Jul

31

The Face of Elections in Jordan

July 31, 2007 | Leave a Comment

I wrote the post below a few days ago but I only had a chance to post it today. The next post will focus more on political issues related to the elections…

Municipal elections are set to be held in Jordan on July 31st, and the campaigning has been in full swing. While my focus should be on the political aspects of this election, this post is mostly about the visual representations of the candidates. They have turned the Jordanian streets into a photo gallery of men in their 40’s and 50’s who stare blankly at you from every street corner, lamp post, store front, and car window. Their supporters have irresponsibly plastered their photo flyers on every surface that the eye can see, without any regard for what the streets will look like after the elections are over and done with. I could not help but try to snap shots of these ugly sites all over the northern town of Irbid where I’m spending most of my vacation. 

Not only did they plaster their photos all over walls, lamp posts, ad screens, and store windows, but they’re also attacking God’s creations and vandalizing trees with their sticky flyers. Ugly white banners hang across the streets as well, but at least those can be removed easily, unlike the sticky flyers that cannot be removed except by forecefully scraping them off surfaces. The flyers will usually remain all over walls and such until the next elections come along where other stickers will be glued on top of them. The genius candidates don’t seem to value quality over quantity, and find the need to paste tens of their photos right next to each other in case we dare to forget their blank stares and their clichéd slogans. I have to give credit to some of them, however, as they pasted their flyers on cardboard pieces and hung them on trees and lamp posts, which can easily be removed after Tuesday’s elections without damaging any surfaces.

Thankfully this isn’t sanctioned by the authorities, but unfortunately, nothing seems to be done to stem this headache inducing visual catastrophe except some weak attempts to tell candidates to not pollute the streets with their flyers. A short piece in Al-Ghad newspaper stated that authorities in Amman “encouraged” everyone to respect the streets and post flyers using good judgment. The piece did not mention any fines that would be placed on those who abused their right to campaign publicly. Also, the article only mentioned the capital Amman, completely ignoring the rest of the country that is littered with these flyers even more than Amman.

Most people don’t even seem to be paying much attention to the flyers. They will follow tribal allegiances to certain candidates and others will refrain from voting because they hear that a certain candidate has the government behind him so there’s not much that their vote can do. The money spent on these flyers would have been much more usefully spent by the candidates on cleaning up streets or holding town hall meetings that encourage all members of the community to speak about their concerns (not just evening tents pitched for men and tribal elders to smoke and talk about soccer). It’s 2007, and I can bet that, sadly, not much has changed since the elections in the 90’s.

 

pic-548.jpg

 

pic-563.jpg

 

pic-600.jpg

 

 pic-525.jpg

Jul

24

Lame Excuses

July 24, 2007 | 4 Comments

My top excuses for not blogging while I’m while I’m on vacation in Jordan:

1. Torturously (sp?) slow dial up Internet. I tried to get DSL but the stupid companies require annual contracts which don’t work well for someone who is only here for a couple weeks.

2. Not enough time between visiting family and friends.

3. Not enough privacy and time for myself while I’m here.

4. Too many things to blog about I don’t know where to start.

So that’s that, lame excuses, but I promise that I will be back with updates about my trip in Jordan very soon :)

Jul

10

Hello Jordan

July 10, 2007 | 1 Comment

I arrived at Queen Alia Int’l Airport late Saturday night after a relatively okay journey from DC via London.

pic-004.jpg

I didn’t know there would be such a big commotion as Jordanians waited for the results of the New Seven Wonders competition hoping that Petra would make the final cut. When we got to my uncle’s house in Amman, Jordanian TV was broadcasting live from the city of Petra as people waited for the announcement.

The first encounter with Jordanian “luxury” (as I see it) came through a knock on the door with the delivery of the best tasting Shawerma and all the trimmings at 11:30 PM. Is that sweet or is that sweet? Actually I think it encourages laziness and obesity, but whatever, the Shawerma was amazinggggg :)

The night ended with the announcement that Petra was indeed one of the New Seven Wonders and the craziness on the streets of Amman that my uncle warned us about ensued without delay. Thankfully, the exhaustion had hit me, and I fell asleep minutes before the announcement came out. I was thrilled to find out the results the next morning, as we were bombarded with more delicious food in the form of the traditional Jordanian breakfast (hummus, falafel, foul, olives, etc). Watching your weight? Don’t bother :D You can’t say no here. You can’t say you’ve had enough, you’re full. Just eat, until everything on the table is finished.

As we drove to Irbid on Sunday, I couldn’t see many changes on the streets of Amman, yet. I did notice two new towers being built, and I still have to visit the Abdoun bridge. I love the drive from Amman to Irbid, the scenery is absolutely breathtaking.

I haven’t done much over the past few days other than visit with family and enjoy my grandma’s great cooking. The most pressing problem so far is faster Internet, which I’m desperately in need of. Tomorrow I’ll be hunting for DSL service in Irbid, Lord help me!

(I’ll post my pictures hopefully after I get DSL, because it’s *torture* uploading even one pic!)

Jul

6

On my way

July 6, 2007 | 3 Comments

Alurdun awwalan…here I come :)

Jul

3

Packing

July 3, 2007 | 4 Comments

It’s that time of year again, when the suitcases are pulled out, and the shopping frenzy begins as my family heads out for our annual summer vacation in our beloved Jordan. The thing is, it’s not a “vacation” in the real sense of the word, because as soon as you get there, the “obligations” begin. Of course I’m very much looking forward to visiting my relatives, but I am bound to think of all the “little things” that inevitably get in the way of me having a good time there.

I don’t want to sound like a spoiled, whiny American kid going to the Middle East, so I’m just going to try to stay positive as I’m packing my bags. I’m going to try to smile at everyone there and not get sucked into the typical Jordanian smile. And I’ll try my best to ask people nicely to: take a few steps back as I try to use the ATM machine, not cut in line as I’m waiting for my shawerma, and not smoke in my face as I try to claim my luggage. I’m going to try REALLY hard to not lower my standards and act in the most civilized way, without getting on people’s nerves.

I’m going to have fun eating good food, laughing at the latest Jordanian jokes, meeting up with bloggers, taking pictures of random signs on the streets, visiting as many historic sites as possible, shopping for things I can only find in Jordanian souqs, and just watching people from the comfort of my grandparents’ veranda.

I’ll let you know how it goes… :D

Until then, expect slow posting before and after my departure on Friday. Unless of course another war breaks out in the Middle East this summer, which is really not too unlikely.

209258347_34660744ff.jpg

[my pictures from last summer in Jordan]

Candy Shop free xxx buy online pharmacy cialis soft tabs viagra alternative herbal supplement viagra soft tabs uk where to buy cialis online natural substitutes for levitra Niki Dominick bangbros lesbian porn HOT LATINA BABES hidden goods simony lesbian porn flower teen mis fat booty old lady fuck videos femdom art teen sex rx drugs Triarese buy levitra cheap cialis cheap viagra cheapest lorazepam prices order tenuate visit your doctor online order forms for buying klipal buy oxazepam cheap canadian drugs natural xanax substitute vitamins herbs cheapest diazepam in uk cheap diazepam diazepam does valium work for women canada online pharmacy tramadol buy zyban oils for female viagra levitra cheap cheap cialis soft tabs online buy cheap generic cialis ordering viagra online levitra versus viagra soft tabs online levitra mail order levitra herbal levitra for woman buy viagra soft tabs order viagra soft tabs ordering propecia online