The View From Our Front Balcony

Beep, beep.  A yellow taxi goes by.  We are sitting on our front balcony in the late afternoon, drinking tea (not wine!), watching life on Jaber Ibn Hayyan Street.  We can see the Moroccan embassy across the street at the next corner to our left.  To our right a new apartment building is under construction.  Yesterday they moved rebar to the roof, two rods at time by hand from one floor to the next.  Today they are pouring concrete, four floors up.  Buildings here are universally cement block construction.  Throughout the city there are many empty lots, but also buildings under construction everywhere.  On our street alone, within a few blocks of our home, there are four apartment buildings that will likely be completed before we leave next June.

 The View From Our Front Balcony

Across the street, we are watching the two feral cats that scrounge in the silver garbage bins.  They are very healthy looking and probably the most agile cats that I have ever seen.  Prowling around the edge of the bins, they stretch and inspect before making their move to get a meal.  As dainty as can be, they consider the pickings.  I never see them bring anything out of the bin, but clearly they look well fed.  A pick-up truck pulls up.  The cats have a rival.  A man goes through the trash bin and takes out a few items.  While there appears to be no formal recycling here, the trash picker seems to be interested in metal. 

Rumble, rumble, a water truck goes by slowly grinding his way up the hill.  Beeep.  Another impatient driver passes the water truck, swerving at the last minute to avoid an oncoming taxi.  Both vehicles give another long beep, perhaps to acknowledge their success at another moment without an accident.

Amman’s water is delivered to the houses and apartment buildings by truck, and pumped to the rooftop tanks.  Although water is a scarce resource here in Jordan, we witness water waste all the time.  In our building when the hall is being washed, the water may be left running for half an hour.

Ting-a-ling, ting-a-ling.  Sounds like the ice cream man.  Nope, it is the Buta-gaz man.  Cooking gas is delivered in heavy green cylinders, usually stored in the kitchen under a cute little dress that hides them. 

Hamada, the “guard” walks across the street.  He lives in a small room in the basement of our building and does odd chores like take the garbage out and bring the newspaper in.  He cleans the halls and supposedly will bring the Buta-gaz tank up to our apartment.  We haven’t had to change a tank yet, so that remains to be seen.  Our four story building has a small elevator so bringing groceries in is not a bother. 

We watch the cars go by.  We are surprised to see how many are driven by women.  More surprising is the number of Mercedes, both those parked in our neighborhood and those that pass by.  While most have Jordanian license plates, there is a smattering from Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Kuwait.  Seat belts are not commonly used, and restraining children is clearly not the norm.  Occasionally we see cars with open sun roofs and a child’s head sticking out.  We see the rare Volkswagen Beetle, including the convertible one that is frequently parked on the nearby side street.  The Accident Investigation van goes by, and sometimes the police in a large SUV with 911 prominently displayed on the side.  

                   School Girls

 

      Man in White Robe with Traditional Red Jordanian Headdress

The people walking by are equally interesting.  While most men wear western dress, typically jeans and shirts with collars, there are a fair number who have on the traditional long white robe, always looking immaculately clean.  Two women in traditional garb go by chatting away and enjoying ice cream cones.  The workmen who are replacing the tile sidewalk in front of our building finish for the day.  The man from Benghazi goes by with two of his small children.  He loves to stop and carry on a shouted conversation, frequently reminding us that he is “from Benghazi, just here for four weeks studying”.  The street noise makes conversation difficult, but this never deters him.

The sun begins to set, the imam calls the faithful to prayer, a welcome cool breeze wafts over us and we head in to have supper. 

Thank you to all who have sent emails.  We enjoy hearing from you.

                                          Amman City View

        Our Apartment Building - we are the second floor balcony on the right

The Students Return to School

On Sunday afternoon (September 14) I taught my first class with Dr Inaam.  There are 9 second year doctoral students – six women and three men in the class.  Dr Inaam and I have very similar teaching styles and she consistently includes me in decisions about the conduct of the class.  In many ways I could have been in the qualitative research methods class that I took many years  ago at UMass Lowell with Barbara Mawn (yes, Barbara, I remember that class well).  Most of the students had good questions and all had some basic knowledge about qualitative research.  The classroom is equipped with a projector for power point and the students are seated at tables arranged in a semi-circle to facilitate discussion.  Our class starts at 3 PM and one of the five times that Muslims have a call to prayer is about 4:30 PM.  When discussing how we should have breaks in the three hour class, Dr Inaam suggested a 10 minute break at 4:30 and then finishing at 5:40. (They use the 50 minute academic hour, the same as we do in the US.)  This met with the class approval.  In contrast to my experience with the chatter that occurs during a class break, everyone left the room.  I did not follow to see where they went, but Dr Inaam did say that she too would pray.  In general, woman pray at home or in private, while men go to the mosque (primarily on Friday), and also pray on the street or in their shops.

The nursing faculty have been very welcoming.  Amani invited me to participate in a planning meeting and conference call related to the organization of the first Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society chapter in Jordan.  (There is a chapter in Beirut at the American University; it is the only one in the Middle East.)  Several faculty members have come to my office just to get to know me.  One of them, Ferial, and I had a lot to talk about.  She is the author of one of the research studies that I am including in a paper that I am writing on family presence during CPR.  The former Dean (they rotate every few years) invited me to his office for a cup of tea (with sage…delicious) to just get acquainted.  Ruqayyah offered me a ride to Mecca Mall and on the way treated me to a sweet and a cup of tea.  Lubna teaches in the undergraduate program and she and I compared notes on student behaviors.  How similar are the issues that we face.  The students at University of Jordan must take a course that introduces them to professional writing, including using APA format.  They complain that they want to be nurses, not writers and don’t see the value.  Of course, they have the added burden of having to write in English which must be difficult.  Even though they study English in school, going from Arabic script to English has to be a challenge.  She also tells me that they ask, as do our students, “is that going to be on the test?”  I have been invited to come to several classes to observe and hope to get an opportunity to make a few hospital visits.

One never forgets that one is in a Muslim country.  At least 92% of the population is Sunni Muslim.  In the former Dean’s office, his prayer rug was folded and ready for use.  Other reminders:

• ·The newspaper lists the times for prayers which are influenced by sunrise and sunset

• The usual response when you plan to meet a person is Insha’Allah (God willing)

•  On Friday you see groups of men and boys returning from the mosque

•  Also on Friday the sermon from the mosque is broadcast over the loud speakers so even if you fail to attend, you have the benefit of the imam’s wisdom

• ·Your margarita at Chili’s Restaurant is alcohol free (and has sugar rather than salt on the rim)

•   There is no pork in the supermarket

• ·And if you forget, there is the muezzin calling five times a day.

Some things that I am missing: 

• ·my dear colleagues at Curry (not just nursing colleagues!)

• ·autumn in Maine

• ·a glass of wine with dinner (wine, beer, and spirits are available, but imported wine is very expensive.  They do make wine in Jordan; I tasted it on the flight and it was really pretty awful.  And as Ed pointed out, the wine store that we were in was about 80 degrees – hardly ideal storage for wine.)

•   the Boston Globe (on line is okay, but internet can be a bit slow and I am old fashioned enough to like holding a paper copy).  Ed has ordered a subscription to the English language Jordan Times; unfortunately for the first two days they brought an Arabic version.  However, it is being delivered regularly now.

Some trivia for you:  The Minister of Agriculture reports that there are approximately 14,000 camels in Jordan.

If you have any specific questions that you would like me to address, send an email and I will try to answer them in a later posting.

At the University: Before the Students Return

On Sunday I met with the Dean of the Nursing Faculty.  Wearing my new colorful floral print scarf (thank you Curry Nursing faculty) I was prepared for anything.  She included other nursing leadership people in the meeting, but the names and areas of responsibility were a blur.  It was the first day that faculty returned so there were many interruptions as professors greeted each other after a summer apart.  The interactions were warm and enthusiastic and everyone made me feel very welcome.  The convention here for formally referring to faculty is either Professor Susan or Doctor Susan.

I was given an office with the largest, oldest computer monitor that I have ever seen.  I indicated that I prefer to work on my own laptop, so the next day when I arrived the old equipment was being moved out.  On Sunday we discussed what I would be teaching.  I was happy to hear that they wanted me to teach one of my proposed syllabi on safety in the clinical environment.   This would be to doctoral students, under a class titled ‘special topics’.  So I set to work organizing my articles, finalizing the syllabus, and preparing my notes for the first class.  I still had not been able to obtain an academic calendar for fall and was not sure how many class sessions there would be, but no need to fuss over details.  On Tuesday the Dean and Vice Dean for Graduate Studies told me that they did not have enough doctoral students enrolled to run the class, so after some discussion, I was assigned to team-teach qualitative research with Dr Inaam.  As we worked together to finalize the syllabus the next day, I realized how lucky I am.  She and I hit it off right away.  She is collaborative and fun.  Already I feel like I have known her for quite some time.  Our first class is on Sunday September 14 from 3 to 6 PM.

Jordan University is the largest (more than 37,000 students) and oldest (founded 1962) university in the country.  In the health field it includes faculties of dentistry, medicine, rehabilitation sciences (physical therapy, occupational therapy, etc.), pharmacy and nursing.  The nursing program was started in 1972.  At that time only women were admitted.  Many of the nursing faculty have received their master’s and doctoral education abroad.  The Dean of the Nursing Faculty, Fathieh Abu-Moghli, did her graduate work at the University of Alexandria, Egypt.  Many others have degrees from the US (Case Western, New York University, University of Pittsburgh, University of California San Francisco, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee, etc.) and the UK.  All instruction is done in English.  In 2005, a nursing doctoral program was established, the first in the country. 

There are 15 baccalaureate nursing programs in the entire country.  On my second day on campus, I attended a special ceremony for the highest ranking graduates of each program.  Although I could not understand a word of it, the pride of the deans and the families was evident through the universal language of smiles and photos.  Princess Muna presented the awards.  The entire ceremony took 20 minutes.  Perhaps we can learn something here!

The next day I attended the Nursing faculty meeting, which was conducted in Arabic.  However, a professor who studied in the US sat next to me and filled me in on the topics.  How familiar they were.  Introductions of new faculty, announcements of changes in leadership, promotions, and accomplishments were met with the expected congratulations.  Other announcements included collaboration with a Swedish University and some organizational structure changes.  A discussion about the criteria for promotion included a reminder that community service needed to be documented and that the faculty should be sure to keep evidence of their many projects.

The Assistant Dean for Quality reported on the results of the students’ evaluation of the program.  The Power Point slides were all in Arabic (even the numbers were Arabic), but there seemed to be a consensus that even the lowest score areas were okay.  The Vice Dean for Graduate Studies provided similar information for the master’s and doctoral students, including employment information. 

Then more of the usual – talk about money.  There isn’t enough and we should use resources carefully; turn off lights, don’t waste paper, and by the way, there probably won’t be any new computers, but if you are applying for a research grant you can include a computer in the necessary equipment.

After the faculty meeting, I was pleased to meet one of the authors of an article that I had read – Patients’ Preference for Nurses’ Gender in Jordan.  With my longstanding interest in men in nursing and the unique situation in Jordan where in the last decade about 65% of the enrolled nursing students in the country were male, I have already found a colleague with a mutual interest in exploring the gender issues related to nursing.  Perhaps we will have the opportunity to collaborate on some research while I am here.

Some random observations:

The country would come to a standstill if someone took away their cell phones.  It is by far the most common means of communication.  Everyone that I meet wants to exchange cell phone numbers with me.  Thank goodness Ed quickly got us local phone numbers.  Without a cell phone, I would be a non-person.  Ed was able to update his with a sim card change, but mine was too old (yes Heather, you told me it was an antique) so I had to buy a new one.

People are very helpful.  Many have offered me their phone numbers and said to call if we were having any problems with anything.  Among educated people English is usually quite good.  In stores if we are having problems, clerks will typically find another clerk to help us.

Settling In

After an 11 hour flight from New York City to Amman, Jordan, we breezed through Immigration and Customs and were met by the driver from the Fulbright Commission.  Heading into the city from the airport, the most striking observation was the monochromatic landscape.  Having recently left the greens and blues of Maine, the hillsides covered with sandy colored buildings as the sun was setting created a stark first impression.  As usual, a night flight and the seven hour time difference left our bodies confused: are we tired or hungry is the usual question.  Following the suggestion of a former Fulbrighter (thank you Tess), we walked a few blocks to a lovely French restaurant with excellent food and service, and cold beer.  Although Jordan is a Muslim country, alcohol is available in some Western style restaurants and in liquor stores (expensive).  In fact, we were served Jordanian wine on the Royal Jordan flight.

At 4:30 in the morning we were reminded that we are in a Muslim country when the dawn call to prayer sounded via loudspeakers from the nearby mosque.  (Dawn call is one and a half hours before sunrise, so at least it will get later as the season changes.)  This occurs five times a day, calling the faithful to stop for a moment and pray to Allah.

On our first full day in Jordan, the Fulbright folks provided us with transportation and language interpretation and we found a lovely three bedroom apartment in the Shemisani area of Amman.  By Saturday we were moved in and somewhat settled.  Our apartment has front and back balconies as well as an enclosed side balcony.  The cooling breeze whips through and slams the doors if we are not careful to keep the door stops in place.  The apartment has a clothes washer and dishwasher as well as air conditioning which we have not needed.  We are also very close to a mosque so the in the early morning the muezzin’s call sounds like he is in our bedroom if the windows are open.  The front balcony gives us the chance to watch the street action and the back balcony is perfect for drying clothes.  In the back we overlook the neighbor’s yard that has small trees and chirping birds.  We are on the second floor (which is called the first floor here, meaning the first floor above the ground floor).

On Sunday (the work week is from Sunday to Thursday) we began our orientation at the Fulbright House.  There are 6 scholars (including me) in our group.  I am the only nurse, although there will be another nurse starting in February for one semester.  While you have to be a US citizen to participate in this Fulbright program, three of the scholars were born in the Middle East and of course speak fluent Arabic.  Our group also includes 15 student researchers. We had the opportunity to meet a variety of people who introduced the usual topics of customs, health and safety, things to do in the area, and volunteer opportunities.  I especially enjoyed the practical advice given by a nurse who works for the US Embassy.  Jordan is a medical tourism destination, with at least one of the prominent medical centers accredited by the Joint Commission International.  The Fulbright Commission also had a dinner for us where we met Embassy officials and the US Ambassador.

Before leaving for Jordan, some of my colleagues were concerned that I would have to wear a head scarf.  Dress for women is amazingly varied.  We have seen women completely covered by long black robes with only their eyes showing, women with long black robes and their hair covered but their entire face visible, women dressed in conservative slacks and blouses with lovely scarves covering their hair, young women is skinny jeans and HIGH heels, with a scarf covering the hair, and many women with no scarf at all.  Of course, we are in the capital, so I expect that rural areas may be more conservative.  Although I had been warned that sleeves should be below the elbows, many stylish women wear short sleeve blouses.

Frustrations have included the taxis.  While they are cheap when they use the meter, many drivers will claim to have a broken meter and will assume that you do not know how much a trip should be.  The standard then seems to be for the driver to say 3 JD for everywhere we want to go.  Most trips in our local area are in fact about 1 JD ($1.40).  The man always rides in the front and the woman in the back.  Typically Ed and the driver engage in an animated conversation, the driver stops to ask people how to get where we are going (even though we have it written out in Arabic with some landmarks), or the driver phones someone, presumably to ask directions, but perhaps just to chat.  All of this while driving recklessly around roundabouts and narrow streets.  Walking can also be frustrating.  For the most part the sidewalks are narrow with crumbling tiles.  The trees are planted right in the middle of the sidewalk, and are not trimmed so even at my height your head is often being accosted.  Crossing intersections is taking your life in your hands.  The trips to China were good practice, but I think the drivers here are even less accommodating.  Banking has also been slow.  It took two visits to the bank, for a total of 3+ hours to open a simple savings account. 

So, the adventure continues.  I will probably blog about once a week.  Feel free to respond on the blog site, or to email me at slarocco0603@curry.edu.