While I usually fast everyday at home during Ramadan, I decided to not fast while on this trip because it is hard to focus in school and you're not required to fast while traveling. However, today I decided that I wanted to give it a go and see how it felt fasting in a place where everyone around you was fasting as well and the culture was shifted to accommodate the majority who would not be eating or drinking anything from dawn to dusk. I woke up at 3:30 right before the morning call to prayer and ate a little breakfast and couldn't fall asleep so I watched the beautiful sunrise. I managed to get in a little more sleep before we headed to school, and while it was a little harder to focus because of a lack of sleep, the hunger really didn't set in until after school. We headed to the American Language Center where the embassy hosts a language exchange between native Arabic and native English speakers and it was a great opportunity to both practice our Arabic and help others practice their English. I not only picked up so many new Arabic words, but I learned a lot about Jordanian's lives. One of the guys' family had fled Palestine to Kuwait and then found a home in Jordan after leaving Kuwait during the Gulf War and the other had just completed the last year of high school which is called Tawjihi and is spent preparing for the final test that determines what university they go to. They actually choose their specialty when they go into high school at the age of 13 and were very surprised that we chose our specialties after the age of 18. After the language exchange, we headed home and studied and I eagerly awaited for sundown. My friends and I ordered Indian food and headed up to the roof and waited for the call to prayer. As soon as it was maghreb (sundown), I broke the fast and I think that must have been one of the best meals I have had so far. After all, hunger is the best sauce :).
Sophia
1 Comment
Mustafa Vahanvaty
8/7/2016 02:35:42 pm
Loved the last line.....glad someone listens when Dad talks.
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We travel not to escape life, but for life not to escape us. !أهلا و ساهلاHi! I'm Sophia, a high schooler from the San Francisco Bay Area. I received a scholarship through the State Dept. to study Arabic in Jordan in the summer of 2016. Categories
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