Day One

     Well, it is day one in Amman for me. I landed at around 5 pm (or 10 am back home) and met my guide, Rami, and my roommate, Kirby. They seem pretty cool. Last night Rami took us to this chicken wrap/sandwich thing place and I ordered what is called a "shwarma." It was pretty tasty, but I have my doubts that it was all chicken.
     I slept like a baby too. It was by no means the most comfortable bed I have ever slept in, but it wasn't the worst either. So I have no complaints. One thing I found so amazing, yet very annoying was the 6 am prayer loudspeakers. By the way, when I say loudspeakers, I mean LOUD. They go off all throughout the city and I left my windows open, so I heard it loud and clear. It's about 9 am on June 2nd and someone is coming to take Kirby and I to breakfast. I sure hope so too. I'm hungry.
     Jeremy, one of the teachers here, came to pick us up and took us to his house for a breakfast of eggs and fruit. Then we met Laura, the third student in our group, and went to pick up supplies. It was pretty easy to get what we needed. It seems to me that English is very much ingrained in society. I mean, all the boxes had both English and Arabic translations. Well, we are going back to his house soon for lunch. It should be pretty tasty, at least, I hope so.
     It turns out, lunch was really good. We had chicken stuffed in pita bread with tomatoes, onions, and an awesome cucumber sauce. I was told it was more of a Greek food than Jordanian, but it was really good. After we hung out for a little while, Kirby and I came back to our apartment, which is really pretty nice. We just kind of chilled out for awhile. We don't have much to do right now because classes don't start till Sunday. Saturday we are going downtown to visit a history museum, I think. As of now though, Kirby and I are left to fend for ourselves.
     Dinner was awesome. It was some chicken and rice dish and I have no clue about the sauce, but it was good! Kirby and I just started walking around the main street and the food looked pretty good. I mean, we can only speak a couple words of Arabic, not enough to really order correctly, so as of now we have to go to places that have a lot of pictures so we can point to what we want to order. The people here are so friendly and helpful though, so it wasn't too bad to get what we wanted. Also, I have just noticed by reading through what I wrote that I am eating a ton of chicken, but it's really cheap and tasty, so it's okay.
     After we ate, we wandered around the rest of our neighborhood. I am in the Northern part of the country, very close to the University of Jordan, the area called Juebaha. I don't know what it means yet, but I am hoping to find out. Walking around wouldn't be so bad if it wasn't for all of the hills. This area is so hilly, it's crazy. In our walking, we found a pretty cool little mall. Well, it's called a mall here, but it's more like a really nice indoor flea market. On our way back, we found a little ice cream stand and got some ice cream. It wasn't anything special or different, just cool and refreshing after a long walk around the neighborhood.
     So what is going through my head right now, after my first day in Amman, Jordan? Well, it's really hard to explain how I feel. This place is really amazing. The food, the people, and the culture are all different than what I am used to and I feel so blessed to be here right now and know that it was the right decision for me to come here. But, on the other hand, I do miss my family, friends, and girlfriend and it is very hard to Skype or e-mail back and forth because I don't have an Internet connection in my apartment. So I have to go to places and pick up a Wi-Fi signal. Plus, my computer is being difficult so I haven't been able to get on Facebook yet, but that's not a big deal, I guess. Not to mention the problems with the bathroom! It's really weird. Let's just leave it at you can't flush the toilet paper in Jordan at all and there is a water hose thing attached to the toilet. That's all I'm going to say about that.
     I hope to, at some point,  get much deeper into the cultural aspects of Jordan. I don't think that would be appropriate right now because I haven't been here long enough, in my opinion, to have any commentary on the social workings of Amman. I hope to have a much greater understanding of this amazing place. That's all I have to say for day one.