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Images taken by Ruofei Shang (Boston College), Pupil Correspondent for CET Jordan, Summer season 2023
There’s extra to life outdoors Amman. Possibly and perhaps not. Oftentimes, our brains are inclined to affiliate sure locations with reminiscences, actions, and attitudes. Inevitably, after familiarizing myself with Amman, town has grow to be a spot of consolation to me whereas the remainder of Jordan grew to become “adventures and enjoyable”.
Proper earlier than the Eid Al-Adha break, CET took us to the 2 locations that thousands and thousands of vacationers come to Jordan for– Wadi Rum and Petra. This journey was precisely what all of us wanted after being wound up in work and actions for the previous month. It was a chance to expertise Jordan past the capital and a reminder that utilizing Arabic ought to nonetheless really feel enjoyable reasonably than solely being our tutorial duty.
The bus experience to Wadi Rum was expectedly full of waves of laughter and singing. After we arrived and dropped off our luggage, we had been taken to sand dunes and caves to wander round. It’s unusual to see how small we’re on this planet from totally different views. In Wadi Rum, I used to be continuously full of appreciation for all times, nature, and my alternative to be in Jordan for brand new associates, the language, and all the things the nation has supplied me.
A complete day of touring and exploring had drained me out and we lastly received to a hilltop. I don’t know for the way lengthy, however I simply sat right here and watched the sundown and not using a phrase. Sunsets within the desert are significantly particular as there may be nothing to distract you from apart from waves of mountains in entrance of you. The fading lights steadily washed away my exhaustion as I slowly disassociated from my environment.
There’s extra to life… and there are impromptu photoshoots. Similar to how I wrote in my Arabic essay for sophistication, my love language is to make good meals and take photos of associates. I like after I might help my associates really feel assured in themselves and have enjoyable on the identical time. In the course of the golden hour in Wadi Rum, I known as over my buddy Salwa and positioned her for a desert-style photoshoot. Every part simply labored out – from how the colours of her hijab and her pants coordinated with the desert colours to the angle that the final beams of daylight fell on her cheeks. Equally, in Petra, I adopted Joseph as he rode the camel. What’s behind this image was my associates and me telling him how one can pose with the camel– “chin up,” “look away,” “be severe,” and “don’t be so severe”…
Being lower than two hours of a drive away from Petra, Aqaba was a fast shift of surroundings. Coming from a basic southern Chinese language metropolis, the humidity and warmth had been reasonably acquainted. Situated on the coast of the Purple Sea, Aqaba is all Jordanian’s favourite trip spot, which we humorously known as the “Miami of Jordan.” Due to the Eid vacation, town is full of folks from throughout Jordan. Aqaba may be very totally different from Amman – the streets are cleaner, and the site visitors is extra organized (there are literally crosswalks). The meals scene was additionally wonderful with their specialty in recent caught seafood. Though there have been no Uber or Careem providers, the taxis had been very accessible and low-cost. Inside the metropolis, you shouldn’t have to pay greater than 2 JDs per journey.
Eid morning in Aqaba was celebrated with a visit to the mosque and a scrumptious brunch. The following day, all of us went on a ship to go snorkeling within the Purple Sea, which was by far one in every of my favourite actions in Jordan. We listened to Arabic music and even dabked on the boat. After the water actions, all of us frolicked on the seashore and performed volleyball. As we returned to Amman the subsequent day, I mirrored on how this journey has been full of new experiences outdoors of the capital. Withdrawn from the thrill of being on break, I used to be mentally and bodily able to return to my day by day studying and routine. Possibly there’s extra to life outdoors Amman, however there may be all the time extra in Amman that I’ve but to expertise.
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