Beirut, Lebanon



Raouché (Pigeon Rocks)



This week both Sarah and I got summer jobs!!  Therefore, we decided to get shawarma and ice cream to celebrate--which was quite fitting because of the hot weather!  I finally worked up the nerve to ask my host family if I could go to their salon for a haircut. I didn’t want to intrude, but I also thought that it would be rude to go someplace else for a haircut, when they own their own salon!  So, I finally asked and I got my hair cut!  It was nothing big, just a trim and it was blow-dried out (the first time in 3 months).  It went pretty well, and I didn’t have to pay for it, which was even better!!

This past weekend a group of us went to Lebanon.  We had Sunday off for Easter, so we went for a long weekend.  We decided to fly there, about a 45 minute flight; since the alternative is to drive through Syria…even though it was such a short flight, we were still given food on the plane--much different from US airlines!!



The Corniche

  

 


We went and did a lot of things while we were there.  The scenery is so different from Amman.  Our hotel was right near the Corniche, which is essentially like a boardwalk and there are so many trees all over.  We also so Raouché (the Pigeon Rocks) which are natural formations near Beirut.  I honestly don't know much more about them, but they looked interesting!  We went to a grotto that was really interesting, and walked through the caves that were there.  Part of it was a little boat ride that took you through the lower grotto--it was so interesting to see all of the different rock formations.  We also went to walk around the campus of the American University of Beirut.  It was absolutely gorgeous!  It was so green, the buildings were beautiful and there was a view of the Mediterranean for a majority of it. 



American University of Beirut



We met up with a girl who was hosted by my host family a couple of years ago.  She was really sweet and showed us around some of Beirut, which was really nice.  It was a great weekend--the weather was beautiful as was the greenery.  Though it was still the Middle East, and less than an hour flight, I did not feel like I was in the same region at all!!





American University of Beirut



My host sister is getting engaged this Thursday, that’s when the ceremony is, so we are going to have a big party.  Sarah and I are trying to go to Petra this weekend, which would be a lot of fun!

Um Qais

The Golan Heights

The desert climate has finally started to hit us!  This weekend was when the heat first started, and today it was almost 90 degrees!  It is certainly nicer than the cold and rain, though the little wind and intense sun makes it feel warmer that it is. Luckily the houses are made of limestone, so they stay relatively cool in the evenings--which is a definitely plus!



Relaxing in the Grass



Friday a group of us went to Um Qais.  It is in the northern most part of Jordan, and it right near the Syrian border and the Golan Heights!  It was absolutely beautiful.  There were so many trees and grass, as well as some ruins from ancient times.  It was a gorgeous day and we walked around, lounged in the grass and enjoyed the sun--it was a much needed break!  It took quite a bit to get there; we had to take three buses, to different stations and it took a little more than two hours.  On the way back, the buses had stopped running at a certain part, so we had to walk (which is always fun without sidewalks) until a different type of van would pick us up and take us to the next station.  It was quite an experience!!



Ruins



I just hung out at Abbi’s that evening and we spent the next day doing work in a café and relaxing.  It was a good pace--we weren’t too overwhelmed, but we didn’t waste the weekend either.  I also sucessfully communicated with several cab drivers (in Arabic) this week.  Granted, it was the usual questions ("Where are you from? how do you like Jordan?  Which is better, America or Jordan?")  Regardless I was able to answer for the most part and understand what was being said which made me very happy.  It is rare that I can understand the whole conversation, but sometimes I can pick out enough to get the gist of what it going on--it's rare but it does happen once in a while!!  We are planning on going to Lebanon for Easter weekend, so that should be a lot of fun!

Successful Cab Ride

Today I took a taxi back on my own to my host family and I actually understood what he was asking me.  It wasn’t a very in depth conversation; he was asking why I lived so far from the university, where I was from, basic stuff like that.  I was so excited that I actually understood what he was saying, since our entire conversation was in Arabic!  It was definitely much easier for me to understand what he was saying rather than responding, but I managed to get some stuff in there (may not have been grammatically correct, but he go he point)--baby steps!

Reading in Greece

It was a frustrating day, so I thought that I would share this with everyone...I also thought that this picture was fitting, since I am "doing" my homework now!



Final Day in Santorini



Cable Car Ride to the Boat



Yesterday morning was spent relaxing in the apartment, where I was finally able to finish Queen Noor’s book!  We were originally planning on going to one of the braches to see that black sand, but it was incredible windy and chilly, so we decided to stay in.  In the afternoon we walked to the capital where we poked around in the shops and little streets for a while--I was able to find more gifts during this week than the last two months in Jordan!  I’ll have to step it up once I get back!





Lava Rocks--near Volcano



On the Volcano!



Today we took a boat ride to the volcano that created Santorini, where we climbed to the top of the volcano.  There are craters that are still active, and luckily they decided not to go off today!  The boat also took us to some hot springs that were near the volcano.  The water was so blue, and near the volcano it has a greenish-bluish tint to it, which is due to the sulfur that is released.  It was so pretty and clear--though not warm at all!!  We then took donkeys back up to the top of the island.  My donkey was one of the first ones to get going, but as soon as we rounded the corner he decided that it was time for a break.  I couldn’t really blame him, it was quite a steep climb, but he decided when to move on his own time, without any input from anyone else.



We ate crepes in the city and then took a bus to one of the beaches.  The sand is black, due to the volcano, though it is more like tiny stones rather than sand.  I put my feet into the water, and it was absolutely freezing--there was no way that I would have gone swimming!  I walked back to the apartment from the capital, which about a 25 minute walk.  It was absolutely gorgeous--I was in awe at the fact that I was actually here for a week and that it was something that could never be completely captured in a photo.  We will have our last meal in our apartment today--after that, sadly no more cooking or dish washing until I’m back in the States!  We leave for Amman tomorrow where I have a lot of excursions to get in before I return to home, and not that much time to do it!!

Water near the Volcano--the Sulfur changes the color



Path on our walk to Thira (the capital)







Church on our walk to the Capital

The weather the past few days has been much nicer than our first day here!  Our second day we were sitting on our balcony in tank tops and we were even hot than--I felt so haram compared to my clothing in Jordan!!  We walked to Thira, the capital of Santorini, and looked around at the little shops there.  They had a lot of nice jewelry, so it was fun to window shop.  It was nice to just be able to walk around for a little while, especially because the weather was so nice!  Our land lord brought us a bottle of wine, and we have yet to drink it, so it is sitting on our kitchen table!

Homemade wine on our balcony

The Blue Dome

We have a little apartment for the week, so we get to cook and clean our own dishes.  It feels so nice to be able to do that.  My homestay has a maid, and it is so weird to not have to clean or cook anything, that it makes me feel a little more normal and doing regular things for a little while.  The sheets in the apartment also smell like grandma’s house, so when I go to sleep at night it’s like I am sleeping at her house!

Today we sucessfully used the public bus system, and took the twenty minute ride to Oia-Ia, a northern city in Santorini.  The public bus was a coach bus, that had a sign on the outside saying “city bus”.  This city is located right on the cliff of the island, and is absolutely gorgeous.  All of the hotels were getting ready for tourist season, so everyone was bustling about and cleaning.  There was also a lot of white paint, since everyone was repainting the buildings to keep them looking fresh!  I believe the white buildings with the blue domes are churches, and there are a handful of them around the island.  But, we were able to see the one that is in all of the photos of Greece!!  There are mopeds all over the city--I thought that the taxi’s in Amman would get me, but I think it might actually be the mopeds!

Abbi and I--Oia

While we were exploring, we met a guy who was from Long Island and works in NYC--what a coincidence!!  He gave us his business card so that we could keep in touch once we were back in the states, and he is actually in Forensics; consulting, reconstruction and training!!  He worked for the NYPD for a while, and is now in the private sector, he just taught a weekend course in Milan to the students there!!  It was such a coincidence not only that we met him, and that he was from NY, but that he is also in forensics!!  Exciting!

Santorini, Greece



Acroplis Building, Athens



Our second day in Athens, we went to see the Acropolis, and to our surprise admission was free, though it closed early, so we were not able to see everything--at least we were able to see some ruins.  We stayed in that night, and just went around the area to get dinner--which we stopped at the falafel place to get a little bit of Arabic cuisine!





Santorini--from the Ferry



We had to leave the hotel at 5:50 this morning to catch our ferry to Santorini Island.  We successfully navigated our way through the metro, including three line changes before we arrived at the port.  Then we had a 7 hour ferry ride before we reached the island.  It was a relatively large ship, and the water was pretty choppy, so you could still feel the waves.  That didn’t bother me at all; it reminded me of being on the water at the lake house, which I love!  It was really neat, getting off the ship everyone went down to the level where the cars were kept, and a drawbridge lowered when the ship hit the shore.  Then, everyone walked or drove off of the ship, right onto the island--I felt like I was in the belly of a warship and people were getting ready to go into combat!!





Our Apartment Complex



It was pretty overcast and chilly when we got to the island.  The owner of the apartments where we are staying picked us up from the port and drove us to the apartment complex.  He then brought us maps and told us about the area and places that we could go throughout the week.  He’s really nice, and definitely goes out of his way to make sure that we have everything.  Since we have a kitchen, we walked to a little mini-mart and picked up supplies to make meals.  The apartment is adorable and has an amazing view of the water and the houses around it.  The sun is starting to come up now, and hopefully the rest of the week will have nice weather, so that we can go around the island as well as relax here.

View from our Balcony



It's All Greek to Me!!

Finally made it to Greece!!!  On our flight to Greece, Abbi sat next to this guy who was a Greek diplomat working in Jordan.  He was really nice and made us a list of things that we should do and see while we were there.  I was also sitting next to a guy who was from DC and just spent a couple of weeks in Jordan--small world!  When we got to the airport I was throwing out marhaba’s (hello), shukran’s (thank you) and asif’s (sorry) like there was no more tomorrow.  I sort of learned some Greek words, efharisto (thank you) and parakalo (sorry), so I now I am just all sorts of confused!

Abbi’s host sister recently married a Greek guy, so they picked us up from the airport and took us to his mother’s house.  We spent the rest of the day with them, and Batool and Alkis (host sister and husband) took us around Athens and then to our hotel--they are so nice!!



Our lovely hosts after lunch

The hotel that we booked has really sketchy, two person elevator.  It’s extremely claustrophobic and the first night we got in with our bags and it wouldn’t close.  To add to the interesting-ness of the elevator, it also has one of those doors that you have to open before you get in and then another set of doors closes once you are in there.  The most interesting part is that the hotel that we booked is right next to a street that has a bunch of Arabic restaurants, with the names written in Arabic!!!  Something that I can actually read!!

Our first day here was pretty overcast and the weather was pretty gross, but we still walked around.  We went to some of the monuments and looked at them, as well as walked through the market.  It’s been nice--relaxing while at the same time we are able to see some of the sights of Greece.  Hopefully the weather starts to get a little bit nicer and that the temperature picks up.  I’m just happy to be able to see trees and grass!!