February...over a month

February has flown by, can't believe it's March on Thursday (which is also Justin Bieber's as well as Whitney Heemstra's birthdays!!)

For Valentine's Day I celebrated with a few friends by going out to dinner at a restaurant named, "Blue October" where we ordered our dinner on ipads.  Different, but also annoying when we kept accidentally deleting our order and had to start over twice haha oh the joys of technology....I then had my first experience with 'Pinkberry' and absolutely loved it, so delicious!  Then, of course, we went to our first movie here in Amman, 'The Vow' haha, it was Valentine's Day after all

Valentine's Day in Jordan seemed semi-relative to the U.S.'s standards, however, I've never personally celebrated the holiday in full force myself, so perhaps it was just me.  Some people did wear red and go out with their significant others, including my host brother, and decorations could be seen around town, especially in the malls.

This past saturday I visited several of the biblical sites here in Jordan, including the place where Jesus may have been baptized in the Jordan River and the ruins of the palace where John the Baptist was be-headed. Really interesting to have read and known these stories for so long and then finally be able to walk and be and see the places where these events may have actually taken place.  I think the coolest moment for me was being on Mt. Nebo and over-looking the surrounding area and realizing that this could very well be the view that Moses had of the Promised Land but was denied entry into it.

Family life is grand, I am still sometimes made fun of when I can't remember certain words, (learning the dialect is like learning a completely different language sometimes so it can be frustrating, but so rewarding when I can finally form sentences in Ammiyah) but it's wonderful that they're so willing to continually help me learn.  Christine and I enjoyed a movie night complete with popcorn and candy a few weeks back, it was a great night in, and we enjoyed getting to hang out together!

We celebrated my friend Kate's 21st birthday here in Amman last week with a surprise party.  She was thoroughly surprised and the look on her face was priceless, so glad I was able to be a part of planning that for her!

 The place where many archaeologists/historians/scholars, etc. believe that Jesus was baptized.  The river has naturally moved throughout time.

 Beautiful church along the Jordan River.

 Jordan River site.  Literally 3 meters across the river is Israel, hence the security.  There was a group of Amish on the Israel side that we talked to, turns out most of them were from Wisconsin!

 Part of the first map of the Holy Land in Madaba, only 25 sq. meters remain due to severe damage done by an earthquake.

 Possibly the cutest, fluffiest, softest, and most flea-ridden thing I've ever held haha

 Part of the palace area where John the Baptist was be-headed.

 Gorgeous view.  Dead Sea in the background.

An Adventurous Weekend

Best weekend yet.  Travelled to Wadi Rum and Petra with the rest of the CIEE students, it was only two days, but we did so much.  However, I could spend so much longer exploring both of these places, I hope I will have time to go back sometime before I leave.

It was so incredible to climb and have an amazing and vast view of God' creation.  We climbed to see the Monastery at Petra, which was beautiful in itself, but then we climbed to the lookout point and spent an hour up there just soaking up the sun (got a sunburn...never thought that would happen in Februrary) and just gazing over the wadi.

It was such a great time to reflect and be in silence and enjoy the majesty of the earth and all that God created.  Love this verse....

"For the Lord is the great God, the great King above all gods.  In his hand are the depths of the earth, and the mountain peaks belong to Him.  The sea is his, for He made it, and His hands formed the dry land." - Psalm 95:3-5

University of Jordan

I made it through the first week of classes....barely.  Of course I was sick the whole week which made the week drag by even more, but thankfully the week is over and I'm feeling much more like myself, which means, if you have ever lived with me (Whitney, Katie, Courtney this is especially for you) I'm just always tired haha

My arabic classes will be different and perhaps more difficult compared to the states, just because they're ONLY in arabic, english isn't allowed to be spoken, we got away with some this first week, but not a whole lot.  It will be an adjustment, but a good one, because it will force me to pay attention and stay focused more, which means that I really shouldn't sit by the window anymore...lol

My professors are great, perfect mixture of seriousness and fun, and they love my name, they always get excited because they say it's an arabic name, and I just smile and nod and say that it is also a biblical name, which is where my mother got the name.

I've only had my two arabic classes, because my archaeology and literature courses don't meet till next week, but I'm so looking forward to my archaeology class.  I plan to drop my literature course because I just received news that I got the internship I applied for at the American Center of Oriental Research.  I think it will be a lot like my old job at the archaeology lab in La Crosse, but I'll get to work alongside an archaeologist who is currently doing work in Petra, The Temple of the Winged Lions.  Words can't describe how ecstatic I am about this, I'm just thanking and praising God for such a wonderful opportunity and praying that I can perform my job well!

Further, I just applied for an ESL teaching position on campus, because I need a paying job desperately, and this would be a perfect fit.  It would take a lot of time out of my schedule, but I'm putting my schedule in God's hands and praying that it will all fit, while still allowing for free time to travel, etc.

In other random news, the weather here is so strange, and I say that after living in Wisconsin for my whole life.  Yesterday it was down pouring, then it would be bright and sunny for a half hour, then back to cloudy and rainy, later it would randomly snow for ten minutes, then back to rain.  So confusing, and so frustrating to walk to class in, especially when you didn't prepare for such freezing conditions.  I'm really wishing I had my rain boots, as some roads I've seen and had to trudge through have literally become rivers.  Oh well, just means more warm drinks like delicious teas and hot chocolate!  Basically, it's always an adventure here in Amman, and of course, I absolutely love it!

Oh, and I'm still being fed a ridiculous amount by my host mother, and "dinner" that they prefer to call lunch apparently, is served whenever I come home, whether that's 230 or 530, so I've been trying to come home later rather than earlier for this reason haha

Less than a Week

I haven't even been here a week yet, but it feels like forever.  So much has happened since I arrived last Saturday.  Orientation has taken up this whole week, but finally it's almost over.  The highlight was a tour of the city, including stops at both the citadel and the amphitheater.  It was so exciting because the citadel had a small archaeological museum, so I was loving it while everyone else was wondering how a person could get so excited over some pottery and stone tools (there were of course other displays, like sarcophaguses among other things).  The amphitheater was beautiful, but so steep.  Since it had rained the day before everything was still slippery.  So, while the climb up was exhausting I didn't think it was scary until I reached the top and looked down, realizing I still had to make the descent on uneven and cracked stone steps.  While it was a daunting task, I soon safely reached the bottom.

                                          My friend Kate and I at the citadel

                                         View of the amphitheater from the citadel

                                         At the top of the amphitheater

                                         The main ruins of the citadel

I moved in with my family Wednesday night.  They are all very kind and helpful, especially when it comes to learning Arabic, sometimes its overwhelming how many new words they throw at me and expect me to remember. The mother doesn’t speak a lot of English so we rarely talk, and she just looks at me a lot, I can’t tell what she’s thinking.  The father is the sweetest old man, and he’s very calming to be around, but he forces me to speak in Arabic with him, which is good. (We also bonded over watching the Australia Open Men’s Semi-Final, since we booth rooted for Djokovic).  The oldest daughter (who still lives with the family, the other is married) is Christine who is the same age as me, we also share a room.  She is the sweetest person ever, and is so willing to make me feel as comfortable as possible.  The first night she took me out with her friends to a nearby bar that was very Americanized, and all of her friends were just as nice and welcoming.  They enjoyed listening to me speak Arabic because my accent is so horrible haha (they also got a kick out of my “family name” because they can’t remember it for 2 seconds, but at least they were able to finally pronounce it!).  The oldest son, Rami, who is my sister’s age, is very kind and enjoys laughing at me and my failed attempts to try and understand conversations that occur around me in the house.  The younger brother is MIA as I still have not seen him after living here for almost three days.  The youngest daughter, is 8, and although she is very sweet, she hovers, a lot.  She follows me wherever I go in the house and this morning woke me up and watched me do my hair and make-up, etc.  Apparently I’m a really interesting person.  She also enjoys playing games all the time, half of which I don’t understand, the only one I’ve enjoyed so far is ‘snakes and ladders.’

I think the mom thinks I’m to skinny, because she feeds me a lot, literally.  The first night, I almost threw-up and wanted to cry from all the food I had to eat, and you have to finish what’s on your plate.  Regardless of the fact that it was delicious, once you reach a certain point it no longer tastes good, it was like Thanksgiving but 10x worse lol

Fridays are ‘Holy Day’ so that translates to ‘lazy day’ in this culture, or at least my family (they are Christian so they don’t go to the mosque).  Christine and I didn’t wake up till 11am, the rest of the family was up, but didn’t seem to mind.  (Everyone still greeted each other ‘good morning’ at 2:30pm) Everyone, except the mother (who was in the kitchen cooking/baking ALL day) wore their pajamas or sweats in the house for the whole day.  I of course wasn’t aware, and was dressed in jeans and a shirt (however, I don’t think we have heat so I am currently wearing 5 layers, and sitting by the lone space heater in the living room that has a radius of maybe 1ft. when it comes to spreading heat, I miss my electric snuggie).  Even though we ate a big brunch at noon we still ate ‘lunch’ at 5 so I’m not sure if that means I should expect a late dinner or not, I’m desperately hoping not. 

"Ms. Lingenfelter"

I have arrived! Since I left on a blustery snow storm day, as my mother had predicted would happen, flight delays ensued of course.  Thankfully, that didn't effect me making any of my connecting flights, just shorter layovers, which was nice.
None of the flights were atrociously long, and I met some interesting people.  The first, was a young man traveling to Egypt, where he grew up, but he quickly became annoying as he continued to try to have conversations with me despite the fact that he was drugged up on one to many sleeping pills.  The second was a lovely elderly Taiwanese couple from New York, they are my grandma's age but travel often, and have been to six continents.  Found out that the husband went to Lawrence University in Appleton, WI in the 1950's-small world!

It's interesting having the last name "Lingenfelter," it seems that whenever I go somewhere new, someone has a connection to the name.  For example, the airport security man in Appleton asked if I was related to a man named "Aimi Lingenfelter," (I'm not sure if I spelt his first name correctly).  However, apparently he invented a well-known wrestling move?  Who knows, but the security man seemed really excited that we shared the same last name.

At customs in Amman, I thought it would be more difficult, but the hardest part was trying to help the security man there pronounce my name.  He kept trying to pronounce it and then would laugh, I had to fake laugh along with him as at the moment I wasn't amused and just wanted to clear customs.  Alas, this took more time as he proceeded to call over his two friends to look at my name and try to pronounce it, ensuing more laughs from the two newcomers.  Finally, I just said yes, yes, that's correct, even though it wasn't, and they let me through.

Once I exited the terminal I was supposed to be greeted by the hotel driver holding a sign with my name on it, but I saw no one.  I called the hotel and they said the man was supposedly there, he wasn't.  I meandered around looking for him, all the while trying not to look completely lost as men were shouting things to me that I didn't understand, most likely wanting me to take their taxi.  I sat down and was able to get internet for a short time and waited for 45 minutes.  By this time I was getting anxious, I looked around the outside of the terminal again and saw a man holding a sign that I hadn't seen earlier.  I got up and crossed the room in order to be able to read the sign, and it said Ms. Hannah Lingenfelter on it.  Let me tell you, at that moment I felt like there could be no greater feeling in the world than seeing a complete stranger holding a sign with my name across it.  I almost hugged the man, I was so excited to see him, but of course, I restrained myself and was composed.  He told me that he had been waiting at a different terminal then he drove back to the hotel (30-40 minute drive) and they told him to come back for me. Praise the Lord!  He was a nice young man, who didn't speak english well, but I did find out his name was "Moody." He drove me to the hotel, somehow without getting in an accident, (I had forgotten about their driving behavior in the Middle East) and I crashed in my comfy hotel bed soon thereafter.

"Adventure is Out There!"

"Oh the places you'll go,
 today is your day!
Your mountain is waiting,
so get on your way!"
-Dr. Seuss

T-minus four and a half hours until I embark on my twenty hour plane ride (including layovers, so it's really not that bad).

Even though it's so close, I still don't feel like I'm leaving for four months, it's an interesting feeling that can't quite be explained.  I'm excited to be in Jordan, and if I'm being honest, I'm also nervous, but the sadness hasn't hit me yet.  I'm expecting nostalgia to set in after I've been there for a few weeks and the euphoria has worn off.  So, for right now I'm completely ready to leave and begin a new adventure! (As one of my favorite pixar movies, 'UP', puts it...."adventure is out there!")

I was finally able to pack everything into one 50lb. suitcase and my backpack, and it's not like I wasted till the last minute or anything.  If you know me at all, you know that I'm both a procrastinator and I'm usually incapable of packing light.  However, though I may still be a procrastinator, I think I did pretty well on the packing part.... Now if only I could look like the woman to the left when I travel haha