From Salt to Jerash - February's been a blast!

Missing family occasions can often be some of the hardest parts of living away from home, whether that be in a different city or a different country, whether it be time difference making communication hard, or different means of technology. Not being there for my sister’s birthday for the first time in the whole 17 years she’s been alive was not the best of days, but a rather chaotic phone call with all of my family was enough to put a smile on my face and make me realise they’re with me wherever I may be in the world.

The first weekend of the shortest month of the year brought some much-needed freedom for me and my friends, and we took the opportunity to visit the neighbouring city of Salt. Inhabited for centuries, it was said to be the principal settlement on the East Bank of the Jordan River during the Byzantine era. Located within the banks of three hills, the city was originally set to be the capital of the new Hashemite Kingdom over 100 years ago, before the first Emir settled for Amman.

The city of As-Salt has amazing views, food, and culture. Well, it does Saturday to Thursday. On a Friday many businesses, including the famed souq(market), are closed. I mean, it is a Muslim country after all.

We didn’t let this stop us in our tracks though, especially after the two crowded buses we took to get to city. We wandered the street of the souqand imagined the hustle and bustle of a usual market day, ate some amazing traditional food in a restaurant calledIskandarani, explored the rather quiet amphitheatre and soaked in the sunset views over the evening call to prayer.

Something I’ve spoken about previously is Amman’s café culture, an element that I was not expecting before I arrived here. This month has been filled with café culture, especially as exams and essays loomover the coming weeks, and it is something that is also (slowly) eating my bank account. That being said, Jordanian cafés are often extremely reasonably priced!

Whether it be the streets of Weibdeh, or the upmarket quarter of Swefieh Village, Amman has cafés suited to all types – from students to businesspeople and working parents - it’s in the capital. There are just too many to mention in my monthly round up – but keep an eye out as I just may have a special blog on the café culture in the coming months where I discuss this more in depth.

As well as trips to cafés, trips to some of my favourite restaurants in Amman have taken place this month. I have longed for them since January’s rather extended isolation periods meant eating whatever remnants of vegetables I had in the fridge. A definitefavourite of mine and my flatmates has been our recent discovery of Chef’s Slice on Rainbow Street. I mean, it sounds really Jordanian, right? All jokes aside, it is some of the best pizza I’ve had in Amman, and you can get these absolutely huge slices of pizza for little more than 2JOD (about £2)! Unreal food.

Sticking totraditional and taste of the country vibes however, Hashem Restaurant in Downtown has to be one of the best. Many would argue that all falafel and hummus taste the same, yet I beg to differ. The food at Hashem’s is certainly on tops, and also unbelievably cheap. A meal for four will usually get you change from 10JOD – and they’re open 24hours a day, which is great if you’ve been out late.

Words can’t describe the beauty that the city of Jerash holds. Located 48km north of Amman, the city is accessible by most Uber and Careem (Jordanian version of Uber) services from Amman but may be trickier on return as there are limited drivers in the city of Jerash itself. Saying that, there may be a possibility you can flag down a taxi somewhere just outside the ruins of Jerash.

The ruins, which are the largest preserved Greco-Roman ruins outside of Italy, are the real gem in Jerash’s already bejewelled crown. Jerash was a city of importance and flourishment until the 8^thcentury CE, when an earthquake rattled the area and damaged much of its infrastructure. Further quakes led to the abandonment of the city, until around the beginning of the 16^thcentury with Ottoman settlement.

Jerash is Jordan’s second most visited tourist attraction, and extensive excavations of the ruins have been occurring since 1925 till this day. As a Jordanian citizen, you can visit for just 50fils, but if you don’t hold a national ID, it’s going to cost you 10JOD. And make sure you hold onto that ticket, as once you’ve passed through the Hippodrome and get past the second tourist centre, you need the ticket to be able to see the Oval Forum, Amphitheatre, Temple of Artemis and the streets beyond.

The weather really was in our favour during our trip to Jerash, as we lay in the Hippodrome and heard the distant screams and laughs of children playing football, the calling of their mothers as they got too far away. Of course, we had to get involved in the fun too, with an obligatory piggy back race bringing much attention from the locals as they saw us slowly retreat from the heat.

My favourite part of Jerash would have to be the Oval Forum and Colonnaded Street. The epitome of Roman architecture, it is everything you could ever imagine Roman civilization to be. It was here that I recalled my previous visit to Pompeii in Italy, and I looked upon its similarities in Roman architecture that frequents the world. I mean, it’s not exactly Hadrian’s Wall though, that’s pretty different. I also wouldn’t mind welcoming the weather we had in Jerash to Northumberland too.

Closing the month meant a trip with some work colleagues to another favourite restaurant, Baab Al-Yemen. Yemeni restaurants are popular in Amman, the food is absolutely amazing, and there’s a lot of it. Like, too much of it. Then again, can you ever have enough food?

Now as I look forward to the arrival of my parents and sister next week, I first have to get through the end of term exams and essays. Next month is going to be rather busy, as just about every major tourist attraction in Jordan is on the agenda for my family’s holiday.