October review

What have we been up to?

Bro-ing down in Petra

Petra these days is a lot more touristy, but not in a bad way. For the most part it is more accessible, more comprehensible, and large enough to be explored without feeling crowded. It’s no longer possible to get an unpeopled shot of the Khazneh, but most other major sights are actually still fairly quiet. At least they are in early October. The Summer holiday season might be a shitshow.

Check out the privacy enjoyed by a few of my Brazilian colleagues at the Monastery…

Walk like a Brazilian

Aren’t they hilarious.

More importantly, the reason all these Global buddies came to Jordan was for Endeavor’s signature event – the International Selection Panel – and Endeavor Jordan’s Public Launch party. We brought 5 Jordanian companies and 7 new High-Impact entrepreneurs into the Endeavor Network. Stay tuned for stories…

Adjustments needed

Hello Jebel Ammanites, I’m considering becoming one of you forever.

Now is the time to decide: can I make my whole life here? What began as a mission to work hard and play never is now a proposed permanent Life Decision. I mean, come on, it’s been made. But it’s still something to chew on this weekend. New York, I miss you, I love you, I want to get back together. But right now, I want to see other cities, for strictly professional development purposes.

What I’m here to do

I’m tempted to say I didn’t come here to make friends, but of course it isn’t true. I am here to work my brains out, however. That has been the mantra. Part of that work is supposed to be this blog, too, and in that endeavor (see what I did there? I’m going to do that a lot) I have fallen short. It will be a challenge to balance my natural affection for and predisposition toward internetty absurdity with the earnest pride I feel in the organization, the model, and the people involved with Endeavor, and my passion for growing the social entrepreneurship space. I want to wax on private enterprise for public good, man, but I also want to punch myself for saying “growing the social entrepreneurship space.” And I don’t know if I have the bandwidth for all that.

Several recent privileged experiences:

1). Amman Centennial Parade. Who knew the gas truck song remix could inspire so much civic pride among jaded Ammanite youths? 100 years after the Romans arrived, Amman built highways and airplanes and children with balloons, so the floats would have me believe. The neat thing was, for all its schmaltz, the parade reflected the true face of Amman, and didn’t feel like a marketing campaign for foreign investment. Palestinians, Bedu, Circassians in national dress, the street vendors and noisemakers of the Balad (downtown), along with desert guard on camel-back and a Lotus from the Royal Automobile Museum rounded out the processional. Maybe the guys on stilts in awkwardly fitting unitards seemed out of place, but then again, maybe they didn’t.

Shoo akhbarik, pussycat?

I’ll stop being cute with these post names soon, I promise. I will run out of Arabic phrases that fit into movie/album/song titles while also referencing current events. I should share my news (akhbaree) and the fact that I live with two cats, neither of which has conducted bedside mouse sacrifice in my honor (yet).

In brief – Jebel Amman = BKLYN of Amman (wifi coffeehouses, galleries, alternative lifestyles and ironic facial hair), gays find a way, all Marshall scholars are alike, and Jordan is the smallest town ever (but we knew that).

Too busy to blog,

CHalaby

Ahlayn!

Welcome to Amman! My first welcome was actually at JFK, when the Royal Jordanian desk agent declined to charge or otherwise punish me for checking two extremely heavy bags for my non-stop flight to Jordan. 10 painless hours later I was at the Queen Alia International Airport lounge, refusing offers of water or juice because it was still sunny out and the friendly airport gentlemen were almost certainly fasting. I am just so Ramadan-hip it hurts.

I stocked up on labneh, zaater, bread and tomatoes. Still need to find good hummus. Have yet to sample fresh juices.

More soon.