Entries this day: AM A_name_for_the_rabbit Flag Friendly Lunch Rob_Update_Aqaba_Jordan afternoon climbing climbing_again dinner sand_art

AM

8:55am AST Wednesday 15 June 2005

Today we have arrived in Al-Aqaba Jordan. Last night between 10pm and 11pm we could see lights on both sides of the ship as we sailed into the small isthmus (is that the word?) at the top of the Red Sea.

I hung out with the Sri Lankan students at their final party in Sports Bar; it was a low key event, which I appreciated: not too much smoking, and plenty of space on the dance floor. Though I didn't really dance.

This morning I've got the Indiana Jones theme music in my head: we are going to see Petra, where they filmed the final scene of the third movie... I've always wanted to visit this place (since that movie?), and this is the single tour that I decided 100% I would do. From the first time Audrey said we'd get to go.

I'm planning to wear cargo pants (so I can carry extra batteries and tapes and Colleen's rabbit (Beanie Bunny could become his name)) and long sleeved shirt. I gotta go get my hat from the GET office, and I hope I can find the small bag Hitomi suggested I bring. Though I can just carry my backpack again.

Last night I copied all the videos from my camera to computer, and burned them all to CD (245 megs). Also burned the remaining pictures that I hadn't archived yet.

I'm well-behind my tape transcription. I'm (not really) typing Tape 3, and recording on Tape 7. I'll take Tape 8, ready to go in Jordan.

9:31am AST Wednesday 15 June 2005

I came up to the fourth floor and could smell something different. The door is open on the fourth floor! I could smell the difference from what it is usually like there. I'm specifically *not* going to go to the top deck where I'll likely be distracted by the view. Gotta get my stuff together for the tour today! 30,000 yen overnight tour to Wadi Rum and Petra!

9:35am

I'm still a bit poopypants, so we will see how that goes on the tour.

9:57am

I'm in a really laid back mood; I haven't been off the boat yet, but I'm like "hey man; it's all good," I'm just like thinkin' nothing is a big deal. Gotta be in Broadway in 3 min

oh my god

I am just now looking out the window for the first tiime in Jordan. It is .. oh my god. I am going to *run* upstairs and take pictures. wow wow wow

A name for the rabbit

10:13am AST Wednesday 15 June 2005

On the bus in the back seat of the bus, sitting next to Ai (pronounced "I") on my left. I totally should have brought my handspring visor so I could type this out instead of record it.

Seeing a bunch of warehouses without roofs, and there is a hugemongously incredibly huge flag!! Oh my god it is fantastically huge!

Red is our tourguide, saying that real estate is an excellent investment in Al-Aqaba, Jordan. Palm trees on both sides of the road, this huge ass hotel and lots of space for people to come in. Reminds me of Palm Springs, California a lot.

This is also an excellent diving location, apparently.

This is the tour where I asked Ai to suggest a name for the rabbit. Without thinking she said, "Francois."

I balked. "No no; I mean a real name."

She suggested "Hiroyuki."

I cringed. "Um.. actually Francois is perfect!"

Flag

10:48am AST Wednesday 15 June 2005

Next to a fort now, that was shook to shit by an earthquake in 1840 or something.

I'm next to the flag, and going to use a bit of geometry to figure out its size. I am 180cm, or 5 feet 11 inches tall. I'm looking down at my shadow which seems to be about 65cm tall. The height of the flag shadow is 12 paces, which are nearly a meter each.

Using my estimates and Google calculator, it's 30 meters tall. Approximately.

the length of the flag is not really foreshortened, and I just counted it as 52 paces, but it's not completely unfurled by the wind.

I'm guessing the flag is about 30 by 60 meters.

Close. This Hashemite Dynasty flag is 44 by 80 meters.

Friendly

12pm AST Wednesday 15 June 2005

Just bought a 60 minute cassette tape for 1 dinar. Got three coins back, but don't know anything about them yet. I was really happy with the transaction. I had been scared to even approach anyone, being an American in Jordan, but everybody was normal and I showed them the type of cassette I wanted. The guy didn't have one, but took me to a nearby shop that did have them and explained what I wanted. They didn't have a huge selection, but pulled out a tape and I pulled out my money. I have no idea the value of dinars, but 1 was enough. I used the three remaining coins to buy some banana chips.

Lunch

12:30pm AST Wednesday 15 June 2005

Lunch will be right next to an internet cafe. Awright.

For lunch we were stuffed with pitas and all sorts of different dips: babaganoush, yogurt and nuts, something and something else. But that was just the appetizer, and they brought out the fish. Whole fish. With heads and eyes lookin' off the plates at us.

Rob Update Aqaba Jordan

Aqaba Jordan

Hey Everyone!

Until 1 hour ago, I could not say I had ever been served a whole fish.

We are in Aqaba, Jordan, and I have 10 minutes before zipping back to the bus for
our adventure to Petra, the ancient site that was the setting of climatic ending of
the Indiana Jones adventures!  I'm super excited to see this site; it's been on my
list of places to see for a long time.

Been super busy on the boat, super fun times all around!

I recently won a costume contest: yellow and red vertical striped clown pants, blue
police jacket, and monkey ears!

Mostly it was me jumping around like a monkey that did it (I hope).  I was picking
and eating imaginary lice from peoples' heads, and squatting on various benches and
decks eating real food with my hands.   Hilariously fun.  I wanna be a monkey at
every costume party from now on.

Did The Alphabet Game with a beatbox backup; it was really awesome and better than
I thought it could be!

The Red Sea is deep beautiful blue.  Not red.  Around the Gulf of Aqaba is like
Palm Springs, California: lots of palm trees and dry bright air.  Buildings here
are old, worn and busy.  Property prices are going up up up, if you're in the
market.  It's beautiful here, and good diving.

Gotta zoom!

    Love Love Love
     - Rob! 

afternoon

1:34pm AST Wednesday 15 June 2005

I was a minute or two late getting back to the bus after writing my Rob Update. Fuck fuck I hope I don't get into fucking trouble... release; release; it's all good. It will be fine.

I just got the thing sent, closed the browser, ran down to the desk to pay. I only had a large bill, apparently, and the guy was like, "ummmm" and tried to pull out some change, but I was like, "it's okay," and just took what he had given me so far and *ran* to the bus. I don't really even know how much I paid.

climbing

4:04pm AST Wednesday 15 June 2005

This sorta looks like a face in the mountains. Despite the filename, I think it's in Wadi Rum, not Petra.

I climbed barefootedly up a narrow chasm between two sets of rocks and several people took pictures of me and Francois, my newly named rabbit. I enjoyed the sudden attention, but was a bit worried that I would get in trouble, either by simply being where I wasn't supposed to be, by being barefoot and having someone complain, or by having someone climb after me and get hurt in the process.

Fortunately, none of these things happened, and I actually climbed to a point remote enough that I couldn't see the end of the line for all the others on the tour.

On the way down, I tried to go quickly so people wouldn't think I was a wuss, but I had to be careful so I wouldn't end up falling and breaking my skull.

Careful descent worked, but then on the very (very!) last step I kinda miscalculated and hit the bottom of my foot in a painful way. But... no blood: no problem.

I staged two photos of Francois doing his own rock climb.

This is Raed, our tourguide. He's from the US and was pretty entertaining. He seemed to know answers to every question we asked him.

climbing again

Upon arrival at the hotel, I climbed onto the roof of our room. The rooms were arranged in stairstep rows as if we were hampsters living in stairs of a staircase. Therefore it was trivial to go up the stairs between the rooms and walk onto the roof of the room below. I sat with Rie and a couple of others on the edge of the roof, watching the sunset playing shadows on the tall rock backdrop.

Though the pebbles on the roof were not exactly feather soft, we took a nap up there for a bit.

dinner

8:17pm AST Wednesday 15 June 2005

We are in this beautiful restaurant.

The sky is gently shifting from puke brown to tan to sleepy dark blue to dark with stars. Dogs are barking in the background. We are chowing down on a buffet to beat all buffets.

9:36pm

Walking through Petra and Hitomi is mocking the wailing speakers that seem likely to be broadcasting prayers. The night is warm; we don't need a jacket. There are bigass rocks that remind me a lot of West Texas.

sand art

11:16pm AST Wednesday 15 June 2005

I just bought two sand containers: one for Fred and one for my mom. I considered getting one for janette, but decided these tapes will be enough.

The guy named an amazing price for putting names inside the jars, so I was like, "aight" and eager to see how he could possibly position each sand grain to spell out a letter, much less a name! Holy crap, how could it be possible for only $4??? The economy must be realllly depressed here in Jordan. It's a steal!

He got out his pocketknife and dug out the sand from the top of the jar I had selected. Then, in a quick deft of incredible sand-positioning skill, he took a little toothpick, dabbed some glue on it and wrote the name backwards inside the jar. He shook some sand around and that was it. Bingo: one name written in sand inside the jar.

Welp, he didn't say he would postion each grain, and it certainly is a good use of glue, and a better use of time than doing it the way I was thinking.