Ma7es during sunset
Although I read blogs regularly and really appreciate the ability that some people have to share their lives with an astounding amount of clarity and insight, this is pretty awkward. I have a feeling there will be about one view every week to this blog (hey Dad!), but that’s totally fine! So here goes, Dad, and whatever other unfortunate souls I’ve roped into reading this: hope you enjoy reading about my experience this summer.
On June 11th at 10:30 PM, I leave JFK and the USA to travel to Amman, Jordan for roughly 3 months. It will be an amazing experience, I’m sure! I get to travel with 5 other Rice students, but only 4 are in my specific program (the other girl, Zainab, got the Critical Language Scholarship!) So my crew for the months of June, July, and August will be Alex, Elliot, Jeffrey, and Max! I can’t wait to get to know them better and experience Jordan in a new light.
Oh, right. I feel like I have a slightly different perspective because I actually have been to Jordan before. I was lucky enough to go on a 3 month exchange program during my junior year of high school; then, I went back to live for a month during Ramadan the summer before my Senior year. I lived with an amazing host family, whom I love very much! They gave me a consistent source of comfort and direction when I was handling the ups and downs of travel at times quite terribly. There are 5 daughters in the family, and I was fortunate enough to grow very close with them, and I hope to spend a lot of time with them this summer! Funny story, they just moved from where my apartment will be to all the way across the city. That’s okay, though! Taxis are cheap in Jordan.
This time, while I’m so excited to see Jordan again and live there like I have twice before, I’m also so thrilled to experience it in a completely different way, at a different time in my life, with different people. I hope that Alex, Jeffrey, Elliot, and Max are ready to have me carting them around everywhere: forcing them to do weird things like drink out of a spring and expect them to enjoy every minute.
Can’t wait!
My best friend and travel companion, Frances, and I at Petra