International Women's Day

March 8th - today it's International Women's Day... I think it is very unfortunate that in 2010 we still need a day to remember discrimination against women and in general to celebrate Women. The first International Women's Conference was held in Copenhagen a century ago and the first International Women's Day was honoured for the first time in 1911 in 4 European countries including Denmark. Here is an example again of why I am proud of being Danish!

There are still too many countries where women's rights are not respected and still too many differences between men & women, boys and girls around the globe. There is still a lot to be done for women & men to be equal even in the western world and in developping countries even more so. Please have a look on the IWD's website to see what is happening in your countries and how the day is celebrated in others.

To all Women around the world: HAPPY WOMEN'S DAY!!

Blood test for residents

I had never heard of the obligation to be tested for HIV in order to get approved for a residency. I guess that coming from Europe makes one very naive in a way. I wonder what Human Rights think about that one. So what happens if somebody is unfortunate and discover that they are HIV-positive? Are they send back where they come from? Well yes they are, they are expelled from the country. I am of the curious sort so I found a website that actually tells you per country what the regulations are: and most countries in the middle east have the same regulations (UAE, KSA...) here is the website: HIVTravel.
I could see the point if they were testing everybody (inc. Jordanians) and then giving treatment and helping those who are sick, but that is not the case obviously. In many European countries today you are tested for HIV, hepatitis... when you are pregnant. In France it has been standard for years, in the UK you can opt out but then you are refered for a sort of counselling I think. So what's the difference you might say? Well, it lies in what happens afterwards. Doesn't it - you are not going to be deported because you are HIV positive!

Ok so this morning we went to do our blood test (Bibs didn't have to do it, thanks for that!) - it is quite a large building in not such a good state, located somewhere in a back street of Amman - and there are plenty of people there, mainly philipinos coming to Jordan in order to work as nannys, or live in maids. I have to admit that I think we escaped most of the waiting as there was somebody from the hotel with us to make sure everything went smoothly - he paid (don't know how much it costs), we got our blood test done and left again. Then we are supposed to present ourselves at the nearest police station as well, but the hotel does that for us as well. So I guess we are missing out on a bit of the experience here, but hey am not going to complain about that...

Our Arrival in Amman!

What a pleasure to meet so many nice people! It is true: Jordanians are truly nice.

Our flight from London Heathrow was nearly empty, our first contact with Jordanians was on board, and the crew was absolutely lovely. By the end of the flight they all knew the name of Bibs and came and chatted to her constantly. We made our way through the visa section (you need 10JD per visa - so make sure you have money on you - you can exchange in the arrival hall even at 11pm), immigration and passport control very easily. The visa guy had never seen a passport from Mauritius and was inquiring in half-arab half-english where this strange country is located. So with a little help of the hands we managed to explain...
The porters helped us to get our luggage – vey impressive as they check the name on the label and go to get the remaining pieces on the belt! Sure you don’t get such a service in Europe anymore - ? wonder if you ever got it! Then the drive into Amman which took about 30 min.

I spend most of our first day unpacking (what we had finished packing the day before!) and Bobs went to work.

Today after lunch at the Hotel we headed out for the first time to City Mall (one of the shopping malls in Amman) – just a quick tour to Carrefour and to have a look at the shops! Well Carrefour is pretty much the same as in France, but you can add some UK products as well which makes the choices quite large! And the same comment goes for the shops.
Our taxi driver is working at the Hotel and is really nice. He invited us for Mansaf (traditional dish) that his wife cooks very well (so he said) – when we told him that we had one for lunch – and then told us everything about his family. That’s the thing, they will all tell you about their children and their family. All Jordanians love children it’s amazing! You would never have such a response in Europe. All the waiters at the Hotel come and chat to Bibs, of course she loves all the attention she gets.

On a little more serious note… Jordan has recently been downgraded from “partly free” to “not free” in the Freedom House’s 2010 report – this was mainly due to the Parliament’s dissolution and the decision not to hold elections before the end of the year. And here is a link to an article published in the Jordan Times today: Court ruling threatens press freedom – activists. This includes bloggers… which means little me and as well as 100s of others…

But let’s not think about too many serious matters for the moment! We are here to enjoy our life in Jordan and I am sure we will…

The view from our room