Our final days in Amman were full of excursions, essays, packing, and somehow relaxation. 

Saturday morning started early. We all packed onto a bus for a short road trip to several biblical sites in Jordan. First, we headed deep into the desert to visit the Jordan River, the Baptism site of Jesus. The sun was hot above us and we were sweating in our long sleeves and pants, all wishing we had brought bathing suits to take a dip. Although this site was important to the faith of many of us on this trip, it was also special because it is the border between Jordan and Israel. We have learned so much about Israel and Palestine during our time in Jordan, but none of us expected to suddenly see the tension so close. 

The most startling difference was the hardest to ignore: architecture. On the Jordan side, we walked down to the river by stone steps and practical wooden coverings, before sharing a small set of steps into the water. The Isreali side seemed to tower over us. It was made of pure white stone, with large carved artworked at the top, and three majestic stairways leading to multiple wading spots. The dark river was only a few yards wide, and ropes marked off sections for each country to enter it while armed guards watched the water from above.

Sunday was spent organizing study dates to simultaneously experience Amman and frantically writing the many papers we had, but best of all was practicing for our Arabic Theater final presentation–a play! We were tasked with forming small groups to perform one of the plays we studied in class. Our group took this as a challenge to have the best play. Walking into class on Monday was such a site, we were all in costumes and holding props. I had never seen so many people buzzing with excitement in one classroom, we just couldn’t wait to show each other what we had come up with! Our performances included extravagant costumes, sock puppets, and even a real fish. Our excitement soon turned to laughter and I think we all agreed it was one of the best classes we’ve had this semester. But it wouldn’t be the highlight of our week. 

The next morning we had to get up early once again, but this time it was for a short ride to a Turkish Bath House. We spent the morning rotating between dry and wet saunas, hot tubs, lavish pools, and getting scrubbed from head to toe. We were not allowed to take photos, and  everything inside was decorated with beautiful stones and lights sprinkled across the ceiling like tiny stars. The effects were immediate, our skin seemed to glow, and the callouses we had developed from a dozen surprise hikes were now baby smooth. But we also could barely stay awake after going right to class. 

And suddenly, it was our last day. We packed and took one last walk around Amman. With just a few hours left, we returned to the restaurant where we had our welcome dinner. Tray after tray piled with food were placed in front of us, rounds of mint lemonade were served, and just like that, our time in Jordan had come full circle. The plates that we had nervously eyed the first night, unable to name a single thing, were now favorites dishes that we knew we’d be missing soon.

This semester has been full of greetings. Everyday we say hello to new sites, new languages, and new people. Global has made us comfortable saying hello but bad at saying goodbye. We have all loved having Amman as our home for the last five weeks, and saying goodbye so soon just doesn’t feel right. But the best comfort is knowing that soon we get to say hello all over again, in Prague!