JORDAN
Capital: Amman
Population: 5.75 mln (est.)
Official language: Arabic
Currency: Jordanian dinar
Religion: Sunni Muslims 92%, Christians 8%
Useful information:
Dialing code: +962
Emergency phone: 191
Police: 192
Ambulance: 193
Electricity:
The electricity supply in Jordan is 220V AC, 50 Hz, with plugs adjusted to standard European outlets. U.S. visitors need a transformer.
Payment cards:
American Express and Visa are commonly used and popular. Also MasterCard is used.
Jordanian cuisine:
All mealtimes, including coffee and tea time, are celebrated, as food is an important part of Jordanian culture. Alcohol is not served. Main dish often consists of kubba naja (raw, ground lamb), kofte (grilled sausages made from ground meat), kebab (pieces of lamb served with several ingredients), maglubba (rice with fried meat, tomatoes and pine seeds), and fried chicken. Local Bedouins eat mahshi (vegetables stuffed with meat and rice). The national dish of Jordan is mansaf – lamb cooked with herbs, and served with rice and almonds.
Typical prices:
Mineral water (one liter bottle) – 0,5 JD
Loaf of bread – 0,17 JD
Coca-cola (1,5 liter bottle) – 0,9 JD
Tea – 0,25 JD
Kebab – 0,35 JD
Weather conditions:
Most of Jordan lies in tropical, continental and dry climate. In the northwest the climate is moderate and continental. Most of Jordan’s area is covered by a desert or a semi-desert, with desert and dust storms. Most precipitation occurs in winter.
Places to visit:
Amman – history buffs should visit the Archaeological Museum, located in the Amman Citadel. The Citadel hill has other historic sites, such as a Byzantine Church, the Temple of Hercules, the Umayyad Palace, the Abbasid Tower, and a Roman amphitheatre. There also are several mosques: the King Abdullah Mosque, the Abu Darwish Mosque, and the Al-Husseini Mosque. Other interesting places are Jordanian Post Museum and the Folklore Museum.
Dead Sea – One of the saltiest bodies of water in the world, which has for years been shrinking. The 30% salinity makes it impossible for animals to flourish, hence its name. The shores of the Dead Sea are located 418 meters below sea level, which is Earth’s lowest elevation on land.
Petra – a historical city, cut in the rocks in the 3rd century BC, probably by the ancient nation of the Nabateans. Petra is regarded as one of the seven wonders of the world. It is the symbol of the Kingdom of Jordan, and one of the greatest ancient cities in the world.
Jerash – a city in northern Jordan, with well-preserved ruins of a Roman city, which was probably founded in the 4th century BC by Alexander the Great. Today, one can still see the Northern and Southern Gates, the Temples of Zeus and
Artemis, the Corinthium column, two Roman theatres, and ruins of a Roman-Catholic church.
Jericho – believed to be one of the oldest inhabited places in the world, with settlements dating back 9,000 years BC.
Mount of Temptation – where Jesus was tempted by the devil during the forty days of fasting. The Monastery of Temptation, located here, is managed by the Greek
Orthodox Church – Here, Greek monks show the visitors a cave in which Jesus is said to have spent forty days and forty nights fasting and meditating, during the temptation of Satan.
Mount Nebo – is a hill mentioned in the Bible as the place where Moses was granted a view of the Promised Land, and the probable location of the Ark of the Covenant. Here, Joshua began the conquest of the Holy Land.
Wadi Rum Desert – regarded as one of the most beautiful deserts in the world. Its landscape is breathtaking, and it is a paradise for wild nature lovers. In spring, one will find here over 2,000 species of flowers, and 110 species of birds.
Madaba – the city of mosaics, with the oldest map of the Holy Land, located on the floor of the Byzantine church of Saint George.
Mini phrasebook:
Yes – Na’am
No – Laa
Please – Min fadlak (to a man) – Min fadlik (to a woman)
Thank you – Shukran
You are welcome – Afwan
Hi – Marhaba
Good bye – Ma’asalameh
What‘s your name? – Shoo ismak? (to a man) – Shoo ismek? (to a woman)
Please – Lao samaht
Excuse me – ‘An iznek
What time is it? – Edesh el sa’aa?
How much does it cost? – Addeysh?
I don’t speak Arabic – Ana laa ahkee Arabee
