Hush-puppies and Taco Stands Middle East Style!

I suppose I would have to label myself a foodie. As my ever-changing waistline proves, I like to eat. And, perhaps more importantly, I like to eat good food. But good food does not necessarily mean expensive food. More often than not, I find the tiny little hole-in-the-wall spot favored by locals will give me the tell-everyone-I-meet-about-it experience I long for. These are the places with five items on the menu - and all of them some variation on the same food. The places where your food comes in some form of paper - wrapped up, in a greasy bag, or, if your lucky, maybe on a sheet of paper in a molded plastic basket. The table and chairs, if there are any, are also molded plastic - stackable - so they can be taken off the sidewalk or out of the alley at night as the only room around this dive is public space.

These are the places you normally walk by when visiting a foreig
n land thinking they are unsanitary, unsafe, and unwelcoming. But aren't they surprisingly reminiscent of the sandwich shop down the street from you at home that has been in the garage of the same house for fifty years. Or the taco stand with a take-away window on the corner that is only open for lunch. Or that kitschy little breakfast place in the middle of your residential neighborhood that always has a line out the door. Often we flock to these places in our own communities but for some reason we pass them by when out of our safety zone. Or, some of us do. I look for them. I hope for them. I seek them out. And, most often, I am so happy with the result I go back. Night after night.

Well Jordan has not disappointed me. Even during Ramadan, these holes-in-the-wall are thriving. For as soon as the sun goes down, the fasting stops, and the eating begins!

Food in Jordan is fairly traditional Middle Eastern fare. Lots of hummus with fresh cucumber, tabouli, babaganoush, and lamb. But there are also some dishes we Westerners often miss out on.

As a staple of the traditional diet, chickpeas are used in a variety of ways. Hummus is perhaps the best known, but then you have the felafel - the hush-puppy of the Middle East! Ground chickpeas are combined with spices and then fried to a golden brown in shallow oil filled pans. These can be found at every turn - from the fanciest five star restaurant to the street vendor on every square. And each and every cook has his own twist. Some are purposefully small to give you more crisp golden goodness in every morsel. Others have chili powder added to the mix to give you a warm spicy finish.

The best known place in Amman for these treats is Al Quds on Rainbow Street. For almost 50 years Al Quds has been dishing up felafel sandwiches each night to the patrons of this main drag. Your choices are "basic,"" regular" and "super." The difference being the condiments added to your paper and foil wrapped treat. The "super" is a sesame roll spread with lemon tahini and filled with golden fresh-from-the-oil bite size felafels along with fresh tomatoes, red onion and lettuce - all for less than $1. As a late night snack you can't beat it - you may even go back for a second!


If felafel is the hush-puppy of the Middle East - Shwarma is the carne asada taco of the region. And the best "taco" stand in Amman is Al Reem on Second Circle. The line in front begins just before noon, slacks up only slightly during the late afternoon, and then goes full on until late in the night. The skewered slices of lamb rotate across a open flame front and center at Al Reem. The shwarma "chefs" dance around one another slicing the lamb, grilling onions and tomatoes and filling soft warm pita bread to the delight of the anxious patrons. A white bag means no onions. A red bag has tomatoes. And a yellow bag - my bag - has both! A "double meat" will set you back about $1.25 and is the size of a small burrito. Just like Al Quds - if you're really hungry you may want to splurge and spend $2.50 and make a meal of it. A cold beer would finish both of these off perfectly - but alas - you'll have to settle for a cold coke as, for obvious reasons, there is not a beer to be found. (At least not out in the open!)

For dessert go downtown to Habibeh for Palestinian kenafah. This back alley institution is always crowded. Pay for your serving outside in the alley and then force yourself through the throng and make your way to the counter with your order sheet held aloft. Pretty quickly - if your forceful enough - you be rewarded with a plate of hot, sweet, gooey cheese covered in fine golden strands of pastry - almost like shredded wheat - topped with a warm rose water syrup and crushed pistachios. Heaven!



While I have occasionally complained about too much hummus - my time in Jordan has been good to me in terms of food. It is always fresh, always well prepared, and always served with hospitality the region is famous for.

Time in a Bottle

Over the past year I have found myself in Jordan for a cumulative total of more than 3 months. It has been an enlightening time. In many ways the Switzerland of The Middle East, Jordan has a deserved reputation for hospitality. From the nomadic Bedouin to the sophisticates of Amman, Jordanians are an inviting and lively people. The traditional Arab tea greets you at every turn, and seldom can you be introduced without being offered a meal.

Jordan is famed for many things – the amazing Roman ruins of Jerash, the healing waters of the Dead Sea, the path of Moses to The Promised Land – The Jordan Valley, the olives of Ajloun, the castles of Saladin, the ancient mosaics of Madaba, the dunes and mountains of Wadi Rum – where the famed Lawrence hatched his plans for the region - and, of course, Petra – the Rose City. But Jordan also offers an amazing blend of cultures – nomadic Bedouin tribesmen, Palestinians, Jews, Christians, and any number of others are all welcome here. Jordan shows how we can all coexist – peacefully and prosperously.

With this amalgam of culture comes a great craft tradition. Embroiderers are at every turn. Elaborate Palestinian cross-stitch, simple, elegant Jordanian fill-stitches, olive wood carvings, camel and goat hair rugs, and – my favourite – sand bottles!

Sand Bottles – the art of the B'dul tribe in and around Petra. Reminiscent of the salt “painting” we made in elementary school by rubbing colored chalk across salt and then layering it into a clear container, these bottles incorporate the natural hues of the rock found throughout Jordan and concentrated in the hills of the Rose City. They can be simple striking patterns like those found throughout Petra’s tombs or elaborate geometrics or desert pastorals with caravans of camels or… they can even write your name in the sand as you wait!

Of course the Bedun are nomads and are famed for their trading skills – so they will – as many of us – make whatever sells. And there is of course no accounting for taste – especially from the bus-loads of tourists found at every turn.

But I want to concentrate on the beauty – or my idea of beauty – to be found in these treasures. The bottles I envision being brought back from The Grand Tour after Jordan was “discovered,” and the Petra was the farthest reach of the noble class of Europe. The bottles carefully packed in trunks by spinster aunts attending their nieces throughout the journey. The bottles E.M. Forster might have mentioned sitting on a tea table when the travelers returned home.

Most of these miniature treasures are created in small hand-blown glass bottles. (In and of themselves elegantly simple.) Using the most basic of tools, these artisans must first prepare their materials. As the base for their work is stone, each artisan collects his raw materials from the mountains and hills. With hues ranging from pink to red and blue to black the palette is seemingly endless. The stone is then crushed into fine sand and worked through a sieve to ensure the finest details can be created. Once the sand is prepared, the master begins his work.

Using crude tools made for this purpose alone, the “painter” begins to layer the colors of Jordan through the neck of the bottle using a long neck funnel with a precise point. Once a base has been established, the patterns are created with small sharp implements reminiscent of the trappings of a dental hygienist. Each figure or shape is carefully created and then held in place by the next layer of sand. Once the bottle is filled, and the panoramic scene in place, the artist seals time in place with a mixture of resin and sand.

These men – for they are mostly men who create the bottles – have taken the simplest of materials and tools and found a way to express their culture, and to preserve the images of Jordan in a most unique medium, and, most likely unknowingly, have also developed and outlet for their own creativity.

I have never seen anything quite like these gems of the desert. Each time I look at them I am reminded of Jordan in a way no other souvenir can manage. For they allow me to hold a memory in my hand. A memory quite literally created from the very land I’ve visited.

I'm Back! and it's Ramadan! and I'm hungry!

To those of you who have missed me - I am truly sorry not to have written anything for some time now. I'm not sure what has kept me from it, but something certainly has. Perhaps I'll explore that at a later date. But for now - I'M HUNGRY!

Over the past year, I have spent the better part of three months in Jordan. My time here overall has been pleasant and enjoyable. Amman is a welcoming city with a vibrant social scene, friendly people, and excellent Arab cuisine. This trip, however, falls during the holy month of Ramadan and fasting is de rigeur. While this is something anathema to most of us, I have decided to participate during my journey, as it is the custom here and I would like respect and better understand the customs of my co-inhabitants on this planet - and it couldn't hurt for me to skip a few meals. As is often the case, I have found far more similarities than differences in the meaning and reasoning behind this practice than most of us might expect when faced with something so "foreign."

Each year from new moon to moon during the ninth month of the lunar calendar - Ramadan - Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset. This is to pay homage to God and recognize their blessings - it is the month God passed down the holy text of the Qu'ran to mankind.

Before the Islamic Calendar was standardized, Ramadan always fell during the Summer months - now it moves 10 days earlier each year in relation to the Gregorian Calendar. (Many believe this allowed for the figurative and possibly literal burning away of past sins. The Qu'ran states that during Ramadan the gates of heaven are open and the gates of hell closed - ie. get your house in order while the time is right!) I think it must also have correlated to the period of the year when food supply was scarce in the region and it was necessary to conserve resources. (Isnt't it funny that so many religious observances arise out of necessity - but assigning them "god's will" brings the required conformity.)

So this year I find myself arriving to The Hashemite Kingdom smack dab in the middle of Ramadan. With 28 days from new moon to new moon, I am here on the 14th day of Ramadan in August in one of the hottest regions of the world, and it is now 4:00pm and I am hungry - not to mention thirsty - Did I mention this is a fast of both food and water? So no food or water from sunrise to sunset. Did I mention I'm hungry?

The normally bustling streets around my hotel are all but empty. The restaurants nearby have Ramadan hours posted - "In observance of the holy month of Ramadan, we will be opening at 7:30pm and closing at 2:00am." Government offices are working half days - many private companies as well have reduced hours during this time, as working a full day is nearly impossible without some form of nourishment. And lots of families choose this month to vacation or commune with one another.

I have been told historically the Ramadan fast also served as an opportunity to correct the over-indulgence of the rest the year. Most people lost weight and used the time to reconnect not only with God and family, but also with their own bodies. The fasting reminded them of their excesses and gave them a mandated time to fix the damage done each year. (Of course many devout Muslims fast once a week as well - which also serves this same spiritual and physical purpose.)

Recently though, especially as secularization and affluence has increased in Muslim communities, the fast-breaking at the end of the day and feasting during Eid - the final day of Ramadan - has in itself become an excess. Rather than losing the weight of idleness and gluttony from the past year, many celebrants are now so overindulgent when the fast breaks that they are gaining weight!

Many would say this is the influence of the West - including many Westerners - especially when all you have to do is look at the retailing which seems to have overshadowed Christmas. (I often tell artisans targeting product development for the US, "Christmas in the US is no longer about God - it is about Santa.") Perhaps this is all too true.

In many ways - except the not eating part - Ramadan tradition is similar to the US Christmas season - beginning with Thanksgiving and moving through New Year, we make time for family, for friends, for celebrating both our god and our cultural heritage. (At least that is what we are supposed to be doing.) During Ramadan, Muslims remember their bounty by depriving themselves of it temporarily, and they thank God for the gift He sent to earth in the form of the Qu'ran as a guide for them to live their lives.

Aren't these the same principles we are trying to remember with "Giving Thanks" for our harvest and with Christmas for the blessing God has sent down to us in the form of His Son -also a model by which we can live our lives? Whether you are a Christian or a Muslim or any other participant in the world community aren't your blessings worth taking the time to recognize and honor? And shouldn't we look to our fellow man and try to better understand his place and his practice as well?

I'll let you know as this fasting thing develops. Obviously just a few hours has caused a great deal of reflection for me - or perhaps it is just the slight faintness I am feeling as my blood sugar creeps ever lower! No, I think this may be a part of the exercise...