Trip To Salt - Jordan

Every thing you want to know about jordan

Known officially as the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, Jordan is located on the East Bank of the River Jordan. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the east and south, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west. More than half the country is covered by desert but if you look hard enough you’ll find the green spaces. The capital city of Jordan is Amman, a city of more than 2.5 million inhabitants located in the north of the country. Amman serves as the country’s economic and cultural hub. Jordan’s other big cities include Aqaba in the far south and Irbid to the north.

Local Time

Jordan is two hours ahead of UCT (Universal Coordinated Time – formerly known as GMT). Clocks are altered for daylight saving in the summer, so when Europe and North America loses an hour, the time in Jordan moves accordingly.

Culture 

Jordan is a diverse country and waves of immigrants have produced a rich and varied culture composed of many different ethnic groups such as Iraqis, Palestinians, Armenians and Circassians. Jordan today is definitely a cross (some might say a battle) between old and new as traditional practices continue to exist alongside new forms of music, film, and art and this definitely adds to the country’s interest.

Food

Grain, yoghurt, olives, cheese, spices, herbs, fruit, lamb and chicken all feature prominently in the Jordanian diet. Jordan’s cuisine is shared with other Arabic and Mediterranean countries – hummus, baba ghanoush, tabouleh, falafel and kebabs all feature strongly. Yet Jordan has its own delicacies and national favourites – it’s rarely long before any visitor to Jordan is invited to try the famous mensaf, a delicious dish made of slow cooked lamb and rice.

Although Jordan is a Muslim country, alcohol can be fairly easily found. At the same time, alcohol is not always widely drunk and it is not a good idea to bring alcohol to a gathering or dinner unless you know the hosts will not be offended. Jordan does however, have one of the oldest wine making histories in the world and the climate and soils are well suited to quality grape production. The recent emergence of Omar Zumot’s St George label is the first (and may not be the last) Jordanian winemaker of international repute.

Language

The official language in Jordan is Arabic. English is fairly widely spoken, especially in larger cities such as Amman and Aqaba and in tourist hotspots such as Wadi Rum and Petra. You won’t find that English is as prevalent as it is in Dubai, yet, it is altogether possible to live, work and conduct business in Jordan with just a smattering of Arabic.

Religion

Although Jordan has a sizeable number of Christians, Islam is the majority religion and is widely adhered to. Yet again, Jordan is more open to other religions than some neighbouring countries. Although the country might appear deceptively Western, it is important to respect Islam. In practice this means dressing conservatively in public, refraining from drinking alcohol other than in places where you know it is acceptable to do this and avoiding overt contact between the sexes in the street. The month of Ramadan, when Muslims fast between sunrise and sunset is widely observed in Jordan and its best to be on your most culturally and religiously respectful behaviour during this month and to refrain from eating and drinking in public.