I will be leaving Jordan in January. Due to my imminent departure, I have made quite an effort to appreciate all that I can in Jordan during my last semester here. I still continue to have a full teaching load at my school: This semester I'm teaching 2nd grade, 3rd grade, 4th grade, 6th grade, and 8th grade with my local Jordanian counterparts. Nevertheless, I have not spent a full weekend in my community since the semester started. The other Peace Corps Volunteers here in Jordan are some of the most incredible people I have ever met, and this semester I have taken advantage of every opportunity to see them in Amman, Irbid, and Aqaba. I'm especially looking forward to our Thanksgiving celebration this weekend. For a preview of what that may look like, I encourage you to read my post about last year's Thanksgiving.
Last month the volunteers and staff got together as an entire group for the last time at our Close of Service (COS) Conference in Madaba. In addition to offering advice related to how to leave our communities and how to find jobs upon our return to the US, the Peace Corps staff provided us with plenty of opportunities to celebrate each other and our services to Jordan. I continue to be amazed by my fellow volunteers and genuinely enjoyed hearing about all of their successes.
J15 Close of Service with Country Director
Close of Service Certificate with Country Director and US Ambassador to Jordan Stuart Jones
Another fun event I attended was the FIFA World Cup Intercontinental Qualifier between Jordan and Uruguay,
where I took a video of the fans signing the national anthem:
I've also gone hiking multiple times this fall, including an absolutely amazing three-day trek through the Rajef Inselbergs,
