The Adventures of Matty

The Adventures of Matty: Greetings from Amman, Jordan‏

JORDAN | Wednesday, 8 July 2009 | Views [291]

Hi Guys,

I've made it to the Middle East. Since I'm only in Jordan for 2 days there will be no postcards, (those from Hong Kong may not have arrived yet...) but keep your eye out for the one coming from Israel. Well, if I can find time for it that is, between the hours spent sunning myself next to the Mediterranean...

Jordan is utterly amazing. It has a rich, proud culture and history stretching back thousands of years that I never knew existed. Just walking around Amman, there are so many buildings that are over 100 years old!

I saw a Mosque over 130 years old and viewed contemporary art in a former byzantine church, saw Roman Fountains currently being restored and walked in laneways lined with apartments built over a century ago.

But by far the biggest thrill were the ancient roman ruins - there is an old citadel and a couple of other byzantine structures on top of one of the seven original hills Amman was built on - I took photos of these from afar as the hill was pretty steep and I was a bit tired because...

I spent most of the day exploring an Ancient Roman Theatre!!!!!! Yes that's right, the same kind you seen in the movies, with the circular raised auditoriom. It was just amazing to sit there and imagine performing to an audience that looked like that - and I couldn't help myself from trying out the acoustics and they were FANTASTIC!!!

Off to the side was an amphitheatre which was almost completely intact and still used - how thrilling for Ammani Theatre Companies!

After that I sipped teain a cafe overlooking the main road - there are clearly no road rules for turning into side streets here, particularly with regard to what lane you should be in. There are also no pedestrian crossing as people just wander across the road whenever they feel the need, cars or no cars! So I had a good vantage point at this cafe and was treated to over an hour of slapstick comedy as drivers, pedestrians and lane changers battled it out.

It was sad to leave Hong Kong as it was just the most amazing city and I enjoyed every minute of it! However the people of Jordan have been so welcoming, supportive and patient, that travelling here has been comfortable and safe. 2 days seems like enough as I am taking a tour of Northern Jordan tomorrow, however I also want to see Petra in the south - which is where they shot the Temple scenes of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. So there is definitely an excuse to come back!!!

I even got a crash course in Arabic this morning while being driven from the airport to my hotel (which is totally cool, just like those hotels in all those english movies where the middle east is portrayed as exotically cosmopolitan) and I don't want that learning effort to be for nothing!

Before I know it I'll be off to Israel, where my hotel overlooks the Mediterranean. I'll speak to you all then!

Until then, let me know your news - I cann't wait to hear what you have all been up to!

Take care,
Matt x