Endless sunshine of the spotless mind

"It is so simple, the life," Lucky said to me this morning in his famous Santorini falafel and souvlaki stand where I bought my breakfast falafel for 2.5 Euros. "You are happy, you bring many happies."

We are all called to be happy, he said, and to respect and revere a power greater than us, and to love one another, starting with our family and friends but radiating that light out even to those who we may want to distrust, the way the Greeks, Lucky said, sometimes view the Turks or the Arab world may view the U.S. The Turk, he has feelings, a heart, is respectful too, says Lucky.

Fifteen minutes with Lucky while my falafel balls fried, and I got his philosophy on life, 9/11, and why he is lucky to be famous and own this souvlaki stand in Santorini. God called him to make good souvlaki and falafel, he says, and he teaches others how to make it and shares with Greek youngsters his thoughts on how to talk to the people of the world.

One nation united under falafel, here on this island of staggering beauty, one of the top destination spots on earth...

Luckily, and Lucky would be proud, I am happy. My blue eyes bring good luck to others as well, he says, and that's fine with me - I'm happy to share my happiness, the bounty of it all.

The beauty on my travels feeds me and the light on the island feeds my soul. The light and colors, the hot clear sun of day and fiery panoramic sunsets, the light dancing on the water, this is Greece to me - sunset, sunshine, sunrise, white light and gold light, blue and red skies...

The colors of the sky at sunset are red, gold, white, the sun a ball of fire or light pouring through clouds in rays that fan out toward the water, light pouring down and signifying to me a power so much greater than us that lights up the world every day, and the surface of the sea shimmers and dances with light.

This despite the fact that it has been a rainy week! In the interlude between showers it is nothing but dazzling sunshine and endless blue skies until the highlight of every night - sunset over mountains, cliffsides, cities, seas. The best so far that I have seen were in Oia on the island of Santorini, and, unbelievably, from the terrace of Xenia's house in the Athens suburb of Papagos.

I spent the weekend on Santorini and learned more of the history of this place of myth and magic and gasp-inducing views. Along with the island of Crete, Santorini is supposed to be the location of the lost city of Atlantis, the advanced civilization that disappeared into the sea. When the volcano in the center of the once-round island erupted in ~1630 BC, the eruption was so violent that it caused a tsunami in its wake, that destroyed the island of Crete. 2/3 of the center of the island disappeared beneath the sea, leaving the crescent shape that is now Santorini, the caldera of cliffs that now draws visitors from around the world. It is thought to be one of the most violent volcanic eruptions in history.

The volcanic eruptions in Santorini had biblical implications as well, according to Xenia, who as a student of archaeology years ago excavated the lost city in Santorini. The ash blew south and covered the sun in Egypt for six months, thus leading to the seven plagues, and the force before the tsunami drew the Red Sea back, "parting the sea" and leaving a clearing for Moses to lead his people to the promised land.

There was a logical geological explanation for these Biblical miracles, Xenia says, if you piece together this time in history. I get the chills when she describes it. It is awesome, truly, to be in places that have such rich history, places that helped shape Western civilization as we know it.

As a Christian, which I consider myself to be albeit one that practices Buddhism as well and embraces all religions, I am awestruck by the power of holy lands and places, to be where the stories of the Bible originated, not to mention the epic stories of literature - the Iliad, the Odyssey.

Knowing about Santorini's history helps to elevate it as well to more than just another beautiful tourist destination, which the island also is. It is utterly packed with tourists so the island is not about the charm of the locals (although there is Lucky!) but you can't really blame us all for gathering from around the world to appreciate the beauty of this unique destination.

I loved Oia best, the tip of the island famous for its sunset views where I watched the sunset both nights. The cliffs of Oia are lined with charming white, yellow and pink houses and the famous blue-domed churches of Santorini. Here, I dined on souvlaki for 2 Euros - an island bargain! - bought two watercolor paintings of the city for only 28 Euros, and indulged in dessert decadence.

Night one, Saturday, I dined at Lotza's Terrace overlooking the cliffside homes, vegetable stew with retsina wine, then I treated myself to ekmek, which seems to be too sinful to exist. It is sheer sweet lunacy, bread and shredded wheat soaked in syrup with custard on top and whipped cream flavored with cardamom and sprinkled with chopped pistachios on top of that.

Night two I had a crepe filled with nutella and bananas and drizzled with chocolate sauce and a glass of local Santorini white wine from the barrel in what must be the most beautiful jazz bar in the world - I sat on the open air terrace surrounded by white and fuschia bougainvillea, overhead and along the terracotta walls, and took in the color of the post-sunset Oia sky while sipping wine and savoring chocolate.

If you are currently celibate, I recommend nutella loaded on anything to make you swoon. We find ecstasy where we can, no?

Oddly, perhaps from all the sweetness, perhaps from the dazzling views or couples silhouetted at every vista point, cuddling and kissing and swooning from the heights and over-the-top picture-postcard romanticism of it all, Santorini was about the only place on my travels so far where I felt alone sometimes as if only "one half" without being part of a complete couple. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised to be struck by such a feeling on what is known to be one of the most romantic sites on the planet.

Hey. Whatever. I can always go back to Santorini someday if I choose with my "other half," wherever/whoever he might be, and cruise around on our scooter on the snaking mountain roads with the rush of open air and exhiliration of sheer cliff dropoffs alongside, sip coffee or wine along the cliffs, dance together to thumping beats in Fira's downtown district, etc. For now I am still happy to be alone navigating my way through the world as I wish - it's a privilege and blessing to be traveling this way, too.

Other Santorini highlights included my scooter ride to Fira along winding cliff roads, hanging on to the greasy Greek mechanic Niko whose long curly hair whipped into my face as we rode (he'd offered me a ride to Fira for free rather than letting me rent a scooter, for safety's sake, since I'm an inexperienced motorized-two-wheeler-driver and he said there are many accidents here); sunbathing and swimming topless in the Aegean at the black sand beach of Perissa, where you walk on volcanic rock underneath the surface of the water; eating my falafel this a.m., after my talk with Lucky, at a cliffside cafe with a gentle breeze and breathtaking views of Fira spread out beneath me.

Last night I danced 'til three at Fira clubs. At Murphy's, the crowd pulsed to Vanilla Ice and Sublime. At bar two, I got treated to free shots when I belly-danced to Turkish music with a Greek woman. I will freely admit that I am an exhibitionist when it comes to performing, especially belly-dancing. I do not mind at all when the crowds clap for me!

Thus I was happy when I got cheers of "Bravo!" and "Oh-pah!" when I did my first Greek dancing solo in a traditional taverna where I'd dined with my friend Iaonnis from the Kennedy School a few nights ago, before leaving for the Santorini trip. We were in Psiri where crowds of attractive Greeks throng the streets until sunrise - women in leggings and short skirts and low-slung belts, olive-complected handsome men with five o'clock shadow everywhere.

We quit at 1:30 a.m., which was early, since I had to catch the ferry to Santorini at 7:30 the next morning, which meant leaving the house at 6 a.m. I s'pose when you are traveling sleep is so overrated - but I do need some to keep my stamina up for another two months of travel.

During my night out with Iaonni I also got to try some classic Greek dishes, including dakos from Crete, which is a hard brown bread with thick layers of tomato and feta on top - Greek bruschetta essentially! The bread, which tastes of molasses, crumbles and melts in your mouth.

We had touszakakia, meatballs with red cumin sauce, which were delicious (and yes my vegetarian diet has gone to hell again in Greece - but while in Greece, one must try the delicacies, right?). I danced multiple Greek dances, coaxed and coached by the Greek women dancing to the live musicians in the back of the taverna, culminating in my solo when they beckoned me onto the dance floor late that night.

Iaonni said that night, when speaking of the relations between the Turks and the Greeks, that "the next war will be over baklava." The Turks claim it and so do the Greeks. Of course the troubles between the nations run deeper than this - they still fight today over Cyprus, where a fence divides the Turkish from the Greek side, and there has been a lot of bloodshed and bitterness between the two nations.

"When a Greek talks about Istanbul, their heart bleeds," Xenia has told me.

In Istanbul, Aya Sofia, or Hagia Sofia in Greek, which means "divine wisdom," is something of a pilgrimage site for Greeks, symbolizing the greatness of the Byzantine empire which has Hellenic roots. Aya Sofia was originally a Greek Orthodox church, Xenia said, years before it was a Muslim mosque.

Food unites, food divides, and one could say it ultimately has more power than religion because we need it to survive. As fuel, food keeps us alive, but of course is also a great source of pleasure in life, and I am happy to be eating this way during my stay but also happy to have lots of Greek ruins and cliffs to climb so I can stay in bikini shape for the beaches of Italy - coming next!

First, another few days in Athens... So far here I have toured the neighborhoods around the Acropolis by night, enjoyed a delicious mezza meal of cold salads - caviar, eggplant, tzatsiki - retsina wine and spiced cream cheese, when Xenia and Kostas kindly treated me to a meal at the traditional Plaka restaurant, Stamatopoulos Tavern, where three musicians played traditional Greek folk songs on the open air terrace, that was located right at the foot of the Acropolis which is illuminated by night....

Xenia and her husband are the perfect hosts. I have tried an Athens brew pub with my friend Konstantinos as well, where over red ale and sweet lager we discussed life, work, spirituality and camping out in medieval castles, which he has done here in Greece. Perhaps next time I can add this to my list of adventures as well.

More to report on this historic city and country soon... Oh-pah!

© Lisa Powell Graham 2006

Hayye ales Salah - Let's go to the mosque....

One cup of coffee and you remember it for 40 years - That is a Turkish proverb to live by, shared by my friend Moses over apple tea outside his carpet shop. As Moses said, "Familyship, relationship, friendship, these are all most important to us in Turkey..."

In the end it is these moments that last and it is perhaps the greatest gift of travel, moments shared with others that stay with us, like hearing a new friend, Ali, a reciter of the Koran, speak passages aloud to me like poetry and translate the haunting sounds of the call to prayer that I hear in the streets of Istanbul every day...

As Professor H. A.R. Gibb has said about Muhammad and how the reading of the Koran affects the human heart, "No man in fifteen hundred years has ever played on that deep toned instrument with such power, such boldness, and such range of emotional effect."

Here is Ali's transliteration for me and his literal translation of the call to prayer that comes five times a day:

Allah Ekber - God is great ~
Eshedu en lalilahe illallah - There is no one like God ~
Eshedu eme Muhammad un Rusulluldai - Muhammad is the person like the men God wants from us ~
Hayye ales Salah - Let's go to the Mosque ~

I met Ali near the Grand Bazaar when I asked for directions to the whirling dervish show; he walked me there, then spent an hour and a half telling me stories of the miracles of the world from the Koran.

Though only 22, Ali was full of knowledge and stories. He said according to the Koran if we could hear the sound of the world turning we would explode.

He talked about the two moons that are part of Islam, although we can only see one here on earth, and that the second moon is also a miracle - the crescent moon of course is featured on the flag of Turkey as a symbol of Islam.

He said that God knows how many breaths you will take in your life - it is predetermined - and for that reason he said I might notice that the Turks breathe deeply and slowly! Make your breaths last and extend your life... This is one of the best reasons I've heard so far to breathe deeply!

My friend Ismail asked me what Turkey is famous for and when I said, "Turkish delight? bellydancing?" he answered, "Turkish hospitality." Ismail spent an afternoon showing me the Süleymaniye Camii or Suleymaniye mosque, which was built in seven years, from 1550 to 1557, by the great architect Sinan for Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent.

The night before, we smoked a nargileh and drank raki at his friend's courtyard bar in Sultanahmet - before that I'd been out dancing at a local bellydancing show by a fiendishly beautiful blond dancer who rippled her sinewy body in surprising and sensual S-shapes - I want to dance like that I thought! I'll keep practicing my bellydancing so inshallah someday I can... She did pull me up to dance with her which was fun...

Another favorite moment with Ismail, who works in hospitality managing a restaurant in Sultanahmet, was when he told me, "I can say I love you in ten languages," and then proceeded to share each one with me. He spends so much time with tourists that he's learned key phrases - such as that one! "I love you" in Turkish is "seni seviyorum."

I packed a lot into my eight days in Istanbul, with the help of my friends. The hammam (Turkish baths and massage where they scrub, soap down and rub you!), multiple mosques, a boat cruise down the Bosphorus, dancing in nightclubs in trendy Taksim night after night, climbing the winding cobblestone hills to take in the panoramic views from Galleta Tower, even dinner in some charming historic neighborhoods frequented by the locals, so off the beaten path...

My dear friend Seref from the Kennedy School showed me around town and also loaned me his friends as guides. His friend Mehmet and Mehmet's son Birkan took me to dinner at Ulus, perched high on a hill above the Bosphorus with spectacular views - We then went for Turkish coffee in Bebek, a charming Istanbul neighborhood frequented by locals, and drove along the length of the Bosphorus.

The Bosphorus itself is fascinating, a narrow strait that links the Black Sea to the Marmara Sea and that separates the European from the Asian side in Istanbul, the only city in the world that spans two continents.

Drinking our Turkish coffee overlooking the Bosphorus, Birkan taught me more Turkish slang, including "Wassup?" (Nasil gidiyor?) and "Take care of yourself" (Kendine iyi bak). My Turkish friends loved it when I pulled those out in conversation!

I love the convergence of worlds that travel brings, like hearing legends about the famous castle that is a historic landmark in green Slovenia from my new Slovenian friend Bruno, who was also staying at my hostel, as we ate kebab (loaded with sauce, for 1 lira only! or about 60 cents...) in Taksim at 4 a.m. with a hazel-eyed Brazilian engineer, Cassiano, a British rugby player named Will, a posse of Aussie friends all from the hostel, and local Turkish friends... The world comes together around kebab.

I think my favorite night of the trip was when I walked from Ortakoy, a charming districts of cafes, restaurants and shops along the Bosphorus that the locals frequent, to Arnavutkoy, which is one of the most beautiful little places I've ever been on earth! The coastline curves along the Bosphorus and along the sea curve where the fishing boats dock is a row of four and five story gingerbread Victorian homes, like something you'd see in old New England or San Francisco...

There is a canal in this section of town abutted by restaurants full of cafe tables with red and white umbrellas and full of families and couples enjoying the evening along the Bosphorus... I dined on the outdoor rooftop terrace at Garga, a famous restaurant with pictures of its visitors - Brigitte Bardot, Alfred Hitchcock - lining the walls.

My spinach salad with orange slices and walnuts and a glass of house wine only cost 15.50 lira (about $10 USD) and the sunset view was free... It was one of those moments of feeling like I am in paradise when I travel, since after all paradise can be something we create on earth, I believe...

It is such a gift to have these moments, small miracles, when the rest of life can feel hellish on hustling, bustling, busy, cranky days... We all have some of those as well. It's a gift to simply enjoy beauty and be in the flow of life, to take it slowly and enjoy the simple pleasures. This has been one of the great gifts of my travels so far...

I was sad to leave Istanbul although I'm happy to now be in Athens, staying at the home of my dear friend Xenia who lives in Papagoy, a suburb of the city. From her rooftop terrace you can see the sunset - I watched it tonight and understand what she meant when she talked about the Golden Age here.

Xenia is a career diplomat, currently posted in San Francisco as Consul General for nine western US states, and she is trained in history and archaeology - a beloved friend of mine and the perfect Athens guide! She pointed out the mountains that you can see from her terrace, next to the Acropolis - beyond that, the sea.

Here in 480 BC the Greeks defeated the Persians to start the golden age of civilization. How fitting I thought as I watched the sky of gold tonight - I do think the highlights of Greece will include learning more about its incredible history, which shaped Western civilization and culture in so many ways, and the quality of the light.

I think Greece for me will be about the way sunlight shines on the white buildings and blue sea, the luminous and bright quality of the white and golden light. Xenia said this tonight as well, that the quality of the light here literally helped shape civilization because when the quality of the light is clear, the quality of the thought is clear.

She said that here, "the Gods are brilliant and sparkling, everything is sparkling," and this creates clear and brilliant thought. It is easy to see already how one could be inspired by the light of Greece...

I look forward to seeing more sunsets and sunrises here and to learning more about Greek history and civilization. It felt fitting that I left Istanbul at sunset - I had arrived there the first day at sunrise - to complete the circle.

Istanbul is still haunting to me and I know I'll return. I learned a lot there as well, including fun Turkish phrases, and how to navigate when the Turkish hospitality becomes overly friendly, as it can, especially for a Western woman traveling alone. It can wear you down if you allow it to - the attention is non-stop and not always wanted.

Honestly I was feeling a bit jaded by the end by it all, despite being enamored when I first arrived, perhaps like a lover whose infatuation has burned itself out after nonstop passionate days and nights - Istanbul was like that for me.

By my last days there however I decided to take it for what it is worth and deal with it when needed just by ignoring unwanted attention and saying no - simple, right? There is so much that is good in the warmth and kindness of the Turkish people, their willingness to drop everything to show you their beautiful city and to make you feel welcome, that I didn't want to focus on the negative.

My advice for traveling in Istanbul would be - ignore the men on the street when you need to because they will pay you too much attention - which always starts with, "Can I ask you just one question?" - but also be open to some new friendships and to what you will learn from the people there.

My trip would not have been half of what it was without my new Turkish friends who taught me language, culture, history and took me to the out of the way places that aren't highlighted in the guidebooks.

I left exhausted but exhilirated after days of being barraged with attention on the streets, days of drinking in incredible and seemingly inexhaustible beauty, days of practicing my Turkish and dancing 'til 4 in the nightclubs of Taksim... What a trip!

Greece for me has been replenishing so far - A thunderstorm this afternoon meant it was not the perfect day for touring the Acropolis, so I rested, caught up on email and organized myself for the coming days. Tonight- dinner in the Old City at the foot of the Acropolis with Xenia and her husband Kostas and perhaps meeting up with my friend Konstantinos afterwards... More on Greece soon!

© Lisa Powell Graham 2006

Bu iyi, bu guzel - In Istanbul, it is good, it is beautiful...

God is smiling upon me in Istanbul, the Paris of the Middle East, the capital city of the world under numerous empires - Byzantine, Roman, Ottoman - A city with a Christian and Muslim history - a city that spans two continents - Today I was in Europe and also in Asia, and all in Istanbul!

It is an endless romance for me here, seduced by the city, called to its streets and waterways as millions are called to prayer by the haunting voices that echo from the mosques five times a day... Istanbul is intoxicating.

This makes sense to me - after all, it is a city of belly-dancing, whirling dervishes, dark and handsome men with bewitching eyes, splashes of color in the coral, blue and yellow of the buildings, light, water, sunsets over the Golden Horn and Bosphorus where the sky and water turn aquamarine, the minarets illuminated along the skyline...

Last night, it was so beautiful at sunset under the Galleta Bridge where I drank tea and smoked a shishi pipe, reclining on a soft cushion, that I could have cried...

Earlier that morning as I meditated on a cushion on the rooftop terrace of my hotel in the sunshine, with the sun glittering on the Bosphorus and the silhouettes of ships gliding silently across the Marmara Sea, my breath was deep and steady and easy. Simply being here is a form of meditation, a form of prayer.

Even the seagulls fly differently here, gracefully swooping in arcs like Arabic script, carving a slow dance like an exhalation in the air - They seem to know they are flying over centuries of history and beauty, soaring over this city is more beautiful than most places on earth, I am convinced of it....

I have made a million friends already, one on every corner - Everyone wants to serve me apple tea, sit with me, stare into my blue eyes (they are something of a novelty here...). The Turkish hospitality is beyond belief to the point of being exhausting at times because how many invitations can you accept, and how many can you turn down, again and again, but kindly?

I have been guided and cared for and received so many gifts, tea on rooftops, wine and chocolates, roses in the street - It feels like a constant romance and seduction by a whole city, 12 million people at once! (not that I am complaining....)

The sights that I have seen so far include Aya Sofia, a fıfteen-hundred year old mosque built by Emperor Justinian as the finest church of its time (it was a Christian church before the Muslim conquest); the Blue Mosque where I wrapped my bare arms and red hair with an aqua scarf to enter; the Grand Bazaar which is the biggest and most beautiful ancient indoor mall ever, 600 years of peddling wares and still in operation, featuring 4,000+ shops; the Spice Market where I sampled more than a dozen varieties of Turkish delight and marveled at the small mountains of rich red saffron, yellow curries, endless piles of figs, dates and jellied candies....

I have toured the European side of Istanbul and the Asian side both by car and on foot and taken the ferry from one continent to another in the cool night air and in the morning sunshine... Yet to do - Topkapi Palace, Bosphorus boat tour, and maybe Capadoccia this weekend (a marvel of an ancient city in central Turkey...). And, just more exploring of these winding cobblestone streets where there is a fortress wall, palace or mosque every time you turn the corner...

Last night I hung out with my friend Hakan in popular Taksim in Beyolu, full of restaurants, cafes, bars and shops and throngs of people... There was a festival going on featuring traditional Turkish music - The streets and balconies were lit up and there were balloons everywhere - We had dinner at a rooftop terrace restaurant, shrimp casserole and fried aubergines, so delicious! Then raki, the Turkish national drink that is like Greek oozu or Arabian arak - anisette flavored, milky in color when water is added, so good and so strong!

We listened to traditional Turkish folk songs, Hakan translated for me the fairy tales being celebrated in song, and I practiced some belly-dancing moves to the catchy Turkish songs - It was an evening of great friendship which reminded me once again how you can be kindred spirits and so enjoy someone's company who comes from such a different place and culture - Hakan is kind and funny and clever and taught me lots of new Turkish words, while we traded opinions on everything from politics to religion, work life and social life, our own and our nation's histories, travel and dancing - Such fun.

Tonight I will go see the whirling dervishes and have drinks at the Seven Hills Restaurant rooftop terrace which overlooks Aya Sofia and the Blue Mosque, enjoy the cool evening Istanbul air and more great company... I am staying at the BauHaus Hostel in Sultanahmet, which is ranked by the Washington Post as one of the world's top dozen hostels, run by the incomparable Neco who is up until sunrise every morning orchestrating and enjoying special events with his guests... Neco is also a champion Tavla player, a Turkish game of strategy which I have yet to learn (give me a few days!). Tonight there will be a fire party on the roof and drinking and talking 'til dawn...

In'shala - they have this expression in Turkish too - I will bring the spirit of this city home with me and savor every moment here, now and when I return again and again in the future... I do truly love it here. Yet despite my waxing poetic I also know and understand that the history of the city and country is complicated too, and bloody - the Turks conquered and were conquered many times over before national hero Mustafa Kemal Ataturk made this a secular and free democracy with his vision and spirit, when Turkey became a republic in 1923... the Turkish flag is red for blood spilled, after all, so the legend goes - and I know that this city like all others has its dark side and problems.

But ma'shallah, it will remain magical too always, as it is to me now, and peaceful, as it also is - Truly here in Istanbul the problems of the PKK and terrorist bombings in the southeast corner of the country near Iraq feel a million miles away - In'sha Allah the people of the city will remain safe and able to enjoy their lives peacefully... I will wish for this always!

Bu iyi, bu guzel. It is good here, it is beautiful, in Istanbul.

On to more adventures - pictures coming soon!

© Lisa Powell Graham 2006

A weekend in Dubai, shining city of gold...

It was a culture shock coming to modern, glitzy, fast-growing Dubai in the United Arab Emirates after two weeks in historic Amman. Historically, Dubai was a small port city, surrounded by desert, in an area primarily inhabited by nomadic Bedouin tribes. Not so long ago, the city was little more than flat desert land and many of the locals were camel-herders.

Today it is the Middle East's answer to both fast-growing Las Vegas and New York, known for its skyscrapers of iridescent glass. The city has boomed in the past 20 years and is still growing at an exponential rate. 20 percent of the cranes in the world are in Dubai, according to one local (another claimed it is 80% of the world's cranes!) and buildings are going up everywhere you look.

Some of the new plans for Dubai include the Dubai Waterfront, a business, residential and entertainment mini-city, planned to be 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC and 7 times the size of the island of Manhattan. The world's tallest building, the Burj Dubai, is currently under construction here, scheduled for completion in 2008, although the final height remains a closely guarded secret.

Life is tax-free in Dubai, and the free zones mean that industry is flocking here, but the cost of living here is high. Some locals I met who live in the Dubai Marina told me they pay 130,000 durhams per year (that's about 35,000 US dollars) for their two-bedroom apartment in a building that is only three months old...

It is not a pedestrian city. You take taxis everywhere. This is in part due to the way the city has been built, around highways, and in part due to the fact that the weather here is sweltering, and everyone lives inside in the AC.

The temperature this evening, for example, is a cool 91 degrees, Fahrenheit (33 Celsius) with 69% humidity and haze. Mind you, it's 7 p.m. and the sun has already set... Temperatures this week are expected to be in the 102 to 104 degree range (39 to 40 degrees Celsius) and we're in September already... Whew!

What this means is that you break into a sweat the minute you walk outside and your glasses or camera lens fogs up right away - it's that humid.

More on Dubai tomorrow, including stories of my desert safari adventures tonight - I am right now at the Dubai airport, getting ready to board a flight to Istanbul - I could not resist the call of this magical city after all... I am off for a week in Turkey, then another week in Greece! Wheee!

For more on Dubai, check here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dubai

© Lisa Powell Graham 2006

The holy land called ~and I stayed ~

Well I wished for more time in Amman and I got it! After hearing news of a fresh wave of bombings in Turkey last weekend, I decided to delay my trip to Istanbul to spend more time with friends here.

This decision made me sad because I don't want to live a life that is restricted by my fears, and because I am in love with Istanbul already even though I haven't been there (yet!) ~ the minarets, the architecture, the belly-dancing and music, the history and culture, the Bosphorus, the Blue Mosque, the spice market, the Grand Bazaar, Aiya Sofia, Turkish piping hot coffee and warm hospitality - I have a feeling I will be enchanted with the vibrant colors, fragrances, sounds, tastes, and the feelings and spirit when I go - I can feel the energy of the city swirling around me already, even from here.... And what place could be more romantic and more melancholy in the summer, as a Turkish friend once told me?

But as an American woman traveling alone, with friends here who I had yet to spend time with and with Amman still tugging at my heart, it felt better to stay for now. Ironically, the day I stayed was the same day that a crazy man shot at a group of tourists here in the Roman ampitheatre in downtown Amman, a site I'd visited just a few days before. I guess it goes to show you that there is some madness everywhere - here, the US, around the world - and sadly there is no avoiding that. Despite all of the love and good people here and everywhere there is still random violence in the world.

Yet in'sha Allah my travels will continue to be blessed and safe... Every friend we make across international and cultural lines is another victory for peace, and I was happy to stay here longer for this reason... Also, staying in Amman made for a relaxing and replenishing week...

Time dissolves here like sugar stirred into into hot tea... The days are a blur of happy meetings with friends at cafes, restaurants, bars and inside people's homes. Time slows down, and is about enjoying meals and conversation... This is how I spend my days, with friends... I have been to a high-end rooftop sushi and salad restaurant called Vinagrette with views of Amman, the famous international Blue Fig Cafe, Tche Tche Cafe known for its argileh ("hubbly-bubbly" as they call it here, or hookah pipes!), trendy Books@Cafe and Le Calle Italian bar, even Salt & Pepper, a new Arabic fast food joint where I ate delicious spiced rice and okra, frekka soup and a taste of mansouf - rich goat's milk yogurt with butter that is poured over rice. Yum.

Today I enjoyed a feast of a lunch at the groom's family's house in Shmeisani neighborhood - homemade lasagna Arabic style with white sauce and lots of cheese, salad, fried meat dumplings, Turkish coffee, green tea with honey, wine from Mt. Nebo and of course Arabic sweets for dessert. Ana nabateeya is how you say "I am a vegetarian" but here I've ventured outside my usual culinary restrictions a bit, as I thought I might - How can you avoid eating meat entirely when the best schwarma stand in Amman is across the street from my hotel, for example, and when one schwarma sandwich costs 1/2 dinar? (About 75 cents!).

Today I visited with Lama and Renna, Basel's sisters, his brother Akhmad and Lama's American husband, Patrick. As we wrapped up a lazy afternoon of eating sumptuous food and talking politics, music wafted into the room - a wedding outside, an Egyptian one, Lama said, from the sound of the singing and the band.

The weddings here are lavish, traditional, magical, as Salma's was - with a traditional Jordanian band to announce the arrival of the groom at the bride's house, then a procession to the hotel with cars honking horns - More singing and dancing at the hotel when the bride and groom descended from the staircase toward the ballroom! And of course, at the wedding, and the parties all week long beforehand, we danced, and danced, and danced....

I say, God gave me hips for a reason. My given nickname here was that of the best belly dancer in Jordan ~ An exaggeration of course but for an American girl I can shake it with the best of them! It was a revelation how the women cheered me on and danced with me, many of them veiled.

I didn't know culturally how it would go over to have a redheaded blue eyed Westerner baring my arms and body-rolling, but apparently, I was a hit... I learned new moves from the dancers here as well.

And the music moves me in a way I can't explain ~ I feel it inside me and it moves through me. I even love the Arabic pop especially the catchy rump-shaking songs by Nancy Ajarim. In'sha Allah, more belly-dancing lessons when I return to the US!

The rest of last week was filled with parties, meeting the bride and groom's friends - more and more and more of the warm Arabic hospitality. The parties were numerous and over the top ~ dancing in the open air at Action Target outside Amman to Arabic pop, where Basel's sister Lama tied a scarf around my hips and taught me belly-dancing moves - go slow and sexy she coaxed, and I did...

The party at Lana's parents' home, where we danced on top of the pool, a glowing surface covered by sheer plexiglass panels and lit from underneath - The atmosphere was absolutely magical...

The wedding itself of course, which took up the whole day, since we spent time in the salon getting our hair and nails done, putting on shimmery eyeshadow, being sure we were sufficiently glamourous to blend with this elegant crowd!

The other highlights of last week included the rose-red city of Petra, which leaves me nearly at a loss for words... It is so spectacular, you must go there yourself, in'sha Allah - It is a spot in the world not to be missed. Add it to your list of things to do before you die.

For 700 years Petra was a "lost city," like Atlantis, known only to local Bedouins until it was rediscovered by Swiss explorer JL Burckhardt in 1812 when he disguised himself as a Muslim holy man to gain access to the mysterious site he had heard rumors of... There is archeological evidence on the site of a village dating back to 7000 BC, but the heyday was from around the 6th century BC to about 70 AD.

The Nabataeans, master engineers and artists, carved royal tombs and treasuries and theatres and places of worship into the soft red desert rock with spectacular results. The entrace into Petra is the 1.2 km Siq, a gorge formed by tectonic movement that is only a few kilometers across in some spots.

Our guide Ali who was a very spiritual man told us that walking in the Siq "strengthens your soul" and that Petra is a holy place. Interestingly, most of the city was built in homage to the dead, with marvelous tombs - The living Nabataeans were nomads who lived in tents, like some modern Bedouins still do.

Thornton Wilder once said, "There is a land of the living and the dead, and the bridge is love, the only survival, the only meaning." This philosophy to me was at the heart of what made Petra beautiful ~ The views and vistas in Petra are beyond belief, especially when you get the first glimpse of the Treasury from the Siq, and when you climb the rock paths...

We hiked where the signs said "Do Not Climb" to get close up views of the Royal Tombs, and to stand and look down over the Roman theatre. Hundreds of feet below us, a line of Japanese tourists with umbrellas open to shade them from the sun wandered by in a parade of pastel color, and camels sauntered loaded with packs and people in the blazing sun, their long legs like matchsticks viewed from so high above. Petra is simply awesome.

The Roman ruins at Jerash, where we spent the day on Monday, where marvelous as well, especially with the backdrop of a small modern day city which surrounds the ancient site.

And floating in the Dead Sea is all it's cracked up to be - Your limbs pop to the surface as you float like a bobbing cork in all the salty water with it's slick, oily feel - It is warm as bath water and you can lie on your back, belly, or even your side in fetal position and stay on top of the water.

It's the lowest point on earth at more than 415 meters below sea level. Before heading into the water, you coat your whole body in mud and let it dry for 15 minutes - good for the skin! It itches a bit but feels so soft afterwards - Just don't go into the Dead Sea with any open wounds unless you are ready to feel a real sting!

The Marriott Resort where we hung out at the Dead Sea was posh, too - Three levels of pools with man-made waterfalls and even a waterslide, with the last pool overlooking the Dead Sea ~ The edge of the pool visually blurred with the edge of the sea. Restful, peaceful, beautiful. We lounged in our bikinis and had drinks poolside for hours, soaking in the hot sun...

All in all, an incredible week ~ And this week was the time to be with friends, rest-up and recover - Tonight I head out to a reggae dance party with my new friend KK, who is a bartender, Arabic tutor, English teacher and all-around cool guy - He is also strikingly handsome and doesn't look like he is "from here," since he dresses Western style and is tall with dreadlocks. He's a walking example of a person whose style transcends a certain time and place and he's a world traveller, too. So many fascinating people here.....

Must go dance! Tomorrow, the Turkish baths here (hammam) and hopefully an art gallery at lunchtime before flying to Dubai tomorrow evening for a weekend with Masuda- then to Athens and Mykonos next week with Xenia...

What a blessing it is to be here. Il-Hamdu lillah - Thanks be to God! As one would say here... in an expression of love that I also love... I have felt like family here, treated with kindness and embraced as a sister or a cousin, with love ~ and will return again someday for sure. In'sha Allah.

© Lisa Powell Graham 2006

In'sha Allah, I will return to Jordan again someday soon....

Today is my 10th and last day in Jordan ~ so many stories to tell! The people here are sweeter than keenafa, which is a favorite local dessert made of white cheese with dough on top and lots of honey...

I have been treated with so much respect and love and kindness, truly like a queen. Just call me Malekah Lisa. I leave here with a deep respect for the people, gratitude for all the gifts I have been given, and many new and dear friends. Also, ana bakhi arabi schway - I speak a little Arabic now!

It is a wonderful language, full of expressions that reveal the importance of religion, faith and human kindness in a country that is 95% Muslim. We great each other by saying "Salaam alaykoom" - May peace be upon you. Many sentences are followed by "In'sha Allah," God-willing.

Five times a day we hear the calls to prayer sounding in the streets, beautiful and eerie, ringing through the loudspeakers. On the ceiling of the hotel rooms at the Belle Vue where I am staying, on the second traffic circle in Amman, there is an arrow pointing to Mecca.

Despite all of the obvious cultural differences, Amman to me is the Middle East's answer to San Francisco. It was built on seven hills originally and there are now 22 hills (jebel) in the city. The city is also constructed around circles (duar) with directions given according to the traffic circle closest to the address you are seeking and with landmarks, vs. with street addresses, which generally are not recognized by the taxi drivers.

It is a modern city, but in the center of the downtown is an ancient Roman theatre and Citadel, still preserved today. So much history, so many civilizations, that have passed through this holy land...

My travels in Jordan have included Mt. Nebo where Moses saw the Promised Land before he died and Jesus' baptism site, and there are many biblical sites here ~ yet the spirit of the holy land is felt day-to-day here in the way people live their lives. There is deep faith in this country in something greater than all of us, and I have felt and heard and seen that in my daily interactions with the people here.

The buildings in the city are all made with facades of white stone, by law, so the streetscapes feature views of white buildings on the hillsides, with colorful shop signs in Arabic script in the shopping districts. It's a dusty city in this arid landscape ~ Amman is essentially surrounded by dessert, and much of Jordan is a dry and dusty country, with the occasional oases in the resort town of Aqaba, the Dead Sea, Petra, Jerash, Amman.

Amman is a city of contrasts. Many of the women are hijab - veiled - some in full burka, with only the eyes showing, but others wear modern Western clothing. The Jordanian and Lebanese women in the middle and upper classes, our friends here, are elegant and glamorous creatures. They are always impeccably dressed often in sexy outfits, with make-up and hair done. Being at the wedding was like being on the red carpet Oscars night! The ballroom was full of beautiful dark eyed women in sparkling floor-length beaded and sequined gowns, like so many Arabic movie stars...

Amman is growing rapidly. There has been a recent influx of Iraqis, many of whom are businesspeople who fled the country during the war and have invested in real estate and business development here.

There are new malls, including the glitzy Mecca Mall which spans four floors, already features a new extension and a food court to rival any mall in the US (although fortunately you can get delicious Arabic fast food at the mall here).

Many locals here, from cab drivers to friends of Salma's, have told us that the growth in the city has driven up prices, with the price to buy an apartment having tripled in the past few years, from about 40,000 dinars (approximately 56,000 dollars) to close to 150,000 JD (Jordanian dinars).

The governmental structure in Jordan is fascinating, with both a prime minister and King Abdullah, son of the popular late King Hussein, whose fourth wife happened to be an (Arab) American woman named Lisa Halaby who also attended Princeton University. I wonder if there is a chance for me to also join the royal family? ;-)

Portraits of the kings are featured everywhere - in rest stops along the highway, in libraries, behind the desk in the front lobby at the Belle Vue hotel. There is deep respect, a reverence, for King Abdullah here and for his father.

I have heard many stories of the late King Hussein's kindness, such as the time he stopped to greet my Saudi friend Majid on the streets of Amman when Majid was a child. The king visited with Majid who was 10 or so at the time and with his six year old sister. His Royal Highness noticed that Majid's sister's shoe was untied, and he knelt down to tie her shoe himself. So many people have personal stories that show the King in this light, as a great, humble and kind man.

That's all for the moment because I have a flight to catch to Istanbul in four hours ~ but I promise more stories soon about my travels in the ancient city of Petra, the Dead Sea, the Roman ruins of Jerash, the hot springs at Ma'In, and of course the extravaganza that was Salma and Basel's magical and amazing wedding! Pictures coming soon too.

Salaam alaykoom (may peace be upon you). Sending love from the Middle East to all of you....

© Lisa Powell Graham 2006