We were able to fly Emirates from Dubai to Amman, Jordan and that was an experience in itself.  The friendly service and little touches like table clothes on the trays (even in coach) made it one of our favorite airlines.  We arrived without a hitch and then took a taxi into Abdoun – a somewhat affluent neighborhood where we were meeting out AirBnB host Sama’n.  On the way, we saw views of rolling green and brown hills dotted with camels and goats.   Amman itself is built over 22 of the hills.  Sama’n turned out to be a great guy and a really good host.  He drove us around town, showing us different sights of the city and he was always checking on us to make sure we were okay.

We were really struck by how clean and modern Amman was, and how friendly everyone was.  Everywhere we went, people would say : “Welcome, welcome, I love American people.”   On our first day we kept it mellow and enjoyed Sama’n's spacious and nice apartment and took some walks around the neighborhood.   There were a lot of bakeries, restaurants and little shops in the area.  Later that night, we went to Rainbow street, a poppin’ downtown area and walked around.  We got some excellent falafel for a dollar and were surprised to see all of the fresh juice restaurants.  Alcohol is allowed, but it isn’t really popular, so instead of going out to the bar, people meet up for a fresh juice!  We tried one and then settled into a hooka sports bar and watched some of the Euroleauge championship.

On our second night, we visited the ancient Citadel on hill overlooking Amman.  At the big temple we observed an interview going on for a YouTube series in the mosque.  Hameer was a Sufi Muslim giving his views on religion.  We met Moneer an American, communications and project manager, and he talked with us for a while and explained the project. They were filming and interviewing prominent muslims around the world and posting the clips on YouTube.  It started out small but had become extremely successful with millions of viewers.  We sat and listened to the interview for awhile and learned a lot about islam and sufism.  Hameer gave us a ride back to Rainbow Street and we had a great conversation in the car about religion.  He recommended a restaurant called Sufra for traditional Jordanian food.  We had delicious lamb mansaf which is rice, tender lamb and a yogurt sauce.