A day in Amman – photo essay II

Unlike the cities in different regions of the world, Amman—the capital of Jordan—is getting populous for a different reason. Surrounded by Syria, Israel, Palestine, Iraq and Saudi Arabia, Jordan became a safe haven for its neighbor and their neighbors as well. There is a Libyan community now in Amman who preferred to skip Egypt.

Jordan was inhabited by the Canaanites, Akkadians, Babylonians, Assyrians, Nabataeanians and many more. In the recent history, the last 100 years or so, the Chechens fled Russia to Jordan circa 1888. Then came the Armenians circa 1930. Later there was the Palestinians exodus in 1948 and 1967. The Iraqis came in 1991 and 2003. And our last group of guests are the Syrians who are still coming in.

Also, we have our temporary guests. The Malaysian students who used to study in Syria and Egypt and luckily chose Jordan because of what is happening in these two countries. In addition, the wealthy neighbors, the citizens of the GCC, who used to have their summer vacation in Syria and Lebanon.

So, maybe Jordan is poor in its natural resources but it is so rich in its unprecedented history and hospitality.

The American embassy, hands down the biggest embassy in Amman. When I was there two years ago I could tell from people’s accents that third of the visitors were Jordanians, third Iraqis and third Syrians.
Thankfully, palm trees are very desert friendly.
These cranes are almost everywhere. Mostly, for building hotels. 
Rainbow street. One of the nicest in Amman. 
Books @ Cafe was one of its kind when it opened back in the 90s. It has a beautiful rooftop with a stunning view of Old Amman.