Wednesday, December 5, 2007

The CRAZY things about Jordan

Jordan has been very fun and it will be a great place to live for the next little while, but there are a few things to get use to.
1. The driving. Only westerners use their blinker--so they zoom around and cut off anyone using a blinker--so I have to watch out because I am constantly getting cut off. They turn left from the right lane and right from the left lane, so watch out for that. I have recently found out that when you take the written and driving test to get a license it isn't necessarily based on correct answers. They have a quota and it is how friendly you are. My friends were told they had reached the quota for the day so they couldn't be passed until tomorrow, but that he could only pass one of them tomorrow so have the other one come the next day. Didn't matter how they answered but they were guaranteed a pass--Hey Dad, Mom could pass her test over here quite easily!!
2. The parking. They double park everywhere and anyplace is a parking space. It doesn't matter if it blocks you or not they just stop and put on the hazards. No businesses have planned for more than 10 parking spots, so the lots are crazy to get in and out of because 45 cars fit there way into 10 spots. I don't get it.
3. The stores. They don't actually make you want to buy their products, but you can't get them anywhere else so you basically have no choice. For example: They don't wash anything at the grocery store so the vegetables and fruit are covered in dirt and look like they have just been picked and tons of the milk and yogurt containers are covered in dirt like they were unpacked or packed by people covered in dirt. So I am getting use to that. One other foreigner complained to the manager at Safeway and he just looked at her like she was the crazy one.
4. The maids and nannies. All Jordanians have maids or nannies or both. You can tell a foreigner at the beach because they don't have a nanny with them. These poor Philippino women that come here--I feel for their life. They all have kids and families back home and they come here to clean and raise someone else's kids for 150JD (about $200) a month. They go 2 to 4 years without seeing their kids--I don't know how they do it.
5. Things I am now without. We don't have a dishwasher for the first time in our marriage, but that doesn't bother me too much. We don't have a dryer and that one drives me crazy. I hate hanging the clothes to dry and you have to do laundry every other day or so or you get too far behind and then have no time for it to dry. The towels, bedding and all the clothes need to be hung it is annoying--but I will manage. However, we have a microwave, so we are moving up in the world in at least one way, KATRINA!!

2 comments:

queenie said...

Just nuke your clothes!

Super Angie Супер Энджи said...

The driving sounds like Moscow. You and my folks could get a good laugh out of driving stories, I am sure!