Blogs from Amman, North, Jordan, Middle East - page 12

So we are driving down the road and we pass by this gigantic structure that looked like a modern day castle, it was absolutely huge. Zaid (Tareq's homey) asked me what building I thought that was. I had no idea but I guessed it was the King's; I was wrong, it's the U.S. embassy. This thing was heavily guarded with what looked like the entire Jordanian army. I had to take a picture of this, but as I was getting ready Zaid was like, "Stop! Are you trying to get a brother arrested?" I guess taking pictures of the U.S. Embassy is a BIG no-no. We then head to get a falafel; Zaid drops off Tareq at this place while he takes me around a couple other blocks to do some more sightseeing for about 5 ... read more

From Amman to the Dead Sea I had a quiet day yesterday, opting to do my own thing. I couldn’t face another city tour in the 40’ heat. I caught up with some of the crew later in the evening meeting at a cafe overlooking the city. From there we went to another place called the Book Cafe. From the outside it’s a book store, with some nice books too, you can’t help but think it’s mealy a front for the bar. Once inside you walk between all the shelves off books and then follow the narrow staircase up several levels, around corners, and eventually pop out on a roof terrace. Delightful. It’s very popular with the locals who come to drink coffee, play backgammon and enjoy shesia pipes. It’s also sells alcohol so it’s popular ... read more

I cannot overemphasize how friendly the Jordanian people are. If you’re like me and constantly lose things you reach a point where you just accept it’s going to happen so your best bet is to minimise the potential damage. Because of this I don’t carry any cards in my wallet and never more currency than €10. Anyway when I got out of the taxi in Amman and checked my pockets my wallet was gone! I dumped my bags in the door of the hostel and ran down the highway after the taxi man. Someone in a Mercedes pulled up beside me, asked what was wrong then I uttered the immortal line: “follow that cab”. It was too late though and I gave up pretty quickly. Then walking back to the hotel an old man with no ... read more

We were unsure about our success crossing the border from Jordan into Syria as the official stance is that you are should organise your visa in your home country and we had not (yep, small oversight I know). But as Syria is between Jordan and Turkey we thought why not give it a go? Rumours abound about the availability of visas at the border but this usually depends on your nationality and also the mood of the immigration official at the time you show up. Some Dutch people we'd spoken to claimed “Yeah, no problems, we paid 30 Euros without any hassle”. Hey, as long as we're not Americans they should like us right? We caught a shared taxi with two other Jordanian men. Upon meeting them Nick asked the two customary questions that seem to ... read more

Our first few hours in Amman were a bit of a gongshow, considering we were dropped off at the wrong bus station, but with the same name as the one we were looking for. So, after wandering around completely lost for a couple hours in 30 degree heat and our big bags on our backs, we finally hailed a cab and he took us to the area for free (we must've looked desparate!)... But those few hours of confusion are no competition for the following several days in Amman! We spent the rest of the first day shopping in the souqs (bought a hookah and other souvenirs) and visited the 6000 seat Roman Ampitheatre that is plopped right in the middle of town! Bonnie was supposed to fly out this evening, but the volcano in Iceland ... read more