It's been a while

Once again I lack the desire to write extensive posts. So tired. But so much has been happening.

We went out and about with one of our Bedouin workers, Ibrahim. He lives in New HUmayma and so it was a bit different than the experience we had camping. We hung out a lot in the 'men's' room, whihc was a big rectangle with lots of lounging couches, ate various delicious foods and drank various delicious teas and coffees.

Then we toured around the desert in a Toyota Hilux, checking out verious ancient cisterns and rock formations (rock bridge!) and generally enjoying one another's company. Pleasant all around. In the evening we had Mansaaf, a delicious but very intense Jordanian dish. Often made with lamb, this version had chicken on a bed of rice and a flat(sheet like) bread known as chiraq. It then gets drizzled with some mad crazy goat butten grazy business. The only word I can use for it is intense in all the salty, fatty ways you could ever imagine. Good but not an everyday necessity.

This past weekend was our two day weekend which meant some of us tore up country to check out Amman and environs. We got there late Thursday night, found a place and in the morning set out for Jerash, one of the larger and better preserved Roman towns around.

We had the place to ourselves (or at least it felt like we did) for much of the day and it was mega cool. Lots of pillars and theatres and even manhole covers!!!! All just oozing the detrius of time.(That's a new favourite term).

While we were sitting in one of the theatres a bagpiper appeared and played a jaunty tune. He was really good and they aren't lying about the acoustics in those places.

After Jerash myself and Kristin made a break from the rest of the group and headed to Madaba. I needed to remove myself from a travelling with 7 other people situation, trying to come to agreement on this and that and generally feeling slowed down and irritated. The Madaba trip was mega fun, complete with local bus sorintg out, explaining to a nice Jordanian fellow that I didn't know any women he could marry to get a visa for Canada, getting off the bus in an "I don't know where I am place" and most important sorting out a city by walking around it.

While in Madaba we saw mosaics, a lot of mosaics., Including that really famous on at St. George's church...whose name now eludes me. Do some research I'm sure you can sort it out. We also saw a lot of cool architecture. It's a generally fun, small city. Good for wandering.

The next day it was off to Mount Nebo, Moses mountain which he climbed, said "Oh shit, I think we're here" then died. Good work Moses! Then it was some coffee with our cab driver (Romanian wife) and a switch to his son's car for the ride to Bethany Beyond Jordan (Jesus' baptismal place). I'm not sure why JC was baptized into his own religion, but whatever.

It was a cool place. Not much to see but neat to be at. I have a nice picture of me pretending to pee into JC's baptismal pool which I think is super. I also have one touching the River Jordan and staring at the Israeli tour group 50 feet away. They appeared to be getting led around by a military jeep which i guess is necessary since they're actually in the West Bank when there.

After that we bid our cabbiew farewell, managed to snag a cheap ride in a local cab into Amman and then after getting out in an undetermined location managed to wander into the dowtown and startle ourselves when we turned around and found the Roman Theatre. Huzzah!

Once again the walk was mega cool. Gave me a better feel for the city than I had two nights before. I might not have liked Amman if that had been the only experience but the second go roundf was way better. Also because there was just the two of us and we just had small bags we were able to take things nice and slow.

Amman is a weird city that has grown up on a bunch of hills and is sort of linked to various refugee camps and suburbs that surropund it. There is still the distinct possibility of bumping into an old man on a donkey and his goat herd on the ourskirts and the downtown is all sorts of windy goodness.

We wanted to go to the citadel and knew it was up, so off we went. Found it and once again enjoyed ourselves. I don't think the old people trying to take pictures appreciated that we were napping in the shade of one of the pillars of the Temple of Hercules, but that's their propblem I guess.

I think I add to any picture.

We saw a museum up there (it's funny how all the Jericho artefacts were there...it took me a second to remember that whole war, land business) then some of the Abassid (maybe ummayad) structures here and there. They were filming some greased up guy for an IAAF promo. I took some photos of him to amuse myself and confuse them and thenh we ambled back to the bus station for our ride home.

Got in a bit later than I wanted, and was tired today but that seems fairly constant.

Work is going well. We seem to find the road and lose it on a daily basis. Unfortunately the material we decided was the road surface appears to stretch on forever and ever (20+ metres) and with only one edge revealed there is now confusion and doubt. We're changing tack tomorrow and starting a new square to the west (we've been goiung ever east previously) and are hoping to find some remains of a house.

Screw the road. Who needs it anyway.

K, that's it for me. Supper than an early bedtime would be ideal, but I'm sure I'll find something that will distract me and keep me up just a bit longer than I want. To some crazy let time like 930 or even...gasp...10.