As we drove around town he explained to us that the city is where the majority of Jordanians live, ~6million, and the neighborhood are defined by 1of 4 circles (aka roundabouts). We started our tour with the "rich" part of town, the A's and B's. People here signify their wealth by covering their houses with white lime stone and their nice cars. Which was even more impressive considering gas is $5/gallon and they pay 100% tax AND import fees on their vehicles. All of the houses look very similar-box shaped, lime stone walls, most with beautiful ornate front doors. Aziz said that most people do not have gardens because of the lack of water but also because they would prefer to have an extra room in their house. Between the blocks in more neighborhoods we rubble lots with nothing but rocks and litter. I've really been surprised over the amount of litter and trash everywhere. It's not so in your face that you feel like it's dirty and gross everywhere, but I definitely notice it. We passed a beautiful mosque which Aziz made a detour for us to explore the temple. Us ladies had to wear robes which covered our heads, but it allowed us to go into the man's worship hall.5 Pillars of Islam
1 There is 1 god, Allah and Mohamed is his final prophet
2 Pray 5 times a day facing Mecca
3 Fast for the month of Rhamadha
4 Tithing
5 Pilgrimage to Holy land
After we went to the mosque gift shop and has some DELICIOUS tea, minty and fresh. Didn't buy any souvenirs because little did I know...they don't do travelers checks here. SO glad I brought most of my money in checks...suuuuper. Next was the citadel. Used through all eras of history (greek, roman, ottoman, islamic) as a worship site and place of honor. There was a Roman Temple to Hercules (Roman ruins seen...check) and a beautiful view of the city (all neighborhoods, ancient Roman amphitheater and the worlds 2nd tallest flag pole with a Jordanian flag that was 60ft long. Also in the citadel were ruins of a cistern, ruins of a Byzantine church, and a former king's palace (see pics). We also explored the museum with artifacts found one site from almost every era (stone age on).
After leaving the citadel we traveled out into the desert to visit 3 desert castles. It was interesting to see the desert here for the first time because it's mostly rocks with very little sand. Unlike many desert countries, Jordan has many desert mountains (which apparently we will see tomorrow). The weather was cool in the morning but started to warm up around 9 or 10am but there was still a slight breeze making it perfect jacket weather.
The 1st castle we visited was mostly destroyed by earthquakes which they get every few years (note to self, check out fault line). It was called Al Azrad, meaning "blue" named for the oasis, which is no longer there due to over use of the water source. Aziz said it is sad because it used to be a very vital spot for migratory birds and other animals which are not longer around due to the remaining climate. At the ruins there were 2young boys and 2 young girls who "welcomed" us to Jordan. The braver of the two boys shook my hand and said "welcome to Jordan" then later he came back with his friends to ask me where I was from, telling me he was from Jordan, thank you for visiting. I let him know it was nice here and thanked him for having us. The officially language here is Arabic but as of 12 years ago the king made all students, starting in 1st grade to study English. The only word I've learned so far is "shookrun", meaning "thank you".
We stopped for lunch at 2pm, which was really late considering we ate breakfast at 7am. By the time we stopped April was dying from hunger but all was fixed with a delicious buffet. After lunch we visited the 2nd and 3rd castles. The 2nd was for the king and his guests and was in better condition due to restoration efforts. There was walls covered with beautiful frescoes depicting people and animals, which is unusual because most art does not show people or animals. The frescoes has recently been retouched by Italian artists and were quite lovely (see pics). We visited a Bedouin tent where the gentleman played his "guitar" made of deer hide and horse hair string for us which we drank tea and petted his cat ;-) The 3rd castle was for passing caravans. By far the largest and most intact however without art work or embellishments.
Upon return to Amman, April retrieved her bag from the front desk (it had been delivered while we were out for the day) and we took a minute to relax and start documenting our day. Aziz had given us a few dinner recommendations and while we were slightly nervous about going out at night alone, we braved the foreign taxi (only 5JD for a 20min ride) and thoroughly enjoyed our dinner and watermelon/mint hookah.
Now safely back in bed with the alarm set for 6:15am for a 7:30 departure back to the desert. I'm already feeling like I should have refreshed on my ancient and biblical history and wishing my brain was big enough to remember the facts and Arabic words for everything, but you know there's always tomorrow, ensh'Allah!
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