Back to Amman

Thursday + Friday, January 23rd + 24th

3:30 am. 'The sky is clear!', I hear Papa say, who has just come out of the bathroom. When Mama and Papa come back from stargazing, I have also emerged from my warm cocoon to admire the constellations here in the desert. After the rain last night, we didn't think we would see stars during this visit to Wadi Rum. I stay outside until I see a long shooting star, then I go back to bed for another two hours.

5:30 am. We wake up for the second time, this time to watch the sunrise. While Mama and Papa take a short walk, I climb the rock in front of the camp and watch two other camp guests riding camels towards the sunrise under a clear sky. And today it is particularly beautiful. Mama and Papa join me as the rocks and sand eventually turn red and the sun rises powerfully behind the mountains. The light spectacle here in the desert is always special.

Afterwards, we have breakfast and then we have arranged to be taken to Nadjah's village, from where we want to continue by taxi to Aqaba. Today is the graduation ceremony for our Social Work Diploma, and even though it's just the end of a regular semester for us, it would still be nice to be there. However, everything is delayed a bit - a few misunderstandings and delayed departures later, we are sitting in the bus to Amman one hour later than planned. And that one hour is missing in the end. We arrive back in Amman at a quarter to 3, and the ceremony in Madaba starts at 3 o'clock. And since everything only takes one hour, it's not worth going anymore. However, Rebecca brings me my certificate and tells me (which later everyone else confirms) that I didn't miss much.

We relax a bit in the apartment and then go eat in Weibdeh together. Mama and Papa then make their way home, while I go to Gina's, a classmate who is celebrating her birthday today. Everyone from our class is there, so we can toast to our semester together and later dance a little at Uncle Sam's Pub near our apartment. So even without the ceremony, I still have a really nice end to the semester.

The next day, I sleep in while Mama and Papa take a short walk through the rainy Amman. They come back wet, but have found a nice cafe on Rainbow Street where we later have breakfast together. In the cozy and artistically decorated restaurant, we have a classic Arabic breakfast with Arabic coffee, hummus, makdus, labneh, falafel, fool, and galaieh. Yum.

Feeling energized, we hit the road again about an hour later, when the sun is shining. Alhamdulillah! We can stroll through the streets of Amman in the sunshine and I can show Mama and Papa the Wild Jordan and their balcony, where we often took breaks during the summer. We also visit the MMAG Foundation grounds, which is actually closed today, but the gate is accidentally open. We then walk down the Zajal stairs to downtown and from there to the Roman Theater, from where we look down on Amman in the beautiful afternoon light. Then we continue to the market, where Mama and Papa stock up on two kilograms of nuts and spices.

Finally, we make it up to the Citadel in dry weather. We take a supposed shortcut so that we arrive at the top while it is still daylight, and accidentally find another sneaky entrance, bypassing the main entrance and the ticket counter. Not bad either. When we arrive at the top, the sun is hiding behind a layer of clouds, but still shines a beautiful light on the ruins and the entire Citadel grounds. It would have been a shame if Mama and Papa had missed the view from up here.

Afterwards, we do some last-minute shopping downtown and then walk to Manara, where Mama and Papa can take a closer look while I have an Arabic lesson with Rose and Sophia. We chat a bit afterwards, so by the end it's already half past nine and we find ourselves in front of closed doors at the Weibdeh restaurant where I actually wanted to take Mama and Papa for the end. The alternative: Falafel at Paris Square, nearby. Here you can find the best and cheapest falafel sandwiches in Amman. At least, as far as I can judge. It's not what I had planned, but still a beautiful end to Amman for Mama and Papa. It was great having you 😊

On the next day, I sleep in while Mama and Papa take a short walk through the rainy Amman. They come back wet, but have found a nice cafe on Rainbow Street where we later have breakfast together. In the cozy and artistically decorated restaurant, we have a classic Arabic breakfast with Arabic coffee, hummus, makdus, labneh, falafel, fool, and galaieh. Yum.

We then hit the road about an hour later, when the sun is shining. Alhamdulillah! We can stroll through the streets of Amman in the sunshine and I can show Mama and Papa the Wild Jordan and their balcony, where we often took breaks during the summer. We also visit the MMAG Foundation grounds, which is actually closed today, but the gate is accidentally open. We then walk down the Zajal stairs to downtown and from there to the Roman Theater, from where we look down on Amman in the beautiful afternoon light. Then we continue to the market, where Mama and Papa stock up on two kilograms of nuts and spices.

Finally, we make it up to the Citadel in dry weather. We take a supposed shortcut so that we arrive at the top while it is still daylight, and accidentally find another sneaky entrance, bypassing the main entrance and the ticket counter. Not bad either. When we arrive at the top, the sun is hiding behind a layer of clouds, but still shines a beautiful light on the ruins and the entire Citadel grounds. It would have been a shame if Mama and Papa had missed the view from up here.

Afterwards, we do some last-minute shopping downtown and then walk to Manara, where Mama and Papa can take a closer look while I have an Arabic lesson with Rose and Sophia. We chat a bit afterwards, so by the end it's already half past nine and we find ourselves in front of closed doors at the Weibdeh restaurant where I actually wanted to take Mama and Papa for the end. The alternative: Falafel at Paris Square, nearby. Here you can find the best and cheapest falafel sandwiches in Amman. At least, as far as I can judge. It's not what I had planned, but still a beautiful end to Amman for Mama and Papa. It was great having you 😊

Before sunrise in Wadi Rum