The 2nd Jordan dispatch

For the past five days or so, we have been spending most of our time with la Familia, mostly with my sister and her family as they leaving for a vacation at the end of this week so we might not see them for some long time. However, I managed to scratch few things off my Jordan to-do list, which included eating mansaf (can I really avoid that?), having Rimini pizza, meeting up with friends and cousins and of course playing with my nieces. I still have a plethora of things to do here. I hope that I will make it before we leave.

I have not been really out much so I cannot offer any real punditry on Amman's changes over the last four months. However, I could not help but notice one major development since my absence: the explosion of private radio stations. So far, I have heard of Mazaj, Beat, Play, Mood and Sawat al-Ghad. They are being advertised everywhere: newspapers, glossy magazines and on bulletin boards. I still can't believe how many music choices are currently on offer to radio listeners in Jordan. Somehow, this variety feels over the top for such a small country.

Meanwhile, construction is still in full swing. Apartment buildings – many of which are hideous – continue to mushroom all over the place. No one can deny that Amman is expanding at a dizzying pace. But in spite of this sudden renaissance, will this culturally enriched city manage to keep its soul, one to which I've grown so attached? I wonder.