A Jordanian Christian Wedding

We have been in the village of Simakiyya for just a few weeks and have had an amazing experience and made lots of friends. We have been welcomed so warmly by the people there and have been busy every day visiting people. These visits always include some food and we have been eating spectacular meals of chicken and rice, grape leaves and squash stuffed with rice and lamb, and drinking mint tea full of sugar and so much coffee that we are both in heaven! So, it was no surprise that this weekend when a wedding was happening we were invited.

Weddings here are a two day affair. The night before the ceremony there is a sahar--which literally means visiting into the late hours. Everyone is invited to a party that starts around 7 in the evening and lasts until the wee hours of the morning. It usually happens outside under big colorful tents, and a full dinner is served. For this sahar a tent was placed in the church courtyard, and the meal began with appetizers of mixed nuts, hummus, tabbouleh, olives and other yummy middle eastern dips. Then a chicken and rice dish was served, followed by a dessert. There were fireworks blasted from the roof above us--the shards floated down into our hair and food--and singing and dancing.

Matt sitting under the tent.

The next day is the wedding ceremony. However, before the actual ceremony a big lunch of the national dish--mansef--is served. For this wedding this happened under the tents where we had the party the previous evening. Mansef is seasoned rice piled high on a huge circular tray with lamb meat on top--including the head of the lamb pointed straight up in the middle--with thin, hot yogurt poured over everything. Everyone eats from the same tray and you eat with your right hand, forming the rice and meat into a ball and popping it into your mouth. Some people used spoons--especially those who have moved from the countryside to Amman (and Matt)--but everyone was so happy to see Annamarie eating with her hand. It is very HOT and sometimes hard to get rice and a piece of lamb balled up in your hand and to flip it into your mouth, but it is fun and so delicious.

The hot yogurt being poured over the mansef.

After the meal everyone goes home for a few hours to rest and change clothes, and than the ceremonies start. The bride is at her home dressed and ready for the ceremony with her family. Usually this means that she spent most of the day at the beauty salon getting ready and therefore wasn't at the lunch. During this time a large group follows the groom back to his house, where he is hoisted on the shoulders of someone strong and literally dressed for the wedding. In the midst of drumming and the singing of traditional songs, the clothes he wore to the lunch are taken off and his wedding suit is put on. Some of the songs even have to do with exactly which type of clothing is being put on at the moment.

After all of this, the groom and his family go to the bride's house, singing and clapping as they arrive. The bride's family escorts her out of the house and the groom takes her to the church in the most expensive car they can find, which is covered with flowers on the hood and the trunk. Other people going to the wedding follow the car through the streets to the church--honking and singing along the way. Once the couple is at the church they are met outside by everyone and the men sing and play drums as the couple enter. The ceremony then takes place and they are married.

We had a great time celebrating with everyone!

The bride leaving her home to get married.

The men singing and drumming to the bride and groom - they are inside the circle of people.

The groom and bride right before they entered the church for the wedding ceremony.

Simakiyya

The past two weeks or so we've been living in a small village of about 2,000 people about two hours south of Amman called Simakiyya. We were helping out with a children's camp being held at a church there. Simakiyya is located on the edge of the desert in central Jordan and is the only entirely Christian village in the country. The residents--who are predominantly members of two tribes--are part of either the Melkite Greek Catholic Church or the Latin Catholic Church, with only the latter being under the influence of the Roman Catholic Church. Our camp was held at the Latin Catholic Church, and the two churches stand practically side by side in town.

The village was only established around 100 years ago, as until then the people were nomadic Bedouin who herded their flocks of goats and sheep in the area and lived in tents. Since settling, the people started farming wheat and other grains. They also continue to raise goats and sheep, some people with pens right outside their homes. Although on the edge of the desert--and brown and dusty now--the surrounding area was a pleasant and surprising green when we first visited in April. Below are some pictures of the village.

A house in the middle of the village.

A view of the village from the rooftop of a friend. You can see the hills of the desert in the background.


Matt and a friend from Amman--who also worked at the camp--walking on a street in the village as a local bus makes a stop.


A gate at an entrance to a house. The cross is something you don't see very often here in Jordan.

A view of the village from the roof of our apartment building.

The Latin Catholic Church.

Wonder of the World

Last night Petra was announced as one of the new Seven Wonders of the World. In a year long campaign in which votes from around the world were registered online and via mobile phone, it received the second highest number of votes, behind only the Great Wall of China. The other new wonders are Chichen Itza, Mayan ruins in Mexico; a 105 foot tall statue of Jesus that overlooks Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; the Roman Colosseum; Machu Picchu, Incan ruins in Peru; and the Taj Mahal in India.

There has been a lot of publicity here the past few months to get people to vote for Petra, and last night there were live, televised celebrations around Amman and in Petra itself celebrating it being named a wonder. This meant there were lots of fireworks and gunshots piercing the night air here when the results were announced. It seems that this is a designation that a lot of people here really wanted to receive and it was fun to be part of the celebration!

But what is Petra? A city over 2000 years old, Petra is sometimes called the "rose-red city" because it was carved into red sandstone rock in the desert about three hours south of Amman. The inhabitants were the Nabateans--Arabs who lived in Jordan during pre-Roman times and who made the city their capital. Petra remained hidden from the outside world until it was rediscovered in 1812, and it is said that just 5% of Petra has been excavated so far, so there is still so much more to be discovered.

We've been to Petra a number of times, and for us it never gets old and never ceases to amaze us. So, we're ready to be tour guides for any of our friends who want to come and say they have been to see Petra, one of the newest wonders of the world!