Birthday in the middle eastern style

So finally a delayed blog post. But since the living here is just becoming more and more normal, theres less and less outstanding things to share. Now all the outstanding things are just part of my everyday life.

So almost a month ago I had a birthday. Birthdays here are long and special celebration, especially for the girls. Girls seemed to celebrate birthdays much more and make it a bigger thing. The celebrations normally last for the whole week. And so did mine.

I ended up organizing 2 birthday paries. One middle estern style and one western style. Middle easter style party for the friends that don’t drink alcohol and who don’t really appreciate or feel comfortable to be around people who drink. It was a great night at our flat. Inviting mainly Jordaninan people who have been special and nice to hang out with. We ended up having so many cakes and soft drinks that we could eat them for the rest of the week. But the winner cake was definitely this one:



A big yellow smiley face with my name written on it. And on top of that, it actually tasted as sweet black bread back home J.

The other party was with drinks and clubbing and mainly with all the interns over here.

It also turned out to be my first time to be turned down by the night club. Since it is low season, some night clubs are closed for renovations and some just closed. Which pretty much leaves Amman with just about 3 night clubs. And out of the 3 only 2 are for “decent girls” . and I was warned before that you should reserve places before to get in since they will be crowded. But my western mind couldn’t believe the fact that a club would just not accept peoples money and turn them down. But so it happened. No reservation, no place. Anyway the night ended up to be a great one, with a house party at other interns place.




The birthday week and month is over now. For the first time after 17 I actually feel like I am loving and living the age I am exactly now. It might also be because people here are “youngster” for a longer period of time than in the western world. So being 26 and not married with kids and still living at home is more normal here. Most of the 26 and older people still live with their families and are very close to them. You normally move out only once you get married. While in Estonia, you probably couldn’t really find people older than 25 still living with the family. You might not be married with kids, but at least your moved out of home and connection and communication with friends is definitely more intense than with your family.

17 kilometers of hot springs

Last weekend we had a trip with our work.
On Thursday everyone was told very seriously, be at the headquarters 6.45 sharp! We have a long day and a lot to go through. 6.55 we arrive to the place, worried that everyone is waiting for us already. But, we were one of the first ones to arrive :). 1 hour later, the buss arrives and 5 minutes after that, the last person arrives. Around 8, we start our journey – Jordanian timing :).
Our first stop was Madaba. City with the oldest churches in the world:


The second stop, Mount Nibu, part of the holy land and bible stories:



The third stop Wadi Zarka Maen:



We were warned to leave all valuable things in the buss, couse we will get wet. And when they meant wet – it actually was basically hiking in the water . It was a lot of fun. The whole journey was following a river with hot spring up the hill. The water was clean and about 30 degrees. After every once in a while we reached some small waterfalls or hot spring baths to swim in. after 6 hours and 17 km, we were all exhausted, but the nature was something I have never seen before and the experience was wonderful.

Night in the desert, morning in Red sea

On the weekend we had a trip to wadi rum – a valley in the desert in southern Jordan.
After starting our trip 3 hours later from the planed time within few hours drive from Amman an amazing scenery road started. We were curving around the rocks in the desert. Each of the rocks looking like sculptures having their own face and looks:



Also have to acknowledge the infrastructure fact again. Even in the middle of desert and rocks the roads in this country are perfect. There is always a two way highway with 4 lines and excellent roads.
By the evening we arrived to our camp:


We spent one night living with Bedouins and hawing a view like that:




The Bedouins cooked us a dinner under the sand. The sunlight is so strong that it heats up the ground to so high temperature that you can dig your food under the sand and it will be cooked by the heath there. So we ate under the ground cooked, rice, vegetables and chicken. And yes, I did make an excuse and ate the chicken cause it was traditional and special and it would have been more rude to not try the costumes here to stick with my principles.
The nature gave us a special treat as well. After midnight, we started seeing lightning in the sky and after few hours the thunder followed, and then the rain for the rest of the night. So now I can say that I have seen rain in the desert and even slept in the rain in desert (yes the camps and tents there are obviously not built for rain).
In the morning we went back to the village and had a camel ride.

And then drove 30 minutes and reached Aqaba and the red sea. Aqaba was amazing – green, warm and the most blue water I have ever seen. It is a government initiative to make the city green and environment sustainable. Also Aqaba is a tax free zone. So everything there is 20% cheaper than anywhere else. And thirdly, you can see Israel, Egypt and Saudi-Arabia from the beach!



We visited the public beach, cause that’s for free. But it wasn’t that clean and we were the only females swimming, rest of them were covered and just looking at the sea. But the water was amazing. Clear as a drinking water. And already 5 meters from the beach, you can see the corals and colorful fish. This time we didn’t go diving yet, but next time for sure!
So what a weekend – night in the desert, camel ride in the morning, swimming with corals in the red sea in the afternoon!

Hiking

ON Friday we went hiking. Actually I understood that we will just go to someone’s place to watch a movie and then since she lives bit out of the city, we can also take a walk in the nature.
After about 15 minutes drive we reached to a fantastic look out place, where all you can see is mountains and a small valley with pomegranate farm between them. And the person who lives there actually has this view from here house:


Then it turns out that the nice walk is an actual hike (well coming from a country with no hills, I would even call it a mountain climbing) what we are going to do. After few minutes I find myself in the middle of the mountain, which seems to be almost 90 degrees.



And then I remember that I am afraid of heights. Cant move any more. Adrenaline is high and the sun is burning my head. So I put my hands down and try to crawl down, but the hill is covered with thorns, but suddenly you just don’t care - it is a fight for life. Thank god Julie saved me and took me hand on hand, teached me how to move and where to move. Then it almost felt like my first snowboarding lesson - which wasn’t very successful as well. At the end I can say it was a lot of fun - but next time I just stay down and watch the view J.



But back to the house. It was like a dream place to live:

View from the balcony, where people set up a movie with projector afterwards:




Living room:




Home made olives:

Do I smell?

On my first day at work I was through personal experience introduced to one of the cultural differences.
Since the begging I have felt that getting to know new people has been a bit awkward. Normally people just say their name, smile and that’s it. No hugging, shaking hands or etc. But since I am not a big hugger myself, I didn’t pay a lot of attention to that.
And due to not paying too much attention to that, I had to find out the real reasons the hard way.

So my first day at work, I was introduced to one of the top people in the company and finance department. He was male. And as a girl with good manners from my society, always the youngest and female should offer the hand first, and that’s what I did. And then something happened that keeps on playing in my head in slow motion until today. The guy just stood there, his hands tightly to his body and gave me a look like I just did something really wrong.

It was just few seconds, then we just moved on with the conversation, of which I don’t remember anything. I was just trying to figure out what I did wrong. Did I smell? Is he afraid of the flue?

Later I was explained by my supervisor, that according to Islam costumes a male and female never shake hands or have any physical connection. And this guy was one of the 10% of very religious people in the company who still follow all the rules very strictly.

Now I am already smarter. I never offer my hand unless the other person does it before. And when I see a guy with beard, then I know that most probably they are more strictly religious.

So this is the reason why people normally don’t make any physical contact, just to avoid incidence like mine. Even if someone has birthday, people don’t go up and hug or shake hands. You just say happy birthday and that’s all.

So much about my first embarrassing moment as a foreign in my company.

With our company bran in top and compettors below:


Some random pics from Amman:

Everyday life

Life in Jordan has been wonderful adventure so far. Every step is a bit of a cultural shock and all is new and exciting.
There are many interesting things and costumes that I have found out. I will try to cathegorize them and will start with the everyday living here:
There are no addresses here. So when you call a taxi, you have to tell the nearest shop and then direct him from there. Or when you want to receive letters, you should get a PO BOX. Even my big corporate office doesn’t have an address.
Public transport system is almost missing, so taxi is a public transport. Taxi ride costs normally between 0,5 to 3 eur. Our taxi ride to work is 1,5 eur for about 20 min ride.
The water doesn’t come from pipes. There is a tank on the roof of our house and the government fills the tank every Thursday and Friday.
The hot water comes through diesel tank. To heat the water you have to buy diesel and before taking a shower you have to turn the engine on.
Ground floor apartment with almost no view and sunshine is considered higher prize property than second floor. Its more comfortable and it protects you from sunshine. So it’s nice and dark inside all the time.
In next post I will write about the manners and a rather embarising way I found out about one.


Our home street



the hood



The Bello, MC cat from up-stairs



View of Amman

The Journey

Checked-in my luggage evening the day before, to make the 5 am departure less painful. This resulted to a movie like departure. When I was in security control I heard from the speakers: Kristina Toms, please proceeded to your gate immediately, you are delaying the flight. And so I was the last person to get on the plane.
Still feels like I am just going to another trip. As it starts exactly as most of my business trips last year. Flight from Tallinn to Riga. In last 12 months I have been to Riga airport 6 times and even spent a night there. So it is kind of like home already.
Next destination: Riga to Stockholm. 5 hours of waiting in Arlanda airport (which is definitely not my favorite one) whit ridiculously expensive coffee and internet. But on a positive note I was amazed, that although I haven’t practiced for 4 years already, I still understand a bit of Swedish and could even read the airport magazine.
First panic also accrued. While checking in in Stockholm, the lady says to me: the system requires that you have a return ticket as well for boarding. What? But, I don’t know when I am coming back? I was told I don’t need a return ticket for visa! After few calls, the lady takes my promise that I will not accuse the Turkish airways or demand them to fly me home, when I don’t get a visa in Jordan airport. And I get my boarding passes to Istanbul and Amman.

Around 4 pm I arrived in Istanbul. Turkish airways is way better than I thought. Good food and nice service. After 2 hours of flight delays I arrive in Amman. Visa takes forever, couse just in front of me there is a family: Arabic man, Asian looking Moslem woman and 7 children who speak finnish :).

I am picked up by 3 AIESEC guys here. I get my first cultural difference feeling. We went out to eat and suddenly I realized that the guys in the restaurant are looking at me. Then I realized that I am the only female in the whole restaurant. So I asked my guys - where are all the women? The women eat upstairs!
But I was sad I had been fed to well by Turkish airways so I could only try a little of the best humus and falafel I have ever had - food paradise!