Spontaneity

It was Firday 11 AM when the phone rang. It was my sister suggesting that we go to Aqaba to check our "Never-have-seen" apartment at Tala Bay, and return back to Amman on the same day.
When I was younger, I was an easy going, easy to please, and spontaneous guy. As I grew, I became a bit stubborn, hard to please and less spontaneous. Yesterday, I was profoundly impressed by my Spontaneity. At 11:30, me, Jumana, My sister Luma and her husband Zaher where cruising in their 4 wheel drive to Aqaba! To be a bit more honest, what drove towards this venture was not really my urge to see Tala Bay, rather, I was aware of the fact that there was an unstable weather system. The nature of such system is Jordan manifests itself more explicitly in the southern and eastern desert lands of Jordan. It was exactly what I expected. At around 1:30 we were at the highest point on the Desert highway, Ras Al-naqab, rising some 1500 Meters above Sea Level (of course I used my watch to verify that http://oraclejo.blogspot.com/2006/12/my-new-watch.html).And Heaven have mercy, Wadi Rum was not the rocky desert area you would expect to see. It was all hidden behind a huge mass of spectacular cloud formation touching the ground, typical to those formed when a cold air front meets a warm air mass; Lightening was occurring at an intriguing rate of almost once every 30 seconds and pouring rain with a drop size reaching the size of a bean.

Rare phenomenon indeed.

At 2:00, we were approaching Aqaba, the skies were almost clear with rain reminiscent. At 2:30 we reached Aqaba, the weather was fascinating, a cool breeze under sunny skies. We immediately went to Floka (fish restaurant) reserved a table for 4 to be readu at 3:45 and ordered the food, so it would be ready at 3:45. we immediately headed to Tala Bay, lcoated at the southern tip of aqaba (10 Km north of the Saudi Borders). To be honest, Tala Bay looks better than I expected, it is a glamorous place; Good size Marina filled with Yachts, Jest Skies etc ..Laguna in between buildings, walk ways etc.. In 45 minutes we were back at the restaurant, where we found the dishes almost ready. We had a nice see food meal (of course paying a hefty price tag for it). At 4:30, we left the restaurant to the Movenpick and had a delicious banana split as appetizers. At 5 PM, we left to what is called "city center" duty free mall right at the northern tip of Aqaba,. We shopped, I bought a Clarks shoes, and at 6:05 we started our journey back to Amman. Wadi Rum, Ras Al-Naqab was all soaking wet with Water, but was not raining any more. However, someplace far to the east, we could also see lightening breaking the eternal darkness.At around 9:15, we were back home. The only thing we did not do in Aqaba was what appears to have become a ritual for Jordanians who visit Aqaba; namely, Buy Cashew nuts, bottles of Rani Juice and 7 Kg of Bananas (these items sell a bit cheaper in Aqaba).
Ammar Sajdi
Amman - Jordan
April 13, 07