9/3/2022 0 Comments WEek 1 wrap-upWhat a first week in Jordan, median temperature of the week was 100 degrees!!! It was a whirlwind of activities, but it finally feels like things are calming down as school starts. Tuesday 8/30: Today included our first field-visit. We had a presentation by Dr. Aghadeer Jweihan at the Princess Taghrid Institute. The Princess Taghrid program assists orphans whose mother or father were unknown, or were abandoned, thus leaving them without a family name once they are 18 leaving the orphanage system. Dr. Jweihan, along with a staff of volunteers, assist these women in 4 main categories: after care/psychological care, those with learning disabilities (the Center for special needs in Amman), the women empowerment hub, and sustainability in running their lives. They are an incredible NGO that is self-sustaining with their restaurant/cafe House of Blessings, which employs the women in their program in Amman and those in 9 out of the 12 provinces in Jordan to supply their foods to the restaurant. PTI provides training programs for the women in handicraft trainings, cooking classes, etc. by bringing in expertise from the region. They specialize these trainings and job opportunities to the resources accessible in the province the women live. It was inspirational to see the work that PTI achieves and is a standard for how all NGO's should hope to operate sustainably instead of relying on international aid (a main point by Dr. Jweihan). Over the semester we will get the opportunity to do internship like work with PTI on our days off based off our sets of skills, I was told I would likely assist with grant writing (yay!!). It was an inspirational day and I can't wait to work for them!! Wednesday 8/31: Today we had a lesson on the Background to Humanitarian & Refugee “Crisis” in Jordan from speaker: Dr Yarub Ajlouni-President and founder of Jordan Health Aid Society JHASi. We discussed the crises faced by refugees, as well as responsibilities of refugees in the context of Jordan. It was a very interesting lecture/discussion on human rights in the refugee context, what we owe to refugees, and what they own to their host nations (such as keeping up-to-date paperwork). We discussed his NGO JHASi and how they have provided medical care and women's healthcare to refugees across borders and within refugee camps in Jordan. It is inspirational seeing the work that people achieve and their courageousness and bravery to assist those dangerous situations. We will also have the opportunity to complete internship work with JHASI this semester in some writing capacities, but mainly to observe and learn about techniques in crisis work. Thursday 9/1: Homestay move in day!! Today was very exciting, stressful, overwhelming, and joyous. After a few morning classes, one of our program assistants drove with us to our homestay. It is in a very safe part of Amman, and the house makes you feel at home. Brittany and I each have our own rooms and bathrooms that we can use, as well as a living room and balcony to ourselves. On the bottom floor is our mom and dad's room (what they've asked us to call them), the main living room, and kitchen/dining room. Outside is a large porch with table seating on one side, and a beautiful garden and gazebo on the other. Upon our arrival, Brittany and I were given a sizeable lunch and weren't sure of the customs yet on when/how to say no to food. This unknowing led to us consistently being fed cupcakes, apples, teas, grapes, and cookies for the rest of the night. Once it cooled down we sat in the gazebo with mom and ate grapes, when their neighbor Isha came by. I would love to read an auto-biography from this woman!! She speaks perfect english and has traveled all over the world!! She gave Brittany and I so much advice on life, some of my favorites being to never plan out life because this leads to stress and to just take things as they come, and that sharing is one of the most important aspects of life, specifically that we should all share our lives with another because that leads to greater joy and happiness to get to share all that life has to offer. Anyway, loved her!! We chatted with her for about 4 hours, with the homestay family's son coming over with his family and all sitting around eating snacks. This then led us to dinner at 10pm where we snacked on pita, hummus, and falafel. Safe to say by the end of the night I had a massive food baby and was very worried if my stomach could handle this. However, as we watched the family/neighbor interactions, we saw that it was alright to refuse food/snacks. The mother also made it clear over the next few days that this is our home, and that we can/not snack and eat whenever we like. I think I'm going to like it here! :) Friday 9/2: Yay the weekend has arrived!! In Jordan, the weekends are Friday and Saturday, with the beginning of the work week on Sunday. It feels strange! This is our first full-day in the homestay, unfortunately jet-lag is still kicking me as I was up until 4am and slept until 1pm on accident, whoops! The grandkids came over again, and Brittany and I made macaroni trees with them, one of the girls speaks English and has fun playing games with us. We then went out seeking coffee, and found this great place called Deja Brew!! We chatted there for awhile, appreciating being out of the sun on an enclosed patio, only to find when we were leaving there's an upstairs that's air conditioned! Afterwards we returned and took naps, a daily necessity with this heat, and then got ready for Souk Jara!! Souk Jara is an outdoor market with tons of crafts, clothes, and goods that only happens on Friday's in the summertime. Today was actually the last day it would be open for the year. We met the boys there around 5pm, the sun cooling off by this point, and explored the markets. When it comes to these situations I can get very introverted and reserved as I don't enjoy people yelling out at me to come to their booth, however this market was pretty tame! Brittany and I bought beautiful matching amethyst crystal bracelets and each got fans to help with the heat. It was a great way to take in a lot of the culture of Jordan and experience the youth of the city. When we finished walking around, we went to a fancy restaurant nearby called Sahara where there were tons of expats, which meant Brittany and I could drink openly! I tried a Jordanian Pinot Grigio which was delicious! We filled our stomachs with mezze and chatted for a long time with the boys. Then we stopped for ice cream, and checked out the boys apartment which is close to downtown and got a great view of the city at night!! All in all, a very good day. Saturday 9/3: Today started with a study session at Deja Brew, a great coffee place with AIR CONDITIONING!!!!!! Ugh it's still so hot here, reaching 102 today! Brittany and I took our laptops for coffee and worked on our papers for class, then headed back for lunch at 4pm. You heard it, lunch is between 3-4pm!! It's the biggest meal of the day, followed by constant snacks and then a small meal of pita and falafel for 'dinner' around 9/10pm. Today was great because I got to facetime with the whole family!! It was really nice seeing everyone, with occasional visits from the cats, and just catching up. I have been feeling a little homesick these first few days with the culture shock, but talking with everyone today made me feel so much better. In Thibodeau fashion, we talked for 2 hours and couldn't get anyone to hang up. It was weird ending the call with me at the end of my day, and theirs just starting. Afterwards, Brittany and I sat outside where it had cooled down sooooo much!! Our homestay mom brought out tons of snacks for us to eat while studying, then went to have dinner at their parents. They came back around 9:30pm with shawarma for us!! The cats then decided to come out and try to steal our shawarma, naughty babies!! But we got them fed and then pet them for awhile. There's one mama cat with 3 of her kittens, all very cute and friendly. The busy day ended with a cold shower, never appreciated more than when there's no AC and it's been 102 all day!! I'm very excited to get officially into classes this week and get the semester in full swing.
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