“Ahlan wa sahlan” – a warm welcome. These words sum up my first few days in Jordan quite well. When I arrived at the airport late one night in early October, I was picked up and taken to the Theodor Schneller School. Once there, Yahia, a very friendly driver from the school, first made sure I had something to eat. At that point, I was still the only volunteer there. Tired from the journey, I walked through the quiet corridor of our living quarters and was allowed to choose a room. It felt a bit surreal, as apart from the security guard at the gates of the boarding house, there was no one else to be seen. “Welcome to Jordan,” I thought to myself, and fell into bed, exhausted.
The next morning, the peace and quiet came to an abrupt end. Teachers and children greeted me warmly with a cheerful “Ahlan wa sahlan”. Now I had finally arrived. Ustadh Samer (Teacher Samer, as he is affectionately called here by the children) is our contact person. He invited me to his history lesson and asked me with a grin how much of the Ammiye (Jordanian Arabic) I had already understood. I was then introduced to the girls’ group, where I now spend most of my time working. I still remember that first afternoon very well: curious glances, shy smiles and lots of questions. After homework time, we still had plenty of time to chat during the break.
My daily life at the boarding house
My daily routine soon settled into a rhythm. We have until 1.30 pm to organise our own mornings. Whether it’s hobbies, language school or a spontaneous trip to Amman, the bus journey always takes at least an hour. As the people here are incredibly open and helpful, this routine quickly became second nature; by asking questions or through confused looks, I soon found my way around, even though my sense of direction is more based on ‘learning by doing’.
After school, the girls come to the boarding school; we have lunch together at 1.30 pm, and then the homework supervision begins. Most of the time, I’m only assigned to the girls’ family and provide support in German and English. During exam periods, however, I also help out in other families if support is needed there – then things often get a bit hectic. The biggest challenge for me is conveying the subject matter within a limited time whilst keeping motivated, but also exhausted or desperate, children in good spirits. That doesn’t always work, as the mood can certainly take a turn for the worse. But with a few funny mnemonics, I do manage now and then to make English vocabulary understandable. Whether the children are laughing more at my creative explanations or at my Arabic, I’ll leave that open to interpretation. You can imagine the families as classes with a family atmosphere: the pupils learn, play, dance, eat together and sleep together in a hall.
My daily life at weekends
It’s October, Thursday afternoon, and now the pupils from the families are also heading back to their own families. Suddenly, the boarding school is empty for three days. At first, I didn’t think the idea was so bad: time just for myself, enjoying the peace and quiet. Spoiler: it’s nice, but also far too quiet. That’s why I look forward to visits from the other volunteers from As-Salt on Saturdays. Together we’ve already been to the Dead Sea and to Madaba, a city of mosaics. However, as they often only have Saturdays off, I’m left with two days to myself. I quickly sought out contact with other people. I didn’t put on a jacket in the morning, as the October sun was still warm enough. Then I set off to explore art galleries, markets and sights, and to devote myself to my priority: sampling Arabic sweets ;). In doing so, I met many warm-hearted people with whom I had great conversations. Although I really enjoyed this time on my own and found it very educational, I was relieved when my fellow volunteer Jeremias moved in at the start of November. Since then, we’ve been going on longer trips, during which I worry less about what time I’ll be heading home. Although I generally feel very safe here, I’ve learnt to keep a close eye on my surroundings so I can better judge which places I’d rather not visit alone.
Final thoughts
It’s already December, and the Jordanian winter has officially begun. That means thick jackets, even thicker blankets, and plenty of stray cats begging very convincingly for a warm place to sleep and some food at night. The festive atmosphere is hard to miss at school too. A large Christmas tree stands on the grounds, fairy lights decorate the boarding house, biscuits are handed out at parties, and the children sing Christmas carols cheerfully. The Arab Cup in December was also a highlight for the people here and for me.
The holidays are slowly approaching, but first we have our final exams to get through. I suppose this is the famous ‘calm before the storm’ here too.
See you soon!
Rania
This text was automatically translated using an AI-powered translation system.
