I just discovered your channel and am enjoying your chats. I'm an American living in Jordan for 20 years now. The first year I was here, we didn't have a car. My husband told me that a vegetable truck circles around the neighborhood from time to time....I made a mental note. About to prepare lunch one day, I realized I didn't have onions. I heard a truck outside blaring a recorded message. Good....gonna score me some onions! I got dressed in a hurry and ran downstairs. All the while reviewing in my mind what I would say, 'bidee basal, losamaat'. I was so proud of myself that I remembered the Arabic name for onions! The man looked at me like I was crazy! Turned out he was the used furniture guy!
Oh my god I’ve been in Montreal for two months now and I can’t handle not hearing the athan to the point that I have to listen to Amman athan from RU-vid
When I was first talking to my husband on facetime (He lives just outside of Irbid) I would hear the call to prayer and I knew we would have to end our call so he could go and pray. One time I heard in the background what I thought was the call to prayer. So I told him I would talk to him soon. He started laughing and told me that it was the vegetable man. I just discovered your channel and I am learning so much. My husband will be moving to the USA as soon as he gets an interview with the embassy but as of right now we are all in lockdown for corona. I have visited Jordan twice and I do feel it is my second home. I plan to do many more visits in the future. Thank you for sharing!!
Yes it is true As Muslims it is forbidden to us to through uneaten food, it is kind of disrespect to the God gifts So utilizing the remaining food it becomes cultural habits Even after big celebration for weddings, the remaining food will be rearrange in good way and sent to poor people or orfans houses
With respect to the bread left beside the big rabish bin it is not left for the needy to take for eating But it is collected by some people who dry it, grind it, then mix it with other sheep food like corn and is fed for these animals. So basically it is used to feed sheeps
Nice video and nice to hear your experience. I just have one correction, we don't put the old bread on the side of the bin for people, we put them for animals, people who have sheep or donkeys will take the old bread for their animals. People who can't offer to buy their own food will get the food they need from other people's donations or zakaa
It’s strange how the people born and raised in Jordan want to move out so bad, just to visit other countries such as Germany, Russia, and the USA. But I’m in the USA and I yearn to live in Jordan. I dream about living there and waking up, walking across the street to my grandmas house, where’d they’d be up watching aljazeera news, drinking tea and relaxing. Even if it’s hard to make a lot of money, life is not all about money. Life is about enjoying your family and friends, while you live in moderation working hard to earn a decent wage just enough to live peacefully. Jordan is the ancient land of the prophets and I wish to move and settle there by 2021 or 2022! I miss my family!
I feel you! I often think about how keen people are to ‘escape’ Jordan but I see how disillusioned they can become when they do go to Europe or the US because they lack the qualities and priorities that make Jordan so special and welcoming. I hope you make it back here soon ❤️
🤣🤣🤣 I loved this! The same thing happened to me the first day I came to Jerusalem. I was all alone and all of the sudden there was a truck with a loudspeaker going down the street and my heart was in my throat. If I remember correctly it was the gas man. I never told anyone how truly terrified I was. You have no idea how lucky you are in the age of the internet. You can learn all sorts of things about the place and the culture and you can meet others in similar situations and learn from them. I first came in the 80s and had no idea there were other foreign wives going through the same challenges. Now you can keep in touch with your family on a daily basis and even watch your usual tv shows or your hometown's local news. Or listen to the radio station you liked at home! I felt so dreadfully isolated when I first moved here.
As a Jordanian we don't really expect more than a clean dish lol! it's just when you have something already done and would like to share it, otherwise it's completely okay to give it back empty.. best wishes & i hope you find it enjoyable here!!
I am Jordanian and i like your honesty but i just wanna say that in our culture its rude to tell people to not give you things like i would really be offended if someone told me to not give him things as a gift because it just makes me feel like the other person hates me and its okay to send a plate empty and thank you ❤❤❤🇯🇴🇯🇴🇯🇴🇯🇴🇯🇴🇯🇴🇯🇴🇯🇴🇯🇴🇯🇴❤❤❤❤❤❤
You’re the second person to say that and I’m still surprised! Do you mean you put it on the ground next to the bins for the birds? Because we put it in a bag on the side of the bin and people come and take it. I’ve seen that in Amman and Zarqa but I wonder if it’s a regional/specific area thing?
@@MummyinAmman yes we put them so the farmers could take them and feed them to the sheeps and some for the birds ( but generally for the animals not humans)
My mom used to always insist on giving people back their pans, etc. with something in them but she's from an older generation so I would never expect someone my age or younger to know that. Also I so appreciate your perspective in these videos so thank you for the content!
Enjoy Jordan the best you could , it’s easy to adjust , and easy to find your way around , best luck to you and your family , something new for you and the kids
Omg, thank you for the tip about the plates!! We have a stack of containers my husband has brought home with mansaf, etc in it from his Jordanian family and friends here in the US. I’ve been getting so annoyed with him not returning the dishes. It’s rude in the US not to promptly return the dish. Now I know that if I want to get rid of all these stray dishes in my kitchen, I just need to make cookies! Please cover more cultural misunderstandings in the marriage! I’m constantly uncovering things.
Haha no no it’s fine for you to return them empty if it was things like mansaf etc especially if it’s family! Actually many people told me it’s fine to send them back empty anyway 🙈
The call for prayer (Athan) in Amman is broadcast centrally by the ministry and is called the unified Athan to eliminate clashing noise and time differences. What you hear is the echo because Amman is built on many bells and valleys in between!
I'm so EXCITED to find these videos. I also have a Jordanian husband. I'm planning on coming to Jordan in February or March of 2020. These videos are so fun and informative. The produce truck I knew about because I hear them everday when I talk on the phone to my husband lol! But, I wasn't scared because I thought it was a call to prayer all day long lol , and I thought the "real" call to prayer was a call to prayer too, but a special one. 😂
youre such an incredible person and i just love the way you describe your experience in jordan. keep it up !! btw, you had me dying when you got scared of the vegetable van.
With respect to shaking hands between men and women... This is not a culture thing... It is relegion based thing... Men are not supposed to touch "foriegn" women... "foriegn" means a woman that is not a sister, a mother, a daughter, an ant, a grandmother, or a wife.
a beautiful cultural mix. I am Jordanian, traveling allot. and i am watching the video and i wanted you to give me this "foreigner" raw image of my native culture. Jordanian/Arabian culture and language are beautiful. I advice you to advance - you seem like a curious person - your level of understanding to the culture. it's complicated and ext. mind-opening. history especially.
You think you would only hear one man slowly going down the street calling something if the country was under attack? Lol. The no hand shake is a sign of respect, but it’s not cultural, it’s religious. Many ppl actually don’t expect tips in Jordan, but it is friendly. They are very hospitable and will invite you in for tea/coffee and snacks - usually not taking no for an answer. So you might not want to turn down a plate of food/gift. The plate can be returned empty, just clean it. The things I would mention about Jordan is there is no 24 hr supermarkets like Walmart. There is no mail boxes in front of your house or postal service that goes around delivering/picking up mail. Most places don’t even have real addresses. There is no central heat or ac. And yes, it gets cold unless you’re farther south. The walls are not drywall and it is not simple to hang things with a nail. The voltage is different and they have different outlets (don’t trust adapters - learned that first hand unfortunately) quite a bit of ppl speak english, but just as many act like they can’t drive a car. Security has you stop and open your trunk before entering a mall garage. You don’t have to get out of your car. There are MANY street cats. Jordan has fantastic medical Facilities and Doctors. That’s all I can think right now. You will LOVE Jordan. Oh yeah, your water comes from large tanks on the roof which should be filled once a week. So make sure you know how much water you have before doing laundry and taking a long shower. Since we are talking laundry, just about everyone hangs their laundry, and don’t own dryers. But you can probably get one. 👍
A very nice vlog, thank for sharing it However, about someone offering to carry your bag to the car after groceries, it kight be because you are in Amman that they expect you to tip, however, if you were living in almost any other area of Jordan, where people are more traditional than westernized, they will carry it just as a courtesy for you as a lady, they won't expect you to tip and they might actually be offended if you do
We have the same as those bakery shops but meals ! It’s a none profit organization and we server mostly vegetarian food and it’s really cool . It’s called ezwity and it means my support system in Arabic and you buy a meal and a meal for another. And a lot of poor people who can’t afford their food come and eat for free . It’s located in down town, alkalha stairs going up to jabal alwebdah . I’ll be honored to see you there it’s volunteers run project so all the guys who are working there are volunteers and they don’t get paid . And I’m one of them . There’s two shifts every day from 9 am - 3 pm and from 3 pm - 9 pm and I’m there every Saturday from 3-9 pm but not today. So if you’re close and it was Saturday that time just pay us a visit . 😁😁😁
Ah I think I’ve heard of this place before! My husband loves the idea and we’re very excited. Maybe next weekend we’ll bring the kids and check it out. (We’re already planning a vlog for it 😆)
Hii, about the shaking hands, its not only about respect its also because of religion. In Islam if you want to pray you need to kinda wash yourself, we call it wodou'. There is certain things that will break your wodou' and one of them is touching the other gender. So instead of shaking hand and they need to do wodou' again. He/she will decline the other one hand shake by touching their own chest. And yes as you said we normally dont initiate a hand shake we just wave or start talking, just to avoid putting each other in a weird or maybe embarrassing situation.
I’m from the UK and recently moved to Jordan, I speak a decent amount of Arabic but not enough to speak a detailed conversation. I do miss England at times because of my friends but I love my cousins. About the gas/vegetables you hear it atleast every day and sometimes it can get annoying
Anywhere is the best place as long as we get used to it. The fact that getting used to a place makes it easier for you to live and do ordinary stuff does not make the place the “best place”. I would rather say, try your best to find happiness anywhere you live!
Like how she said if the oppisit sex doesn't shake your hand, dont be offended. Hardly anyone in America barely looks at each other anymore! Often, I have to say hi first! So.....not shaking hands is fine with me. Getting Greeted, is a polite treat for me!
Thanks! I've always admired the neighbourhoods in west Amman for how quiet they seem, so that's not a surprise to me! But I think I'd miss the trucks if they went away 😆
Hello you two! I am American as well and contemplating on moving with my husband back to his home country of Jordan. I visited my in laws there last summer and stayed for 1 month. Jordan is so terribly expensive because of the usd to jod conversion. I have a 5 year old from a previous marriage and I'm worried about taking him there and restart our lives or stay put. I need advise. Regardless my husband will be going back after being in the US for over 10 years. I'm very undecided as of now. I would love to stay in touch with you two! P.S. I freaked out about the fruit and veggie guys when I heard it the first time too 😅 I thought the exact same thing you did.
@@ninab5919 do what you feel is best for you and what you're comfortable doing, you shouldn't be pressured, I'm Jordanian and honestly I would recommend u raise your child in America, its a more healthy environment for him
A guy once carried a 20 gallon aquarium that had rocks in it up a hill in Amman to get it in my car and i gave him 5JD and he didn’t want to take any but I convinced him to take it
We love your videos, we are thinking of leaving the US and settling on n Amman where my mom is , you have cute kids, hope you are staying safe from the virus, thank you again for your clips👍
The handshake thing is religious, in Islam women and men alike are not suppost to shake another person's hand if they are from the opposite sex regardless of their nationality or origin, unless they are from the same sex which is definitely okay. However, in Islam you could shake hands with your brother, uncle, grandpa, father of course, and father in law and even I think step brother (you got to make sure of this one) if you're a woman and almost the same goes for men. So it's NOT because you're a foreigner or because they think you're a foreigner it's because of their religion (try shaking hands with women and they won't refuse you, unless they got a personal issue).
The name of the Video make us feel like there is something so strange as a Jordanian , I well not say why 😁 the other thing u make me laugh so much even when is my English language is weak but I felt like it's simple to understand thank u soo much and welcome from the South of Jordan AL-Karak city 💛
When I visited jordan I had also very little sleep. Hut I woke up because of loud Mozart coming from street. That gas truck music.. I will always remember that.
Not a lot would say this, but not shaking a woman's hand comes from a purely religious reason, and in my opinion it's discriminative and offensive.. you can say it's respecting ones faith, but definitely not ones self.
Hahah! That was hilarious! Noise pollution is terrible in Jordan, and the terrain acoustics amplify it. The used furniture guy makes me twitch. It sounds like he's announcing the end of the world. I'd like to blast Pantera when he drives up. He's just doing his job, I suppose, but there must be a better way. You make wonderful videos, keep it up.
My Arabic teacher gave me food in a Tupperware and I returned the bowl empty. She was so offended and I had no idea what I had done wrong, until I learned that returning a Tupperware empty is totally not done. 🤦🏼♂️ I was so embarrassed 😂
iam a new subscriber When I watched your videos, I felt happy for one thing. When you talk about Jordan in most of your clips, you refer yourself to Jordan as if you were born with it like (we have borders with Iraq, Syria and Palestine). You are better than conveying the correct image of Arabs to the West. Contrary to what is reported in the media. We are proud of you and we are happy to be a member of our Jordanian family We are your family 💜🇯🇴
دقيقة تنفعك؟. - سُبحان الله . - الحمدلله . - لا إله إلا الله . - اللهُ أكبر . - سُبحان الله و بحمدهِ . - سُبحان الله العظيم . - استغفر الله و أتوبُ إليه . - لا حول و لا قوة إلا بالله . - حسبي الله لا إله إلا هو عليه توكلت وهو رب العرش العظيم . - اللهُم صلِ على نبينا محمد . - لا إله الا الله محمد رسول الله . ...🌨️.
I now understand better that not touching the opposite gender is an Islamic thing (that can become cultural too) but when I went to Yemen to study (sacred knowledge) in a complete segregated society, even if I was aware that it is good adab to avoid the opposite gender, I still found it strange and expected men to talk to me at the shop 😅 It is so hard to change our ways but so beautiful to see things from a different perspective than what we're used to 💛
You are happy because you are a foreigner. As a Jordanian I can tell you with extreme warrant for it that we are one of the worst people on this planet.
You are welcome to your second home Jordan , Tee Tees Mansion , my name amjad I am from petra south of Jordan I will be your host with all my pleasure to invite you to my city petra the red rose city .🙂
That tracks wasn't as scary as the military jets too close to the ground😂😂😂. 1st time I heard them coming fast and loud, I can tell u all my body froze and waiting for something to happen 😂🤦♀️
Why did you move to Jordan? is it a job or just a long vacation? I was born in Jordan and lived there my 20 first years. I currently reside in USA for the last 30 years and would like to move back. What is your advise?
I feel like if you move to a Muslim country, you should at least study Islam. As a Muslim women we do not shake hands with any man that is not in our close fam. It's Islam.
Hi! I am a American who has married a Jordanian. My husband is currently in the courts fighting a deportation case, if it ends negatively we will be moving to Jordan together.. I am curious if you know how the culture reacts to pets, mostly dogs? I have two dogs and if we end up going to live there I would like to know if there is Veterinarians and pet stores etc? are there apartments / houses that offer land at all in the city? Thank you!
Hey, I hope you guys win your case 🙏 Many people have dogs here and many are imported. You can find detailed explanations of how they’ve done this etc on the Facebook expat groups. There’s also a pets for adoption group to join too for information. If you want to discuss things in detail please feel free to contact me on IG @rachelshmachel or Facebook Mummyinamman
