University Ottawa blog entry

I'm just double posting with this one - we were asked to write a blog entry to be posted on the GSPIA webpage, and here is what I sent in. There are no pictures this time, but I thought you might enjoy it too.

"With almost three weeks since my arrival in Jordan for my internship at the Embassy to Jordan and Iraq, I am starting to feel at home in Amman. Life here hasn’t struck me as particularly shocking; I could just as easily have moved to any large city in Canada, in one of its Arab neighbourhoods. I flag down a taxi to go to work every morning, and within a few minutes, we are driving along large highway-size roads. People are dressed in their business attire, many speak English, almost any brand can be found at the grocery store, and if I’d rather not cook, I can choose from any of the fast food chains we see back home: Burger King, Pizza Hut, Subway, Kentucky Fried Chicken. I have wireless Internet at home, and my neighbour bakes the best apple pies I’ve ever tasted.

Of course, that’s not the case, and there are elements here and there that remind me that I am halfway around the world from home. When I go to the bathroom, I refrain from flushing toilet paper, as the pipes in Amman are too small. If I don’t wait long enough after my housemate’s shower, I don’t run the risk of not having enough hot water; it’s of having no water at all. As I get ready to leave in the morning, or as I work on my major paper at night, I hear the sound of a rooster and the ‘Edhan’ (call to prayer). I’ve lost track of days a little, since the workweek runs from Sunday to Thursday here, with Friday being the day for prayer. On my way to work, I notice the cars don’t drive in, say, three lanes, but often four and a half lanes. When I get out of the taxi, I pay the driver the one Jordanian dinar the drive costs – the equivalent of a dollar and a half.

I started work almost right away upon arrival, with one day in between to recover from the trip. With my computer and Internet set up and waiting for me, there was no time to waste! I was reminded of this at the end of my first week, when I was asked if I had had a chance to meet with any of our partners yet. “No, no I haven’t, but I will set up appointments as soon as I meet with our CIDA colleagues,” I responded eagerly, keen to redeem myself and make a good impression. I’ve been reading quite a bit, as is the case at the beginning of any job, but this might very well be the most interesting I’ve done so far. It’s certainly the most complex.

Jordan has been described to me as the eye of a tornado, referring to the instability in the region. Though quite liberal in principle, certain glitches in Jordanian politics don’t go unnoticed, like the current Electoral law, which some local analysts consider largely under-representative of urban areas and Jordanians of Palestinian origin, or the Societies law passed last year giving the government oversight powers on associations and gatherings. All in all though, and certainly relative to other countries in the region, it is quite advanced, including for the rights of women, who by some statistics make up over 60% of the undergraduate student body in universities today. This makes it difficult to grasp the scope of the human rights situation, let alone report on it. But that is one of my main tasks here at the Embassy, so I continue reading and speaking to colleagues and partners, confidant that it will clear up before it’s time for me to change gears for Iraq.

Tout compte fait, mon stage se passe à merveille jusqu’à date. J’apprends à connaître mes collègues, dont beaucoup sont francophones, ce qui me permet de continuer à travailler dans les deux langues. J’ajoute peu à peu des mots arabes à mon vocabulaire, avec l’aide de mes collègues jordaniennes. Je me sens souvent comme une éponge, tentant d’absorber autant de ce qui se passe autour de moi que possible. Ça tombe bien, le plus j’en apprends, le plus je suis fascinée par la Jordanie. Ça doit être une indication que j’ai bien choisi mon stage, et je suis bien heureuse que le tout ait été possible. Merci à tous ceux qui étaient impliqués dans le processus, je vous en serai reconnaissante pendant longtemps.

Ma’aa Salama,
Myriam"