These were our two water tanks when we lived in Husn, a northern town in Jordan. All of the roofs are flat in Jordan, making it convenient to store water tanks there.
Our water was piped in once a week. Because of the strict water shortage in Jordan, we were only allotted a certain amount each week. If we ran out, a water truck could deliver a refill, but we were told that it would cost 35JD, or about $50.00. Needless to say, we used the water sparingly.
The people who lived in the apartment below us had nine people in their household, compared to our two. They had to be even more conservative with their water usage than we did. If I recall correctly, they had a total of three tanks for their family.
There is a little door on the top of the tanks. Bill would go up to the roof periodically to check the water level. The tanks are not airtight and dust, which is in abundant supply in Jordan, filtered into the tanks. Sometimes, there were other things in the tanks also, leaves and such. Needless to say, the water was not as clean as we are used to in the United States. After showering, our skin always felt a tiny bit grimy. In Amman, the water cleanliness is better, plus some people have big round plastic tanks, which seal better than the metal ones.
No matter where you live in Jordan, though, the water pressure is low, again, compared to what we are used to in the States when taking a shower or filling the tub of a washing machine.
By the way, I hope I do not come across as complaining, because I am not. The last thing I want to do is make people feel sorry for us! I just thought you might enjoy learning about water usage in a developing country.
If you are a Starbucks fan, you will have to go without while you are in Israel. The chain lasted for a brief two years in Israel, from 2001-2003.
Interestingly, the CEO and chairman of Starbucks, Howard Schultz, whose self-made net worth is nearly 3 billion dollars, says that he does not support Israel financially, even though he is Jewish. It is difficult to determine why Starbucks did not make it in Israel, but the Newsroom page on Starbucks' website insists that their decision was not politically based.
Although Starbucks is conspicuously absent in Israel, it has opened many stores in the Middle Eastern countries of Turkey, Bahrain, Egypt, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Jordan.
I am not a Starbucks fan because I hate coffee. I have tried their chai tea a few times and found it way too sweet, not to mention overpriced.
Israel has a few coffee shop chains of its own. Of course, I don't drink their coffee either, but I do like the chai tea at Aroma Espresso Bar. It is flavorful without being overwhelmingly sweet. You can find Aromas all throughout Israel. If you are a coffee lover, this is the place to go, I suppose.
It seems that when people read this Walking Ancient Paths blog they can draw the conclusion that we are writing from the Middle East.
Of course, that is the case sometimes. We have lived for extended periods in the Middle East three times and I do blog from there, when I have time and the Internet connection is strong enough to allow me to post my blog entries.
But right now, we are on the East Coast of the United States.
Occasionally, my blogs are written in the present tense, giving the unintentional impression that we are on Middle Eastern soil. The use of present tense is often the result of blog entries that began while we were there and were never completed. But mostly, I just think that using present tense is the most interesting method to use to share our experiences.
When my husband and I go overseas, we go there to work. Our primary purpose is not to explore biblical sites, but to work in the churches there. And there is a lot of work to do.
Our supervisors do, however, allow us days off and we are grateful to them for that. I carefully plan what we will do and see to make the best use of our time during these days off. We cram a lot of activities into a single day of sightseeing! We take a lot of pictures and I scribble a lot of notes.
It actually works out well that going to archaeological sites is something we enjoy because there is not much for American Christians to do for recreation in Jordan.
For example, there are very few bookstores and in those few bookstores are very few English language books, which are expensive. I can't go kayaking because there are no lakes. Bill can't golf because there is very little grass; hence, no golf courses. (Well, there is one. Bisharat Golf Club has a nine-hole sand course. You have to bring your own grass...a portable mat with Astroturf attached to it. All this for just 45 JDs...$65.00!) We do visit with friends sometimes when we have time off, but as far as actual recreation that we are familiar with in the United States, it is nearly non-existent.
Regardless, since our time is almost exclusively devoted to working and not sightseeing, I do not have the time to thoroughly research and write about the places we see while we are working in Jordan and Israel. That usually happens when we are in between our ministry at churches here in the United States.
Researching Bible manners and customs and digging into archaeological findings is one of my favorite activities. I find it fascinating to realize the meaning behind names, places, and events chronicled in the Bible. I blog and write books to share this information with others.
As those who have lived in the Middle East can attest, just living and working in a place so rooted in biblical history and cultures similar to those from Bible times gives much insight. Our day-to-day activities and interactions with Middle Easterners bring to light many concepts such as honor and shame, family structure, and social norms. But, for the most part, I only have time to process and write about these insights once we are back in the States.
So if my blog entries sometimes sound like we are in the Middle East when we are not, this is why.
Hope this helps to clear up any confusion! :)
This bag of rice caught my eye in an Amman grocery store, not because we needed rice, but because of where the rice was grown: Stuttgart, Arkansas, not too far from where my mother grew up. Stuttgart is known as the duck and rice capital of the world. Seriously.
It seemed really weird to be standing in a Middle Eastern grocery store and look down and see something so "homey." Certainly, the packaging was Arabized, with not just Arabic language writing, but the "Two Girls" are decidedly Arab looking, rather than looking like the girls-next-door in Stuttgart, Arkansas.
The question must be posed, "What does a person do when living in a foreign country and he/she wants to cook American food?"
Well, I suppose the answer could vary. If the expatriate is living in Jordan, is rich and has nothing better to do than spend their big bucks, they can go to one of the few American-style grocery stores and buy whatever their heart desires.
Want bacon in Jordan? How does about $20.00 per pound sound?
How about a small bag of organic frozen corn? It is just 10 Jordanian dinars. That is $14.00!
A half pint of Green & Black organic ice cream? $10.00.
Needless to say, anyone living in Jordan and Israel on a limited AIM budget, as we do, pass the bacon, frozen corn, and Green & Black ice cream right by.
We usually opt instead for cheaper local food like hummus, labenah, pita bread, onions, bell peppers, eggplant, eggs, and street food like rotisserie chickens, falafels, and kebabs.
Did I really want that organic Green & Black ice cream that I spotted at Miles in Amman? Absolutely, there are no two ways about it, you'd better believe I did.
Did I put it back in the freezer case after getting my photo taken with it for memory's sake, beaming as though I was getting my picture taken with Queen Rania herself?
I sure did, and tried to not be too sad about it.
After all, it was probably freezer burnt, right? They had to bring that organic ice cream a long way to land it a freezer in the middle of the Middle East.
(Maybe it wasn't freezer burnt, but telling myself that sure helped to walk away from that $10.00 half-pint of creamy, decadent, indulgent organic ice cream!)
Forget organic ice cream. Where's the hummus?!
