Amman, Jordan

My name is Margie, and Beth asked me to write a guest post while she was away. I’m thrilled. While I do blog, I think Beth asked me to write a posting about a city because a) I am her cousin, and b) I have lived in Amman, Jordan for the past two years.

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Amman is a great city filled with many surprises. The sun shines about 350 days a year (my own estimation). Cost of living is low, labor is cheap (YES to pedicures and cleaning services), and yet it has a lot of Western influence which means most people speak English and we have fun things like our own bubble tea shop and great breakfast places:

Hooray for muesli at Wild Jordan!

But then we also have ancient ruins since the first recorded inhabitants date back to 10050 BC. You can see the hill from my balcony where scholars believe Uriah the Hittite was killed. 

While it’s influenced by the West, and has an extremely long history, it’s still the Middle East. Mosques define the skyline. The Call to Prayer is heard 5 times a day. The air is filled with the smell of falafel, shwarma, hummus, and pita- I eat these things often. Probably too often. Also, no, I don't cover my head in public but I never wear shorts either. Well, maybe when I run races I do.

If you are fascinated by the Middle East, yet are nervous about visiting- don’t be! The ME has much more to offer and is much safer than what you see on the news. I promise. So you should visit (ahem, Beth) and with just a short drive you can also visit the Dead Sea, Petra, Mt. Nebo, the Jordan Rivier, the Red Sea, Wadi Rum . . . you get the point.

Even my cat loves Jordan!