12/14/2022 0 Comments Jordan ReflectionBelow I've copied and pasted my hopes and fears for the semester from August, and adding comments in bold on how everything went!
Hopes
Fears
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12/12/2022 0 Comments Last family dayToday was a very hard day. While it wasn't our last day in Jordan, it was our last family Friday meal and hang out. We all got dressed up for group photos with the whole family, which did leave me crying. I have grown so close to this family during our time here, and it is heartbreaking to be leaving. The little girls have become like little sisters/cousins for me (which I've never had) and they were such a joy to play with! When I would be studying, they would come to my room and crawl onto my bed and make me play Cocomelon videos for them or draw on the couch. They brought me a lot of joy and I hope to be able to return one day to see them grown up!
For our last meal they got THREE plates of mansaf!! IT was like we had been training all semester of eating for this meal. We sat around the table for a long time, eating, talking, laughing, and reminiscing over the memories from the semester. I looked forward to these meals every week, getting to just sit down with a loving family, even if it wasn't mine, and just feel the love. They are all so close, and made us feel genuinely a part of their family. It will be very difficult not being with Maha and Baba everyday, eating lunch together, talking about our days, going to the gym in the mornings with Maha, or sitting by the fire with Baba. I'm really going to miss them. 12/10/2022 0 Comments Sugar daddy cakeThe day before our final day in Jordan, my parents had a cake sent to our Homestay family as a thank you for their kindness the past few months. It was a wonderful gift and surprise for us all to enjoy that night! We invited Aisha over and split the cake with some tea. The cake was from a bakery called Sugar Daddy, which Aisha said we should all get! She kept using a funny voice, like Joey from Friends, to say Cake from SuGaR dADdY hahaha. It was a delicious cake, and Aisha shared more life and travel advice with us as we ate.
12/5/2022 0 Comments Karak visit & MansafToday was our last field visit in Jordan! We piled into the van and headed over to Karak. We started at the Karak Castle where we met with an advisor to one of the NGO's we were visiting later and guided us through the castle. Walking up to the castle there is a memorial plaque with the names of those who had defended the castle in 2016 when a cell of terrorists from ISIS had taken control of the castle and taken many hostage. It was only in the last few years that Americans are now allowed to visit the castle again. The castle has been controlled by different groups throughout the centuries, all majorly keeping the building intact. After visiting the castle, we headed to two different NGO's and spoke with human rights workers on their projects in Jordan for Syrian refugees related to education and GBV case management to protect women and children. We had a deep and very interesting conversation with a woman from Yemen who discussed the mental health issues of humanitarians and need for organizations we plan to work for to provide resources for the workers as the job is difficult and mentally taxing. It was nice having a genuine and honest conversation with someone on the stakes for humanitarians and necessity for good therapists and access to mental health resources. After the NGO visits, we headed with the man to his house where he had prepared a traditional Karaki Mansaf. Karak is considered the home and origin of mansaf, and his family were from a Karaki tribe. It was beautifully presented lamb mansaf and absolutely delicious! Towards the end of the meal he started taking apart the jaw and getting the meat from the brain. To many people's surprise and my own, I tried a small piece of the lamb brain. I figured when is there going to be another time I can try this, and I wanted to be respectful of the culture in trying their food. It was an oddly chewy texture and did not taste like chicken. I'm glad I tried it, and it feels like I've definitely grown in trying new and adventurous things. It was a very productive day, and a wonderful final field visit!! |