Jordan, a country rich in history

So, I’ve decided to jump head first into this anyway, and find out what I can about Jordan. Z told me last night, that in July he is going home (to Jordan) for the first time in 10 years. He still has family over there, nieces and nephews, brothers and he’s excited to go home. Even though I know I won’t be making the trip, I still want to ‘see’ where he comes from.

I checked out http://www.seejordan.org/ and http://www.amman.com/ just to see if I could find out some history of the country and pictures. It is beautiful. The Dead Sea is there. Lot’s cave, where it is said that Lot and his daughters hid after God had destroyed the city of Sodom.













The rose-red city of Petra is there, absolutely beautiful. Also Wadi Rum, the desert landscape where they filmed Lawrence of Arabia.


“Jordanian Arabic coffee is strong and served in tiny cups; it is often flavored with cardamorn. Shake the cup to indicate that you do not want a refill. Coffee is an important symbol of hospitality and it is very common to be offered coffee or tea in small shops, or to be invited to have coffee in someone’s home. It is good etiquette to accept.”* Maybe that explains Z’s obsession with coffee. Every morning, he makes a pot of coffee and has at least two cups before walking out the door. I even have a cup of coffee when I stay over. When he came back from Louisiana he brought me two bags of his favorite coffees from home to have at my place when he stays over on the weekends.

I wonder if he observes Ramadan, and I wonder if he would be impressed or insulted if I asked him. Ramadan is a holy month of fasting, and smoking, eating and drinking are prohibited in public during the daylight hours. The actual date varies according to the Islamic lunar calendar.

There is still so much I want to read about and study, and so many things I want to ask him. I'm just so damned curious, but don't want him to think I'm obsessing about this. Just learning about his heritage makes me feel closer to him, if I can understand a little better where he comes from.