Amman

The last stop of my Jordanian journey was also the most painful: I left the Wadi Rum desert with my heart broken because I didn’t want to let go all the emotions, feelings and gifts for my soul that I received there but we had a long trip up north to reach Amman and a last day to enjoy this amazing country that I didn’t want to leave.

I cannot explain how I felt during this four-hour trip along the country from down South, I was sad but happy at the same time, I couldn’t believe that all those moments happened for real and I didn’t know how to make them last in my mind and soul. I must confess that I also cried (which I did a lot when I came back home) but I cried of joy and gratitude for the unexpected and new emotions.

When we arrived in town we were still dirty and full of sand everywhere, then we decided that the best thing to do was heading to the Al-Pasha Turkish Bath (very famous in Amman) to enjoy a full sauna, Turkish bath, peeling and massage in this wonderful place, where we also enjoyed free tea and sweets before leaving for dinner. I took it like a sort of renaissance: they could remove the sand from my skin and hair but couldn’t remove the best memories that I keep in my heart.

The day after we had 12 hours to enjoy Amman and I must say that this town did its best not to make me feel too sad: Amman is colored, noisy, crowded, full of life and sparkling although quite hot!

We started the day with a few hours visit at the Amman Citadel, to visit the Roman ruins on top of the hill and we gradually walked down to reach the famous Roman Theater and the colorful suq of Amman near the crowded King Hussein mosque. We found there the best Syrian fabrics and Jordanian embroideries for incredibly good prices (this was my Amman bargain!), discovered the gold suq (where I bought a beautiful ring) and the very surprising women suq.

It was lunchtime when we decided to go find the famous Hashem restaurant where we ate the best hummus and falafel of our lives and it was so cheap that when we received our bill we thought it was for one person but it was for the six of us! The tea also was delicious and the huge variety of hummus made us fighting for which one was the best! After this delicious lunch we walked a few minutes to Habibah, one of the most famous bakeries in Amman where we ate the delicious (but full of calories!) kunafa, a typical Jordanian syrup soaked cheese pastry, and other delicious things that we cannot even name!

With our tummies full and happy we stopped at the Diwan Duke, the oldest building in town, where we had a clear vision of what was life in Amman during the last century and where we had a long chat with its welcoming owner, Mamdouh Bisharat.

We left then the old town to head to Jebel Amman to visit the King Abdullah mosque with a beautiful blue dome although we missed the Abu Darwish mosque because of the crowd of the rush hour. We got lost then in the colored steets of Amman, with its beautiful murals and painted stairs all over the city (don’t ask for them, you will find them almost everywhere!) before eating our last mensaf at the Al-Quds restaurant and running to the airport to catch our night flight to Milan.

This happened almost two months ago now but I will never forget this wonderful trip, possibly one of my best three life travels. It changed me, for real. I was definitely ready for such an emotional journey and it found me when I needed it most. I think of Jordan every single day of my life since then and I know I will be back one day.