Thoughts On [insert religious topic(s) here]

Before going to be last night, we decided that we’d push our day back an hour tomorrow to get some additional rest. We left En Harod at 8:15 and took a cab to the border. Our cab driver told us that Jordanians really don’t like Americans and that we should be careful. He suggested we tell people that we are from Scandinavia. At the time, he put a bit of fear in us that probably affected our first impressions of Jordan.

At the border we had an interesting time getting through because frankly, we just didn’t know what to do. We followed a large tourist group and got all the stuff we needed to board a transport bus over the Jordan river and into the checkpoint on the other side that would admit us to Jordan.

Once in Jordan, we still had to get visas and have our passports stamped to be allowed entry into the country. We had hired a guide for the day and were looking for him when we got over to Jordan but he was nowhere to be seen. You can imagine our concern being stranded at the border in a country that we had been told was hostile towards Americans. We got through customs (Jac’line actually said to one guard that she was from Scandinavia-thankfully he didn’t hear her) and we waited out in a parking lot looking for our guide, Omar.

Eventually we met up. It turned out that Omar had been waiting at the bus drop-off and somehow we just missed each other. He was supposed to help us get through all the paperwork and customs of getting into Jordan. Opps… When we met Omar, we also met our driver and got in a car heading for Jerash.

Two quick observations about Jordan: First, since the country is a monarchy, there are pictures of King Abdullah EVERYWHERE! His face is plastered on the side of buildings and many of the customs officers had pictures of Abdullah and his family in their cubicles. That struck me as very odd. I certainly wouldn’t have any pictures of Dubya adorning my walls (though I could go for one of Obama-not that I’m slanted in any way )

Secondly, Jordan is the first country I’ve ever been in where the currency is worth more than the US dollar. Ten US dollars are only worth 7 Jordanian Dinari. It’s such a change from the past year even when the US dollar was practically golden in any country outside Europe. Alas, I’m living in a different age for Americans.

The drive to Jerash was about an hour and a half, much longer than I expected. The roads in Jordan are very rudimentary with no land markings. When you enter towns, you are forced to slow down because every 500 meters there are large speed bumps that you can’t safely go more than 30 kph over. I’m thinking that renting a car and driving here is going to be much more difficult than in Israel.

When we got to Jerash we headed into the ruins, going through a large gate, the Damascus Gate. Omar told us that any gate facing north in a Roman city was called the Damascus gate since it typically faced Damascus, Syria. This particular gate, as well as the one that bears the same name in the Old City, were constructed by Emperor Hadrian in the 2^nd century CE.

Damascus Gate at Jaresh, built by Hadrian in the 2nd century CE

Hippodrome at Jaresh and site of Roman Legion show

We arrived in Jerash just in time for an 11 AM show in the ancient hippodrome. Despite being incredibly cheesy, the show offered an opportunity to see a mock Roman legion in battle formations and traditional military attire.

A Roman Legion assumes battle formation at Jaresh

Additionally, the show had a chariot race which was really neat to see. After the 30 minute show, Jac’line and I asked one of the charioteers if we could go for a ride on his chariot. We were taken on a bumpy but exhilarating lap around the hippodrome, being pulled by two white horses. I’m not going to forget that anytime soon.

A charioteer races at Jaresh

Another charioteer at Jaresh. Jacline and I rode in this particular chariot after the show.

Omar directed us to lunch at a fantastic buffet located just past the hippodrome. The buffet was huge and very fresh. We ate a ton. The three weeks of travel are beginning to set in. It’s taking more food and rest to be able to last throughout the day. From watching Omar I also finally picked up on the fact that meals in the Middle East are three-part meals even with a buffet; the vegetables, hummus, and salads are appetizers; the meats and rice are entrees; and if there is a dessert that is the final course. Also, meals here can easily take an hour if you pace yourself and just go back for small portions.

So, about an hour later, we left the restaurant and headed into the ruins of Jerash. These are some of the best preserved Roman ruins in the Middle East. Jac’line wasn’t feeling well after lunch so Omar and I just walked through the ruins. He pointed out some of the major structures and explained how the site was restored to its present state. It was a long walk through the city, down the main road.

The ancient road of Jaresh, destroyed by an earthquake in 749 CE

Temple of the Nymphs at Jaresh

On the way back, we started talking about his life in Jordan as an Arab Christian. Jordan is predominantly Muslim so Omar is a bit of an outcast. He said that there isn’t any conflict between Christians and Muslims as long as the Christians don’t proselytize or try and convert Muslims from Islam to Christianity. If a Muslim converts to Christianity, that individual is typically shunned from their family at best and at worst has to leave the country for fear of their life. It’s a scary situation, but Omar is proud of his Christian faith and is raising his children in his faith despite the social difficulties.

We walked back to the entrance of Jerash, met Jac’line and started the long drive back to Amman, the capital of Jordan. I was exhausted from the walking in Jerash and the stressful morning at the border so I slept most of the ride back.

When we got to Amman, we stopped by the travel agency that Omar is associated with to get some questions answered about our time in Jordan. Unfortunately, we found out that the company we had planned on doing the hot air balloon ride with had gone out of business. With such short notice, it is unlikely that we will be doing a hot air balloon ride in Wadi Rum.

We did investigate renting a car for our time in Jordan, especially for the long drive to Petra. We got that all arranged so Sunday we will be picking up a car in Amman and heading to Petra. We also booked our night in Wadi Rum with the Bedouins. That is going to be cool, sleeping in a tent and spending the night with a group of nomads.

Omar took us from the travel agency into Amman and to our hostel. Our first impression of Amman was not great. Apparently Fridays are holy days for Muslims and the roads are jam-packed. Add to that the fact that we were entering Amman right as the fast for Ramadan was breaking and it was pure chaos. We managed to get to our hostel, but both Jac’line and I were pretty shaken. We were thinking for a bit about leaving Amman a day early and spending three nights at Petra instead. However, we talked about it and decided to stick it out, taking it easy and spending extra time in the hostel resting.

Speaking of our hostel, it is located down an alley, and up a flight of stairs. The building is poorly lit and our room is definitely a downgrade from the youth hostels in Israel. We’ll make do though. When we got to our room we just put our stuff down and relaxed.

Hopefully things will start looking up tomorrow. We’re going to go to the Citadel and explore the city a bit.

Shabbat Shalom,

Mat