tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-87380425973670496262024-02-08T06:45:52.730-08:00Jordan Press TripAndrew Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00057291285045591951noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8738042597367049626.post-52308431583464663612009-06-08T06:09:00.000-07:002009-06-08T06:10:16.687-07:006/6/09<!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal"> The phone rang at 5 a.m. and I shot out of bed.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>It felt like I had just closed my eyes.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The sky looked purple as the sun was still rising.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I decided to use the time to pack my bags and get everything organized for my trip back home.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>When I saw that the sky had turned to a light blue, I headed out to the Dead Sea.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>There was no one out on the beach as I filmed the sea in complete silence.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>For once, I actually got quality audio as I was able to record the waves lapping onto the white, salty rocks on the shore.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I set up my tripod and recorded a few different standups in front of the Dead Sea. I said a couple different lines because I wasn’t sure what I was going to end up using.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>On the way back to my room, I got more broll of the resort and tried to talk to some employees but no one spoke English.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>No tourists were out this early either and I couldn’t find anyone to talk to.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I stayed out as long as I could before going to the lobby to check-out.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The drive to the airport took about an hour and I finally saw the landscape that had been hidden in darkness when I first arrived in Jordan a week earlier.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The airport was hectic and crowded.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I shook Mo’s hand and thanked him for a wonderful week.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He had been a great tour guide.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Merissa walked us into the airport, gave us all hugs and said goodbye.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We were on our own after that.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Only seven of us were leaving on the flight back to JFK.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Two students were headed to Cairo and another was going to Lebanon to continue their reporting in the Middle East.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Before getting to the check-in desk, I had to pass through an x-ray machine and metal detector.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Airport employees and Jordanian army officials corralled this mass of people into two lines and ushered us through security.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Thankfully, we didn’t have to take off our shoes or we may have never made it through.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I threw all my bags onto the moving x-ray machine.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I tried to walkthrough the metal detector but the airport employee made me take off my belt.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had passed through countless metal detectors with this belt and never set off any equipment but I complied with his request.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I walked through with one hand holding my shorts that were now falling off.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I joined a group of people who were pushing and shoving as they grabbed their bags that were being churned out of the x-ray machine like a highly efficient assembly line.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>My computer and camera bag had slid down to the end of the belt.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Luckily another student in my group grabbed them before other luggage slid down and crushed them while I fumbled with my pants that were still falling down.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>One of my bags had been flagged for a security check and I had to go over to another desk and let someone look through it.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The man at the desk didn’t speak English and moved extremely slow as he looked through my bag.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He kept mumbling to me in Arabic and I just looked at him confused.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“English?” he finally said and I nodded yes.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He seemed to chuckle and went back to mumbling in Arabic.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Another student in our group joined me at the desk. Her bag had been flagged too.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was finally cleared to leave and turned around to see that another airport employee had strapped all my luggage on him and was holding my large bag.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I normally would’ve had no problem carrying my own bags but I needed to get moving and didn’t want to waste time telling this guy to give me my bags back.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had a few extra dinars anyway and didn’t mind tipping him.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He quickly ushered me into the correct check-in desk where I saw other members of my group waiting in line.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>An employee, who was standing at the start of the line, explained that I couldn’t bring liquids on the plane.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I acknowledged that I understood and then he said some things to by baggage carrier in Arabic.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>They both laughed and I felt like I was the butt of some joke.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Precious minutes passed by as I stood in the line and watched my boarding time approach.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“I don’t care if I get stuck in JFK,” I thought, “but please don’t let me miss this flight.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The few of us in our group started to get nervous as we started to run out of time.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We still had to get through immigration once we had checked in.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was a few spots away from checking in when I turned around and saw a huge tour group being led through immigration.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Oh no,” I said as other people in my group turned around and saw the large tour group.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Their mouths dropped and eyes opened wide as this group of at least 30 or 40 filled the waiting area.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We decided to check-in in pairs to speed up the process of getting through.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Thankfully, the check-in process went smoothly.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We stopped to say a quick goodbye to the students who were traveling to Cairo.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>They were in a corner reorganizing their luggage because it was overweight for their flight.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>No one from our press trip seemed to be having an easy experience leaving Jordan.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I wisped by another airport employee who was checking to make sure everyone’s carry-on bags were the right size.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He was caught up with another passenger so I just walked by him. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I didn’t care. Time was running out and I needed to get to my flight.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The flight was scheduled to leave at 11 a.m. and at 10:30 a.m. I was standing in line at immigration.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Thankfully, I had picked the right line to wait in.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The immigration agent was a pro at typing, flipping through passports and stamping them.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>On any other day, I may have questioned this guy’s thoroughness but I was so happy that this process only took 30 seconds.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I ran up an escalator and headed for my gate.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The plane should have already been boarding at this point.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>As I approached the gate, someone made an announcement in Arabic and the all this people in front of me stood up and quickly moved in the direction I was going.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I wasn’t fast enough and a group of twenty people lined up in another security line.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“More security!” I thought as I began to fear that the worst was going to happen, “I cannot miss this flight.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Thankfully, most of the people in front of me were women and they had to go through their own separate security check that was administered by another woman.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I passed through my metal detector, this time still wearing my belt, and was patted down and cleared to go. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I could see the boarding area ahead of me and people were still sitting in the waiting area.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“I’m going to make it!” I thought as I walked with my eyes fixed on the ticketing station.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I didn’t realize that I walked by another security point and an agent ran after me.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He grabbed my arm and explained that him and another guy need to look through all my bags.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I politely complied. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I didn’t want to look suspicious for trying to miss this checkpoint so I patiently stood there as they examined all my electronics.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I met up with other students in my group at 10:45 a.m. in the waiting area.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We were supposed to have been boarding 15 minutes earlier.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>My fear then switched from missing my flight out of Jordan to missing my connecting flight in New York.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Did I not have enough bad luck on my way over?” I thought to myself.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We boarded a little before 11 a.m.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Everyone on the plane was quick to stow their luggage and took their seats so we were only 15 minutes late.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Another student and I were still nervous because we had to catch flights at 6 p.m.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The flight back was 12 hours and 20 minutes and we were expected to arrive at 4:30 p.m.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“I’m not going to make it,” I thought.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had already accepted my fate and just wanted to relax. There was no sense in being stressed in an airplane for 12 hours.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I shared a row with another student from the group and we took advantage of having two extra seats.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We pulled up the armrests and spread our stuff all over the seats.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I wanted to make the seat next to me look occupied so I wouldn’t wake up to another surprise visitor like during the first flight.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>As the plane rolled away from the gate, I fell asleep.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was woken up to the flight attendant tapping my arm and asking me what I wanted to drink.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The student in my row was laughing at me as I looked around groggy and confused.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I looked up at the flight attendant and said the first thing that came to mind.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Whisky and coke,” I told the woman.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Whisky coke,” she replied as she poured Johnnie Walker Red Label and a Pepsi in a cup for me.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I stayed up for a while and had a few more “whisky cokes” as I watched an episode of <i>Friends</i><span style="font-style:normal"> on the airplane TV.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The drinks were weak and didn’t come fast enough to get any sort of a buzz going.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The people in the far left of our row had their window up and filled our entire cabin with light.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>It was difficult trying to fall back asleep.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>As lunched was being served, another student in my group gave me an Ambien to help me fall asleep.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I took the pill with some tea and finished my lunch.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was talking to the student in my row when I started to feel funny.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>It felt like I was moving away from her while zooming towards her face at the same time, similar to that scene in <i>Jaws </i><span style="font-style:normal">when Roy Scheider saw the shark off the coast of Amity beach.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I started to laugh and she looked at me confused.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“What’s funny,” she asked me.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I laughed harder as I tried to explain.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“You’re funny,” I said laughing.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Now I felt like Will Ferrell in <i>Old School</i><span style="font-style:normal"> when he got shot in the neck with the animal tranquilizer.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I woke up six hours later.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was told that I had fallen asleep sitting up straight with my tray table down and still holding onto my drink.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I woke up with the tray table up and a muffin placed in the cup holder.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>One minute I was flying over the Mediterranean Sea and now I was right over Iceland. I was very confused.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I took out my computer to work on my blog and checked my itinerary for my flight from JFK to Reagan National.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>6:55 p.m. My flight was at 7 p.m. and not 6 p.m. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was going to make it.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>A huge sense of relief came over me as I leaned back in my chair and took a deep breath.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>My trip back home was going to be much easier than my epic quest to get to Jordan.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I slept off and on for the remainder of the flight.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The Ambien had left me feeling very refreshed and I didn’t sleep for extended periods again on the flight.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We landed in New York around 4:30 p.m. and I headed to customs.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The line wasn’t long compared to the line for people who weren’t U.S. citizens.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The customs agent was nice.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“College Park,” she said reading my customs form.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“You go to the University of Maryland?” she asked.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Just graduated,” I said with a smile.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>She congratulated me, stamped my form and let me go.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Our group congregated in the baggage claim area as we waited for the plane to be unloaded.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>It was nice to wait around in an airport without of a feeling of mounting stress.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I helped pull our luggage off of the conveyer belt and we headed out into the airport.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I said goodbye to my fellow journalists and headed towards the connecting flights check-in desk.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“I’m sure will keep in touch on Facebook,” I told them as we hugged and went our separate ways.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>After dropping off my large piece of luggage, I took the AirTrain to Terminal 3 and did the electronic check-in at the Delta kiosk.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had an hour before my flight boarded but the line to check bags was very long and I was glad I had taken care of that step already.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Everyone had to pass through one security checkpoint, which cause another long line.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I got to my gate with enough time to call some friends and family.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I told my parents that my flight was on time and made plans with some friends to go to a graduation party that night.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I figured if I went to party I could stay up longer and try to adjust my jetlag better.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I fell asleep before takeoff, which was now the only way I knew how to fly, and woke up as we started our descent towards Washington, D.C.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I hade made it home.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I called my parents, who were ten minutes away, and arranged to meet them at the baggage claim.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I waited around as luggage slowly began to pass by.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>One by one I examined each bag, casually waiting to see my large red piece of luggage.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Another ten minutes went by.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>My mom had called me and said they were parked outside and waiting to see me emerge from the airport.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Still, I had not seen my bag pass by.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I could see where this was headed.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I took out my luggage receipt in anticipation of the inevitable.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Sure enough, the conveyer belt stopped and my luggage had not appeared.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I immediately walked to the Delta luggage desk and was able to beat the small crowd of frustrated and confused passengers who were also missing their bags.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I handed the employee my ticket information, he typed on his computer and ask me the address that I wanted my bag to be sent to.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He printed me a receipt and I headed for the door.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was home. I didn’t care about anything else.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I would have been more upset if they had lost my luggage on the way over to Jordan.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Still, it was a fitting ending to a journey that was riddled with airport mishaps.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I greeted my parents, who had been looking for someone with a large red bag to be leaving the airport, and got in the car.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I told them I wasn’t too worried about my luggage, which didn’t have anything extremely important in it.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had my cameras, computers and souvenirs for my friends and family.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I looked out the window to see the illuminated moments of Washington, D.C. as we headed home on the George Washington Parkway.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>This is how my trip to Jordan ended.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had traveled from the capitol of one country to another.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>These two countries, although vastly different in their regions, religion and culture, were celebrating 60 years of friendship.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>My first experience as a reporter on a press trip taught me the drawbacks of pack journalism. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The price to pay for a trip that was paid for was that our time was structured and planned. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">As official guests of the Prime Minister, we only saw what the government wanted us a see. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">This lack of freedom was frustrating at times.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">While difficult at times, being a backpack video reporter in a foreign country wasn’t an impossible feat.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Other than encountering issues because of speaking different languages, my biggest issues were with the lack time to shoot video and the government officials that wouldn’t go on camera.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">With the proper time and access to sources, I could have easily come back with a handful of stories about a wide variety of topics.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">But I did all that I could with the resources that I had.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Not only did this experience teach me a lot about journalism, but the trip broadened my view of the Middle East.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Although I didn’t have the means to report on it, I learned that Jordan faces the same issues that the U.S. does.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">While most news about the Middle East relates to the latest bombing or newest terror threat, this region faces other issues that are just as important and not so different from the U.S. <span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Education, energy independence and job creation are important issues to the Jordanian government.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">They realize too, that these improvements can come quicker through strong diplomatic relations.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">They’re hopeful and believe that these improvements will come.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Jordan has a particularly young population and there is a sense that this new generation will emerge with a better understanding of other cultures.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I feel the same sentiment is echoed in the U.S.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">There is no denying that there are a certain number of people in the Middle East who aim to gain power through terror, death and destruction.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">But they can be replaced by a new generation of people who share mutual respect and interest in other cultures.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">That was, ultimately, the purpose of this press trip.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Journalists have an important role in shaping future beliefs and opinions about the Middle East.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">While my stories from this week may fall through, my experience in Jordan will stay with me throughout my career.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I saw a side of the Middle East that is not often seen on TV or in newspapers.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">It is a side of a kind, peaceful, religious culture that shares the same interests that the U.S. does.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">These interests are better served through positive relations with other countries and cultures.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Jordan serves as a model of this.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">They understand that peace is the path to progress.<o:p></o:p></p> <!--EndFragment-->Andrew Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00057291285045591951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8738042597367049626.post-20442510064573332732009-06-07T19:16:00.000-07:002009-06-07T19:17:21.640-07:006/5/09<!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal"> We left the hotel around 8 a.m. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Everyone was ready for a day rest and relaxation on the shores of the Dead Sea. For the first time on the trip, most of the curtains in the bus were closed as we drove back north.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Everyone was still tired from the night before and tried to catch some sleep during the three-hour car ride.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I wanted to get some sleep too so I dug through my bag to find my ipod.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I laughed as I played Phil Collins while looking out at the desert sand.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The music clashed with the scenery and I was mildly amused.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I eventually fell asleep and woke up to our bus winding down a steep mountain road.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Off in the distance, I could see a large blue body of water that I assumed was the Dead Sea.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>My ears began to hurt as we descended lower and lower towards the sea.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The Dead Sea is the lowest point on earth and the pressure change felt just like being in an airplane.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We drove along the dark blue water and saw some people floating.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We started to get excited for the resort but we were first going to the baptism site of Jesus Christ.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The baptism site was right beyond the Dead Sea along the Jordan River.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I used the opportunity to try to get video of the river but had trouble with the audio because of all the tour groups that were walking around. But I managed to get a few good shots that showed up low the river had gotten.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Perhaps because I was distracted with trying to get video for my story, I did not really let the idea that I was where Jesus Christ was baptized sink in.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Mo explained how archeologists figured out where John the Baptist and Jesus stood in a spring by the river but I just snapped a few photos and looked for another way to film the river.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Mo then took us to another part of the river that was only about 15 feet wide where many people come to be baptized.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>This was also the border between Jordan and Palestine.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>A camouflaged jeep with a .50 cal machine gun mounted on the top was hidden in a straw hut nearby and an armed Jordanian official stood guard along the river. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Our group dipped their feet in the river and I shot more video.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Across the river, on the West Bank, the Israelis had flown an Israeli flag. It was a reminder of the sensitive conflict that President Obama had talked about.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Next, we boarded the bus and headed off to the hotel for our long awaited vacation.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The check-in process was taking forever so a few of us decided to use the time to go out and report on the Dead Sea.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We went a neighboring hotel and I was able to film their water-recycling center and got an interview with their maintenance manager.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He even took us up on the roof of the hotel and I got some beautiful wide shots of the resort area of the Dead Sea.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>After this, I was ready for a break.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>It was supposed to be my day off and I was at the Dead Sea.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I didn’t want to waste all my time working.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I checked into my room, threw on a swimsuit and headed down to the beach.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I stopped to take photos of the gorgeous views from my hotel on my way down.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The hotel was nice but it was my least favorite. It was another village-style resort but it was less authentic and I could tell that the stone walkways and buildings were artificial.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I got down to the beach and met with part of my group.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>They told me to keep my shoes on because the sand was unbearably hot.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I wanted to get the desert sand off of them anyway so I decided to wear them into the sea.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Floating was unbelievable,<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“It feels like anti-gravity,” said one of the girls in our group and I agreed.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I could effortlessly sit in the water, lay back and relax.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The only problem is that I quickly discovered any cut or scrape on my body.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The Dead Sea is so salty that any open wound burns the second it gets in the water.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was so buoyant that it was even difficult to try to tread water with my head upright and my feet underwater.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>My feet kept floating back to the surface and swimming like this required slight finesse and balance.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We only stayed in the water for 15 minutes because we didn’t want to get dehydrated.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>With so much salt, the sea actually pulled fresh water out of my body.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I realized this later when I got back to the hotel and chugged a few bottles of water.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>But after floating in the Dead Sea, we headed to one of the pools.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Swimming in normal water was difficult after effortless floating in the sea.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Especially because this had been my first time swimming for the summer, I was surprised at how much work it took to tread water.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We hung out for an hour or so before we had to get ready for dinner.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>My hands were full when I returned to my hotel room.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had been carrying my cameras, a huge towel and my shoes.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>As I opened the door and threw in my shoes and towel, the door slammed shut and I was locked out.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Oh, great,” I thought.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>So I strapped on my camera bag and headed to the reception desk.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>It was approaching dinnertime and everyone was walking around in nice outfits as they headed to the different restaurants in the resorts.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I, on the other hand, walked into the five star hotel without a shirt or shoes and in a wet swimming suit.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Again, the check-in process was taking forever and I impatiently stood in the lobby and felt incredibly out of place.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>One man, who was walking with his wife, stopped and looked down at my feet and then moved upward, surveying my entire outfit, or lack thereof.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I gave him a “how’s it going?” smile but he walked away nodding and mumbling something to his wife.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Jealous,” I jokingly assured myself.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We were meeting with Senator Akel Biltaji and I wanted to look nice.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Senator Biltaji looked like a cross between the Reverend Al Sharpton and Albert Einstein.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He had a thick white mustache, kind eyes and slicked back white hair that puffed out on the sides of his head.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He was a very friendly man and I could tell he was a politician. He knew how to work the crowd.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We sat around and had drinks while he let us ask him questions.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Most of what he talked about was the changing confidence Middle Eastern states had in the U.S.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He was incredibly pleased with President Obama’s speech but wished he had focused more on the suffering of the Palestinians.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Still, he said, President Obama said everything that he had needed to and he looked forward to seeing results from Obama’s words.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>As Senator Biltaji spoke, the general manager of our hotel came over and did some royal ass kissing to him and welcomed our group to the hotel.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The drinks he had, of course, were complimentary of the hotel and he thanked us for visiting and wished us a pleasant stay.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We took a picture with the senator and went to the restaurant for a quick dinner.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Mo told us that there was a beach party that night and we didn’t want to waste too much time at a formal dinner.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had a light meal and ran back up to the reception desk,<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Since the general manager had been so nice to us, I thought he might grant me a brief interview about his concerns over the shrinking Dead Sea and how it could affect hotels and tourism.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The manager was much nicer when the senator was around.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He wouldn’t even come out of his office and I could hear him chewing on some sort of food as he rejected my request over the phone.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Oh well,” I thought, “I tried.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I wanted to get to the beach party anyway.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Our group meet outside a restaurant that had a live band playing soft rock music that would have been perfect for my parents.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Is this the beach party?” I asked Merissa.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“No no no,” she assured us all.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>As Mo led us down the beach, I couldn’t hear any music.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Eventually I saw flashing red and blue lights and thought we were getting close.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Before getting down to the bar, Mo pointed out a line of lights that was on the mountain range on the other side of the Dead Sea.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was looking at Jerusalem.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We walked down some stairs and I could hear the faint sound of techno music.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We were the party. There was no one else there.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Some residents had complained about the noise so the D.J. was forced to turn down her music.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was disappointed by the lack of people but also because techno music should never be played softly.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Finding a seat at the bar was easy and we all ordered strong drinks to celebrate our last night in Jordan.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Eventually, a group of guys made their way down to the bar.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>They were from the U.S. on a business trip with their company.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We started talking and had a fun time sharing where we were all from.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>One guy was from Baltimore and we had a good time talking about HBO’s <i>The Wire</i><span style="font-style:normal"> while everyone else listened to our conversation with no clue what we were talking about.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The bar was closing down so I paid my tab but stayed to talk to my fellow U.S. citizens.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>But before closing, my fellow Marylander bought the bar a round of shots and I explained to his friend what our press trip was about.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Although I thought I had conveyed that the purpose of our trip was to learn more about the Middle East, he didn’t seem to understand that I didn’t hold the region to preconceived stereotypes.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“You go to watch out for these Hajis,” he said as he took another sip of beer.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>It was difficult trying to respond in a way that neither condoned his raciest remarks nor started a confrontation.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The guy from Baltimore, however, had no problem causing issues.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>After complaining that the bartender had made him a weak drink, he went on a rant about Iraq and said some awful things about Arabs.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>One girl in my group told him to tone down his comments and he lost it.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>This belligerent asshole was saying some of the most raciest comments about Arabs right in front of our bartender, Merissa and in the middle of five star resort on the Dead Sea.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>His friends didn’t seem comfortable with what he was saying but they didn’t make any effort to stop him.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I tried to bring the conversation back onto the topic of <i>The Wire</i><span style="font-style:normal"> but the guy had turned his hatred from Arabs towards the girl in our group who had told him to stop.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>She quietly sipped her drink and ignored him as he yelled sexiest remarks at her.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He kept getting closer to her until I finally stood up and walked in between them.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was embarrassed for her, for him and for all Americans.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Here I was in the Middle East, a place that is typically viewed as a volatile region of extremists, and the biggest confrontation I faced was with another American.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>His friends finally coerced him away from the bar and I stayed to make sure my friend was OK.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>That’s when the bartender tapped me on the shoulder and handed me another bill.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“No, I already paid,” I told him, as I looked a bill for another two rounds of Jack Daniels.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>But the bartender, who seemed to speak very little English, told me that it was the bill for the guy from Baltimore.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The bill was for 14 dinars but they had left over 100 dinar on the bar and the bartender was trying to give me change.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“No, my friend,” I said, “That’s all you.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I hoped he didn’t know enough English to understand what the guy had been yelling before he left.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The few of us at the bar walked over and met up with the rest of the group, who had been sitting in some couches a little ways away from the incident.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Thankfully, Merissa was not offended or upset but rather thought that we had handled ourselves well.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Inside, I was infuriated with what had just happened.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>This guy was a reminder of the prejudice beliefs and ignorance some people have, which was the reason we were on this press trip.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>It was my job to show the side of the Middle East that is so often unnoticed. People like the guy from Baltimore needed to learn of stories about the Middle East that explained the area’s culture and history.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The image of all Arabs being uncivilized terrorists needed to stop.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We were able to make some jokes about the incident and lightened the mood a bit.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We ended up moving to another stage where the live band was playing. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I ordered another drink and we got a hookah for the table.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We all wanted to relax and try to forget about the incident that had just happened.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The band was not playing typical college bar music as the crowd had turned into a group of young adults.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We all sat around and sang Bon Jovi and laughed at a group of South Americans who enjoyed dancing in front of everyone.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The last few songs the band played were traditional Arabic songs and people got up to do the dance that we had been taught the night before.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I wanted to get up and join but I doubted my coordination skills and thought it would be best if I just sat in my seat and clapped.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Once the band stopped playing we all slowly trickled off to bed.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I went back to my room and started to pack and organize.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I didn’t plan on getting too much sleep because I had a long flight the next day.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>In the morning, I wanted to shoot some more video and try to get a few interviews.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>So I set a wakeup call for 5 a.m. and fell asleep.<o:p></o:p></p> <!--EndFragment-->Andrew Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00057291285045591951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8738042597367049626.post-75118340524100790182009-06-05T19:40:00.000-07:002009-06-05T21:29:22.059-07:006/4/09<!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal"> I woke up on my own around 7:30 a.m. and went to get breakfast.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I brought my laptop with me to check my email and update my blog. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Of course, I went onto Facebook too but the site was in Arabic.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Amazingly enough, I had used Facebook so much that I was still able to navigate around the web site because I was so familiar with it.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“I wonder if I could teach myself Arabic this way,” I thought.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The drive to Petra was about twenty minutes.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We stopped on the way at an overlook of the valley that Petra was located in.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I couldn’t believe that somewhere buried in the cracks and crevasses of this mountain valley there was an ancient city.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>As we approached the entrance to the park, we were offered donkey and horse rides for our journey.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>These men clearly knew how to influence tourists as they said all the right things as we passed them.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Donkey ride with air conditioning!” one man yelled with a toothy smile.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Five dinar! One dinar! Free for you,” another man said as he offered the guys rides before noticing one of the females in our group.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Further down the trail, we were ambushed by a little kid selling postcards. He had been waiting in the shade behind a rock and jumped out in front of us when we got close.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Postcards! One dinar!” he yelled as he stood in the middle of our group as we walked by him.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>As we began to wind our way through the narrow passageways of the mountains, Mo told us the story of the Nebateans.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>This ancient civilization had carved cities into five valleys in Jordan.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We would be visiting the most popular one.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The Nebateans built the city around 100 B.C. but the Romans poisoned their water source and took the city over years later.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>An Israeli couple overheard Mo’s explanations and decided to invite themselves along with our group. Not only were they listening to Mo, but they also stood in the middle of the group and blocked other student’s views as Mo pointed out different carvings and features in the rock.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Maybe they don’t realize Mo is our personal guide,” I thought.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>But Mo didn’t seem to mind our new honorary group members.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He showed us the area where they filmed scenes from <i>Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade</i><span style="font-style:normal">. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was more of a Star Wars fan growing up so this attraction didn’t resonate with me much.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The rock turned a darker red the deeper we walked into the valley.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Eventually, Mo asked that we all step to one side of the narrow canyon. He then ushered us forward slowly.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I walked around a bend and saw a glimpse of a huge tomb carved into the side of a cliff.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The canyon I was in was shaded and dark but the tomb was sitting in direct sunlight, which helped expose the intricate carvings.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I could see more of this huge structure as I emerged from the canyon into an open valley full of tourists, donkeys and camels.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The Israeli couple separated from us and Mo sat down to explain the significance of the tomb.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He told us that the tomb was called “The Treasury” but that it never actually had any money and treasure inside it.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Merissa pointed out holes in the rock where British soldiers had shot at the tomb in the hopes of getting the treasure.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Mo pointed out the Gods and inscriptions on the outside walls, which had both Aramaic and Roman influence.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>After resting for a bit, we continued our hike to a Christian monastery that was built on the top of a mountain.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>As we walked further into the city I was in awe of how large it actually was.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Caves, tombs and carvings were on the sides of every rock I saw.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Before our trek up the mountain, we stopped for lunch.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Everyone looked exhausted.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Not only was walking under the desert sun difficult but most of us were dealing with some stomach problems as well.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>As uncomfortable as it was, it was kind of fun trying to figure out what same food all us had eaten as we tried to pinpoint what could have made us sick.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>But I decided to be conservative and only ate pita bread and rice for lunch.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>While eating lunch, President Obama made his speech to the Arab world in Cairo, Egypt.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>As a member of the White House press group, Merissa was sent a transcript of the speech and read it to us.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>So in the ancient city of Petra, where the Romans had whipped out an entire civilization, we sat around a table and listened to President Obama’s call for peace between all religions.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Merissa read the speech almost as well as how I would’ve imagined President Obama delivering it.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>She inserted her own opinions, which were all positive, as she read out loud.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“This is huge,” she said as she read the part about both Palestinians and Israelis needing to recognize the other side’s right to exist. She was happy with the speech.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was feeling better after lunch and was ready to conquer the 800 steps it took to hike up this mountain and get to the monastery.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Men with donkeys lined the trail and offered rides up to the top of the mountain.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had to be alert when hiking because I never knew when I was going to have to dodge a donkey flying up the trail or barreling around a corner.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I also didn’t want to step in donkey shit, which littered the trail and smelled horrible.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>On the way up, we passed a young couple riding down the trail on donkeys. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>A local Jordanian was holding onto the girl’s donkey and slowly guiding it down the stone steps.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The guy was desperately trying to balance on his donkey and had a look of shear terror on his face.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“See, it’s fun,” said the Jordanian as he guided the girl, whose big smile showed how much she was enjoying the ride, down the mountain.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Oh no, it’s really not,” said the guy in a shaky voice as his donkey wobbled down the trail.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We all laughed at the couple’s situation and continued upward. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>All along the way, Bedouin women sold crafts and jewelry at stands.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>It was obvious that all these people survived off of what they could make from tourists.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>When we reached the top of the mountain, I saw the monastery.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>It looked almost exactly like The Treasury except it didn’t have any carvings of Gods and this structure was three times bigger.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I couldn’t tell how large the monastery was because it was built into the side of an even bigger mountain peak.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had to approach the entrance and look up at this towering building to fully understand its immense size.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>After taking tons of photos and video, we headed back down the mountain.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>One of the perks of being a guest of the Prime Minister was that our bus got special permission to drive on an access road inside of Petra.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Instead of walking all the way back to where the kid had ambushed us with postcards, we hopped on our bus where we had eaten lunch.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>That night, we ate at a place called Petra Kitchen.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>It was a very unique restaurant where we were taught how to make traditional Jordanian food and did the cooking ourselves.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Everyone contributed to the cooking and enjoyed the meal that everyone was involved in making.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We separated into cooking stations and made different parts of our meal.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>My group was in charge of making meat pies that had tomatoes, onions, peppers and lots of cumin.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Our chef gave me the onion and laughed as she said that she was going to make a boy cry.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Oh I’ve cut onion before,” I said with an air of confidence, “my mom is a home ec teacher.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>She put me to work after that comment and made me chop the onion into tiny pieces.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I did so without a complaint or a tear. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>My mom would have been proud.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Everyone was having fun making their specific dish but there was one empty station with all of its ingredients still wrapped in plastic.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>That’s when a TV crew showed up and started to set up their cameras and lights.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Are we going to be on TV?” I wondered.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>But it turned out that our group was supposed to be cooking with another group that had not arrived yet.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We had all finished cooking and were sitting around with cocktails as we waited for the arrival of this mystery party that had their own TV crew.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was getting pretty hungry.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Finally, this tall, dark man walked in the restaurant. He paused in the doorway and ran his hand through his hair as he survey his surroundings.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>A few more attractive looking people showed up as the restaurant staff tried to prepare them for the meal that they needed to make.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>They didn’t seem too interested in cooking and contributing to our meal. They just stood around talking and laughing while a frantic camera-girl recorded their antics.<span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“What’s going on?” I thought to myself.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was getting very hungry.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Someone in our group found out that they were soap opera stars from Brazil who had been filming episodes in Jordan.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>While most of the girls were fawning over the tall, handsome Brazilian, I was not amused.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Showing up over an hour late may not have meant anything to these Brazilian celebrities, but I was pissed.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The worst part was that they never even apologized.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>A Jordanian official, who was traveling with them, came over an apologized as the Brazilians took their time preparing their food and making stupid jokes in front of the camera.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>One of the actresses leaned across the able and looked at me.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Thank you guys,” she said while flashing a flirtatious smile.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>But I was not swayed by her lipo lips, heavy eye makeup and fake highlights.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I flashed her a grin, tipped my glass and looked the other direction.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>That’s when the tall Brazilian, Thiago, tried his hand at diplomacy.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He decided to interview one of the girls in our group in front of the camera.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>She handled herself well as he flashed her his pearly white smile and winked at her.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He glanced over at me but was met by a hard glare staring back at him.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had become the leader of the resistance against these Brazilian superstars and nothing they could do would win me over. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Unless, of course, they picked up our bill, which I thought would have been the noble thing to do.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We finally sat down to dinner and I was relieved to discover that we did not have to share table with them.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The meat pies we made were delicious and all the food we had cooked was very satisfying.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>But in a sign of protest, I chose to avoid the cucumber yogurt that the Brazilians had made.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The manager of the restaurant came over to Merissa and apologized for the long delay. He said that the first round of drinks was on the house.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>While some of our group took this to mean that their first drink was free, I took it to mean that I didn’t have to pay for my next one.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“That was respectable,” I thought as I had assumed the Brazilians were picking up the bill.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was even more upset when I learned that the restaurant did it out of their own courtesy,<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“It’s not their fault,” said another girl in our group.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>A little farther into the meal, the manager came over again and told us that the whole meal was free.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Again, the kind staff at the restaurant, instead of the Brazilians, felt bad about the situation and wanted to correct it.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Every time I thought about the fact that these inconsiderate soap opera stars were eating food that I had cooked, I got angrier.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Maybe they’re coming to the cave bar afterwards too,” said one of the girls in our group.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“They better not,” I said, “Two countries will go into the cave and only one will come out.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The whole table laughed.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We finished our meal and left a generous tip as a sign of appreciation for the staff’s kindness.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The cave bar wasn’t a real cave but rather an ancient tomb that had been turned into a bar.<span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>While some of us raised objections to the ethics of such a development, we all sat down and ordered drinks and hookah pipes, or “arguile.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was feeling pretty good from all the beer I had drank at Petra Kitchen and was in a better mood now that I was away from the Brazilians.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I ordered an Al Wadi, which was one of the few drinks on the menu that had more alcohol than fruit juice in its ingredients.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>It had rum, triple sec, blue caraco and lemon juice, which was mixed and served in a martini glass.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We were having a great time smoking the “hubbly bubbly” and teaching those who had never smoked before how to do it.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>A D.J. inside the cave was pumping upbeat music and Merissa requested that they kept playing Arabic tunes.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I looked over my shoulder and saw two waiters holding hands and hopping in unison to the beat of the music.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>As they pranced towards our table, some of our group got up and joined.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I sat in my seat and laughed as I watched them try to learn the steps of the dance.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>They circled around us and Mo said that all the guys now had to do a customary dance.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>So Mo and us three guys on the trip got up and tried to learn the footwork of this traditional dance.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We all laughed as we knew the steps weren’t too difficult yet somehow none of us could do it properly.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I thought of the booty call as I hopped my left foot over my right, kicked, stomped and repeated.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We finally started to get the hang of it, which the waiters noticed, and the dance sped up.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The dance was the same but we kept moving faster and faster around in a circle.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We must have looked ridiculous and unbelievably uncoordinated but our onlookers were still clapping along with the music and cheered us on.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The song ended and I sat back down with my Al Wadi in one hand and hookah pipe in the other.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We sat outside until the bar closed and headed back the hotel.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We had to leave early the next morning to head to the Dead Sea but I managed to do all my packing before going to sleep.<o:p></o:p></p> <!--EndFragment-->Andrew Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00057291285045591951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8738042597367049626.post-58508473810193084522009-06-03T22:16:00.001-07:002009-06-05T21:47:33.554-07:006/3/09<!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span></b><span style="font-weight:normal">I was woken up by my 6 a.m. wake up call and was somewhat surprised that it was actually useful.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We had a meeting at 8 a.m. with Father Nabil Haddad of the Jordanian Interfaith Coexistence Research Center.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Father Haddad, who is Catholic, played a major role when the Pope visited Jordan a few months back.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He spoke to us about the importance of respecting people of every religion and said that journalists had a noble responsibility to change opinions about the Middle East.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“You are messengers,” he told us, “the prophets were messengers. The angels were messengers. You have an important role.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He had a powerful message that I completely agreed with.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He was very proud of his country for its relationship with the U.S. and its tolerance of all religions.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>It was a very inspirational breakfast that helped me forget about the frustration I was dealing with the day before.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>No matter what form of media I used, I would be sure to share my experience in Jordan with others and in the hope that they see a side of the Middle East that is rarely reported.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>After breakfast, I finished packing my bags and met my group in the lobby to begin our excursion to Petra.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Checking out was a little bit of an issue because the hotel had charged our group for their dinner that they had on the first night they arrived.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>But since I had missed the first night, I didn’t have any problems.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Merissa argued with the man behind the desk.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“They are guest of the Prime Minister,” she finally said, “would you want to pay for dinner if you were a guest of the Prime Minister?”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Eventually the problem was settled and we boarded our bus.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>On the way there, we stopped in the municipality of Madaba.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Madaba is the site of Mount Nebo, which is where it is said that Moses died after God showed him the holy land.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The view was spectacular. I could see the city of Jericho and Jerusalem off in the distance.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was even able to shoot some video of the Jordan River flowing into the Dead Sea. The shot was very wide and distant but it may have been the only chance I had to get video of the river.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Our next stop was a Greek orthodox church that had existed since the 6<sup>th</sup> Century.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The church was rebuilt because an earthquake destroyed it in the 18<sup>th</sup> century.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Mo did an excellent job explaining the church’s history.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Inside the church, there were remains of an old mosaic map that had been made to guide Christian pilgrims through the holy land.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The earthquake had destroyed parts of the map but you could still clearly see the city of Jerusalem and the Dead Sea.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>In the corner of the church was an underground room that was full of ancient paintings of Jesus Christ. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Standing alone in this room was creepy. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">All these sad eyes from the paintings were staring at me. The sorrow in their eyes seemed so real.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Before hitting the road, we stopped and had lunch in an outdoor courtyard at a quaint Mediterranean restaurant. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The meal was very similar to my first dinner in Jordan.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Hummus, babaganush and pita bread were constantly being put on the table.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The main dish was beef and chicken that was baked in an oven and covered in potato slices.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The beef was covered in some sort of cream sauce that seemed like a watered-down version of the sauce they put on gyros. It was pretty good.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>After lunch, we stopped at a local craft shop to do some tourist souvenir shopping.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The store made their own mosaic art and we got a quick demonstration of the painstaking process of cutting stone, carefully placing it in a design and gluing it all together.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I was glad that I finally had some time to shop for my family and friends.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Each one of us was followed by someone in the store and was constantly offered items for different prices.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I was looking at the mosaics they had made when this woman began to follow me.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“That is 90 diner,” she said, “85 with discount.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“OK,” I said with no intention of buying the piece of work that I knew no one I was shopping for would like.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">After not showing any interest the woman lowered the price again.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“15,” she said, “how much will you pay?”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I told her I was just looking around but this didn’t stop her from following me throughout the store.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I started to look at a rack of handbags that seemed more in line with what I was looking for.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“Were all these made here?” I asked my newfound companion.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“Yes,” she replied, “all made in Jordan.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I opened one bag up and saw a white tag on the inside lining.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“100% Cotton,” it read, “Made in India.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I paused for a moment and then turned to the woman.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“What about this one?” I asked with interest.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“Yes, yes” she quickly replied.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“But it says ‘made in India,’” I said.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“Oh, really?” she said with a surprised tone as I showed her the tag.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">She took the bag from me and hung it up on a different rack.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">As I continued to look through the bags, I noticed that she had moved away from my side and was looking through the insides of all the other bags.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Another woman came over and the two spoke in Arabic.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">My personal shopper said something and laughed in a way like she knew she had been caught red-handed.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I decided to look elsewhere for my souvenirs.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">After our group finished our tourist shopping, which I was now sure was overpriced and not even genuine, we embarked on our three-hour drive to Petra.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I ended up falling asleep and waking up as we stopped to take some pictures of a nomadic Bedouin camp. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The cool desert wind felt amazing and the temperature in the evening was perfect.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>But the desert air is very dry and I could feel the inside of my nose burning from the lack the moisture,<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We stopped once more at an old castle that had been built by Christian crusaders and took some pictures.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>It was getting late and Mo kept encouraging us to be quick so we could get to our hotel near Petra.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The final leg of the drive reminded me of the Grand Canyon.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The landscape had suddenly changed from a flat sandy desert to dark red rocks jutting up towards the sky.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>These mountains looked especially gorgeous as the sun set.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Our hotel was actually an old village on the side of a mountain that had been turned into a resort.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Uneven stone walkways guided me through the tight alleys of the stone buildings. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Are you kidding me?” I exclaimed as I entered my room. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had never seen anything like it before in my life.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The tall ceilings and uneven, white plastered walls gave the room a cave-like feel but it had all the amenities of a modern hotel.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>My living room had a TV and a mini bar and the sleeping area had a huge bed that was low the floor. This place was very cool.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The bathroom, however, could have been better.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The plumbing needed work and you could hear running water and rattling pipes long after you flushed the toilet, washed your hands or took a shower.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The built-in hairdryer on the wall looked like some sort of respiratory machine from a hospital.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Whatever,” I thought, “this place is still really cool.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Dinner was at 9 p.m. but I headed to the restaurant early.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I wanted to explore the resort a little more and I also figured I would get lost trying to navigate these tight stone corridors that crossed and weaved through the grounds of the hotel.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The resort had its own line of shops that seemed to have more genuine gifts than the previous gift shop.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I looked around for a bit and then went to the restaurant.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Dinner was a buffet that I tried to make the most of.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I ate beef, lamb, fish and chicken along with mashed potatoes, rice and vegetables.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The meal was good but nothing great.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had some cheesecake for dessert but it paled in comparison to the cheesecake at Wild Jordan the night before.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The best part of dinner came afterward when we moved outside to the patio for an after dinner drink.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was excited to finally try a local beer.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Petra Beer was a light beer that had an alcohol content of 8%. It had a little more flavor then Bud light but had a weird metallic taste, which may have been from the tall can it had come in.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We all had a good time telling jokes and sharing stories about favorite TV shows and movies.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Harry Potter was a particularly popular topic in the conversation.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>An hour or so later we all headed off to bed.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I still had not gotten a case for my contacts but luckily my room had scotch and wine glasses.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We had a long day of hiking and climbing ahead of us and I was looking forward to finally getting to see Petra.<o:p></o:p></p> <!--EndFragment-->Andrew Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00057291285045591951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8738042597367049626.post-37449995582912131822009-06-02T21:30:00.001-07:002009-06-02T21:31:33.754-07:006/2/09<!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal"> I woke up on my own again at 6:30 a.m.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>As I got ready for a long day of meetings someone rang my doorbell.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I answered the door and was greeted by a hotel employee with a cart of oranges and bananas.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Hello sir,” he said, “would you like a fruit?”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Uh, no,” I replied.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was still only half-awake and thought that I had somehow mistakenly ordered breakfast to my room.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Two cups of coffee later and I was fully awake.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I met my group in the lobby and we headed for the Ministry of the Environment.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>On our way to meet the Minister of the Environment, I thought about my options for producing a quality video story.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Another student in the group had mentioned that the Red Sea was facing problems with losing its water supply as Jordan, Syria and Israel all take water from the Jordan River.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I knew our last day was a free day at a resort on the Red Sea so I would have the chance to do some filming there if I wanted.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was still nervous about trying to get broll of Amman and getting the chance to speak with ordinary citizens and I wanted to come back to the U.S. with the resources to tell at least one good story.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Doing an environmental story about the Dead Sea seemed like the best option.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Luckily, His Excellency Khaled Irani, the Minister of the Environment, was the only government official who agreed to be interviewed on camera.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I asked him some specific questions about the Dead Sea and got some good potential sound bites.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I figured I could talk to some hotel and tourist shop employees when I got to the Dead Sea and ask them about their feelings towards the Dead Sea drying up.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The Minister of the Environment had given a fairly decent explanation of the problem and I could explain the rest in my narration and standup.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>After the meeting, our group headed to downtown Amman to walk around the shops and markets.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We stopped on the way there to have lunch and I experienced eating a falafel for the first time.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had asked my roommate, who is from Egypt, once before about what exactly falafel is. He couldn’t really answer the question.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>My observation was that falafel is pita bread filled with chickpeas and peppers. I think there are a few more ingredients but I was hungry and ate my falafel rather than examined it.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Something in it tasted like a pesto sauce. It was very good.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The streets of downtown Amman were incredibly crowded and dirty and our guide, Mo, wanted all of us to stay together.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Once again, I faced problems because I was the only broadcast journalist.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Mo literally walked us through the streets and barely ever stopped.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I spent the time stopping to film for seconds at a time and then would run to catch up.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I certainly wasn’t going to have time to stop and interview anybody.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was very frustrated as I tried to get wide, medium and tight shots of the crowded market place. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Forget trying to film any sequences. I simply did not have the time.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The central market in Amman is a very crowded and dirty place.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>All sorts of filth and grime line the streets that are packed full of Jordanians who sell everything from live rabbits and birds to shoes and cell remote controls.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>There were many shops that sold fruit, vegetables and spices, which I was able to get some good photos of.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>So I spent the hour alternating between taking photos for myself and trying to film broll for my now almost doomed story.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>When we got back to our bus, I realized my story about Jordan and U.S. efforts for a two-state solution was dead.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I didn’t have any government interviews on camera, my broll was lacking and I didn’t have any opinions from local Jordanians. I had nothing.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was very frustrated.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>How can print journalists say broadcast journalists are lazy people with just pretty faces?<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Everyone else just had to take notes at meetings and maybe snap a few pictures.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had to visualize every part of the story that I wanted to tell and this press trip was not affording me that ability.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Our next meeting was with Dr. Moen Nsour, CEO of the Jordan Investment Board.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The first thing he said when we started the meeting was that he was not comfortable being filmed.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had the camera disassembled before he even finished the sentence.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had half-expected this based on my previous luck with interviewing Jordanians in high positions of power.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He said he felt he could be more candid if I wasn’t filming.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>How come his candid comments could be quoted in print but not shown on a TV?<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>But most of what he said was off the record anyway.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I wondered how the print journalists would even be able to right decent articles when half of their sources talked to them off the record.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>It’s fair to say I wasn’t in the best mood during this part of the trip.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I started to question the quality of any of the information we were given.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I knew the media laws were different in Jordan but we had turned into a group of pack journalists who were recording talking point responses from government officials who wouldn’t even go on record.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Most of the officials even commented that they thought the media often reports stories in a polarized fashion.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>How was delivering a prepared speech and sticking to some main talking points when they were asked questions going to solve this problem?<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Like I said, I didn’t fully understand the media laws or public relations of this constitutional monarchy, but I began to doubt the quality of our reporting.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>After sitting through Dr. Nsour’s meeting and taking notes that I knew I probably would never use, we left to go meet with the Jordan River Foundation.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Contrary to its name, the Jordan River Foundation actually works to improve the lives of abused women and children and has nothing to do with a river.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>His Majesty’s wife, Queen Rania, created this foundation that has programs throughout the country.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We visited the Queen Rania Family and Child Center.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I filmed everything as we got a tour of the building.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Although it wasn’t a particular interest of mine, this visit was a stand-alone story and I actually had the chance to get some broll.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>So I kept my camera rolling for the entire visit in the hopes of having enough good video and sound bytes to piece together a short package about the center.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>But filming some of the mothers at the center was an issue so I had to be very careful to not show any faces of the women who did not want to be on camera.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I focused most of my shots on their hands as they made puppets for the children at the center.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The children were at school during the time of our visit so I didn’t have to worry about any issues with them<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>This was the first time I was able to shoot sequences and get enough broll to actually produce a story.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>So if nothing else, I would have a story about the Queen Rania Family and Child Center.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We had two hours of free time before our evening meeting so I decided to try to catch a taxi and return to downtown Amman on my own.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I flagged down a cab and quickly realized getting back to the central market would be harder than I thought.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Although I had heard that most Jordanians speak English, my taxi driver was one of the few who didn’t.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Only knowing a few words of Arabic, I did a horrible job of trying to explain where I wanted to go.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Shopping,” I said, “Downtown, food, markets.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Shopping!” the taxi driver said and then continued a full sentence in Arabic, which I did not understand.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Yes,” I said. Having agreed that I did say “shopping.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>It was clear that we had hit a language barrier.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Thankfully, that was the only thing we hit as my driver bobbed and weaved through Amman rush hour traffic.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had a decent grasp of my orientation between the hotel and downtown Amman and it seemed that we weren’t going in the right direction.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I tried to ask the guy where we were headed but he just smiled and spoke to me in Arabic.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The only English he knew, it seemed, was how to tell me how much my taxi ride was.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I arrived at the Mecca Mall, which was like any mall in the U.S. but you can smoke indoors and everything is even more expensive.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>So after strolling past a Footlocker and a cell phone kiosk, I went back outside and decided to try my luck with a different taxi.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I hopped in another taxi only to find myself in the same situation but with a different driver.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>But this new guy was determined to help me and even asked some locals on a street corner and a police officer if they could translate my English for him.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I suppose it was my fault that I could not explain clearly where I wanted to go.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I described the area to the police officer, who seemed fairly confident that he knew what I was talking about, and we headed to, “down Amman.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>But after driving for a little while more, I wasn’t recognizing the area.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>That’s when I realized my camera had pictures of the market from when I was there earlier in the day.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I pulled up a photo of a mosque in the heart of downtown and showed the driver.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He nodded and said something to me in Arabic and starting making motions with his hands like he was taking pictures.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Traffic was heavy and I was running out of time before I had to meet up with my group at 7 p.m. back at the hotel.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I asked my driver how much more time it would take before we got there.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Time?” I said pointing to my watch, “how much?”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Uh, uh, ten and five,” he said slightly embarrassed, “sorry, my English not so good.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He kept pointing out different areas as we slowly moved through traffic and made his camera gesture with his hands.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Finally, we arrived at a mosque that looked similar to the one in my photo but the one he took me to was bigger and had a beautiful blue dome on the top.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Five minutes,” he said, as he opened my car door.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Does this guy think I want him to drive me around to take pictures?” I thought.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>My quest for the market had failed.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I took pictures of the mosque and asked my driver to take me back to the hotel.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He seemed to understand but kept talking to me in Arabic.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He stopped once more to let me take photos of the mosque from a different angle and showed me a church that was right across the street.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Mr. Jesus,” he said, crossing his two index fingers.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Yep,” I replied, hoping that I would somehow make it home.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>On the drive back to the hotel, my driver asked me if I smoked Marlboros.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“No,” I said, “Do you smoke?”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">“No, no,” he said, “I like swimming. I like walking around.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Perhaps I was really bad at giving directions because this taxi driver knew a decent amount of English.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Do you like Barack Obama?” I asked.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Eh,” he replied, “he maybe good, he maybe not good, I don’t know.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“What about Bush?” I asked.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Ah, Bush,” he said making his hand like a gun and waving it like a cowboy, “crazy, crazy.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I cracked up. I couldn’t help myself.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>My driver laughed too after seeing that I liked his response.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Bush not so good,” he said, “Obama could be good, we’ll see.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“What about Clinton?” I asked.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Clinton good,” he said nodding.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Hilary?” I asked.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Eh, Hilary good,” he said less enthusiastically, “but, uh, Clinton. I don’t know name.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>That’s when he brought his hand to his mouth and seemed to make a cigar smoking motion.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Again, I cracked up.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“What’s his name?” he asked.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Bill,” I replied.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Bill!” he said,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>“Bill Clinton very good, Reagan good, Carter very good.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was impressed that he knew all of our former presidents.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Bush one and two, not so good,” he said while making the gun motion with his hand again.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“W,” he said with a chuckle.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Yeah,” I said laughing, “Do you know the word ‘worst?’” I asked him.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Worst?” he repeated.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“It means ‘most bad,’” I told him, “it starts with a ‘W.’ ‘W,’ for worst, most bad,” I said.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I shaped my hands to make the letter “W” and didn’t even realize that I had made the same gun shape with my hands that my driver had been making.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Ah, yes,” he said, “most bad.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>This whole interaction made me forget about my troubled journalism stories and my failed attempt at finding downtown Amman.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I didn’t get it on camera but I was able to have a great conversation with an ordinary Jordanian citizen.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>When we arrived at my hotel, I paid my driver and shook his hand.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Salaam,” he said.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Salaam,” I replied.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>As I headed into the hotel he drove passed and yelled, “Salaam a lakem!” and we waved goodbye.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>That taxi ride may have been the best part of this trip.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>That night before dinner, we visited the film house of the Royal Film Commission.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>This foundation is similar to public libraries in the U.S. but allows any Jordanian to check out camera equipment and use edit stations at the film house.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>There are even free courses available from everything from lighting, to editing and script writing.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I remember wishing there was something like this in the U.S.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>They have 16 state-of-the-art digital video cameras and six Avid and Final Cut editing suites.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was jealous.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The purpose of the Royal Film Commission, said Mohannad Bakri, the Capacity Building Manager, is to empower Jordanians to make films and documentaries about any topic they wish.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The building has a breathtaking outdoor theater that overlooks downtown Amman where they screen films every week.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I could only imagine how amazing it would be to sit outside on a warm night and watch a film that was projected against the dark night with the lights of downtown Amman glimmer in the distance. It would be incredible.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>After touring the building, we headed to the Wild Jordan Nature Conservancy and Café.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Wild Jordan, the nature conservancy, was created by the Minister of the Environment and partially funded by the U.S.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We ate dinner on the roof of the building, which was situated on the top of a hill that led down to the central market.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The view was remarkable.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Fireworks exploded in the distance, which we were told were from local Jordanian students celebrating their high school graduations.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I sat next to Bakri and we talked about our mutual interest in film and documentaries.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He told me that the film house had a private studio with a personal apartment that filmmakers from around the world are invited to stay and work in.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The luxurious working space is free to use if the filmmaker agrees to teach a few workshops for the Royal Film Commission.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I told him that I would gladly teach some editing workshops with Avid or Final Cut and he said that I was welcome back anytime and gave me his card.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Did I really just find a free place to stay in Jordan?”<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I thought.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Dinner that night was good but nothing authentic to the region.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had a steak with potatoes and vegetables and the most delicious cheesecake for dessert.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>It was a long dinner because of all the great conversation that was going on. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We talked about everything from the Islamic rule on adoption, to President Obama’s interaction with the press, to how people in the southern states in the U.S. somehow deep fry coke.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Needless to say, things had gotten much better from the afternoon. It was a lovely evening.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>All of the food was good but the view from the rooftop and the company was what had made this dinner so special.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We returned to the hotel for our final night in Amman.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We had one meeting in the morning, which was actually going to be at our hotel, before we headed to Mount Nebo and Petra.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Most of our meetings were done and the trip was going to become more fun and touristy at this point.<o:p></o:p></p> <!--EndFragment-->Andrew Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00057291285045591951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8738042597367049626.post-38157341162818890752009-06-01T22:49:00.001-07:002009-06-05T20:56:26.768-07:006/1/09<!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal"><!--StartFragment--> </p><p class="MsoNormal"> Before I had gone to bed, I had set a wake up call for 8 a.m.<o:p></o:p></p> <!--EndFragment--> <o:p></o:p><p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I woke up sometime before my phone rang to a room filled with sunlight.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I got out of bed and walked over to the window in my hotel room.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had managed to wake up just in time to watch the sun rise over Jordan’s rolling brown hills that are packed full of boxes of tan buildings.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I checked the time on computer and was amazed to see that it was only 5:30 a.m.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Damn jetlag,” I thought.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>But I decided to get a start on my day. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I had forgotten to pack a case for my contacts so the night before I put my contacts in glasses that were in the room. Since my right eye is better, I put that contact in a scotch glass. My left contact, for my weaker eye, was put in a wine glass.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I took a shower, made some coffee and strutted around my hotel room in the complimentary bathrobe and slippers that the hotel gave me.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>After all, where was the fun in staying at a five star hotel if I wasn’t going to enjoy the perks?<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I called Merissa, who was very happy to hear that I had finally arrived, and learned that the group was meeting at 9 a.m. in the hotel’s lobby.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had wanted to go and explore the streets of Amman on my own but I got caught up posting my blog and emailing friends and family.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>There was another young American-looking guy on the elevator ride down to the lobby,<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I figured that he must be on the same press trip as me but didn’t want to ask and embarrass myself in front of the other people riding the lift, which is what Jordanians call an elevator.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>When we got to the first floor, the guy greeted a woman and said he was going to check his email and would be ready to go.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I made eye contact with the woman and we walked passed each other.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Both of us then stopped and turned towards each other.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Merissa?” I said hopefully.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Yes,” she said, “Andrew?”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had found the director of our press trip.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>She brought me over to where the rest of the group was sitting and introduced me.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Everyone was very kind and sympathetic towards my ordeal of getting to Jordan.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Some students knew each other from previous journalist trips to the Middle East and others were even from the same school.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>This trip was meant to be for young journalists from the top journalism schools in the United States. The other students were from UC Berkeley, University of Texas at Austin, University of Missouri, University of Minnesota and UNC at Chapel Hill.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Almost everyone had some experience of reporting in the Middle East before this trip.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The guy I rode the elevator with spent the last year reporting in Dubai and was going to cover the national election in Lebanon once our trip was over.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>There were a fair amount of graduate students who also had years of experience already.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Then there was me- the kid who couldn’t even catch his flight.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The Berkeley students kept making jokes about their reputation as hippies and the UT students discussed different deans and instructors at their school.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>What could I add to this conversation?<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“I’m from the University of Maryland, home of basketball riots and mistaking a savannah cat for a mountain lion,” I thought.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>But I easily got along with everyone.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Our Jordan tour guide, Moawia Quteish, came over and introduced himself to me.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Andrew! So nice to finally have you,” he said, “how are you doing? Are you feeling jetlagged?”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Throughout the day, everyone kept checking on me and my jetlag.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I felt like at any minute they expected me to crash.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">But I kept assuring them I was fine. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Even if my sleeping schedule was screwed up, I wasn’t going to let such a little thing as sleep prevent me from making the most of this trip.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Our first meeting of the day was with Dr. Mahjoob Zweiri of the University of Jordan Center for Strategic Studies. Zweiri is an expert in Middle East politics and Iran.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">We all sat around a large table with notepads and pens.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I sat at the opposite end of the table and set up my video camera.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I had learned on the bus ride to the University of Jordan that I was the only student doing video journalism.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">One student, who seriously looks like King Abdullah’s twin brother from America, was a photojournalist but no one else had video cameras.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The interview went pretty well.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">My shotgun microphone seemed to pick up Zweiri’s voice from across the table and I got some good information on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">After the meeting, I ran outside to grab some shots of the building.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I quickly realized that doing video on this press trip presented a whole set of problems that I hadn’t considered.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Our days were packed full of meetings with sporadic visits to popular tourist destinations.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">There was almost no free time for me to shoot broll.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I started to get nervous.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I had been given this incredible opportunity and my instructors back in Maryland were expecting great things from me.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The next stop for the day was in Jerash, an ancient city that was used by the Greek, Roman, Byzantine and Omayyard civilizations. It’s considered one of the best-preserved Roman cities in the world.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Our guide, who said we could call him “Mo,” gave us an excellent tour of the area.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The best part was standing alone in the middle of an ancient amphitheater.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">As my voice reverberated off the stone seats, I could hear the incredible acoustics of the theater. My voice actually echoed back to me in a stereo-like way. That is, when I spoke in the direct center of the stage and looked left or right, I could hear my voice more profoundly on that side of the theater.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">We then trekked up to the top of a hill to get a good view of the entire site. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">While taking pictures of the ancient city, the valley it was located in filled with the sound of Muslims praying.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The modern town next to Jerash echoed as the Muslims completed one of their five daily prayers.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“I have to get this on video,” I thought, “What a great way to use natural sound to open my package with.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I decided to make this a new goal of mine for the next day when we would be back in Amman.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">After touring Jerash, we went back to the hotel to wash up before heading to a meeting with the Foreign Ministry.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">While waiting in the lobby, I was comforted to learn that the other students weren’t sure about what they would do their stories on.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I felt far behind and confused starting my trip a day late but was glad to hear that I wasn’t the only one feeling a bit overwhelmed.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The problem was that every meeting was with an expert of some particular facet of Jordanian culture, politics or history. It was hard to see a common overlying theme amongst them all.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I decided that I wanted to focus my story on Jordan’s efforts to bring peace to the Middle East by ensuring there is a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Since the trip was to commemorate Jordan’s 60 years of friendship with the U.S., I would also examine how they want the U.S. to help achieve this goal.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The Foreign Minister, His Excellency Nasser Judeh, was a charismatic man with a good sense of humor.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>However, as with what I found to be the case with most government officials we would meet with, he only agreed to speak with us off the record.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Alas, another problem for my struggling video package.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>How could I include the state’s official position on the two-state solution and the help needed from the U.S. if no one would go on camera?<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>My story was in real jeopardy.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>My only hope was to switch the angle of my story to what local Jordanians think of the issue and what they want from the U.S.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Still, there was little free time built in our schedule where I would have the time to wander the streets and talk to ordinary people. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The press trip had us meeting with highly educated and powerful people in Jordan. But there was no opportunity to talk to average citizens of Jordan and hear their views.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I learned that our schedule for the next day had changed some and it looked like we could have an hour or so of free time during that day.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>This would be my one shot at finding some locals to talk to me as well as getting broll of Jordan.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“No pressure,” I jokingly assured myself.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">It’d be the ultimate way of testing my skills as an international backpack reporter.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Dinner that night was at a beautiful Lebanese restaurant and was hosted by a member of the King’s Royal Court.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">His Excellency Ayman Safadi is a personal advisor to His Majesty and particularly deals with the international press.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">He was an incredibly nice man who expressed the same sentiments that the Foreign Minister had earlier in the day.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Jordan likes the signals they’ve received from Washington D.C. and President Obama on formulating a peace plan between Israel and Palestine.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>There is a renewed hope in the region because of Obama’s presidency and his call for mutual respect and interest between the two regions. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Unfortunately, this informal meeting took place over dinner and I did not have my video camera.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Dinner, however, was amazing.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I have never seen so much food.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Rather than order off a menu, servers just continually brought out different dishes and laid them across the table.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Every time I looked right or left, there was an arm over my shoulder placing more food on the table.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>It was truly overwhelming.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Many of the dishes were meant to be dipped or spread on pita bread, which they continually filled our table with.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>My sister would have loved this place.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The minute you had eaten half of your bread, someone came over and threw another loaf on your plate.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>There was hummus, babagunush and a wide variety of vegetables and cheeses.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>One particularly tasty dish was some sort of sack that was filled with seeds and chickpeas. I have no idea what was in it or what it’s called but it was good.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The main course was chicken, lamb, beef and fish.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>After thinking I couldn’t eat any more, the servers cleared our table and brought our dessert.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>There was coffee, melon and some sort of fresh cream covered in a sugary substance that reminded me of the top layer of baklava. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I’ve never had better watermelon in my life. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I had heard that we were visiting at the peak time in Jordan for growing watermelon and I don’t doubt it. It was ripe and juicy.<span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Towards the end of dinner, I was curious if anyone was interested in going out and exploring the nightlife.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>But I didn’t want to come off as the “party guy” so I sat there thinking of a clever way to bring the idea up.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>That’s when our director came over to us and said, “So, are you guys going out tonight? You should.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>A few of us were interested and Merissa gave us the name of a lounge she said she enjoys.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We took a taxi to Al Nay, a trendy club that seemed more fitting for the wealthy older Jordan population.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>It certainly wasn’t like any bar in College Park.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Our draft beer options were either Amstel that was brewed in Jordan or Amstel that was not brewed in Jordan.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Naturally, I went with the Jordan version, which cost seven Jordanian Dinars or about $10.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The DJ played a mix of techno fused with Middle Eastern melodies. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Some of our group didn’t really enjoy the music but I, being a huge fan of techno, found myself tapping my foot and bobbing my head.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Two beers later, my jetlag finally kicked in.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I could barely keep my head above the table, which I expected from being at a bar but not because I was tired.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We had a long day of meetings planned the next day so we decided to head back to the hotel.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Well, we can say we went out,” said one of the students with me.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I’m not sure if we’ll have the chance to go out to another bar in Amman but I planned on doing some exploring on my own the next night.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We got back to the hotel and I was asleep the second my head hit the pillow.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Thankfully, I remembered to request an 8 a.m. wakeup call before I had laid down.<o:p></o:p></p> <!--EndFragment-->Andrew Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00057291285045591951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8738042597367049626.post-58052410686851118742009-05-31T22:49:00.001-07:002009-06-01T04:50:49.564-07:005/31/09<!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal; ">My boarding pass said that the flight was leaving at 4 a.m.</span></span><br /></p><!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The Royal Jordanian agent told me that I should be at the gate no later than 2:30 a.m.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>This wasn’t a big deal.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>After all, nothing in the airport was open at this hour anyway.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>What else was I going to do?<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I made it through security without any issues. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>After passing through Reagan security three times in one day, going through one metal detector at JFK seemed like a breeze.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I sat by the gate and was reassured to actually see a plane out on the tarmac. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Lots of Arab families began to fill the seating area. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>There were many kids running around, screaming and crying.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was about to get on an 11-hour flight and I hoped that all these kids would either chill out or at least not be seated next to me.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I struggled to stay awake as 2:30 a.m. came and went.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>The man at the desk put out food and beverages for us as we continued to wait to board.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>From a distance it looked like he was giving away glazed donuts, which would have hit the spot perfectly.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>What I found was a piece of bread with a slice of cheese in it. It was wrapped in plastic, which gave it the appearance of a sticky glaze from the distance.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Whatever,” I thought as I grabbed one.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We boarded sometime after 3:30 a.m.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I was seated in the middle section of the middle row, seat 19F. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I didn’t see many kids sitting around me and I somewhat nervously waited to discover who would be sitting on either side of me.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>It could be a very tight flight depending on the size of my neighbors.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>As more and more passengers took their seats, it seemed that I might be the only person seated in my row.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“I wonder if I could sprawl out and sleep across all four seats,” I thought.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The airplane was eventually sealed and I still had no neighbors.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>One man moved into my row a seat away from me.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>We both had plenty of space and this also helped the man he had been sitting next to, who was pinned against a window. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Again, I fell asleep before takeoff.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The rush and excitement of air travel has seemed to fade away with me.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The flight attendant had given me a set of earphones and eye covers, which I put down on the seat next to me. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I took out my ipod, place it on the same seat and fell asleep within minutes.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I woke up to a dark and silent plane. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>It was eerie to look out and see rows of heads bob and sway in unison with the turbulence of the airplane.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Almost everyone was asleep.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>But the most startling discovery was that I had a new neighbor.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I looked over to my right, which was the seat that I had placed all my stuff in, and saw an older man in a deep sleep.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>“Oh, OK,” I thought, “This is a little weird. Where did this guy come from?”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The man was snoring, he wasn’t wearing shoes and he continually slumped into my area.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>His advance eventually won him full reign of the armrest that we both shared.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Still, I had an empty seat to my left that I could lean into and avoid his invading force.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>But he wasn’t just conquering territory. He was taking hostages.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>My earphones were gone and he was wearing the eye cover that the flight attendant had given me.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He had helped himself to whatever was placed on the seat.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>But the biggest casualty was that he was sitting on my ipod.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Trapped under this snoring old man was my small helpless mp3 player.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The playlist had ended so I was now wearing earbuds that just played silence.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I couldn’t watch the in-flight movie because this man’s ass was right on top of where the earbuds plug into the ipod.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I realized that I had to do something.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>This was a long flight and it would be even longer if I didn’t have anything to listen to.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>So I gently pushed on the man’s arm, which was now advancing past the armrest and breaching the divide between seats.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He let out an extra loud snore, readjusted and leaned away from me.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I had gotten him to retreat some but he still had my ipod hostage.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>This guy was clever.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Thankfully, since everyone else on the plane was asleep it was fairly quiet and I was able to fall asleep without my music.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I woke up again to find my slumbering neighbor still by my side.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>But he had moved again and I could see my ipod.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>He was sitting on one end of it, which leveraged the free end up in the air. It was almost reaching out to me for help.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Without hesitation I went in for the rescue.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I got a firm grip on my ipod and pulled it free when the man took a deep breath.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Victory was mine. I had my ipod back.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Shortly after, the man woke up and left.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I thought he had gone to the lavatory and would return but he never came back.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The rest of the flight was a series of naps, movies and meals. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I read up on the literature Merissa had sent us about Jordan. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I watched some movies on my itouch and on the plane’s TV.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I listened to my ipod that was now free from captivity.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The flight didn’t seem too long until the final two hours.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">There was a map of our flight that made it look like we were very close to Amman but still had two hours to go.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Perhaps I was just getting excited or was finally at my wits end but the final leg of the flight was very trying as I anticipated my long overdue arrival in Jordan.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">We landed around 10 p.m. amid applause from the other passengers.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The landing was particularly smooth but I had never considered applauding the pilot for his successful task.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I had finally made it to Jordan.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I exchanged some money, easily made it through customs and picked up my luggage in 15 minutes.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The planes, trains and automobiles side-story of my trip was over.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">That’s at least what I had thought.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I now had to fetch a taxi and get a ride to the Le Royal Hotel.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I found a cab driver outside the airport, showed him the address to the hotel and off we went.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Driving to Amman at night gave Jordan an added hint of mystery.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I could barely make out the outlines of buildings and houses along the highway as we drove in almost complete darkness. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I could see the mansions along the highway that my former professor, Dave Burns, told me about.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Wealthy Iraqi refugees, who fled their country in the Gulf Wars, inhabit these huge houses.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Other buildings looked abandoned or incomplete and reminded me of the Call of Duty video game.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I was surprised to see a fair amount of police stationed along the highway as they set up speed traps.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">My first impression of Jordan traffic was that it’s pretty manageable. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The driving seemed safe and I never feared for my life on the way to the hotel, which is more than you can say about some New York City taxis.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The driving must be safe because people seem to just pull off the highway and hang out. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">All along the side road from the airport I saw cars pulled over with people sitting around and hanging out. They would sit in front of the car and use its headlights to help them with whatever they were doing.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Traffic picked up as we got closer to Amman.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">There were more lights and buildings as we weaved through the country’s capitol.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">There were also lots of posters of His Majesty King Abdullah bin al-Hussein II and his father, the late King Hussein bin Talal.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">As we emerged from a tunnel, a towering building appeared ahead of us.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“This is Le Royal,” the cab driver said to me.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“Oh wow,” I said in awe as we pulled up.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The cab was scanned for bomb materials before the concierge lowered a barricade and allowed the car to pull up by the door.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">All my bags where then put through an x-ray machine before they were brought into the building.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I got a small laugh out of explaining to the man running the x-ray machine that my camera bag had a stick microphone in it.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">He was concerned with the microphone that, when looking at it with the x-ray machine, resembled a “toy” that is meant to be like a part of the male anatomy.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Pornography, after all, is not allowed in the country.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">After checking in, I made it up to my room on the 13<sup>th</sup> floor.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The view from my room was amazing and I could not wait to see it in the daytime. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I had finally made it to Jordan and spent the night in a bed for the first time in 48 hours.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The next objective was to track down the rest of my press group and catch up on what I had missed.<o:p></o:p></p> <!--EndFragment--> <!--EndFragment-->Andrew Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00057291285045591951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8738042597367049626.post-10591320718975843602009-05-31T22:48:00.003-07:002009-06-05T15:33:22.660-07:005/30/09<!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:7.0pt;line-height:19.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none;text-autospace:none"><span style="color:#2A303A;"> <!--StartFragment--> </span></p><span style="color:#2A303A;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">It was an early morning.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">I arrived back at Reagan a little after 5 a.m. with my first class ticket in hand.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> While waiting to board, I decided to call Royal Jordanian Airlines and check the status of my afternoon flight to Jordan.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> I should’ve known things would not go smoothly.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> The next flight to Jordan departed JFK at 4:30 a.m. on May 31<sup>st</sup>.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> “I’m going to miss this entire trip,” I thought. But I didn’t have much time to think about it.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I was about to board my flight to JFK and I was still excited about flying first class.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">When I got on the plane there was a pillow on my large seat and a water bottle waiting for me.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I chugged the water and rested my head against the window.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I fell asleep so fast that I missed the flight attendant’s offer of pre-flight drinks.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I remember waking up and wondering how much longer it would be before we took off.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">But as the plane banked in mid-air I realized that I had slept through takeoff.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I fell asleep again before even looking out the window.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I woke up to the sudden jolt and screeching noise of the airplane landing.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">After picking up my luggage and switching terminals, I now had to find the Royal Jordanian check-in desk.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">It was time to get down to business.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I would do whatever it took. I was going to be on the next flight to Amman.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I accomplished my goal.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The only problem was that the 4:30 a.m. flight was the next flight to Amman. There was nothing earlier.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">So at 8 a.m., I called my parents again.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">My mom was so excited when she answered the phone.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“Hi Bud!” she exclaimed.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“Hey,” I replied in a straightforward tone.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The way I said hello immediately clued my mom into knowing I had hit another roadblock.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in">My dad decided to call his sister, my aunt, who lives in New York and I contacted Merissa to give her the latest developments in my Jordanian saga.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Hopefully, it wouldn’t become a tragedy.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">My aunt called me and said that her and my uncle were in Phoenix, Arizona but that my cousin, Maredith, would pick me up from the train station and take me back to their house.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in">My newest objective was to find a safe place to store my luggage, take a taxi to Grand Central Station and take a train up to Chappaqua, New York.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">After locking up my luggage, I headed outside to find a taxi.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">On my way out, a man came up to me and said, “taxi?”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“Yes,” I replied, “Grand Central Station.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“OK, let’s go,” he said excitedly and we headed for his car.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">On the way out I heard an announcement in the airport.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“Do not accept rides from anyone inside the airport. They may not be licensed taxi cab drivers and may not be insured,” it said.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“Oh great,” I thought, “what did I get myself into now.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The man led me to his car. It was a charcoal GM Suburban and not a yellow Impala or Crown Victoria.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I was nervous but enjoyed the drive at the same time.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">On one hand, I was thinking of ways I could bail out of the SUV with all my camera gear if this guy turned out to not be legit.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">On the other, I felt like a VIP driving through the city in the back of a Suburban by myself with my own driver.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">We passed Queens Boulevard and I thought about HBO’s show “Entourage.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">But driving in this massive SUV made me feel more like Avon Barksdale from <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">HBO's </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">The Wire</span>.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I safely arrived at Grand Central Station and saw that there was some sort of street market going on right next to the station.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">So rather than hopping onto a train, I decided to wander the streets for a little bit.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">After all, I was basically stranded in New York City until 4:30 a.m. the next day.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I got something to eat and decided it would be a good idea to film this market.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I knew there would be street vendors in Jordan so I thought this could be a cool opportunity to contrast two cultures doing the same thing.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">After filming for a while I went into Grand Central and bought my ticket for Chappaqua.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I boarded the train half an hour early and fell asleep.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">My only sleep in the last 24 hours was on a plane and a train.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Once in Chappaqua, my cousin picked me up from the train station and brought me back to her house.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">She set me up in a guest room to take a nap but I spent the time writing this second memoir instead.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">We grilled out that evening and waited for my aunt and uncle to come home.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">One bottle of Patron and another bottle of white wine later and we were all having a grand time.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">After a fun evening of sharing stories with my aunt and cousin, it was time to start my journey again.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">My aunt dropped off me and my cousin, who was heading back to her apartment in Manhattan, at the train station and we headed to Grand Central.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">From there I took a “regular” taxi back to JFK. This ride wasn’t as stylish as my first but the cab driver knew how to speed.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I got to the airport around 1:30 a.m.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I was checked in and ready to go. I sent a message to Merissa that she could expect me later that day and called my parents to tell them that I was finally on my way to Jordan.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p></p> <!--EndFragment--> </span><p></p> <!--EndFragment-->Andrew Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00057291285045591951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8738042597367049626.post-39987036940976572182009-05-31T22:48:00.001-07:002009-06-01T04:48:46.733-07:005/29/09<!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:7.0pt;text-indent:48.0pt;line-height:19.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none;text-autospace:none"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(42, 48, 58);"> <!--StartFragment--> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“If you can call security, you can call your manager! If you can call security, you can call your manager,” yelled a man with long hair and a black rock band t-shirt.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The shrewd Delta agent behind the counter quietly told the man to calm down as the middle-aged rocker grabbed the phone from behind the desk and slammed it down in front of the timid Delta representative.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The Delta employee looked towards the ground and scurried away quietly threatening to call security. He disappeared into a crowd of tired, stressed and angry airline passengers.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The middle-aged rocker, still cursing the powers that be, cautiously backed away from the counter and returned to the bar next to our gate.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">This is how my trip to Jordan began.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">It actually began a few hours earlier when my flight was delayed due to inclement weather.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">My flight was scheduled to depart Reagan National Airport at 5:59 p.m. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">But not soon after getting through security, I noticed that the flight had been delayed to 6:35 p.m.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“No worries,” I thought, that still put me at JFK around 8 p.m. I would have plenty of time to get to the Royal Jordanian terminal and be on my way.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">But as six o’clock approached, no plane had even docked at our gate.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Some frantic newly weds were on the phone with a Delta agent who assured the couple that they would be in New York by 8 p.m.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">That’s when a flight attendant of our troubled flight spoke up. She was waiting in line with the rest of us at the unattended desk by our boarding gate. She knew the person on the phone was feeding this couple a line of bullshit.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I also noticed on another screen that our departure had been pushed back to 7:15 p.m. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Still, the screen by our gate comfortably assured us that we would be boarding at 6:05 p.m. for our 6:35 p.m. flight.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">At 6:00 p.m., I was standing in a growing line of frustrated passengers who were looking at a gate with no airplane.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Finally, a man came over and grabbed the microphone by the gate.<span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The tone and pace of his announcement showed that this was just another by the book line that employees were trained to say.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Screams, swearing and weeps followed his announcement that our plane would not depart until 8:05 p.m. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Our plane, in fact, had not even left JFK at this point.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“OK,” I thought, “that puts me there at 9:30. It’s getting close but I still think I can do it.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I even thought about paying an extra $50 to get a first class ticket and a quicker exit out of the plane.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Every minute began to matter.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I called my parents as I headed back to the check-in area where I hoped by some grace of God I could find a solution to this growing problem.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Waiting in the line to talk to an actual person proved impossible. If I was to board the plane by 7:35 p.m., I wouldn’t have time to speak with someone.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">So I walked back through security, again.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I was able to talk with the tiny Delta man that the middle-aged rocker would later yell at. He told me that the plane still had not left JFK and we wouldn’t be leaving D.C. until 9:30 p.m. at the earliest.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“Oh shit.” The moment of truth had come. I wasn’t going to make my flight to Jordan.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I called my parents and Merissa Khurma, the director of the press trip.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">She was already in Jordan and called me back at 2:00 a.m., her time. I could tell she was disappointed and only half-awake. She suggested that I try to get myself on Delta’s flight to Jordan the next day.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">So out I went again, heading back to the ticket counter with an ever-growing line of angry customers who desperately wanted to get to New York.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">After talking with my parents, we decided the best option would be to fly to New York that night. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">No matter how late my flight ended up leaving, it would be easier to spend a night in an airport terminal in JFK and get to Jordan first thing the next day.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">So for a third time I headed through security. Each time a different person had checked my ticket and I.D. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">There was so much scribble on my boarding pass that I thought I surely looked like a suspicious character.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">On the other hand, I was accustom to the security screening and had all my electronics, metal objects and shoes ready to go before anyone barked orders at me. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">By just doing the odds, I figured I would have been selected for a “special” screening at least once. But I passed right through all three times.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The flight had been delayed again to 9:55 p.m.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“Oh well,” I thought. I was going to JFK no matter what.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">But while I had accepted my fate on this struggling flight, it was at this point that the middle-age rocker was slamming a phone on the counter.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Watching the altercation with mild amusement, I saw that Merissa had texted me.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">My Jordan flight at JFK was delayed until 1 a.m.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“Oh my God! I’m going to make it!”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I called my parents with the good news and headed to the bar to get a nice tall drink to relax.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Everything has a way of working out. I sat down with my double Jack and Coke and began to type this memoir.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Sure a middle-aged rocker was almost arrested and lots of passengers were still upset. But I never let the stress get to me and how was I rewarded?<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I was going to make it to Jordan after all.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">But then there was more commotion from the tumultuous Gate 15.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Cancelled. The damn flight was cancelled.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“What now? How do I get my luggage? When am I going to get to New York?”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I headed out past the metal detectors for a fourth time.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“How many more times am I going to have to do this?” I asked myself.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I was now in a line with full-blown pissed off customers. Some were glaring ahead at the line they had to wait in before talking to a Delta agent, others were calling family and friends but most were talking to a robotic answering system as they frantically called Delta in the hopes of securing a new flight.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“No-oh… res-erh-vay-shun.” Their anger and frustration built with every word they had to sound out for the happy automated voice on the other end of the line.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I managed to get through to an actual person on the phone and booked a flight the next morning leaving from Dulles.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">My dad was on his way to get me and I was now in a search for my luggage.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I was beaten and dejected. My mood was only matched but the dark clouds of the thunderstorm outside, which had cause this whole problem to begin with.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">When I got to the counter, the woman kindly asked how she could help me.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“I just want to find my luggage,” I said. My body language and tone clearly showed that I had given up on everything.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“I see that you’re booked out of Dulles,” she said, “would you like to fly out of here?”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“That would be terrific,” I said, “But I was told that everything in the morning was booked.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in">“Oh no no no,” she said in an almost flirting manner. “I remember you,” she said, “I checked you in when you got here.”<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“Oh yeah,” I replied in kindness. I didn’t remember this lady and even if she had helped me before, I didn’t care at this point.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">“How about we fly you out at 6:30 a.m. first class?” she asked.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I had won.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Forget the flight delays and the fact that I was missing my flight to Jordan. I got Delta Airlines to give me a free first class ticket. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I beat the system. The middle-age rocker would have been so proud.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">The next step was to find a ride back to the airport for the next morning.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Thankfully, my friend Nathasha said she could help.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">But as I stood outside the Reagan metro stop making plans with Nathasha, my phone, which I had been using almost non-stop for the past three hours, died.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Luckily, I remembered a useful bit of advice a 23-year-old homeless man once told me. He said that most buildings have outdoor outlets.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">Sure enough, there was an outlet right outside the building near the metro station.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">So there I stood on my cell phone connected to the outside of Reagan National Airport.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">People kept walking by and staring at me as I finalized plans with Nathasha.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I then realized that I didn’t have my key to my apartment in College Park.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I quickly called my roommate and made sure that he left the door unlocked for me. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">After a day like today, it would be fitting that it would end with me sleeping outside my own home.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">But things were looking up.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">I wasn’t going to miss much of the trip and I was flying first class the next morning.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in">It would be an early morning, but I’d be back on track and would finally get to Jordan.<o:p></o:p></p> <!--EndFragment--> <p></p> <!--EndFragment-->Andrew Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00057291285045591951noreply@blogger.com0