This week started with exciting weather.
Saturday we had tentative plans to go to Salt (to see Ottoman architecture) and Fuheis (to eat). Those plans were upstaged by Mother Nature, who dumped rain and sleet with thunder and lightning. When life hands you sleet, make sleet soup. Noah and Aaron collected sleet from our windowsill and made sleet soup with mango juice.
Monday night, Noah and I went on a haute date (while Aaron attended a lecture at the Friends of Archaeology) and attended the opening of an exhibition at a favorite art gallery, Nabad. Noah, plied with chocolate, was an absolute gentleman and we had a good time counting woodblock print faces and pondering wood sculptures. After the opening (we didn’t last long), we moseyed over to a bookstore/café/bar in Jebel Amman. Though I’ll probably not get any parenting awards for the date (the venue was pretty smoky and it was about 7 pm…about the time we start to wind things down), the pizza was great, the beer cold (for me), the décor very cool for both moms and toddlers (think big 70s bold patterns), and the table was exactly the right height for drawing, eating, and pondering the reasoning behind Tom’s (of Tom and Jerry) face turning red. Our taxi driver on the way home spent a lot of time in Georgia (the US state) and while we puzzled over why Jordanian English stations didn’t play country music, Noah fell fast asleep.
The following night we celebrated Mardi Gras at ACOR by indulging in a fantastic Fat Tuesday party. Noah and two new friends, Nikolo and Ceclia, made and decorated a cake for the party and then headed off to bed. Robert Darby, a fellow at ACOR, whipped up a mean Jambalaya that was just spicy enough to require a gut-busting Hurricane. Barbara provided beads – worry beads – for decoration and a good time was had by all. Yesterday, Wednesday, was a slow day, but it was definitely worth it.
We ventured downtown yesterday and ran a few errands in preparation for a two week trip, starting Sunday, to Syria and Lebanon. Starting to get really excited….
In the afternoon, we had the pleasure of attending a lecture by Liza, another ACOR fellow, on social structure and factionalism in Gaza. Really interesting and eye-opening.
Friday, we’re hoping to head to Pella to see the site….but ole’ Mother Nature may have other plans. It’s supposed to snow. Please stay tuned….