Elections Interrupted in Madaba???

I had just arrived home to go with dad to Madaba, when he told me that my aunt had just called from there, saying that we shouldn’t come, because the elections have been interrupted. Word has it there has been some shooting, fights, throwing stones, and police intervention of course.

I don’t know what is going to happen now… I don’t know what pausing the election process in Madaba means, but I’m sure the verified news will be out there soon. Al Jazeera just announced that the Islamic Action Front withdrew from the whole elections.

{sigh}

To Vote or Not to Vote!

In 15 minutes I should be heading out of the office to go and perform my civilcivic duty by voting in this year’s municipal elections. I can’t begin to count the times friends and colleagues laughed at my use of the term “civilcivic duty”… the eternal question is “do you actually believe any of those candidates is in it to make a difference? Does anyone have a clear agenda on which they’re running? Is it anything but business interests or tribal affiliations and pacts??”

I have two bitter confessions to make; the first is that I missed the registration deadline back in May, which meant that my registration remains the same as it was four years ago when I first voted in the parliamentary elections, i.e. in Madaba. Don’t get me wrong, I care so much about Madaba and feel so proud of my roots there… BUT, Amman is my hometown… Amman is where I drive everyday, where I walk, where I attempt to jog or find parks and cultural events to go to, and where whatever the municipality does directly affects my life.

Since I didn’t do anything to change my registration when there were all these campaigns reminding people, and targeting youth (I even wrote the script for one of the radio PSA’s calling out to young people to go and register!! I have no excuses whatsoever for not having taken action), I thought I could drive down to Madaba and try to find out as much as I can about the candidates. But again, with the hectic work schedule and magazine deadlines of the past couple of weeks, I didn’t get to do that.

So, here I find myself today, with absolutely no clue about the background of each candidate and what basis they’re running on. Yesterday I googled half of Madaba’s candidates, uselessly of course. Not that I expected to find anything. Shaden was right in her post… it’s not the average citizen’s duty to run all around town trying to dig up the platforms and agendas of candidates as if it’s some big mystery. Candidates should reach out to the public with this information. Local media should dedicate some space for that. Amman Net has been doing a wonderful job in this regard. They have the most comprehensive coverage on the elections in Amman, but when they tried to invite the candidates of each area for a debate in the studio, all but one apologized, came up with excuses not to come, or simply stopped answering their phone. I don’t know the statistics of how many registered voters are between the ages of 18 and 30, but I bet you it constitutes a significant percentage of the total voters. How do you reach out to those? Internet penetration may be low in Jordan, but it’s available in universities and knowledge stations. How hard is it for every candidate to create a website, post his C.V and record, and let us know what he or she intends to do in the council??

Any other suggestions? Don’t you think that the designated one week is too short for electoral campaigns?

In case you don’t know, it’s highly worth noting that some major changes were made to the municipal elections law this year, whereby the entire council is elected, rather than only half of it as was the case four years ago. Last time the head of the municipal council was appointed as well, but this year, it’s all through election.

Another change is the introduction of a 20% minimum quota for women. On the one hand, this has encouraged more women to run for office, but on the other, you’d think, if 20% are going to be women anyways, then it doesn’t matter whether or not I vote for a woman. I don’t have a fixed position on the quota system yet. I’m interested in hearing your thoughts if you’d like to share.

In case you’re wondering who I’m going to vote for, I might turn in a white ballot… at least that impacts the process more than staying home and acting as though this does not concern me.

Check out www.mun-elections.net for information. Also check out Amman Net’s reports on the different angles of the elections.

Delicious Music; the Matbakh in Amman

The ripples from the brilliant Music Matbakh concert are already out there on the Jordanian blogosphere (check out Roba’s excellent review, Mazen’s beautiful photos, and Khobbeizeh’s video and photos). I just thought I’d share a few more thoughts on that wonderful evening…

As you probably know, although this talented group spent three weeks in London last may, most of the show was actually put together in less than 5 days. They had never met before, and they only had a few days before the first scheduled gig to come up with a full set. Their styles were very different, and their collaboration resulted in such a rich mix. You have rappers like RGB from Lebanon and Bigg from Morocco (the latter couldn’t make it on this tour, which is such a bummer), and then a top-notch violinist like Medhat from Egypt (who by the way was in Amman earlier this month playing with the Egyptian Orchestra in the Carmina Burana concert). You have Jordan’s Yacoub Abu Ghosh on his six-string base (think Sign of Thyme, and watch out for their new album coming out in early September), and Ruba Saqr with her incredible and unique voice (Ruba is also recording an album but I’m not sure when it will be released). (Check out the profiles of all the cooks on the music matbakh web page)

Mohamed Medhat on Violin and Ousso on Guitar

From hip hop to Gnawa, and from rock to traditional Middle Eastern music, I really enjoyed most of the 13 songs. I liked Dialogue, with Syrian Moslem Rahhal on Nai, and Andrew McCormick from London on the piano. I liked “Kulche Dayez”, with its powerful vocals. Tahmil was one of my favorites, which had no singing but some very impressive solo moments. Another favorite was “Ragab More Fun”, which just makes you want to jump and dance and sing along. Hisham, from Morocco, invited the audience to come down to the front of the theatre and dance. I really appreciated the small group who did. At first the generalization in my head was that people here just don’t drop their guard in public, and are too self-conscious. But then my mind jumped to JTV images of the Jerash Festival and concerts with mainstream artists, and that was sufficient to remind me that I am wrong, and that we see many people with no problem dancing like no one is watching. I guess my conclusion was that, if I were to generalize, I’d say it’s the “facebook Ammanis” who are too self-conscious. Before the last song, Highway – which I absolutely loved – Hisham again said: “my dream tonight is for Amman to dance with us”. Some more people came down, and then others stood up by their seats. The energy in the theatre was great, and the show ended on a high note, leaving you wanting more.

Hicham Bajjou from Morocco

Yacoub Abu Ghosh on Bass and Leo Taylor on Drums

I must say I was somewhat disappointed that it was held at the Hussein Cultural Theatre. I like the place a lot, but this is summer time, and a show of this size and this type of music would’ve been so much more fun somewhere open air; like the Roman Amphitheatre or the Citadel.

One of my favorite moments was when this little kid who apparently happened to be around the cultural center approached me while we were all waiting outside asking where one could get tickets. I told him people got them days before the show, but I had one extra since a friend bailed out, so I gave it to him. When I was walking to my car afterwards, I saw him with his mom, and he telling her all about the concert with huge excitement. He waved at me enthusiastically, and that was enough to send me home with the biggest goofy smile

Tomorrow, Grammy award-winning L.A- based group Ozomatli are playing in Jerash, at the South Theatre. Their music is a mix of groove, rock, reggae, and Latin styles, and they are named after the Aztec god of dance. Also tomorrow, Thursday, the “Amman Band for Classical Arabic Music” led by Sakher Hattar are playing in an evening titled “A Paradise of Dawalli wa Zeitoun”, at the Hussein Cultural Center.

On Saturday, Jordanian poet Jumana Mustafa is signing her first collection, with a reading accompanied by Ahmad Barakat playing Oud. It will be at Dar Al Anda, in Jabal Luweibdeh, at 8:00 pm.

Music Matbakh, and more in this week’s culture buzz!

When twelve of the best musicians in the Middle East and North Africa come together in London, alongside British musicians, and are given a few days to come up with a music set to perform together… what could the outcome be?

This rogue kitchen with so many chefs led by much-respected producer/musician Justin Adams managed to come up with great musical recipes… a fusion of hip hop, Gnawa, rock, jazz, Rai, and Middle Eastern Arabic music. They performed in different places in England, and were received with amazing enthusiasm from audiences. Check out British media reactions in the Guardian, the Independent, the Financial Times, and others. The project is a joint initiative between the British Council and Serious Production Company in England. Musicians were carefully selected from Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Tunisia, and Morocco, covering diverse musical disciplines and styles, with our very own Yacoub Abu Ghosh on Bass guitar, and Ruba Saqr on guitar and vocals.

This Saturday Sunday, the 22nd of July, Music Matbakh is coming to Amman, and will be playing at the Hussein Cultural Center in Ras Al Ein at 8:00 pm. It’s free, but you still need to get tickets to enter the theatre; they’re available at the British Council in Rainbow St., or through Orange Red (call 06 4623297). After the concert there will be an outdoor screening of a documentary on their experience in London.

Moving on, tonight Monday, at 8:00 pm at Zara Century Cinema, there will be a screening of the French movie “La Mome”, which tells the story of the great French singer Edith Piaf.

Tomorrow, Tuesday the 17th, at 8:30 pm, enjoy a very interesting evening on the open terrace of the Royal Film Commission as they screen short documentaries from the USC workshop that took place in March. Fourteen documentaries will be on schedule, covering topics like talkative taxi drivers in Amman, the pigeon brothers next to Wild Jordan, a film club in a village in Madaba, a mother whose son was imprisoned in Guantanamo for five years, Hashem restaurant downtown, Abul Abed the peanut guy who has been in the same spot for 50 years… and many others. My favorite is probably Firas Taybeh’s, titled “the invisible face”, which uncovers the story of a man who looks like any other selling stuff by the Husseini Mosque.

On Wednesday the 18th, there’s a lecture at the Orphali Art gallery in Um Uthaina about Baghdad and its people during the past century, accompanied by unique photos. It will take place at 8:00 pm.

Also on Wednesday, Palestinian singer Aida Al Amrikani will be performing at Jafra café downtown.

Thursday the 19th, Jordanian singer Macadi Nahhas will be performing at the outdoor theatre of the Hussein Park, at 9:00 pm.

Oh, and be sure to check out Oraib Toukan’s very interesting photography exhibition “Counting Memories” at Darat Al Funoun, which runs until Thursday the 19th (you can call them at 06 464 3253.

Enjoy the Amman summer and the absolutely gorgeous weather this week

Time to Run :)

For all you runners out there and anyone who would just like to be part of a fun athletic event… the Amman Marathon will take place on Friday the 7th of September, organized by the Society for Care of Neurological Patients (same folks who organize the annual Dead Sea Marathon every April and the Red Sea Marathon in November).

For the first time this year, the Amman race will have a full-marathon category – i.e. 42km. The path has not been announced yet. Of course, you can go for 21km, or a fun run (10Km).

It’s a little less than two months away, so you have a good period of time to practice. Don’t know where you can run in Amman?? Check out the forest track at the Hussein Sports City

Regulating Falafel Prices

According to Ammon News, the union of restaurant owners along with the Consumer Protection Association issued and distributed a list of new prices for falafel and hummus, for all restaurants to abide by. Five piasters should now buy you three pieces of falafel instead of two, and a plate of hummus should cost 0.5 JD instead of 0.65.

I found it amusing when I was in New York City that a small plate of hummus costs around $7, and a good Shawarma sandwich around $10. Even though it tasted as good as it does here (pretty much), i felt that its spirit was lacking! Some would argue that this can be said about Falafel Hut in sweifieh, where you order a “Falafel Burger”, and pay something like 1.5 JDs for it (as I’ve been told). A wise friend of mine calls it “blasphemous” to pay this much for a falafel sandwich

My friend Thomas from Holland claims that Amsterdam has the best Falafel bar in the world. I have yet to try that

Amman Summer Festival

I contacted the office of the Amman Summer Festival today (06 4778615), and they were very friendly, helpful, and most importantly, responsive. They sent me a soft copy of the schedule of activities for July. I already had a hard copy which was distributed at the Carmina Burana concert last Thursday, and included a map, color codes to match the event with the location, and contact information for all the venues and entities involved. There are some flaws (some items in the soft and hard copies are different) and there’s a lot of room for improvement, but I’m very appreciative of this effort.

I’ll be posting items week by week, and will update each post whenever I find out about something new.

Tuesday July 10th
18:30 Screening of award-winning film “Bread and Roses” at the Shoman Cinema Forum
21:00 Concert at Blue Fig (tel. 06 5928800)

Wednesday July 11th
20:00 Monte Carlo Music Festival (at the Hussein Cultural Center/Ras Al Ein)

Thursday July 12th

18:00 Poetry Reading (Hussein Cultural Center/Ras Al Ein)
18:00 Shabeeb Zaha Festival (Zaha Cultural Center/Khalda) (from the announcements I’ve been seeing around town, it’s mostly Jordanian music or folklore)
19:30 Circus (King Hussein Park Theatre)
20:00 Radio Monte Carlo Festival (Hussein Cultural Center/Ras Al Ein)
20:00 Nancy Ajram & Hani Mitwasi (Concert) (Amman Waves)
20:00 Kids Play (Hussein Park)
20:00 Kids Entertainment (Queen Rania Park)
20:30 Jordanian Talent competition (Blue Fig – 06 5928800)
21:00 Toni Qattan Concer (Queen Rania Park)

Friday July 13th

10:00-22:00 Souq JARA Flea Market (there are usually musicians playing at the Jara theatre at 8:30pm)
18:00 Shabeeb Zaha Festival (Zaha Cultural Center/Khalda)
19:30 Circus (Open theatre at the Hussein Park)
20:00 Kids play (Hussein Park)
20:00 Kids Entertainment (Queen Rania Park)
20:00 Dabkeh and popular dance at the Paris Square
21:00 Fadi Ghassan – Concert (Hussein Park)

Other interesting events will be taking place later this month, with Zade Dirani, Music Matbakh, the Amman Symphony Orchestra, and more. Next schedule will be up here on Friday

A Cool Job opening and a Website to check out!

How would you like to travel across the Kingdom for research and write up interesting vibrant continuously updated content for a new website coming up called Ijaza.com?? The website aims to offer authentic travel advice on Jordan, complete with GPS maps, accommodation, culture, sights… you know, the package!

I came across this opportunity as I was exploring Akhtaboot.com – the career network. Akhtaboot is a transliteration of the Arabic word meaning Octopus. The aim is to connect the right people to the right jobs, starting initially in Jordan, but planning to expand to serve the MENA region.

I like the design and feel of the website, and even though it’s still new, there are already some very interesting opportunities listed there. I’m sure that as the community expands, it will be even more powerful and effective.

While I know unemployment figures are still relatively high in Jordan, I keep feeling that are there are lots of new and exciting jobs out there, in Jordan, that didn’t exist a couple of years ago. Most people who run companies complain that it’s hard to find young job seekers with the right skills and more importantly, the right attitude.

It’s only been a year and a half since I graduated, but if I may assume that I can give some advice to university students, I’d say; don’t obsess over the text books, grades, and GPA. Get involved, volunteer, do activities, knock doors asking for internships, and try out as many different things as you can. It’s amazing how many jobs that will connect you to even before you graduate, and you won’t even be asked about your GPA or certificate. All the people I know who were so active with these extra-curricular activities and college part-time jobs landed in excellent jobs before they even took their last final exams.

Well, that’s just from my perspective and my humble experience at the great age of 24 =P

Another piece of advice; check out Akhtaboot, and give them feedback to make it better.

A Quick Glance at Amman’s Summer Happenings!

After months of addiction to Double Espresso Amaretto-flavored Latte from Cups and Kilos, I’m happy to be back to the old habit of good, very black filtered coffee at the office; the office being my new workplace at a magazine as a full time writer/journalist. I’m tempted to write a post about what it’s like moving from an 1100-employee to a 15-person company (often working from outside the office and rarely all being there at the same time), but I’m not sure I’ve got that entirely figured out yet.

One thing I love though is the fact that we’re situated just off second circle. I walk up the street to the Lebanese manaqeesh place, drive a little further to Abu Omar’s exquisite little hummus/falafel corner, grab a halloum with Za3tar sandwich (3al Saj) from Al-Thawwaq (Le Gourmet) just behind the Shoman library, and drive back home in the evening through this winding one-way road where kids are playing joyfully on the street… some barefoot, running, hiding behind parked cars, screaming, and enjoying their summer holiday. The other day I was stopped by a bunch of kids sitting in the middle of the street waving frantically; they had set up shop on the pavement, where they were selling little plastic toys and random stuff for 15, 20, or 25 piasters… there’s business initiative for you I bought one of those kids-meal smurf toys, and it makes me smile every time I look at it on my desk. Another day one kid had a table with food and sweets to sell to the other kids of the neighborhood at peak playing hour.

When the sun goes down and the weather starts to get cool, you see so many people hanging out in the middle of second circle; families, kids, teenagers… which also amuses me because there really is nothing to do there. Someone should set up an ice-cream stand or a slush machine or something. Someone should take an instrument and play there.

That said though, Amman is buzzing with things to do this summer… pretty much every single day. Supposedly, Amman’s Summer Festival has started today, with concerts and performances planned every evening in different locations; the Hussein Park, the Citadel, and the Roman Amphitheatre downtown. The Jordan Tourism Board said they will be distributing weekly event calendars to all hotels and tourist attractions to keep visitors informed of happenings around town. I haven’t got a hold of one of those calendars yet, and it’s such a shame the information is not available online, but I’ll post it as soon as I have it.

The Jerash Festival schedule is available online, which is refreshing. Ozomatli are one of the most interesting groups participating, and there are a bunch of other things to look out for… some also taking place in Amman.

I’ve also been coming across many banners hanging on the circles across Zahran St., announcing some folkloric performances at the Hussein Cultural Center. There was no traffic jam that would give me sufficient time to read and get all the information, but just enough to re-affirm the fact that there are so many options and so many diverse things taking place… mostly free of charge!!

While I’m at it, I might as well mention a couple more things:

Saturday, INK are having an open-stage jam… so if you feel like improvising and contributing to the action; take your instrument and head to Blue Fig.

Blue Fig is also hosting Reef, this month’s featured band for the Orange Red/French Cultural Center program. They play a mix of Acid jazz, Glitch, IDM and chill out, experimental rock, and it’s on Sunday at 8:30 pm.

Monday – great live funk music at the Backyard.
(update: live music at the Backyard has been cancelled, instead, check out an evening of Jordanian music performed by the Amman Symphonic Orchestra, tonight (Monday) at 7:30pm, at the Hussein Cultural Center in Ras Al Ein).

Tuesday – at Blue Fig again, Yacoub Abu Ghosh and Kamal Musallam are playing.

Wednesday night is live music night at Amigo, and Thursday night you can enjoy live Jazz with Sushi or Asian food at Fame.

If you’re not into those hangouts, check out the action at Jafra downtown… they have some live music and some poetry readings every now and then, but it’s been a while since I checked.

This is all off the top of my head, I’ll add some more soon. I would have loved to include photos but I’ve been camera-less for a while!

If you’re interested, check out the post about Souad Massi’s concert on 7iber. That was a brilliant concert; I couldn’t do it justice in writing.

More later!

The Written Word; More Glimpses of New York

For some reason, I enjoy noticing ads, flyers, t-shirt slogans, signs… different word combinations on the streets of a city. They tell you something about it, one way or the other.

At Central Park

Ad in the subway

Somewhere in the East Village (the artist who owns the place wouldn’t let me take photos inside)

This was posted on a street lamp somewhere in SoHo

A small shop on Avenue A, which you cannot enter except by ringing the door bell.

It was interesting to see that the fine in New York is over three times more than the fine in Philly.

This one was in a train in Philly, but I thought I’d post it here anyway

The New York Post on the 19th of June. The story basically was that this photo of Miss Israel was used on an invitation to an event organized by Maxim Magazine, taking place in New York City, celebrating their feature “Women of the Israeli Defense Forces” . Female members of the Kenesset in Israel were very upset by this, and were trying to prevent this ad from appearing in the magazine. The whole thing caught my attention because of using “Peace in the Mid East” with this photo.