This summer, I had the spectacular opportunity to study abroad in Amman, Jordan with the Amideast Summer of Intensive Arabic Program.  I went to Amman to experience Arab culture and to improve my Arabic language skills.  I could go on and on about my experience for hours but now that I’ve been back in the US for a few weeks, I can fully identify the best things about my study abroad experience.

1) Living with a host family

During my time in Amman, I lived with a Jordanian family and an American roommate.  Our host parents were incredibly welcoming and fully adopted us as their daughters and treated us like we had always been a part of the family.  Living with native Arabic speakers helped me improve my language skills so much and really immersed me in Jordanian culture.  Even every-day activities like eating dinner or watching Arab Idol were a cultural experience.

My host mother, her granddaughter, and myself.

2) My Arabic Classes

Since my program was during the shorter, summer session, we were in class for five hours a day!  While at times this was completely exhausting, using Arabic non stop for that amount of time really helped me improve my speaking ability.  My classes at the Amideast program expanded upon the Arabic I had learned in my classes at AU and helped me better put it to use.  We went through an entire semester of Arabic in just over 4 weeks!

My school in Amman.

3) Wadi Rum

I spent one weekend of my trip in Wadi Rum, a beautiful desert valley where famous movies such as Lawrence of Arabia were filmed.  During this trip, we rode camels, hiked up giant desert rock formations, went snowboarding down sand dunes.  We also stayed over in a Bedouin camp in the middle of the desert where we slept under a sky with the most beautiful stars imaginable!  Of all the trips and excursions we went on, this was definitely my favorite!

A group of us riding our camels through the desert.

Me rocking my AU Blue Crew shirt on top of a desert mountain.

4) Petra

The ancient city of Petra was truly breathtaking!  As one of the Seven Wonders of the World, it definitely lived up to its reputation.  Wandering around an ancient city carved into the mountains and was incredible!  As a total nerd myself, I was also super excited to wander into the temple where Indiana Jones found the Holy Grail.

Me in front of one of the main buildings at Petra- where scenes from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade were filmed!

Some of the smaller buildings from the city of Petra.

5) Amman!

And finally, one of my top favorite things about my study abroad was the city of Amman itself!  As a modern city with ancient history, Amman is a really unique place.  I loved going from the bustling markets in down town directly to a concert being performed in a perfectly preserved Roman Amphitheater.  This city was like none that I’ve ever been to before.  While I will always be a DC girl at heart, I hope that one day soon I will get the chance to return to Amman, Jordan.

The ancient Roman Amphitheater in the center of a modern, Middle Eastern city.

If you’re interested in learning more about AU study abroad, check out the study abroad webpage and find out where in the world AU will take you!