Amman fil Noor al-Eyom (Amman in Daylight)

My first full day in Jordan has been both overwhelming and intoxicating--despite the Pizza Huts and KFCs that dot the metropolitan area and claims of Amman's Westernization, it is clear to me that an entirely different set of social and ethical rules apply here. As it was orientation, we received a massive debriefing from the various SIT staff members, largely on appropriate conduct that will prevent any security incidents. Although the crime rate in Amman may be much lower than many American cities, our ignorance of the delicate social nuances, and the effect certain actions may have, make us more at risk to provoke a situation that we may otherwise avoid at home. For starters:
1. Always walk at a fast pace, with purpose, and do not appear to be wandering around or exploring
2. Never maintain sustained eye contact with someone of the opposite sex, for this can be interpreted as a sexual provocation
3. If people catcall or say things to you, pretend you don't hear them
4. If someone is honking at you in a car, it is probably a man, and by no means should you turn around, for even acknowledging it with a glance will be taken as a reciprocal gesture

Essentially, keep yourself more or less isolated from contact with people in a public space. It's interesting to see how living like this your entire life can affect someone--today after our group went out to lunch, one of the female staff members took me to the ATM so I could withdraw some Jordanian dinars. After having heard her speak in front of the group earlier, I knew she was a perfectly articulate and intelligent person, and so during the car ride, I tried to make conversation with her, but to no avail! I was just asking basic questions along the lines of where she grew up, how does she like working for SIT, etc etc, to which she responded more or less monosyllabicly. Usually, it is the staff who is trying to get this sort of information out of us so to see her be completely unable to communicate was a bit shocking. Had I been a male student, I would have completely understood, but this just took me by surprise.

Aside from all that, throughout the day I have been struck with how lucky I am to be here, and how excited I am for our classes to start. I have enjoyed trying out my Arabic with waiters and taxi drivers, and can't wait to see the improvement that hopefully will come with the intensive language training. The SIT headquarters is in one of the nicest parts of Amman, a mintaka (neighborhood) called Abdoun...let's just say our next-door neighbors are the Venezuelan and Azerbijiani embassies, armed guards patrol the streets, and we are stationed in a beautiful, spacious marble residence, complete with a library, 4 classrooms, sitting areas, a kitchen, and offices. Tomorrow we will be taking an extensive tour around the city in order to get our bearings, and will continue to venture out more on our own. Until then...