Today was one of the best traveling days I have ever experienced. Absolutely everything was perfect.
I entered Jordan today by plane, and happened to meet two Australians at the airport, who were coincidentally going to the same hostel that I was. Jamie and Ben, who are from Melbourne, had also just come from Egypt and were my companions during our romp around Amman (the capital of Jordan) today.
The drive from the airport to downtown Amman is about 45 minutes by taxi, and we all marveled at how different Jordan was than Egypt. Egypt is chaotic, the drivers are crazy, and there are dusty buildings covering every square inch of the city. Amman is COMPLETELY different. The outskirts of Amman have no high rises, but small shops, women in fashionable burqas and men in traditional Islamic thobes were strolling casually down the street, and there was an unhurried and relaxed atmosphere that we found very contrasting to the hustle and bustle of Cairo.
For awhile, we thought that Amman was merely a few shops, but suddenly we came to the top of a hill and Amman APPEARED, like a dazzling ray of sunshine- an endless valley littered with houses and buildings- it is an unbelievable and breathtaking sight to see.
We reached our hostel and decided to spend the rest of the day together exploring. First we wandered into a fruit market and ate our first falafel in Jordan- 30 cents, and absolutely delicious. We marveled at the ways that people approached us- everyone looked to us with huge smiles on their faces and choruses of ‘Welcome to Jordan!’ The entire vibe of Amman is very laid-back and much more authentic than Cairo, and it was such a nice change to leisurely stroll along the streets and take in the atmosphere. We headed over to the famous Roman Theatre, which is one of the only remains of Roman Philadelphia in Amman (I had no idea that Amman once had a Roman presence). It is essentially a huge necropolis (similar to the Athens Acropolis, except much smaller), and we climbed all the way to the top to get dizzying views of the city, which Jamie pointed out looks very much like Athens. On the way down, we stopped into a few shops, which boasted incredible jewelry. I ended up buying a jade bracelet, which I absolutely love. In Jordan it’s much less common to bargain, so there isn’t much of a worry of being gypped. Still, you can bargain down the price a small bit, which I successfully did to a price I was happy with.
We then decided to make our way to the Citadel, which is the highest hill in Amman that displays spectacular views of the entire city. This required about an hour long hike up winding roads and steep stairs to reach the top, which was actually a really fun experience. Some Jordanian men pointed out to us a shortcut and we ended up accidentally reaching the Citadel without paying the tourist fee– but the view was AMAZING. I have pictures of it, and it does not even begin to do justice of the feeling you have up there, taking in the entire city of Amman. We spent the rest of the afternoon there, enjoying the breeze, listening to Sufjan Stevens, and watching the sun set.
On the way down, we stopped into a sweets shop and were given FREE sweets by the kind men in the store- unbelievable! Such hospitality. We then spotted a shisha/dinner joint and decided to take our chances- we were not disappointed. The food was incredible, the licorice-tasting shisha was very relaxing, and we headed back to our hostel fully satisfied with our wonderful day.
I absolutely love Jordan. The people are so friendly and I feel very much at ease here. I’ve been able to let my guard down and not automatically be suspicious of people, which is a wonderful feeling after being in Cairo for the past five days, where you need to be suspicious of nearly everyone (I am not saying that Cairo is a terrible place, it’s wonderful! But it caters much more to tourism, which means many people trying to take your money by any means. Jordan is not as touristy, and much more authentic because of it).
I don’t feel that I can describe the amazing feeling we all had today- the day just kept getting better and better, it felt as if we all had such a stroke of never-ending luck. I am now relaxing in my wonderfully clean bedroom with a much-needed shower under my belt. Today was exactly what I needed. I love traveling. I love meeting new, wonderful people. I love completely unexpected days when amazing things happen.
I absolutely recommend coming to Jordan if you have the opportunity. Just being here gives me such an urge to experience so many other countries in the Middle East.
Tomorrow I head off to the Dead Sea for a day trip! I am very excited to experience more of what this beautiful country has to offer.
Check out the pictures below!
Much love,
Brittany
The pictures:
Downtown Amman
The Roman Theatre
Inside the Roman Theatre
The Roman Theatre and Amman
The steps are really steep, so it was a dizzying way down
Inside the Roman Theatre museum. These are garments worn in Jordan thousands of years ago. I was surprised at how Asian they look! Definitely looks a bit Mongolian/Thai/Tibetan
Starting to climb up the hill to the Citadel- this is a view of the Roman Theatre
Walking up to the Citadel
Up at the Citadel. These pictures really don’t do justice for how unbelievable this view was!
The Temple of Hercules at the Citadel, 161-166 AD
Jamie and Ben
My Jordanian bracelet
The actual ‘Citadel’
Inside the Citadel
The tallest free-standing pole in the world!
On top of the world. I remember thinking at this point ‘I can’t believe I am sitting here in Jordan, listening to Sufjan Stevens and watching the sun set.’
The full moon coming out
Our unbelievable meal- roasted chicken, salad, hummus, and pita.
Totally consumed.
Best end to the best day
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