Jordan in the Raw...

When we first arrived in Amman, it was winter. A little chilly, but pleasant. It snowed several times. I noticed how the city was always changing, and the role its vernacular landscape played in the change. But there was something about the city I couldn’t quite describe. All the adjectives I thought of just didn’t accurately portray what I was observing. Then Kaelin said, “…it’s raw.” After a lot of thought, I agree. Jordan is raw. This has led to many great discussions over the last several months.

Just so you know, I don’t consider “raw” a bad thing. It’s just a non-pretentious, what-you-see-is-what-you-get type of word to me, especially when applied to place. Like definition 2c: “[N]ot being in polished, finished, or processed form.” Essentially, something which has potential to be much more, but is not quite there yet. That describes Amman – and the country as well. It’s a young Kingdom, still finding its way and deciding who it wants to be. It’s striving to be a country known for playing well with others and helping those in need, such as accepting MUCH more than their share of immigrants over the years (and even now, with the Syrian crisis). I see a lot of parallels with a mid-19^th Century United States of America.

Yes, there’s perpetual construction it seems, including unfinished buildings that have run out of funding...just like happens in other major cities around the world. There’s trash scattered here and there, but no more than in other countries I’ve visited. But Jordanians are friendly, endeavor to do good, and work hard to help others. Sure there are bad apples here and there, but every country has those. Jordan hosts modern malls and imported goods from nearly every country (I can get a pear at our corner fruit market from Chile and watch Netflix, for example), yet they hold fast to tradition, even as they strive to stay “progressive” (read: Western standards). It’s just...fascinating.

What are some examples of Jordan in the “raw”? Take a look:

Driving west, towards Amman's outskirts. Note the modern apartment complexes on the hill (upper-right), the newly-built mosque (center), juxtaposed against crumbling buildings (left), agriculture (on the hillsides), and exposed limestone bedrock.

Ubiquitous in many "developing" nations, parts of animals like these are tough to find elsewhere. These lovely lamb parts were photographed at a high-end supermarket that caters to ex-pats.

A view over a building outside of Kerak. This is a typical m middle-class countryside dwelling in Jordan. Here they use their beautiful rooftop to air out mattresses and rugs, as well as hang laundry and host guests.

One of Jordan's main (many) mountain roads. This one's shoulder is not quite complete. But they do create and fix roads very quickly.

A Lada Niva car parked on the sidewalk next to a not-so-well-kempt building. This is a typical street scene throughout the Kingdom's cities.

Downtown Amman, north of third circle. The tall building in the background is a five-star hotel where a lot of swanky business conferences are held. But it's right next to a developing area, as seen by the buildings in the foreground.

A recently installed port-o-potty at the top of Petra (at the Monastery). Even with a severely-decreased tourist population, they still felt the need to have one of these for tourists (locals just use Nature...) Notice directly behind the P-o-P, there are water tanks.

One of the main entrances to the University of Jordan in Amman. The campus is large, the grounds beautiful, and they are working hard to upgrade old buildings from the 1970s. The campus has a couple of active archeological excavations on it, so construction has to be carried out with extreme care. There's also an underrated museum on campus!

Part of a police station in our neighborhood. When we extended our visas, we had to come here and get fingerprinted. Since they don't use the new "invisible" fingerprint ink and don't give you paper towels for cleaning, people use what they have. In this case the walls. Look close: the beige walls actually have black finger prints all over them. Resourceful.

Our neighborhood. Even though it is an upscale locale with new construction in places, there are still little places like this that are carefully-loved diamonds in the rough. This place actually has a beautiful garden in the spring and summer, boasting citrus trees, an herb and vegetable garden, plum trees, and even a fig tree--all surrounded by over a dozen varieties of flowers!

A road sign in Azraq out in Jordan's Eastern Desert. By "Tanks", they mean military tanks, not tanker trucks. The area is home to a large military base, so it makes sense. Perhaps odd for a Westerner to see on a main, publicly-used highway, but it serves as a reminder of how the Kingdom remains in the middle of a war-prone region.

See? Just your seemingly run-of-the-mill growing country. Not much different than any other place, but at the same time, unlike any other place. As a species, we are all more similar than we are different. The more I travel, the more I find evidence to support that notion. Regardless of what some would have us believe. And we each started at the same place in this world: in the raw.