This trip I learned how it feels to be completely content and happy. I was completely myself, I’m a very observant person where when I’m in a big group of people, I just become quiet and don’t talk unless something incredible happens or when someone asks me a question.
First off before I tell you about my unforgettable Arabian weekend. The weekend here in Muslim countries are Friday and Saturday not Saturday and Sunday. So My weekend started right after my last class at 12 on a Thursday. In the orientation, I met this guy named Matt who’s from South Bend, Indiana. He’s studying to get his PhD in Persian Studies which is amazing. Anyway, Matt invited Katie and I to join him on his travels to Aqaba and the Dead sea over the weekend. I just said yes to him and didn’t know of any details. I didn’t know how I was going to get there, I didn’t know where I was going to stay, and I sure didn’t know who I was traveling with. I barely even knew Matt, but of course, I know him enough to know that he’s not a serial killer or anything.
Katie and I packed for two days and just followed the group people. In this group of travelers, most of them are from Qasid Institute, my school, and they were all guys which was good because they were our protection. The leader and tour guide of the weekend was a Jordanian guy who knew his way around Amman, Aqaba, and the Dead Sea. His name is Yahyah (or something like that) and he’s really funny. He rented the van for 7 of us and he drove the entire way. He kept joking around with me and Katie that he wasn’t married and flashed his left hand at us signaling that he doesn’t have a ring on his finger yet. Yahyah’s partner in crime was this Syrian guy named Taysir. I cannot stress enough how much he reminded me of Ishak. His looks, his gestures, his face structure, his sensitive behavior and the way he cooks resembles down to the dot to Ishak, my ex-boyfriend from Syria. It’s crazy! Taysir was usually in the passenger seat with Yahyah. Now in the back of the van, there’s me, Katie, Trey from Wales, Alex from England, and Matt.
We drove for about 4.5 hours to Aqaba and arrived in the evening. Driving for almost half the time, we stopped at a small shop in the middle of the desert. Imagine this, the landscape of this drive was basically desert, some agriculture, and some small shops. It was deserted and when we stopped at the small candy store to grab some cigarettes and water, Katie and I was happy as we have ever been. I have never been so content and really happy like this in a long time. I was living my dream. My life right now and for the rest of the summer will consist of responsibilities of a simple and happy life. I basically go to school until 12 PM 5 times a week, do some homework, shop for food, eat food outside, travel, and meet amazing people here in Jordan. Back to the trip, Katie and I were happy and the guys we were traveling with were really nice, outgoing and made us strangers feel really comfortable.
Aqaba ( العقبة) and the Red Sea (البحر الأحمر)
Aqaba was incredible. We were able to see Israel across the water and for a little miles away, you can cross the border to Saudi Arabia. The sun was so hot! We swam for a little bit. The water was luke cool, it was also glass clear. You can see the rocks as the water gets deeper, but we had to leave because we were getting burnt and also hungry. The thing I was worried about was wearing my bathing suit and showing too much skin on the beach side. I asked Taysir, the Syrian guy, if it would be disrespectful to wear our two piece bikinis to swim and he said, it’s fine. People will stare and men may come up to you and ask you questions, but because you are with a group of guys, they will not bother. As I stripped down to my bathing suit, I felt the sun and some googly eyes beaming at me. It was fine, the biggest googly-eyed man was Yahyah. He stared at me and flashed his ringless finger at me again as I was swimming. I just laughed it off.
We didn’t have enough of Aqaba, so we went back to the beach at night-time. This was the best time to go compared to how many more people were on the beach at night-time than the afternoon. The weather at night is the best. The air is still and it’s not humid nor dry. The temperature was around the mid-70s and the beach water cooled to perfection. This is why all the locals go out to the beach, they know what’s up. On the beach, there were many families with they children in the middle of the night. Everyone had bed mattresses or rugs out on the sand with food and shisha. People just talk and once in a while go by the cool water. The stars are out but it’s a bit unclear because of the smoke from the nearby BBQs clouds the air. Katie and I and the group of guys just talked and ate for hours. It was so relaxing and really nice.
When we were driving home from the sea side, there was a wedding going on outside. Many lights were flashing and you can see all men dancing within the premises of the party. Matt said he would like to see what it’s like, so Yahyah went ahead and asked the older men who where sitting on chair in the front. I’m guessing they were the coordinators or something, but they had the authority to say that it was okay for all of us to go in, even Katie and I. Katie and I were the only women in this party. Right when the group of us walked in, we stuck out like sore thumbs and people got really excited. They instantly became hospitable and welcomed us to the party. We stepped on the dance floor to do some debkeh and the men were so happy that there were two girls dancing with them. It went out of control that Katie and I had to step off and separate from them, but right when we stepped out, people started to offer us coffee, taking pictures of us, letting me hold their babies, and offered us chairs to sit on. It was just a crazy 10 minutes. We jumped in the van and disappeared quietly and realized we probably just crashed a wedding.
The Dead Sea ( البحر الميت)
The next day, it was even hotter! Right when you walk outside, the sun instantly beams on your skin and makes you break out into a small misty sweat. We ate a really good lunch. I had tabuleh (parsley with cous cous, olive oil, lemon and tomatoes), basmatti rice, grilled chicken, some pita bread, and a lemonade with ground up mint (ليمنا بانعنع).
It took us 4 hours to drive to the Dead Sea. I didn’t sleep at all because the landscape was incredible. There was sandstone mountains surrounding us in every direction. Often times, you see camels here and there, some goats, some donkeys. The whole time, I was listening to Tiesto’s podcasts. It was awesome. The music made the scenery even better. We were getting close to the Dead Sea and we were able to see the big body of water. When you look at it, you can see almost a mist above the surface of the water. Because of the high concentration of the salt in the water, the water evaporates really fast. We went to a swimming resort and went straight to the dead sea and skipped the food, the swimming pool, and jumped right into the water. WHOOOAA! Right when you get to a point in the water and you start to lay on it. You just float! You don’t have to do anything to keep yourself afloat. I was so shocked at what was happening, I couldn’t stop laughing with Katie. I felt like I was on ecstasy, my skin became really soft because of the minerals in the water. I swam in deeper and tried to doggy paddle, but you don’t even have to do that! You just slouch there in the water. It’s such a funny experience!! Yahyah, the Jordanian guy, didn’t know how to swim and even though you can’t drown in the Dead Sea, he was squirming when he couldn’t touch the floor. Trey and Alex, the 
British guys, were laying on their backs and trying to throw a ball at each other’s balls. When you look away from the land, you have a view of the Israeli mountains in front of the sunset. Also, the water was very still. There were no waves or wind, just the still, flat air. It was the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen. We also put mud on our body from the sea. It’s like this gunky green mud that you put all over your body like in a spa. There’s probably healthy minerals in there for your body because I felt cleansed after showering and drying up. The guys put it all over their faces and then it got into their eyes.
We took so many good pictures of the sea and the sun. Oh man, this place is definitely one of the best places I’ve traveled to.
I would post some pictures of some beer bellied men up, it’s so funny. They were just floating there with their belly sticking out of the water.
So all in all, the trip was filled with landscape desert, good food, good company, and really salty water.
Dandelion Traveler
dandeliontraveler 