Arrival

After a long day of traveling, I have finally arrived in Jordan. My JFK to Amman flight was long but uneventful. Luckily, the flight was only about 25% full so I claimed a section of three seats in the middle of the plane. I was able to get 5 or 6 hours of slightly spotty sleep but it was worth it. Towards the end of the flight, as we approached Israeli airspace, the pilot announced that, as required, we must be seated and buckled once we entered Israeli airspace and must remain so until we landed. Interesting, isn't it?

Once we landed, I gathered my things and debarked from the plane. The smell of tobacco smoke and dry earth were familiar. I made my way the the money exchange counter where I exchanged some of my U.S. dollars with Jordanian dinars (JDs). Then I went to get my 30 day visa for 10 JD followed by a stop at the immigration counter where I had my picture taken (for who knows what purpose). Then I walked to the baggage claim where my two bags were already on the conveyor belt, thankfully. I started looking around for someone holding a Fulbright sign that would be taking me to my hotel. I spotted him and he and another man helped me with my huge bags to the driver's car. My trip from the airport to the hotel reminded me why I wouldn't want to drive in Jordan. There are no road lines and driving in the middle of the "lanes" is deemed acceptable, if not necessary. Oh and there is no such thing as driving too close to another car until you hit another car. Which, by the way, we witnessed. All of a sudden a couple cars collided in front of us sending one of the two flying off the road and into a highway sign. So what do we do? Stop, of course. The driver told me to wait for "1 minute" before he jumped out to see if everyone was okay. There were probably 20 other people who had the same idea. After coming back, the driver assured me that everyone was fine, including one man with a gash on the back of his head. But, don't worry it's okay! Right. We continued on our way and about 5 minutes later we spotted a semi that had tipped over while driving up an on-ramp. The driver pointed and laughed. I think I was in too much of a daze to really be scared of how aggressively my driver was driving (probably a good thing). After about a 25 or 30 minute drive to the airport, we arrived in front of al-Qasr Metropol Hotel. The driver hopped out, helped me with my bags and into the hotel. I and my luggage had to be scanned again before entering the hotel. I checked in and paid up-front for a one night stay. My plan is to leave tomorrow before noon to move into my apartment in Jebel Amman.

After getting situated in my hotel room, I went back down to the reception desk and asked where I could purchase a SIM card for my phone and exchange the rest of the cash I had brought with me. The man at the reception desk was most helpful. He gave me a map and directions and I set out on my 45 minute excursion to the Western Union, a Zain store (to buy a SIM card) and a grocery store where I bought 3 clementines for dinner and a large bottle of water (I'm not too hungry).

My evening will be all about a shower and some sleep. And maybe trying to find my phone charger.

Finally observations for today: It is Ramadan and everything is closed. I am, comparatively, extremely pale and foreign looking. I'm already missing clouds and green things and home in general.

Begin at the Beginning

This will be the first of many entries chronicling the next year of my life. My Fulbright year. So, to begin at the beginning, this will be an explanation of what I will be doing and how I got here. For those of you who already know- skip this one. If you are interested in applying for a Fulbright or are just curious about what's the what- read on.

About a year ago, a began thinking and planning for my post-Miami years. I will shamelessly admit that my goal was to avoid entering the "real world" (read: job market) for as long as possible. I looked into several options, the Fulbright grant among them. The application was extensive, requiring thorough knowledge of your proposed area of research and country in which your project was to be conducted. After submitting several recommendations, a language reference, a project proposal and personal statement, I went to an on-campus interview. All of these were completed by mid-October 2009. I would not here more until February 2010 at which time finalists were announced. Essentially, all applications went before a board in the United States where initial eliminations were made. If your package makes it through this round you are considered a finalist. In the second round, remaining applications were sent to the country of their proposed study. Therefore, my application went to a bi-national (American and Jordanian) board in Jordan for review. Then, the waiting game. Final selections would be announced as each country's commission completed the decisions. I finally heard of my selection mid-June 2010. From what I understand, Jordan was one of the last countries to announce their decisions.

So, you may be wondering, what does selection mean? Selection for a grant means that you are awarded a Fulbright grant to complete the project outlined in your initial application proposal. For me, this means that from September through December 2010 I will be studying Arabic at the Qasid Institute in Amman, Jordan. After this, I will begin 9 months (January-September 2011) of research. Essentially, I will be taking courses at the University of Jordan in the International Relations faculty in an effort to compare and contrast the way the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is framed and taught. While this is the initial plan, I am anticipating that my project will change some through the research process.

In summary, 13 months of Arabic, international relations and general adventure beginning in 20 days.