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My First Jordanian Wedding

On Our Way

My ears are still thumping from last night when I had the privilege of attending my first Jordanian and Muslim wedding. After a week of orientation, I was picked up from the Grand Hyatt in Jabal, Amman, and swept to Sweileh, a neighborhood in northwestern Amman. At 4:30, I rode with my host family to their apartment in Sweileh, and at 6:30, we set out for the wedding.

Sweileh, Amman, Jordan
Image from WikiMedia

Jordanian and Muslim weddings are a family affair and a tremendous celebration. Because my host Mom’s sister was the bride, my host family played a large part in the wedding. We set out at 6:30pm Jordanian time, so 7pm, and made our way to the bride’s flat to escort her to the wedding place.

Sending off the Bride

Upon entering the flat, a small cup of Turkish coffee was promptly passed into my hand and I received dozens of kisses on the cheek. A typical Jordanian greeting is a kiss on one side of your face, and two kisses on the other, whilst shaking hands. A few moments later, the bride came into the sitting room, dressed head-to-toe in the biggest and sparkliest white ball gown you can imagine. A tiara sat upon her teased updo, and she slowly made her way towards the exit of the apartment. Keep in mind that Jordanian weddings are extremely loud, so much so that the coffee in my cup was shaking as were the floorboards beneath my heels. Family and friends are passing greetings to the bride but could not be heard through the music and zaghārīt.

Jordanian Car Procession
Image from Stephanie Altwassi

The Jordanian car procession came next and was unlike anything I have ever experienced. Jordanian driving, especially in Amman, is a new phobia I didn’t know I had, so I knew I was in for a treat when a dozen cars lined up on a crowded one-way street. The bride and groom rode in a white convertible, similar to the white Mercedes pictured above, covered in flowers, while the entire wedding party (in Jordan, this means everyone in attendance) squeezed into their respective cars. People squeeze in where they can, some in trunks and truck beds, others hanging their bodies out of windows and sunroofs, all the while blaring music, dancing, shouting, and lots of honking. Police officers smile and wave as the procession flies by and pedestrians chase after the procession shouting and waving.

The Wedding

Upon arriving at the bride’s mother’s flat, where the wedding will be held, the party starts outside in the street, banging drums and singing congratulations to the bride and the groom. In Jordan, this is known as zafa, as is an important part of the wedding celebration. It takes about 20 minutes of celebration for the bride and groom to make their way inside, the hallways of the apartment building packed full of family and friends in black dresses and exquisite gowns.

Fast forward another hour of getting settled into the building and the men and women divide themselves into separate spaces in the apartment. Muslim weddings are separated by gender so that hijabis can remove their scarves and all women can uncover their shoulders and chests. This wedding was partially divided, and the men and women remained separated for the first 3 hours, with the men joining in the last hour.

The young women, ages 16 – 30, danced and celebrated uncovered in the middle of the room. It was insanely fun to watch women dance freely and enjoy celebrating the bride with one another. There was a variety of Arabian music, and the women all danced with emphasis on their arms and hips. The older women sat on the outskirts of the room, focusing on the young women. One of the women at the wedding told me that the mothers and grandmothers often focus on the young women in hopes of finding someone suitable for their sons or nephews. If a girl is pretty and a good dancer, they will inquire about her and her family, and introduce her to the respective young man. So, not only are weddings a time of fun and dancing but an opportunity for older women to do some old-fashioned matchmaking.

To clarify–arranged marriages are not common in Jordan. Family matriarchs play a large role in helping their sons and daughters find suitable people to be in halal relationships with, but do not force marriage.

Shawarmama delivery service in Jordan | Talabat — Shawerma! Contains chicken, think pickles, and a white sauce. Popular street food in Amman.

We wrapped up the wedding around midnight and grabbed some shawarma on the way home, and I had the best night’s sleep ever.

The one where the Earth trembles

“Sarah, Sarah!! Grab your chanclas and come downstairs!! Hurry!” Dee cried out to me as the world’s most horrid sound blared in the background.

In a state of confusion, I rushed downstairs and out the door just as the ground began to shake, the telephone poles swaying and dogs howling in reaction. Oh how little I knew.

The view from my upstairs bedroom. Great for taking in my neighborhood, not so great for earthquakes.

This is not how I imagined my experience at all. Just three days in Oaxaca and I can now say I have survived my first (real) earthquake. Apparently, they’re quite common here due to being the collision point of three tectonic plates (North American, Cocos, and the Pacific). In fact, four years ago, Oaxaca experienced its largest earthquake in history on this exact same day. Nature has a funny way of commemorating.

Being from the Midwest, earthquakes (temblores/sismos) are not something I am overly familiar with, but I suppose that will change! In reality, my sole experience is from 2015 when west Michigan experienced a whopping 4.1 magnitude earthquake and my mom’s reaction was simply, “Sarah, did you fall down the stairs again?” In fact, when I told my mom about the earthquake here in Mexico, she so kindly asked, “Ya sure you didn’t fall down the stairs?” Knowing that even amidst a natural disaster my mom still found time to make fun of me provided me with a sense of comfort.

A photo of the amazing group of students I get to experience Oaxaca alongside.

All in all, while truly unexpected, my first earthquake helped commemorate a day full of firsts. My first day of class; my first full day living with Dee; my first time solely speaking Spanish for an entire day; AND, my first time navigating Oaxaca on my own (a BIG step). When I write these accomplishments they don’t appear to amount to much, but to me, they felt monumental. Safe to say that even though I am only four days into my semester abroad, it is going to be an experience that literally rocks my world!

Abroad and On Campus?

The past few weeks have been crazy as I was on campus as students moved in and classes started for the fall semester. I got questions about how strange it felt but honestly, I loved spending the first week and a half in Holland. The energy and excitement from the new freshman was amazing. And of course, the best part was reconnecting with friends who did not stay the summer on campus. I loved seeing the quiet campus become busy again but was also sad to lose full range of the campus. I spent all my summer working for the theater and biology department which transferred over to the school year. The reason why I stayed so long was related to dance obligations and opportunities.

Last spring, I was offered a spot in H2, a dance company on campus. I was so shocked and grateful for the opportunity and of course accepted the offer. H2 comes a week early for school to get a head start on performances much like other sports teams get a head start on training. Since I will be gone for the fall show, I understudied for Fara Ling the whole week as she was busy as an international orientation director.

I really enjoyed H2 but the greater reason why I never left was due to a celebration of life for the founder of the dance department, Maxine DeBruyn. The week in between intensive week and the celebration, I got to keep up with my training by taking all kinds of technique classes which I have enjoyed and missed so much. I think this was more confusing for others then it was for me because I knew I was leaving the whole time but dancers around me often forgot as I have been there every semester for the past six semesters.

This past Saturday, the 4th, is when Maxine’s Celebration of life happened. I am so grateful I got to be a part of the celebration and got to honor her life by preforming a piece she created in the 80s called snickerdoodle. This dance has been recreated in so many ways and I am so grateful for the legacy I got to be added to. After the celebration of life ceremonies, I left for North Carolina and will spend the next few weeks visiting friends and family I haven’t seen in a while before leaving for Liverpool!

Stay tuned to know why Hope College and Liverpool Hope University share such a unique bond.

Hallo aus Freiburg!

Early Wednesday morning, 1st of September, I arrived by plane in Frankfurt, Germany. From there I took the train (Bahn) to Mannheim. My train had a delay, so I missed my connection and had to wait an hour in Mannheim for the next train. I finally made it on the next train, where I was greeted by a small surprise.

German long-distance train at the Frankfurt airport train station.

The train was extremely crowded, and I finally found a seat in a four-person compartment where three people were already sitting. I asked them if the seat was free, and the family of three looked rather inconvenienced that I had decided to sit by them. I tried to stay distracted by my phone and out of their way, but then the little girl asked me (in German) if I wanted to draw with her. I said no thank you, but her gesture made me happy. A while later, she got my attention again and showed me that she had drawn a picture of me! It was so adorable, and she gave me the picture to keep. Her mom had her write her name “Lotti” (short for Charlotte) at the top. The family took a picture of me with it, and I felt so welcomed in Germany.

The picture Lotti drew of me on the train to Freiburg.

After a long day of traveling, I finally made it to my apartment (Wohnung) in Freiburg. The apartment building is brand new, and each student has a single studio apartment. All of the furnishings are from IKEA, so it doesn’t look too much different than a modern apartment in the US.

As I look forward to my time in Germany, I am both excited and anxious. Freiburg is in the Black Forest (Schwarzwald) region of Germany, and I am very much looking forward to hiking and exploring the wooded areas. I am also looking forward to being able to eat lots of German food (I will be sharing pictures!), and I am excited to experience living in such an environmentally-friendly city. I am a bit nervous about trying to travel outside of the city during the semester due to ever-changing covid restrictions, and all of my courses being in German is a bit intimidating. However, this semester will be a great opportunity for me to improve my language skills by immersion, and I am delighted to be living in such a beautiful city and region. I look forward to sharing my experiences in Freiburg with you this semester!

View from the bridge at the train station in Freiburg.

Beginning my Barcelona Journey

¡Hola! Everyone, my name is Ari Cinque and I’m spending this semester in Barcelona, Spain. I am entering my junior year at Hope College studying Communication and Business. I have always had a passion for traveling and am so thankful for the opportunity to not only travel, but study in Spain for the semester.

As I am zipping up my suitcase in preparation for my departure abroad, one of my biggest worries is that it will be too heavy. I challenged myself to pack everything I would need into one suitcase – and it was a challenge.

Update post check-in: My singular suitcase clocked in at a tight 48 pounds.

There are so many emotions getting ready to leave for a semester abroad but the one consuming most of me is excitement. My family continuously has been asking me how I am feeling prior to my departure. They keep asking “What are you most excited about?” so many things come to mind. I am excited to connect with new people from different backgrounds, to try new foods, to learn about a new culture, and experience life abroad.

Soon I will be joining a group of other students participating in and IES Study Abroad program. I will be participating in the Liberal Arts and Business program in the heart of Barcelona, Spain. Through this program, I will gain a well-rounded education through business, communication, arts, and history classes. I am looking forward to my International Marketing class to learn about the intricacies of a European approach.

Barcelona is a city with rich culture, history, and architecture. I have planned trips and tours within Barcelona as well as to surrounding cities. If you want to stay updated on what life in Barcelona is like, feel free to subscribe below!

Thoughts Before Takeoff

I can’t believe my semester abroad is coming on so quickly! In a few days, I will be on my flight to London to continue my degrees in English and theatre. I feel like I have to pinch myself to make it real. But it is! That being said, as I am procrastinating on the items I have left on my list of pre-departure to-do’s, I have come to terms with an upsetting conclusion: my prized chunky sweater collection that I live in during the colder months is not meant for traveling. I must leave some behind. A true tragedy.

Jokes aside, I’m so excited to start my new adventure. I can’t wait to do all the touristy things and to find some hidden gem spots. I love traveling through cities and discovering all the treasures the place has to offer. I am also buzzing about my courses because they all sound like so much fun. For example, I will get to see a theatre production once a week in one of my classes, and my literature classes are full of books that have been on my to-be-read list for ages! London is so rich with history in literature and theatre, and I am so freaking jazzed that I get to study both while I am there.

I have also been saying goodbye to my friends and family in the days leading up to my departure. While this doesn’t seem out of the ordinary as the school year starts, this time feels much grander than usual. Hope College is comfortable, and even though I’m not from there, Holland is home. Not returning to Hope this fall feels like a leap into the “real world” despite the fact that I am entering my senior year. However, it’s time to get out of my comfort zone and dive into new possibilities with both my love for theatre and my love for literature. Subscribe below and follow me through my semester!

Into The Unknown

As I prepare to officially depart for London in less than 2 days, I can’t help but do a little reflecting on my thoughts about leaving what is comfortable and known to me, and to then be entering a foreign place that I have never been before. The familiarity of family, friends, and the pace of day to day life will be temporarily paused to enable me to see another part of the world full of diverse cultures, exotic landscapes, and new adventures for the next four months! In a way, I feel like I’m reliving my freshman year of college. New people, new places, new part of my life! Of all the uncertainty that surrounds college and going on an adventure like studying abroad, one thing that has remained certain for me ever since I was a freshman at Hope was to pursue a dream of mine of studying abroad.

As this past year has taught us anything, one of the realizations that has hit me is how little control we actually have of our hopes and dreams at times. As Australia was originally my preferred location to be for four months, the coronavirus halted this long-term aspiration and forced me to look at different options from a fresh perspective. In turn, I think this is what a lot of my time in Europe will entail. To be open to embracing a culture different from my own. To see a part of the world that I have never been exposed to before. To take advantage of all the new opportunities that will be presented to me. And lastly, to get out of my comfort zone!

As I have exhausted the search bar of Google looking up what all the UK and Europe has to offer, I’m ready to immerse myself first-handedly and experience it for myself! Here’s to a semester of growth, challenge, and joy!!

Many Miles to Mexico

“Wait a minute, you’re scared!” my friend proclaimed.

“Correction, I’m absolutely terrified,” I laughed with a look of panic in my eye.

This exchange happened no earlier than a week ago and while I have managed to calm myself down, my wariness remains. In T-24 hours I embark on my semester abroad in Oaxaca, Mexico with SIT for a program focusing on Borders, Migration, and Transnational Communities. In all honesty, I have been at a loss for words to describe everything I feel. After all, this is an experience I have been waiting for my entire college experience. However, that all changed when I came across a curious little chipmunk during a walk through Centennial Park.

Not to sound like I am living a Disney movie, but I feel like this chipmunk (metaphorically, that is…). Through careful observation, the chipmunk acted both cautious & curious, almost paralyzed, taking in its newfound surroundings. Once it determined the large looming threat (aka me) wasn’t as scary as initially thought, it visually relaxed continuing about its business. Despite what it had come to know, the presumptions about the human did not seem to add up.

This is how the chipmunk I encountered in Centennial Park presented itself.

This is me, except in my case the looming threat is not a human, but rather the thought of studying in Mexico. There are simply too many “what ifs?” swirling around in my head. What if I misinterpret a situation and make a fool of myself? What if having all of my classes in Spanish overwhelms me? What if my host family doesn’t like me? What if I catch Covid? What if, what if, what if…? This paralysis (for lack of a better word) of “what ifs?” and presumptions held me in a headspace of avoidance for a long time. However, as I started tackling the big items on my to-do list, such as packing for 3.5 months (not an easy task), my mind began to calm down.

In fact, a couple of days ago I received an email with a welcome letter from my host family, a lovely woman I will refer to as Dee. In response, all of my worrisome “what ifs?” started shifting. What if Dee teaches me to make the most incredible food? What if I find a bit of home in Oaxaca? Much like that little chipmunk in Centennial Park, my large looming threat is looking a lot less daunting.

I have no clue what the next few months will have in store for me, but I’m excited to see where they take me. Make sure to hit the “subscribe” button on the bottom of this page to follow along with the “Adventures of Sarah & Dee” and all the other amazing humans I meet along the way. I can’t wait to share them with you!

P.S. Fully anticipate more nature-themed metaphors as I continue to blog about Mexico, it’s who I am.

Two Days ’til Takeoff

Hey guys, I’m Leah, and in just a few days, I will be writing to you from Amman, Jordan!

I am going into my senior year here at Hope College and will be wrapping up my degree in Global Studies and Spanish. It has been a wild few years on campus, and I am so thrilled to get abroad and travel the globe. One of the main reasons I chose to come to Hope was because of their wide range of study abroad opportunities, and I am greatly looking forward to spending this entire upcoming year abroad!

In two days I will join the School of International Training (SIT) in Jabal Amman, Jordan, where I will study and complete field-based research over the course of four months. Jabal is a historic neighborhood in Amman, home to the famous Rainbow Road and other beautiful Jordanian destinations. Amman is also known for its almost nine hundred thousand refugees in and around the city, the majority of which are from Syria. My program, titled Refugee Health and Humanitarian Action, will dive deep into the lives, treatment, and health of refugees both in Jordan and the Middle East. I will also get to examine the many ways different NGOs and global organizations support refugees and displaced peoples.

With so many travel opportunities, it took a lot of time to decide which of Hope’s many programs was right for me, but I ended up choosing SIT’s Jordan Refugee program for two main reasons. The first, because while I have loved being bilingual, I am ready to tackle a third language! I’ll have the opportunity to take several credits in Arabic, as well as speak it with my homestay family. SIT is recognized for its field-based learning, which is the second factor that pulled me towards this program. I’ve spent a long time within the four walls of a classroom, and I am thrilled for that environment to grow into a place of curiosity, exploration, and adventure.

During my time in Jordan, I’ll also get to venture outside of Amman! If you want to hear about floating in the Dead Sea, see pictures of Petra, and hear about trek’s through Wadi Rum, go ahead and bookmark this page or hit “Subscribe” at the bottom of this post. I would love to have you come along with me!

On Our Way

Sending off the Bride

The Wedding

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