Study Abroad in Jordan Summer of 2014: Is This Really Immersion?

After spending two weeks in Jordan my Arabic has improved dramatically. I have made many Jordanian friends, enjoyed amazing food, and learned local customs. Although I am in a country where the main language is Arabic, and 94% of the country is Muslim, I still find myself speaking English the majority of the day. Many times when I go to a restaurant or ride a taxi, the driver will speak the little English he/she knows. I understand they are eager to practice their English, but I want to make the best of the little time I have here.

Last night my group of 12 students went to a sports club for dinner and to watch the soccer game with some of our teachers and language partners. I told my friends that for the next 3 hours I would not speak English, and if I did, I wanted them to give me a "friendly slap on the arm". I ended up getting very creative to explain things to people. After my time was up, I kept speaking Arabic even though I didn't have a commitment because it was easy and fun for me. I feel like I learned more in those 3 hours that I did in 3 days of class. I made a commitment from this day forward to speak at least 2 hours of only Arabic in the evening, which is usually the more social time of the day. I'll update you all on what happens. Once again, I want to thank everyone who helped me get here, and I have included brief commentary's below the pictures.

Thanks and enjoy!

A couple of my fellow students and I at a Cafe called Rakwan Arabia.

We were given a list of places to find in an area called Al Webdeh. We took a taxi to the area, and talked to many people in Arabic in order to find our destinations.

My friends Ahmed and I riding horses on a beautiful lookout on the side of a highway.

It only cost us 1 JD ( $1.4) for ten minutes of riding.

My friend Hamza who was with us.

Ahmad and Hamza

Here is a Turkish Coffee set up. It is common to see these all over Amman. They mix the coffee directly into the water. This has a lot more caffeine than American coffee, in only about 3 ounces. Most places I have gone to have refused to put cream into it like it was impossible. In America, it wouldn't matter because as they say " the customer is always right", but in Amman the customs are more important than money, which in this case was; no milk or cream with Turkish Coffee.

This is my Professor, Reeham! My classmates and I spend 5 hours a day, 5 days a week, learning from her. She has a masters in Arabic Linguistics and is also a mother of 2 daughters and 1 son. She is amazing, and I am so blessed to learn from her.