Lost Adventures & Scary Security Briefings!

Now I am finally caught up and can post about my first day of classes here in Amman! Today, I would say was really a great one! It was exactly what could be expected of the first day of classes for someone who does not speak the language or know their way around anywhere in the city in which they live. I had my first true Arabic class this morning, which was extreeeemely useful. We began learning a lot of phrases that we need for everyday use - especially for talking to the cab drivers. Taxis are the major mode of transportation for people who don't have cars here, because they are fast, cheap and everywhere! However, try riding in a cab by yourself as a girl, where you don't speak the language and all of the adults from your study abroad program have continuously told you to beware creeper cab drivers... and this while you obviously stick out as a foreigner and cannot for the life of you pronounce anything right! It really is an adventure every time I get into a cab. Yet, at the same time it's somewhat liberating when I am able to successfully carry out a transaction with a cab driver on my own... it really makes me feel more accomplished!

So after our awesome lesson, the few of us who are in the beginner's Arabic class went on an adventure to walk to the American Center for Oriental Research (ACOR), which provides all of Jordanian students and us with a fantastic library and free wifi AND free coffee and tea. So we thought we would go there until our scheduled US Embassy Security Briefing to kill time and relax...

Relaxing is the last thing we did for the next hour or so. We literally hiked up a ginormous hill, wandering around for about an hour, trying to find this place. We asked multiple people on the street and got numerous cat calls and honks from drivers-by who all wanted to drive us to who-knows-where... all this in a mixture of cold air but blazing sunlight and really uncomfortable shoes (well, for me at least)... until we FINALLY realized we should probably take out our CIEE handbooks, that have a nice little map that shows the way from the University to the ACOR office. I know. We felt extremely ridiculous for not thinking of it before. But, I have to say it was definitely a bonding experience, getting lost in the hills and sweating out butts off until we finally found the location. We were rewarded with free wifi and awesome tea when we got there and a really nice place to relax. It was definitely worth it.

It soon came time for the US Embassy Security Briefing. This was a little ridiculous for me to attend, because I'm not a US citizen, so all of their promises to help us out when we get in trouble meant nothing to me. But I went anyways and was able to listen in to the extreme lecture of scariness they bestowed upon us. They literally did nothing but freak everyone in the program out by deciding to tell us that political violence and terrorism were high in Jordan and that we, as westerners, were the number one target for any attack. Horror stories of assault, sexual and otherwise and crazy police arrests that would prevent us from leaving the country followed. Honestly, even though I know they were just doing their jobs, I think it was a bit much. After we explained to our family what they had said and how scary they made Jordan seem, they only laughed. I seriously do not know why they love scaring us so much here in CIEE. I know they want us to be careful and this is their way of achieving it, and I guess we do sort of need it... but talking about hard core Al Qaeda attacks and stuff like that I feel was a bit overkill... 

Overall it was a pretty eventful day... yet going to a hookah bar and drinking turkish coffee with some hookah on the side was the perfect way to end it... Now I'm sitting on the couch about to take a nice break with a good movie with my host family, while I try to review some Arabic for tomorrow...

Also, I am extremely nervous for tomorrow, because I have an interview at the Jordan Institute of Diplomacy for an internship! It is extremely formal and freaking me out!! I reaaaalllly hope I get it, because it would honestly be the dream internship for me! I should probably go now to memorize their entire website, so I can make a good impression tomorrow. Wish me luck!