** Day 1 14:30. **

Arrived in Amman. I had a walk around the city without really knowing where to go but I managed to find the tourist info. The guy there kept saying ‘welcome to Jordan’ whenever I said thank you. Anyway, saw the very impressive amphitheatre and gazed up at the citadel on the hill. Ended up walking back to the hotel though. Hungry, tired and I seem to still have hayfever here! Dammit!

Anyways, it’s still like 2pm. Think I’ll take it easy in my room for a bit and then head out a lil later. I’m here again for a while on the last day I think too. Only thing I know of at the moment is the citadel and the new museum that opened.

But yea, can’t get that comment out of my head. Do people say that if they’re kidding? ‘w’ is such a vague thing, difficult to tell if it’s meant to be read as a joke or something uplifting. I keep thinking I should have replied with a better comment than ‘I’ll send you a postcard’, so stupid! I should have said, 「本当にいいのそんなこと言っちゃって？電話しちゃうかもよ」or something equally smooth but yet portraying my gratitude and feeling.

I come half way round the world to sit in my room and tap out the same thoughts I have in Tokyo… I am insane.

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** Day 2 07:08. **

I feel absolutely knackered this morning. My mind is a bit out of it too but my body is aching; i guess it’s the long flight and prob the non-work thing causing all the tension to seep out.

Anyways, met the group yesterday… Well those that had arrived. They seem a nice bunch. Looks like I’ll be the youngest again. If you’re wondering – there wasn’t anyone interesting in that sense. So much for eye candy! I am such a chauvanistic pig – not sure if that’s how you use that word. But yea, seriously have to sort that part of my life out. I really do need to stop with the unreachable and fall for someone obtainable yet just as good. Hmm, that didn’t sound right. You know what i mean though right? No boyfriends, no complications, just plain ole fashioned boy meets girl and magic happens kind of thing!

Back to reality. It’s 7am, today we are heading to Jaresh, or some place starting with J. Going to be an hour drive and then a couple hours of walking around to take in the sights. Yesterday was a start but the real deal starts today! …best get ready, grab breakfast and all that

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** Day 2 21:59. **

Had a fabulous day exploring the exceptionally well preserved Roman ruins at Jaresh. We heard the distinctly Scottish influenced bagpipes of Jordanian music. Walked through the columned colonade and saw amazing theatres.

I was privileged to have lunch with three other girls whose conversation topics ranged from pick ip lines to plastic surgery, accents and underwear. I wad pretty much speechless throughout!

The evening we dined at a place called books@cafe which was an eclectic modern cafe / lounge place with good western food. I had shisha for the first time since graduating uni and let me tell you, it was sooo good. Clean pipes, smooth, silky, deliciously mellowing! Mmm.

Anyway, pretty content to fall asleep now!

One last episode. I had a missed call from home; I was slightly worried as I knew they wouldn’t call as they knew I was abroad. After killing my bank balance with data roaming, I checked my mail to find out that they didn’t know I was away already! My mum got the answer machine and thought the Jordanian Arabic message was Russian! Hilarious!

But yea, tomorrow we head to the Dead Sea! Gawd, wish I hadn’t slackened off with my beer gut and weedy arms! Eugh!

Still thinking…no answers yet though…

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** Day 3 22:27. **

Dead sea. Citadel. Irish pub. Hellish cab ride.

Today was spent mostly relaxing by the dead sea. It was an extraordinary experience to just float on water without effort but i was also very aware that my body was just not used to that feeling with my abdominal muscles tort the entire time.

Anyway, saw a group of young Japanese girls there. It’s strange how in the same way as moths are drawn to flames, people are drawn to other people of similar backgrounds. The funny thing is that I’m not exactly your typical Japanese. I don’t look japanese, I don’t really act it and I definitely wasn’t brought up in that sort of environment. However, I still like Japanese girls. Maybe it’s lower standards in my part, or maybe it’s just that japan has more beautiful women, but I find a lot more eye catching Japanese girls than western women. Having said that my standards are high so in terms of dateable rating they wouldn’t quite hit it.

Anyway, back on track. After the Dead Sea, we had a massive barbecue lunch, which consisted of humus, and other dips with pita bread followed by a wrap style mixed grill. Very tasty!

The citadel was very interesting but what really caught my attention was the view. Although hazy with all the dust, the view over the city was breathtaking. A little rudhed for time but a wonderful experience.

The evening we went into the modern city centre with the shopping colonade lined with western brands such as Zara, Adidas, etc Dinner was a light affair with a wrap at a local Lebanese style fast food joint. The night was rounded off at s smelly smokey Irish pub.

To get to the city centre we took a cab again. This totally pissed me off. Crammed 4 in the back seat with be singled out for slaughter; I had to hang on to the handle above the door and float above the seat as there was literaly no room. I really don’t know why he didn’t just ask for another cab. It’s ridiculous how much money I spent on this trip and he skimps out on these little things. A lot of bad thoughts went through my head during that agonising few minutes.

I don’t know if it’s just coz I was tired or coz I’m no linger used to European beer but the Amstel was difficult to drink. I started missing my Premium Malts. Ah well…

** Day 4. **

Mt Nebo
Church
Wadi Al Mujib Dam
Al Karaj Castle

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** Day 5. **

Petra horseride
Treasury
Tombs
Amphitheatre
Royal tombs
Church
Monastry
View at the End of the world
The great temple
High place of sacrifice
Petra. By Night – candle lit walk to the Treasury

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** Day 6. **

Visitor centre
Wadi rum
Jeep safari
Night walk

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** Day 7. **

Aqaba
Glass boat
Free dinner due to ’slow service’
Mosquitto bitten face

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** Day 8. **

Drive to Amman
Books@cafe

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** Day 9 08:20. **

The last couple of days have been tough physically. After a night un the desert my face and my right hand was littered with mosquito bites. Knowing that I am incredibly alergic to these bites makes me feel incredibly stupid for not using the mosquito net provided . Anyway, that totally sapped my energy, which was not helped when I started throwing up at 3am the following morning. Maybe it’s totally unrelated or maybe it was but having had 10+ bites my body prob was not in the best state. I felt queezy for the entire day yesterday with cold shivers and a feverish temperature; not the nicest way to wrap up my vacation. I just hope it’s not serious and has no lasting affects.

My flight back home is in the afternoon today so I plan to stay in bed until my late checkout – that’s at least another 4 hours before I have to move.

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** The Summary. **

This trip has been an eye-opener to Jordan and the whole Arabic region. This country is probably one of the more liberalised and westernised but it has given me a gear insight into this part of the world. I hope to return to the Middle East at some point in the future.

I had minimal knowledge of this country, the people, or even the places I would be visiting. Part of me is glad I didn’t read up anything as I had no preconceptions; from the bustling city life of Amman to the traditional simple lifestyle of the Bedouins in the depths of the desert, I was moved at every point.

I thought the only highlight before the trip would be Petra but I was very wrong. The jeep ride into the Wadi Rum desert, the spectacular Roman ruins at Jaresh, the strange sensation of floating in the Dead Sea… So many memories.

I can understand the reluctance to visit such a volatile part of the world but from my experience over the past week, i have probably felt a lot safer on this trip than even travelling in the States or South America. Jordan is safe. I really would recommend this place as a destination to visit.