Visit to Zarqa

Strolling down the street with my friend...

She is one of my English students and invited me to her home Saturday to eat the national dish called Mansaf. I loved meeting her family and friends and just relaxing.

Evenings of smoking shisha

More Pictures

My roommate, my Iraqi friends, and me at Jerash!

The sunset over Palestine. (The sun is reflecting off the Dead Sea.)

New friends at the Ummayad Mosque in Damascus.

The amphitheatre in Jerash.

Ancients ruins of the southern most Decapolis cities (Jerash).

Do I look the same? (I would never dress this way inside the city- I am scantily clothed in this picture because we were hiking in a secluded area.)

Hmmm...

So much time passes, that when I sit down to write, I am flooded with choices. Do I write about how much I miss my family and friends- especially knowing they are enduring hard times?

Or do I share about the exciting vision that my company has for reaching out to students and how we are beginning to be flooded with young people wanting to dialogue, hang out, and learn English?

Or should I tell the story about how I lost 5 American college students AND my boss's little kids in the city for 2 hours when I was put in charge of them and sent them away in a taxi?

Maybe people would want to know that I had mass with the Pope when he came to visit. Or that my German friend and I were followed and circled by creepy Arab men the other night.

I have so man stories to tell, so much I wish those closest to me could see, know, and experience. But because its an overwhelming task, maybe I'll just post a picture...

This is the roof where I slept in Syria four nights, and probably where I picked up the bedbugs that followed me back home.

Where I Shop

When I need fruit and vegetables...
A close up view...
When I need bread and baked goods...

The Office

These are the people that make up my life each day here in the Middle East- atleast from 9am-6pm. They are my co-workers and my language instructors. I am actually the only American woman in our office, which creates a unique challenge, but lots of laughter and growth. These are my friends.

This is Joanna, another American girl living here. We attend fellowship together on Friday morning and usually come back to my apartment to watch LOST on pirated DVDs. (Below is a picture of the King's Highway. Below is the Red Sea with Palestine on the other side.)



This is an Engagement party that I attended. 200 women dancing in a ballroom and one man... the future groom.

Thankful for Maryana

I just got back from a 2 day trip to Aqaba with my co-workers and friends from CGE. This is Maryana, a Jordanian girl and one of my closest friends here. Behind us is the Red Sea and Palestine.