Winter (or is it fall?) came in like a gust of wind on Friday afternoon. It was overcast, blustery, and there was some intermittent rain. And it has stayed that way.
I'll admit that about a week ago (when it was still a high of 80 and there was strong sun and I was still sweating on my daily walks across campus), I was eagerly anticipating a temperature cool-down. This is not only because of the sweat factor, but also because I've been curious about the weather and the seasons and what living in this region during the non-summer months would be like. No sweat? No sunburns? Really?
In fact, the past few months I've been constantly polling Jordanians and ex-pats alike about what winter really looks like. I'd been living in Chicago for the past three years, after all, which included surviving a major blizzard. Jordanians were very explicit that it does get cold here, although snow is less common. I at first thought Jordanians were exaggerating in comparison to summer, but then I met a Ukrainian who described winter in Jordan as colder than Ukraine. I think the phrase used might have been "bone-chilling cold" which was followed with the explanation that the cold is not necessarily when you're outside--it's actually from being inside, in poorly heated homes that were built with tiles and materials that are meant to keep homes cool in the summer months.
So that's where we are, folks. I'm currently sitting in my apartment, wearing fleece pants over leggings and a down vest over a sweatshirt over a long-sleeve t-shirt, huddled near my space heater. I could barely get out of bed this morning because I was so warm under all my covers and I could tell the air was cold. But then I remembered the space heater that had been hidden in the corner of the living room so I leapt out of bed, hit the water heater button on the way (takes 20-30 minutes to heat up), and dragged the space heater to my room in order to get ready this morning. In all fairness, the heat has yet to be turned on, but I don't expect that to happen until next month since it runs on subr and costs about 100JD ($100) per apartment to run. Even then, our landlord told us that it'll only run for a few hours a day since it's just too expensive (6-9am and 6-9pm).
So what temperature is it you might ask?
I know, my Chicago self would be laughing at my Amman self, too. I swear it's about 53 degrees inside, though. And the drizzling rain and head cold don't help either. Let's just hope this really is winter and "fall" was the past two months of sunshine and temperatures of 80 degrees fahrenheit.
I'll admit that about a week ago (when it was still a high of 80 and there was strong sun and I was still sweating on my daily walks across campus), I was eagerly anticipating a temperature cool-down. This is not only because of the sweat factor, but also because I've been curious about the weather and the seasons and what living in this region during the non-summer months would be like. No sweat? No sunburns? Really?
In fact, the past few months I've been constantly polling Jordanians and ex-pats alike about what winter really looks like. I'd been living in Chicago for the past three years, after all, which included surviving a major blizzard. Jordanians were very explicit that it does get cold here, although snow is less common. I at first thought Jordanians were exaggerating in comparison to summer, but then I met a Ukrainian who described winter in Jordan as colder than Ukraine. I think the phrase used might have been "bone-chilling cold" which was followed with the explanation that the cold is not necessarily when you're outside--it's actually from being inside, in poorly heated homes that were built with tiles and materials that are meant to keep homes cool in the summer months.
So that's where we are, folks. I'm currently sitting in my apartment, wearing fleece pants over leggings and a down vest over a sweatshirt over a long-sleeve t-shirt, huddled near my space heater. I could barely get out of bed this morning because I was so warm under all my covers and I could tell the air was cold. But then I remembered the space heater that had been hidden in the corner of the living room so I leapt out of bed, hit the water heater button on the way (takes 20-30 minutes to heat up), and dragged the space heater to my room in order to get ready this morning. In all fairness, the heat has yet to be turned on, but I don't expect that to happen until next month since it runs on subr and costs about 100JD ($100) per apartment to run. Even then, our landlord told us that it'll only run for a few hours a day since it's just too expensive (6-9am and 6-9pm).
So what temperature is it you might ask?
I know, my Chicago self would be laughing at my Amman self, too. I swear it's about 53 degrees inside, though. And the drizzling rain and head cold don't help either. Let's just hope this really is winter and "fall" was the past two months of sunshine and temperatures of 80 degrees fahrenheit.
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