Jordanian birthday
I had a great day yesterday -- thank you to ALL who wrote me and sent their love! I really appreciated it!
It was a good day--just a normal day in Jordan. :) but everyone on the trip made me feel special. we had a special dessert after dinner too--Jordan's form of the Turkish Baklava, very good! and then a little bit later, a couple friends and i went to this souvineer shop where ever so loved and famous Yousef works. he's a cute little old man that kinda takes Americans under his wings and has his shop open just for us in the evenings to come sit, talk, and drink hot tea. about once a week,.he usually has a tea drinking contest. the record is currently 27 cups of tea (that Landry holds!) but you're only allowed to beat the record by one cup--so the contest can continue. so that's what i did on my birthday! it was enjoyable. oh, i also bought my dad a gift on this fine day--hope you like it!
as we are on the subject, might i just further add that i've been told on this trip that i look 5-6 years younger than i really am. multiple times. by multiple people. as rather annoying as this is :/ , i cant help but smirk to myself a bit. i'm going to love looking 35 when i'm 40! so bring on the 'young-lookin' comments. i can take it :)
ok, i want to go back to talking about Yousef for a second. he really is a precious little man. he's very kind and generous and he tells us about how his great grandfather was a christian bedowin (a native tribe dweller in this land) and brought his tribe to establish Madaba in the 1800s. then other Christian tribes followed him and the village grew and grew over the past century or so...it was established as a Christian city and was 98% Christian in 1950, but is today only 2% Christian...the rest Muslim crazy. but talking with Yousef is refreshing and he called himself our brother-in-Jesus. also, Yousef talked a little bit about war in the Middle East and how it's never ending...people here are so tired of it. I guess I never thought about middle east wars from their perspective--it was always just something far away from Texas that was happening all the time... but Jordan specifically is very peaceful and the people here want there to be peace.
Yousef tells stories about how war makes them uneasy and how it's exhausting. and really, Israel is being such a problem child...I already mentioned them damming the Jordan river. they are currently violent against all Palestinians and because of Israel there are police checkpoints and gunned security protection stations ALL around the middle east when traveling anywhere. this leads into the story where i had the chance this coming Sunday to visit Jerusalem. it would have been just a day trip and i'm currently about a 4 hour drive or so from the city. it would have been an amazing excursion and one that i'd want to do--especially on the Lord's day, to get to see such a biblical city!--and i'd see the Mount of Olives, dead sea scrolls, old Jerusalem and more... however, just a couple days ago, an updated travel warning went into effect for Jerusalem. i mean it's never peaceful there, but the updated warning about riots and kidnappings and such made me wary. also it would have been both an expensive and stressful side trip. so i'm not going!! but it's ok. i still have seen alot.
I don't know all the details to any of these middle eastern war situations, and i need to read up on my history and current events...but this trip has opened my eyes further for sure.
Anyway--Jerusalem or no, pastries or not, Christian or other, I'm enjoying the trip! I'm going to miss my quaint little Jordan experience.
It was a good day--just a normal day in Jordan. :) but everyone on the trip made me feel special. we had a special dessert after dinner too--Jordan's form of the Turkish Baklava, very good! and then a little bit later, a couple friends and i went to this souvineer shop where ever so loved and famous Yousef works. he's a cute little old man that kinda takes Americans under his wings and has his shop open just for us in the evenings to come sit, talk, and drink hot tea. about once a week,.he usually has a tea drinking contest. the record is currently 27 cups of tea (that Landry holds!) but you're only allowed to beat the record by one cup--so the contest can continue. so that's what i did on my birthday! it was enjoyable. oh, i also bought my dad a gift on this fine day--hope you like it!
as we are on the subject, might i just further add that i've been told on this trip that i look 5-6 years younger than i really am. multiple times. by multiple people. as rather annoying as this is :/ , i cant help but smirk to myself a bit. i'm going to love looking 35 when i'm 40! so bring on the 'young-lookin' comments. i can take it :)
ok, i want to go back to talking about Yousef for a second. he really is a precious little man. he's very kind and generous and he tells us about how his great grandfather was a christian bedowin (a native tribe dweller in this land) and brought his tribe to establish Madaba in the 1800s. then other Christian tribes followed him and the village grew and grew over the past century or so...it was established as a Christian city and was 98% Christian in 1950, but is today only 2% Christian...the rest Muslim crazy. but talking with Yousef is refreshing and he called himself our brother-in-Jesus. also, Yousef talked a little bit about war in the Middle East and how it's never ending...people here are so tired of it. I guess I never thought about middle east wars from their perspective--it was always just something far away from Texas that was happening all the time... but Jordan specifically is very peaceful and the people here want there to be peace.
Yousef tells stories about how war makes them uneasy and how it's exhausting. and really, Israel is being such a problem child...I already mentioned them damming the Jordan river. they are currently violent against all Palestinians and because of Israel there are police checkpoints and gunned security protection stations ALL around the middle east when traveling anywhere. this leads into the story where i had the chance this coming Sunday to visit Jerusalem. it would have been just a day trip and i'm currently about a 4 hour drive or so from the city. it would have been an amazing excursion and one that i'd want to do--especially on the Lord's day, to get to see such a biblical city!--and i'd see the Mount of Olives, dead sea scrolls, old Jerusalem and more... however, just a couple days ago, an updated travel warning went into effect for Jerusalem. i mean it's never peaceful there, but the updated warning about riots and kidnappings and such made me wary. also it would have been both an expensive and stressful side trip. so i'm not going!! but it's ok. i still have seen alot.
I don't know all the details to any of these middle eastern war situations, and i need to read up on my history and current events...but this trip has opened my eyes further for sure.
Anyway--Jerusalem or no, pastries or not, Christian or other, I'm enjoying the trip! I'm going to miss my quaint little Jordan experience.
Glad you had a great birthday!!! oh and it's really the palestinians that are the problem child...according to history. :) Love ya!
ReplyDeleteZach :)