most loved ones. They're beyond delicious!
~ the delicious food (and so inexpensive too!)

** To be contninued**

2 comments:

  1. I'm happy you had such a great time! I'm sure your family will be happy to have you back though :)

    Looking forward to reading more :)

    ReplyDelete

Dare to opine :)

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