The sausage truck came yesterday and stayed in the same spot overnight. We decided to try this for lunch since it smelled delicious. The guy was grilling sausages and meat skewers. Chuck and I shared a sandwich (since it was two links and huge pieces of bread.) We ate while standing around the grill. (I was trying to keep warm since I really didn't bring a warm enough jacket.)
After lunch we decided to try to find an ATM. I had asked at the desk and the clerk thought that there was one 2 towns down the road. Brian came along for the ride which was a good thing since he was better at spotting signs.
Down the road we went. In France the little villages have their business area right on the main road. This doesn't seem true in Italy - unless, they don't really have any businesses - which might be the problem. Nothing at the 1st town, nothing at the 2nd. The 3rd town seemed to be a little bigger, so we followed signs to the supermarket, the flower shop, the butcher, all to no avail. Then Brian spotted a sign for a bank. Hooray! Success at last! We got some money and really checked out the area so that I would be able to find it again.
Feeling quite successful, we continued on to see what else was around - not much. We were also on the lookout for a laundromat. We didn't find one yesterday, but today I asked another clerk at the desk and the chambermaid. Between the 2 of them, they thought of one that they knew I could find. They first described the route. It is 2 exits down the autoroute, but very easy to find once there. The chambermaid drew a little map, so she could be sure that I was getting the finer points of the directions. You can tell that things are tough here, if I can be so excited about being able to find a laundromat.
Today, after dropping the guys off, I'm just staying in. It is even colder and I needed to wash my hair. One problem with the room, is that they only turn the heat on from about 6 to 9 am and from 4 to 9 pm. It is getting a little chilly in here. Only 11 more days.
Back to Jordan
Day 2 was our worst day for weather. It was rainy and cold. We started at the ruins of Jerash. This is extremely well preserved Greco-Roman site.
Hadrian's gate. Yes, this is the same Hadrian who has the wall separating England and Scotland. He was a busy boy who really got around.
Normally, Larry was the mountain goat who was at the top of stuff before the rest of us - I can't believe that I was above the others.
The natural lawnmowers:
I told you there would be more amphitheaters:
This one had entertainment.
Now, I have heard a lot of bagpipes in my life - I took 9 years of Highland dancing lessons - but this was hard even for me!
We had another buffet lunch, but first saw flat-bread being baked on stones in a "pizza" oven.
The food was very tasty. Normally, grilled meats, vegetables, varieties of hummus and salads. The only problem was that it was very much the same meal after meal.
After lunch we visited a Saracen's castle at Ajlun. Who knew that Crusaders and Saracens built the same kinds of castles?
The weather was deteriorating - so this may or may not be Galilee in the distance.
While in Amman, we were happy to be able to visit one of Chuck's former grad students. We remembered him fondly from our days in Los Alamos, NM. He invited us for dinner and sent a car to pick the 4 of us up at the hotel. (This did make Mohammed a little nervous - he took the phone # of where we would be and made sure that we had his number, too. The guides want to make sure that no one gets lost!)
It was great to see him again and catch up on his career. He is in charge of the new atomic energy plant that is being built - Chuck was very proud of him.
Abdul's living room was even bigger than our home visit's. It basically covered all of the ground floor with a small kitchen and powder room. Upstairs is where the family lives with bedrooms, bathrooms, TV room, and another kitchen.
Abdul's wife, Esme, made a "small" dinner that would have fed the entire group from the night before. This also was a casserole, but had several kinds of meat and 2 kinds of grains. We all ate until we were stuffed, but didn't even make a dent.
This is part of the section we were sitting in - there were 4 more like it and one in a more "casual" decor.
Every table was filled with collectibles:
The powder room fixtures were black with turquoise and gold inlay.
Abdul drove us back to the hotel with a small detour past the university.
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