It was only a matter of time.

The past week and 1/2 has been so invigorating but at the same time exhausting. I can already trace a pattern of high and lows in my time here. There are a few experiences that I have not yet written about like I would like to share.

I mentioned before about a open market in the city on Fridays. Last week, my friends and I went to this market. Its in a beautiful part of the city that I have mentioned before: Rainbow Street. The market also hosted a cheap concert concert on an edge overlooking the great expanse of the city.

The market was located in a long alley off the main street and an approximate amount of 50 tables lined the walls of the alley. Jewelry stands seemed to be the most common attraction while other stands were filled with books, paintings, food, scarves, bags, and any other sort of knic-knacs you could imagine. It was crowded and became progressively more so as the evening covered Amman. As I rummaged through the market looking softly at the displays, I saw one painting that caught my eye. Spattered in dark colors it depicts four Arab men standing the in the desert in traditional dress. Not having much money on me I walked away telling myself that I could back next week.

But what if its not there next week. I shuffled to the nearest ATM and ran back to buy my painting. The creator of this painting was selling his work at the stand and autographed my copy. Later, a friend asked me what about it made me buy it. I just replied that it appealed to me.

I thought about it more later. What was it about this painting that made walk up the street to an ATM in order to purchase it? I looked at it and thought about it. Looked at it and thought about it; which is mostly the trend I have with most pieces of art. I finally decided that it was elusive. The faces of the men cannot be distinguish and their form cloaked in white is only distinguishable against the dark colors of its scenery. The piece plays on form, shadow, and color as to create an aura of mystery. Instead, I was enchanted by the work.

I clutched my purchase as we pushed through the crowd to get tickets for the concert. We sat on rugs towards the back and waited for the music to begin. We were told earlier that a Jordanian rock band playing but I was happily surprised about what the music turned out to be. The opening act was Arab rap and although I couldn't understand I word that they said; their style was fresh and their beats were solid. Enough for me to appreciate.

The "rock band" turned out to be an inventive arrangement mixing traditional Arab sounds against the strumming of modern acoustic guitar. I was almost in a trance. The combination of traditional and contemporary sound was seamless but subtle clues to both were evident. Great music.

The market was such a great experience and I'm hoping to go again next week.

In the news, the Israeli raid on the aid fortilla is all the rage in Amman. The people here are glued to the news and it takes the front page,the second page, and the third page of every news paper. There have been a demonstration in Amman with participants burning an Israeli flag with the words "fire with fire" written across. I was no where this demonstration.

What is most upsetting here is to see people's reaction. For the people I have spoke to, they are unable to reach their families and are trying to figure out what exactly happen. How can I describe the way they approach it? Sullen but not despair. Yearning but not desperate for an answer. It is the approach of a people for whom tragedy is commonplace and the advent of danger and possible death is sharp.

As my host mother said once, "At times, it is hard to live in the Middle East."

"Things" have gotten better in Jordan but its the overwhelming sense that something bad is going to happen. To most, the current conflict between Israel-Palestine and the world was merely a matter of time.

I was given an Arabic name by one of my professors: Yasmin. I like it.

Its taken me a few days to finish this blog entry because of school work and so many other social reasons. My language skills are still painful but I can notice improvement which is the best I can ask for.