Hello all, I am currently sitting at work, taking a small break, so I thought I would write a quick blog.
Last night I met my friend Andrew for Dinner. I went with another friend Caitlin, who is currently studying in my program. We had a lovely time, we went to a popular spot in a nice part of the city called "Jabal Amman". We ate at a small cafe called Books@Cafe. It was really great, its basically a bookshop with a funky stairway that leads to a magnificent patio with lots of levels overlooking the city. The atmosphere is fun, there are lights everywhere, tons of hookahs and lots of great food. This is a popular spot for Americans because they serve alcohol, we all skipped the alcohol last night and went straight for the lemon and mint, which is a traditional Arab drink that is very refreshing. Its basically like fresh lemonade with ground mint leaves, very zaki! (delicious) After that we crossed the famous Abdoun Bridge (which is nothing to American bridges, but Jordanians love to brag) to Abdoun which is the "hollywood of Amman". Its very wealthy and has tons of great spots to eat, drink and dance. We settled for some Ice cream at Gerads, which is equivalent to ben and jerrys in the states, again very zaki!!!
On Monday night I was able to eat dinner with Alison, her Father and my roommates. We went to a traditional restaurant called "Tawaheen al- Hawa" which literally translated means "the windmill". It was WONDERFUL, very traditional, comfortable and the best part was the menu was in both Arabic and English! We ordered a bunch of traditional items; hummus, fattoush (arab salad), chicken and lamb kabobs, pita bread, rice and tons of fresh fruit. It was really nice to meet Alison's Dad, he was so sweet to take us all out and treat us to such a nice meal. It was also really great to tell him all about Jordan and our experiences. He's here until Sunday and has been traveling around Jordan having his own adventures, what a brave guy! Thanks Mr Kumro for treating us all like your daughters and taking us out for such a nice meal!
Now on to the title of my post. My formal Arabic teacher Ghadeer was rushed to the hospital yesterday with labor pains, she is only 4 months pregnant. She cancelled class today and will be absent all next week. Ghadeer is honestly the reason I get up in the mornings sometimes. Getting frustrated with Arabic is a daily thing here, and she is the best professor to have. I have class with her everyday and she is the most wonderful woman ever. She has the best personality, is extremely supportive, and truly wants us all to learn the language. She never gets frustrated when we butcher our arabic vocabulary and is very understanding when we cant understand her Arabic. She seriously was made to teach and inspire students, and I have been totally blessed to recieve her as my main teacher here. With that being said, I ask everyone to keep her, her husband and her 3 year old son in their prayers. I hope nothing is seriously wrong, but missing the whole next week of class is not promising. She is the type of person who makes you love the language and actually learn the language. She really, really, really is the most amazing professor I have had since entering college, even in the states.
With that being said, today is the weekend. After work, Im heading to the gym and then will probably meet Alison and her Dad for dinner. I hope the rest of the week goes well for everyone at home. Ma'salaama!
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