Amman has very little green space and we live in a first floor apartment, so we don't have a lot of options for outside play, or for just enjoying the outdoors in general. What Amman does have, though--and Jordan in general--are amazing, ancient archaeological sites. These act as our parks, and we take occasional trips to those nearby when we want to spend a nice day outside.
Recently we went to the Citadel, which is a hill overlooking downtown Amman, which we can see every day from the roof of our building, or from the end of our street. The Citadel lays claim to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited places in the world, as evidence there reveals the presence of settlement activity stretching to over 7000 years ago. It is said to have been the location of the capital of the Ammonites--frequent adversaries of the Israelites in the Old Testament--where King David sent Uriah the Hittite to his death to cover up his affair with Bathsheba. The remaining ruins, though, are mostly more recent, including a Roman Temple to Hercules, a Byzantine era basillica, and a mosque, water cistern and palace complex built by the Umayyads, the first Islamic dynasty, who ruled from 661-750. This is the Citadel--our local park.
Recently we went to the Citadel, which is a hill overlooking downtown Amman, which we can see every day from the roof of our building, or from the end of our street. The Citadel lays claim to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited places in the world, as evidence there reveals the presence of settlement activity stretching to over 7000 years ago. It is said to have been the location of the capital of the Ammonites--frequent adversaries of the Israelites in the Old Testament--where King David sent Uriah the Hittite to his death to cover up his affair with Bathsheba. The remaining ruins, though, are mostly more recent, including a Roman Temple to Hercules, a Byzantine era basillica, and a mosque, water cistern and palace complex built by the Umayyads, the first Islamic dynasty, who ruled from 661-750. This is the Citadel--our local park.
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