Last night we had our first Jordanian bloggers meet-up and believe me when I tell you, it was tons o’ fun. Seven bloggers showed up: Roba, Isam, Ammar, Nader, Zaid, the husband and I. As I expected, our Jordanian blogging community is exceptional. [Click any pic for an enlargement]
Everyone is smart, friendly and articulate with a great sense of humor. After we gathered and introduced ourselves we spent a couple hours discussing various issues ranging from the Iraq War to the advent of internet in Jordan to the art of blogging … of course.
For those interested, I will do my best to highlight what went on last night:
Isam, the programmer behind Jordan Planet, talked intensely about the importance of blogging and the image of Jordan it creates for the outside world. He revealed many ambitious ideas for Jordan Planet including creating an Arabic version of the site. Citing the success of Persian bloggers, he pointed out how powerful blogging can be.
Roba expressed some frustration with the lack of awareness about blogging in Jordan, particularly among the youth. “Very few of my friends know what a blog is,” she complained. She also blamed the lack of internet access in Jordan for the limited success of blogging in the kingdom.
Nader shared Roba’s frustration, saying the friends that knew of his blogging labeled it a “waste of time … They just don’t get it,” he said.
Meanwhile, Ammar is convinced that many Jordanians don’t realize that they have the right to express themselves. He discussed how the concept of speaking out is just not injected into today’s youngsters and never taught to kids in schools.
Zaid, our quiet blogger, said that the reason he doesn’t blog that often is due to his inner fear of being misunderstood. But he promised to try to post more regularly.
The husband and photographer of our gathering (who also made a bonus image for the event) weighed in on the technical side of blogging and what works best to perfect the art. As for me, well, I was loud and obnoxious as usual. I had a blast!
Planeteering across global heights
(Yes, that is the most random title in the whole wide world, but well, I’m watching a movie about airplanes, so it’s random with an explaination.)
Today, dearests, was the the 5th Jordan Planet blogger meet-up. I’m sorta losing count, the arithmet…
Oh I am so so sorry I missed this. I was planning to come but instead had to go to Aqabathat day’s morning for an urgent meeting. I only came back after midnight! I already know three of the people in the group but I really wanted to meet the rest of you. I hope thre will be other chances to do this again in the future. Thanks Natasha for the post and pics. At least I got a feel of what your meeting was like.
Wish I was there … seems like you guys had an awesome time. 🙂
Enjoy Amman and have an amazing christmas and 05.
PS Still no reliable internet, be back in 2005.
Thanks Natasha, Jeff & Jordan Bloggers, it was great 🙂
A good journalist always has her notepad handy 😉
Looks and sounds like a good time was had by all. Glad you all got a chance to meet face to face and the meeting was successful.
It was really nice meeting you guys 🙂