Returning to Jordan from DC is akin to returning to school after summer break–it’s painful, traumatic, and the last few days of ‘summer’ are ruined from the impending doom on the horizon. To Raj’s credit, he anticipated a case of the ‘Jordan Blues’ and planned a two night layover in London in hopes of counteracting my mood. (Smart man; it worked, at least temporarily.)
We had a great three weeks in Old Town, Alexandria. Reintegration into American culture took all of one second as we were greeted with smiling faces and people driving in an orderly fashion. The highlights of the trip included:
- running OUTSIDE, along the Potomac River
- going to yoga EVERYDAY
- walking about town, wearing whatever I pleased
- shopping at my favorite stores
- eating at Cheesetique, multiple times
- getting my hair done by my favorite stylist
- eating Greek yogurt
- seeing friends
- catching up on all of my favorite TV shows
- and much, much more…
London was fun, despite my trepidation of returning. We enjoyed an afternoon at the National Gallery followed by one of the two things Raj had requested: fish and chips for dinner on the first night and Indian food on the second. The second day we spent at the British Museum followed by a stroll through Harrods. After working up an appetite from all of the walking, Raj was on a mission to find an Indian restaurant to make up for the terrible meal the night before. On a doorman’s recommendation, we headed to Victoria station. We got out of the station across the street from the Apollo Victoria Theatre and saw signs for Wicked. Raj, continuing on with his quest to make me forget where we would be heading to soon, spontaneously inquired about tickets for that evening’s show. We bought tickets and headed out to find the Indian restaurant. Dinner was terrible, but it didn’t matter; Raj got his fix. Wicked was great, as were our seats.
We landed back to Jordan on Thursday evening, attended the Marine Ball on Friday, and now I’m prepping up for a Thanksgiving feast, Jordan style, this week. I’ve promised Raj that I’ll try to be more positive and that I’ll post more than once a month now that I’m no longer ‘working.’
Jen Maan in Amman 