This past Friday, Meghan, Maryam, Sarah, Michael and myself went to the Dead Sea. The day started with Sarah and I catching a cab to Jabal al-Webdeh to meet the rest of the group. The cab driver, unfortunately, thought he could take advantage of us. He started driving us around the city and nowhere close to our destination. He told us that the main road there was closed. Clearly a lie. At one point he claimed he was lost so he stopped and asked a man where Paris Circle (our final destination) was. He was playing us. When we finally arrived, our fare was twice what it should have been. We got out of the cab, I told him through the window that he was a liar and he should be ashamed of himself. I must have been right because he initially refused payment. I shoved it at him (only half of what the meter said but the fair price) and walked away. It was an empowering moment.
We walked to meet Michael at his apartment and piled into his car. As we got in, we collectively realized that we had little idea how to get to the Dead Sea. I had read in my guide book that it was past the airport. That was a start, right? Even the drive down to the Dead Sea was refreshing. Micheal had the radio set to a station playing "American Top 40" type songs- music we could all sing along too. We had a couple of turnarounds on the way to the Dead Sea but other than that the drive was uneventful.
The Dead Sea coast has several hotels that you can purchase day passes to for the tune of 25-35JD. We opted for the less expensive Amman Beach which is a public location that is less expensive. Thankfully, I kept my University of Jordan ID from two years ago. I was able to convince the man at the entrance that we were, in fact, all students at the University of Jordan but I was the only one who remembered to bring my ID. He was clearly skeptical but it worked because we only had to pay 10JD per person instead of 15JD. Another small success of the day.
The Amman Beach is a facility that has men's and women's locker rooms and changing facilities along with a restaurant, gift shop, two drink stands, two pools and access to the Dead Sea beach. The Amman Beach was crowded with both tourists and Jordanians. The swim attire ranged from bikinis and skimpy men's swimming shorts (use your imagination) to women wearing full-body swimming attire complete with hair coverings.
Our first goal was to take a dip in the Dead Sea. After changing and applying ample amounts of sunscreen, the 5 of us ventured down to the beach. Michael set up shop under an umbrella where he opted to smoke a cigar and read for a while. The four of us girls wandered into the salt lake. Walking into the lake, at first, seems like any other lake. As soon as you get to waist level, an invisible force can be felt pushing up on your tush willing you to float and then suddenly- you are horizontal! There were other tourists who brought their books out into the water with them and simply sat/laid/floated and read.
The Dead Sea mud has been shown to have wonderful effects on the skin. Therefore, we went in search of mud. The four of us waded towards the shore and it's rocky edges. You could feel the mud between the rocks with your feet. So, we scooped it up with our hands and slathered it all over- from head to feet. Ideally, the mud is supposed to dry before you wash it off. So, in the mean time, we went to find Michal to ask him to take a picture of us covered in therapeutic mud. I could only stand in the sun for 15-20 minutes before I got bored. So I went back to the water to rinse off. My skin felt so smooth after the mud washed away! That feeling in itself would make me frequent the Dead Sea. The water's salt concentration in itself leaves a light slippery fill over your skin. So, after washing off the mud, I went to rinse again in the freshwater shower.
The cool water of the pools seemed particularly inviting after standing in the sun for so long. So all of us, including Michael, hit the pool. So refreshing! The edge of the pool looks out over the Dead Sea and to Israel on the other side. I had to stop and remind myself where I was, what I was doing and what I was looking at. It seemed so surreal. After an hour of hanging in the pool and lounging around, we decided to clean up and head back.
On the drive back, Michael asked if we wanted to stop at Jesus's Baptism site. How could we say no? So, Michael veered off the main road and followed signs for the Baptism site. At the site, we asked the workers how far of a walk it was to get to the Baptism site. He told us 7km. No cars allowed. We would have to pay 7JD if we wanted a bus to take us back. We opted to skip the tour because it wasn't going to start for 20 minutes and it lasted an hour. Another time.
The drive back was similarly uneventful aside from another turnaround or two. We made it back to Amman relaxed but exhausted. I hurried back to my apartment to shower and change. I was scheduled to meet a friend for dinner. She was going to take me to Back-to-Campus party for American embassy personnel and friends.
We met for dinner at a combo Indian/ Chinese restaurant. I was so hungry! I didn't realize how hungry I was until I looked at the menu and realized I wanted to eat everything. After dinner, we walked to the party host's house. By Jordanian and American standards, the house was a palace. I had originally thought that this would be a smaller gathering. No way. There were guests numbering in the low- hundreds. The house had been equipped with a couple bars, plenty of appetizers and the DJ of one of Amman's best radio stations. My friend introduced me to several of the people she knew at the party. It was nice to meet some people outside of the Fulbright program. It the party was a view into Embassy style life, that is something I could get used to. The people clearly had formed a tight-nit community of their own. They were more than coworkers. They had become friends, family and support system all in one. We mingled and danced into the night. I came back pretty late and fell asleep almost immediately. Good day.
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