I let myself sleep in today until a luxurious 9am. I rolled back and forth a few times, seeing if I could perhaps squeeze in another hour...but alas, it was not to be done. Instead, I rolled out of bed, opened the door to my bedroom terrace, and took in the cool breeze of a beautiful fall morning. Eventually, Mama Abeer had Commarie (the maid) rouse everyone out of their beds and down into the kitchen for a fresh breakfast of khobz (pita), beit (eggs), lebneh (thick, almost sour cream-like yogurt), olives, zata'a, fool (a bean dip connoction) and shai (tea). Delicious. I then spent the rest of the morning doing lovely mindless things like cleaning my room, organizing my shelves, and downloading new music for my workouts this week.
However, something was shadowing my mind as I puttzed around aimlessly. Tomorrow, I'm attending the wedding of Madj's brother! I'm SO excited to be able to witness a Jordanian/Palestinian wedding, but I spent all yesterday looking for a dress and hadn't found much. Granted, I bought a pretty dark green homecoming-quality dress at the souq juma3 (Friday market) for like 2 JDs ($3.50!), but unfortunately one of those dresses that will only fit perfectly if I refrain from eating the entire day. So, obviously while possible, not an optimal option. Besides, I'm not the kind of girl to make huge sacrifices for beauty, haha. In any case, I somewhat shyly brought up the dilemma with my two host sisters, Baytool and Raya, and immediately they bustled into high sisterly gear, tugging me up the stairs, picking out some of their old dresses, making me try them on, and completely making a fuss. I've never felt so cared for :) We ended up finding two dresses that worked: a floor-length crimson ballroom dress, and a knee-length turquoise dress with beading and a gold sash. Beautiful! Having to pick between two great options is a much better dilemma to encounter. i was relieved. Now when standing next to beautiful Madj in her bright pink prom-like dress, I won't feel so homely, haha. And of course, I'll keep that green dress for another, food-deprived occasion :)
Soon after resolving the dress issue, I was called downstairs by Mama Abeer to help her cook "mensaf," a wonderful Jordanian dish involving lamb, rice, almonds, pine nuts, and a sour yogurt sauce. Besides sayyadiea, mansaf is my favorite dish here. I couldn't wait to watch Mama make it, and maybe learn a little along the way. In our neighborhood, its common knowledge that Mama makes the best mansaf in Jordan. I privately vowed to be the most observant student.
While appearing simple, mansaf is a lot harder to make than it looks, requiring a TON of multitasking in order for it to come out perfectly. While boiling the lamb in a giant pot, mama soaked the rice, and prepared the yogurt sauce. Stirring the contents over a hot stove, I did what I could to keep the sauce from curdling. When it finally came to a boil and the lamb was done cooking, Mama grabbed the huge pot of sauce and poured it effortlessly into the other large pot of lamb, stirring and adding cardamom. Then, it was time to wait. As they say, slow and steady wins the race... The best mansaf is tender and flavorful. Least to say, it's worth being patient.
Various family members began showing up early in the afternoon. Immediately the house transformed into a place of hustle, bustle, and loud conversations going every which way, happily weaving themselves into a fabric of organized chaos. I couldn't stop grinning. Besides, I always get randomly quizzed in Arabic, so if I don't pay attention, I'm caught off guard. On occasions like these, I have to be on my toes, ready to practice and also laugh off mistakes at any moment.
Finally, when all of us settled down to lunch (the mansaf was delicious despite my involvement by the way!), we were suddenly interrupted by a freakish thunderstorm that pounded the windows with icy rain, and transformed the hilly streets into minor river rapids! I couldn't have been more excited! RAIN! I almost didn't believe it! I've missed it so much! Legitimate face soaking, puddle dancing, lighting flashing, ozone smelling rain! I think the family thought I was pretty silly. I excused myself and stepped out the front door into the storm, whooping softly to myself and even carrying out a little happy dance. When I finally came in, I was met with strong 'ahwa arabi (arabic coffee), pomegrante, and chocolate for dessert.
Now the weather's cleared up, the sunshine is back out, and the number of family members present in the living room has grown to 12! Who knows how long they'll be here. Sometimes these weekly gatherings go on till 11pm, when finally after all local gossip is exchanged, food eaten, stories told, prayers made, and soap operas debated, everyone suddenly realizes how tired they are. I usually can't make it past 9pm these days, and while sometimes I feel anti-social, I know just how important sleep is in the quality of my day. Sometimes, mama and baba go to bed hours after I do and leave the house before I get up. Do they even sleep? I might never know ;)
Anyways, that's all for now. Time to go back to being social. Besides, maybe Commarie needs help in the kitchen (that's a subject for another time). Maa salaama!
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