One Final Post

Ok, so now that I've been back home for about a month and I started school, I think it's time for one final post.

Where to begin...perhaps with a list...

The Top 5 Things I'll Miss About Jordan (in no particular order):
1. My Language Partners.  One of the most interesting and fun parts of my stay in Jordan was the relationships that I formed with my language partners, Yussef, Khaled, and Majd.  One of the things that Khaled said many times toward the end of our stay in Jordan was that at first, he came to our meetings just to get better at english.  After a few weeks, however, he kept coming simply because he enjoyed hanging out with Jim and I.  While we were simply language partners at the beginning of the program, we all considered each other friends by the end.
2. Hospitality.  I know I wrote about this many times throughout the summer, but I will absolutely miss the genuine hospitality that I was shown almost everywhere I went in Jordan.  Whether talking to my language partners or my professors, to the clerk at the grocery store, or to the waiters at our favorite restaurants, we were always graciously welcomed and made to feel at home.  This is a kind of hospitality that is completely foreign to the U.S., especially in the northeast, where I've lived most of my life.
3. Arabic Immersion.  As frustrating and draining as it was at times, I will miss the intensive immersion in the Arabic language and culture.  Immersion really is the best was to learn a language, and I definitely learned a lot.  Without being burdened by other course work, I was able to focus solely on learning Arabic this summer.  In the end, though I was more than ready to come home and see my wife, family, and friends, I was a little disappointed that I had to leave Jordan right when I was really beginning to progress in Arabic.
4. Historical, Political, and Religious Contexts.  It was simply amazing to be in able to travel around Jordan and Israel/Palestine and take in the vast historical, religious, and political significance of the many places I visited.  I was struck by this the first weekend I was in Jordan.  When we went to Amman and took pictures of the Citadel, I was able to capture Roman, Ummayad, and contemporary civilizations all in one shot.  These juxtapositions were everywhere and I thoroughly enjoyed contemplating them.
5. The Weather.  Although I was expecting Jordan to be uncomfortably hot, I actually found it to be very comfortable.  Apparently we had a mild summer, because the temperature averaged between 90-95 degrees during the day and usually cooled down at night.  With the absence of humidity, those temperatures were not bad at all.  So, with the exception of a few weeks of over 100 temperatures, the weather was quite good.  All I had to do was stay out of the sun and I was usually pretty comfortable.

It's hard to sum up this trip in any way that really captures my experiences.  I went to Jordan after studying the Middle East for a few years in college and one in grad school.  I went because I've been intellectually interested on the history, culture, and politics of the region.  When I got there and started interacting with local people, forming relationships, I was able to put a human face to all the books and articles I've read over the years.

Today, I started school and the first class I went to is called "Palestine and the Politics of History."  As I read the articles and participated in the class discussion, I was able to visualize the landscape and picture the people that I talked to when I was in Israel/Palestine.  I could remember my conversations with my language partners and professors, and connect their ernest reflections on the visceral political realities of modern day Israel/Palestine with the content that was being discussed in class.  If there is one thing I can take away from this experience, then, it is that the books and papers, arguments and counter-arguments, facts and figures, are no longer simply data to be processed intellectually.  Rather, they are accounts of human lives.

I'm not quite sure what else to say at this point, so I think I'll stop here.  I hope that this blog has helped you all understand my experiences this summer and taught you a little bit about the Middle East.  I know that I thoroughly enjoyed writing it, and that I'll look back on it in the coming years to remember my
رحلة إلى الأردن

Coming Home

Well, it's almost that time.  In about 5 hours I'll be headed to the airport in Amman, Jordan.  From there, we fly direct to JFK - 13 hours of fun!  I didn't really have the time to write the kind of "final post" that I would have liked, so I think that what I'll do is write one more post when I get home.  So, if you are still interested, keep checking for a little while after I get home and I'll write at least one more post reflecting on my experience as a whole.  As for right now, I should probably head to bed.  It's almost 1 a.m. and I have to wake up at 5 a.m. to get ready to leave!

I can't wait to see everybody and tell you about my experiences in person!

تجويد (Tajweed)

Throughout the course of the program, we participated in clubs that met once a week and were focused on different aspects of Arab and Islamic culture, and life in Jordan.  The club that I decided to attend was تجويد (Tajweed), which is the name for the science/art of Quranic recitation.  Little did I know that there is an entire set of rules for how the Quran is supposed to be read aloud.  (I should briefly point out that adherence to Tajweed is only required of imams and those who are reciting the Quran in public ceremonies.  Most Muslims don't recite the Quran according to Tajweed when they are simply reading to themselves.)  So, over the past 6 weeks or so, I learned some of these rules.  It was not easy.

One difficulty is that some of the letters are pronounced differently in Tajweed than in normal Arabic.  These letters are pronounced with emphasis, only half-pronounced, or not pronounced at all depending on the letters/vowels surrounding them.  Another difficulty is that you must remember to hold long vowels for a certain amount of time and short vowels for another.  Sometimes long vowels are held for 2 beats, other times 4, or 6, depending on the position in the verse.  Along with these rules, you must be able to make your voice sound very nasal sometimes, and very clear at others.  This is also determined by letters and context.  These are just some of the many rules that exist in Tajweed, many of which we didn't even have time to cover.

With so many rules, we never really expected to come close to mastering Tajweed in a few short weeks; people train to do this for years.  One of our professors at the language center, Dr. Ahmad, was trained in Tajweed, so he was the one who ran the club.  He has an incredible voice and knows many parts of the Quran by heart.  It was very impressive to see/hear him recite whole surahs (chapters) by memory.  I say recite, but what you hear in Tajweed is closer to a song than it is to a simple reading of a text.  Much of the Quran was written in a very poetic form that bursts forth with musical quality.  It really is cool to listen to.

Listening and doing are two different things however.  Every week, Dr. Ahmad made sure that everybody in the class had a turn trying to recite the passages that we were looking at.  It was a very difficult, and slightly awkward experience to have to sing/recite the Quran in front of everybody, but I enjoyed it.  Dr. Ahmad would always recite the passage line by line (or sometimes only half at a time) and we would have to repeat it exactly...well, close to exactly.  It became clear that Dr. Ahmad was not going to allow us to slide by and mispronounce the words.  This is the Quran, after all, and must be read exactly as intended.

Many of the students, including myself, struggled with pronouncing the words in the right way and sticking to the correct rhythm and tone.  Fortunately, I have a musical ear and a good ability to mimic sounds, so this helped me pick up on the technique pretty fast.  However, when Dr. Ahmad saw that I could handle shorter passages, he started to lengthen the amounts of words that I had to recite and this didn't turn out so great.  My ability to mimic sounds could only last for a very small number of words, and then after that I had to rely on applying the rules and reading the words correctly, which definitely did not happen.  Though he insisted on correct pronunciation, Dr. Ahmad was gracious and light-hearted in his approach because he knew that we were just interested in learning a bit.  So, despite our constant errors, we had a good time just sitting around and trying to learn as much as we could. We also got to hear a lot of cool renditions of the Quran.

To give you an idea of what Tajweed sounds like, I looked up a couple youtube videos of Abdul-Basit, one of the most famous practitioners of Tajweed.  In the video where you see him reciting the verses, he puts his hands by his ears to block out all other sounds because he is doing this all from memory and must concentrate to recall it all.  He also covers his mouth sometimes and this effects the sound that comes out.  If you are intrigued, you can check these videos out at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vEnqBUdIGc4&feature=fvwrel

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jK-mxZC1GFk (pay attention to how long he goes without taking a breath in this video - this guys has some serious lungs!)

جامعة يرموك (Yarmouk University)

So, since I've been here for 8 weeks, I guess it's about time that I post some pictures of the campus that I walk through every day.  I was waiting to walk around and take pictures on a Friday morning because the campus is abandoned, so I could just walk and take pictures without having a bunch of random people in them. But, since I have almost always been gone on Fridays, I had to wait until last week to do this.  So, here are some pictures...

Our apartment building 

The language center.  This is where we take classes during the week.

The college of technology.

Another random building that looked cool...

The east gate of the university is the main entrance.

The university mosque

Ramadan

Monday was the official start of the month of Ramadan.  Ramadan comes at a different time every year, because it is based on the lunar calendar, not the solar calendar.  So, this year it started on Monday (Aug. 1) and will continue for 30 more days.  The reason that Muslims fast during the month of Ramadan in particular is that this was the month in which the Quran was revealed to Mohammed back in 610 AD.

During this month, Muslims are obligated to fast from food, drink, smoking, and any kind of intimate relations during the daylight hours.  There are exceptions, of course.  Young children and the elderly, as well those who are sick or traveling are exempt from fasting throughout the month (although those who are traveling have to make it up later).  Traditionally, Muslims will wake up very early in the morning, before sunrise (like 3:30am) and eat a large meal together with their family.  This meal is called السحور (as-suhoor).  Then, many Muslims will go back to sleep for a while and then get up and go to work.  Many places shorten their hours for Ramadan so that their employees don't have to work as long while fasting.  After sundown, Muslims get together for another large meal called الإفطار (al-iftaar), which means the breaking of the fast.

Needless to say, fasting from sunrise to sunset is no easy task.  It is supposed to help Muslims remember their blessings and re-affirm their reliance on God.  It is also supposed to be a month in which Muslims make a larger effort to help the poor, read the Quran, and pray.  Finally, Ramadan is a time to restore broken relationships, whether with God or with neighbors, family members, or friends.

One last interesting fact about Ramadan is that the fasting that takes place during it is one of the "Five Pillars of Islam."  These Five Pillars are the central tenants of Islam.  They are:

• the declaration of faith (Shahada)
• praying five times a day (Salat)
• giving money to charity (Zakah)
• fasting (Sawm)
• a pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in a lifetime(Hajj)

One Last Day

It has become apparent that I had quite a lot to say about my trip to Jerusalem.  So, I'll try to wrap it up in this post and move on to something else next time.

Friday was our last full day in Israel.  We got up early in the morning and caught a bus to Tel Aviv, the second largest city in Israel.  Tel Aviv is situated right on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea and is a very modern/western city.  There were many times when we were walking around that we felt like we were in Greenwich Village, NYC, or in some European city.  The only time we actually felt like we were in the Middle East was when we walked through the Yemeni bazaar.

There wasn't really anything specific that we wanted to see in Tel Aviv, we mostly just wanted to go and experience a little bit of the ultra-modern side of Israel after spending so much time in the Old City of Jerusalem.  So, we walked around quite a bit, saw a few interesting monuments, had lunch, and headed for the beach.  Since we weren't really planning on spending the day at the beach, none of us brought swim suits or towels.  However, when Jim and I went to take some pictures of the beach, we could resist the urge to jump in.  So, off came our shoes, socks, and shirts, and we jumped in the Mediterranean Sea!  This was my first time seeing/swimming in the Mediterranean.  It was quite beautiful and the water was warm and comfortable.  After swimming for about 15 minutes, we decided that it was time to go, since the other guys were waiting for us.  So, we dried off in the sun and then headed back to the bus station and back to Jerusalem.

About an hour and a half later, we were back at our hostel.  We changed and went out to dinner on the Via Dolorosa.  As we sat there, the sun was getting close to setting, so all of the orthodox Jews were hurrying along the Via Dolorosa to get back to there homes before sundown.  While all this was happening, the evening call to prayer emanated from the nearby mosques.  In those few moments, we experienced the convergence of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism in a way unique to Jerusalem.  I won't soon forget the picture of Jews walking down the Via Dolorosa to the call to prayer.

After dinner, we went back to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and stayed there for about an hour.  I wandered around the church, found a secluded place, and prayed for quite a while.  This was the opportunity for meditation that I missed the first time I visited the church.  So, I was glad that I was able to come back, sit, and think.

When the church closed, we walked back to our hostel, sat on the roof and looked at the city as we ate some delicious grapes that one of my friends purchased.  We went to bed early, but I made sure to wake up shortly after 5:00am on Saturday morning so that I could see the sun rise.  It was beautiful.

Wanting to be back in Irbid at a reasonable hour, we departed Jerusalem at about 7:00am.  We travelled through the West Bank to the border, from the border to Amman, and then from Amman to Irbid.  We arrived in Irbid at about 1:30 in the afternoon and were able to relax for the rest of the day because our professors were kind enough not to give us homework over the break.

My trip to Jerusalem was one that I will not forget for a long time.  Hopefully my reflections in this blog will help you all understand what I experienced, and will help me to remember all the details of my trip. And now, here are the last group of pictures from the trip!

A cool church we saw on our way to the bus station in the morning

A view of West Jerusalem

The Old City walls

The Yemeni bazaar in Tel Aviv

The beach

Standing in the Mediterranean

The very-developed shoreline

Me and my travel companions

My favorite hotel: Israel + Hotel = Isrotel!

Another picture of the Old City

Returning home for the Sabbath

The first of many sunrise pictures

The blue domes are from the Church of the Holy Sepulcher

One Day in the "City of God" (Part 3)

When we got back to Jerusalem on Thursday afternoon, Jim and I decided that we wanted to walk the Via Dolorosa, which is the road on which Jesus walked while carrying his cross to Golgotha.  If you've ever participated in the Stations of the Cross during Lent, this road is what the stations are based on.  There are 9 stations along the Via Dolorosa, and then 5 more within the premises of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.  This Church was built on what has been traditionally held to be Golgotha, the place where Jesus was crucified.

We took our time walking on the Via Dolorosa, pausing at some stations to see the small chapels that have been built.  After about 45 minutes we found ourselves in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.  The church is large and very beautiful.  There is a maze of small chapels upstairs, downstairs, and on the main level.  One of the most interesting things in the Church is the alleged tomb of Jesus.  Again, I'm skeptical that this was the actual tomb of Jesus, but it was still interesting to look inside. Despite my skepticism about the location of the tomb, it was quite powerful to wander through the church and think that Jesus gave the ultimate sacrifice not far from where I was walking.

The entrance to "Jesus' Tomb"

After exploring the church for about an hour, we were about to leave when a group of Franciscan monks began singing and walking through the church with candles.  We stayed and listened for a bit and then we returned to the hostel to meet up with some friends and go out to dinner.  We stayed in the New City for a few hours and then returned to the hostel to get a good night's sleep.

One of the thoughts that kept running through my mind during the day (and still today) is that it was so hard to reconcile the deep spiritual and historical experience of being in Jerusalem with the heartbreaking and infuriating political situation that exists there today.  Our visit to Bethlehem was particularly striking in this regard as we saw the wall, an Israeli settlement, a checkpoint, the birthplace of Jesus, and the Shepherd's Field all in the matter of a few short hours.  I remember thinking at one point that if the Church of the Nativity was not the exact site of Jesus' birth, then maybe it was located in some formerly-inhabited palestinian house that was bulldozed to make way for the wall.  How ironic.  How sad.

A city so central to three religions that preach peace has been violently occupied in the name of those same religions, time after time.  Tragically, today, the "City of God" has fallen utterly short of the message that God brought to this world.

One Day in the "City of God" (Part 2)

After sitting beside the Dome of the Rock for awhile, I met up with some of my friends and we grabbed some lunch at a restaurant just outside the Old City.  The owner of the restaurant was a very friendly Palestinian man.  We got to talking to him and after a few minutes he told us a sad story.  He said that he lives a little to the east of his restaurant, right beside the separation wall.  Before the wall was built, he said, he could walk to his mother's house in 5 minutes.  However, now that the Israeli government constructed the wall, he has to take several buses and, after an hour and a half, he can finally arrive at his mother's house.  As sad as it is, this man is actually lucky compared to many Palestinians.  Many families have been completely cut off from one another, many others have to choose between work and seeing their family.  If a Palestinian can acquire a visa to work in Jerusalem (an incredibly difficult process), many times they won't be able to leave Jerusalem without revoking their right to work.

While hearing about the wall from this man was sad and frustrating, it was even more depressing and infuriating to see it.  Following our conversation with the restaurant owner, we took a bus to Bethlehem, which is located inside the West Bank.  The journey was short, and soon enough, we were dropped off on a random street in Bethlehem with absolutely no clue where we were.  Naturally, there were a few taxi drivers waiting there, and after some negotiation, we arranged for them to bring us around to a few sites in Bethlehem.  The first place they brought us was to the wall.

To give some perspective to the height of the wall I stood in front of it.

Needless to say, seeing the wall was quite a sobering experience.  It has come to symbolize all that is wrong about the Israeli occupation: occupation, segregation, and a systematic frustration of Palestinian rights.  The picture below was a very poignant symbol of the harsh political realities in Israel/Palestine:

The next stop on our trip was the Shepherd's Field.  This is supposedly the place where the angels appeared to the shepherds and told them about Jesus' birth.  I am seriously skeptical that anyone knows where this actually happened, but it was interesting to walk around and see the chapel that has been built on the spot.

Even the Shepherd's field was not hidden from the rapidly expanding illegal settlements of Israel.  Here is a picture of one that is currently being built on the next hill over from the Shepherd's field.

Since there wasn't too much to see at the Shepherd's Field, we quickly moved on to the next site: the Church of the Nativity.  This Church was built on the site that is allegedly where Jesus was born.  You enter through a small door at the base of the wall and come into this sanctuary:

The Sanctuary

Then, at the front of the sanctuary, there is a door that leads you underground:

Finally, when you get underground, you see this little shrine-like area with a golden star on the floor.  This golden star represents the exact spot that Jesus was born:

Everybody who went down could bend down and touch the star.

Now, while some of you may be thinking: "It's so wonderful that you could touch the exact spot where Christ came into the world," others are probably thinking, "There is no possible way that anybody actually knows that this star is the exact location of Jesus' birth."  I have to admit, when I was down next to that star, I didn't really know what to think about it.  Both of those thoughts were going through my head at the same time.  I am way to skeptical of a person to think that this was the exact spot that Christ was born.  On the other hand, when a tour guide from a group following me told this group to prepare themselves because this was the spot where Christianity started, I was definitely moved.

What I took away from this experience was not so much that I had touched the birthplace of Jesus.  Instead, it was simply the awareness that Jesus was born somewhere around where I was standing - maybe not in the church walls, but somewhere in Bethlehem.  Somewhere in the town that I had just travelled through was the birthplace of Christianity.  Somewhere in Bethlehem, a man was born who changed the course of human history.  Somewhere in Bethlehem, Jesus, the one who my faith revolves around, came into the world in human form.  It's safe to say that the half hour I spent inside the Church of the Nativity was insufficient to really consider the historical, personal, and cosmic significance of this town.  However, I tried my best to think, pray, and process my experience as much as I could while I was there.

The Church of the Nativity was the last site we visited in our 3-hour whirlwind tour of Bethlehem.  When we finished there, we returned to the bus station and rode back to Jerusalem, but not before stopping at a checkpoint...

When we got to the checkpoint everyone started getting off the bus to line up and get their ID's checked by the Israeli soldiers.  Seeing this, we also got up and started to leave, but were stopped quickly by our bus driver who assured us that tourists did not need to get off the bus.  Yes, we lucky few Americans got to stay seated on our air-conditioned bus while the Palestinians had to line up in the hot sun and get their ID's checked.  All we did was sit there and show our passport to the Israeli soldier that boarded the bus, and he didn't even check all of our passports.  This was one of those situations which made me feel like absolute mud.  While the Palestinians, people with much more of a legitimate claim to residence and movement in Jerusalem, had to get off the bus and answer questions of Israeli soldiers, my friends and I could sit back, wave our American passports, and relax.  It was absolutely infuriating!

Initially, I thought this process was going to take an hour, but it actually went rather quickly, and soon we were back on our way to Jerusalem.  When we arrived back in Jerusalem, Jim and I decided that it was a good time to walk the Via Dolorosa to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.  And you can read about this in my next post...