February 2024 in Review, Part I
1 Feb 2024
To the roof!
When you really need to get some work done, but those Pied Piper clouds make going up to the roof for an extended break in the sun an irresistible proposition, especially after enduring a relatively cold, cloudy morning....
Nice Man v Classy Kids
These are located on opposite sides of the city - with Classy Kids in a relatively posh part of town while Nice Man is on a street in a much more hardscrabble, working class [insert your own euphemism for poor here] neighbourhood - but we'd like to think that they're somehow connected.
2 Feb 2024
Clash of the Titans
When your national team is about to knock off powerhouse Tajikistan (by a score of 1-0 on an own goal, but it still counts) to advance to the semi-finals of the AFC Asian Cup, ie the biggest football tournament for Asia and Oceania....
NB: This photo was taken more than 5 hours ago, and the incessant honking is just now dying down.
3 Feb 2024
Life, uh… finds a way
“If there is one thing the history of evolution has taught us it's that life will not be contained. Life breaks free, it expands to new territories and crashes through barriers, painfully, maybe even dangerously, but, uh… well, there it is... life, uh… finds a way.”
- Dr Ian Malcolm
Weekend vibes
4 Feb 2024
White Friday?
'White Friday' sounds like something you might expect to find in certain parts of the United States - say, for instance, those parts where voters feel very strongly about the urgent need to bring back past greatness. But apparently it's a thing in the Middle East and North Africa.
According to one random explanation we found: "The term ‘white’ was taken because the Middle Easterners consider white as the colour associated with positivity; according to them, black is connected with unhappy and tragic events." Fair enough.
The sales also last for like two months, at least here in duty free zone Aqaba, which seems a bit excessive, but late capitalism is gonna do its thing regardless of our feelings.
More weekend vibes
(The catlife in Aqaba might not be as abundant or photogenic as it was in Athens or Amman previously, but we do what we can)
5 Feb 2024
Aqaba's got all your MMA needs covered
If these recent posts have piqued your interest in coming to Aqaba for an extended stay, but you've got reservations about potentially having to miss some of your mixed martial arts training, worry not dear travellers. The local Muay Thai club has got you covered!
A whole new world
Just to round out the unplanned Aqaba waterfront Disney trilogy (after the Steamboat Willie trash and brokedown Cinderella carriage of previous posts), here's bouncey house Aladdin and Jasmine discovering a whole new world. Which somehow just seems odd when it's happening in actual real life Arabia....
6 Feb 2024
Too much flagpole
This is just a teaser for a much longer future post about Aqaba's world famous flagpole (the 9th tallest ever erected!!) and giant flagpoles in general. But as you can see, it's too much flagpole to even fit in the frame.
And if that doesn't get your proverbial juices flowing and whet your appetite for a little travel adventure, then surely nothing will....
7 Feb 2024
Better late than never
Better late than never. Like when it takes you almost 3 months to come across these date-filled Jordanian bagels. Delicious and also a great deal - a four-pack still warm from the oven for half a dinar, or only €0.66!
Valentine's Day marketing
Was this bear sitting outside a local upholstery workshop exactly one week before Valentine's Day a mere coincidence? Yes, almost certainly. Without question.
But we're still going to assume that it was not a coincidence, and was done on purpose by the old man who runs the place, to bring a little bit of love and joy to the neighbourhood.
8 Feb 2024
Next stop Neom
When you're subtly reminded that the most mindbogglingly absurd futuristic dystopian nightmare masquerading as an economic diversification development project ever conceived by man is only 200km away....
Full Disclosure: This is sadly 𝘯𝘰𝘵 a sponsored post
Wall of Kings
Yesterday was King Abdullah's 'Silver jubilee' (or 25th anniversary of ascending to the throne if you're not into archaic units of measuring time), so seems like a cromulent occasion to post photos of these murals of the last five kings of the Hashemite dynasty taken recently here in Aqaba.
And since Jordan technically has lèse-majesté laws, instead of commenting, we'll just point out that one of the works in particular looks like it might have been done by that famous amateur Spanish artist who restored the Jesus fresco in her local church a few years back....
9 Feb 2024
On this day in 2022 (in Riohacha, Colombia)
A traditional Wayuu breakfast: Chivo guisado y bollo de queso (stewed goat with a side of cornmeal dumpling stuffed with cheese). Super tender, tasty stuff, but required significant flossing afterwards....
Lights, camera, action!
When floodlights at the public beach make it kind of feel like you're on a (deserted) film set....
10 Feb 2024
Mutant Blast
When every dolphin image you see instantaneously subconsciously reminds you of a campy Portuguese zombie apocalypse movie you watched at a film and wine festival half a decade ago....
"You'll never see dolphins the same again!"
- Siskel & Ebert
"This film ruined dolphins for me - avoid it like the zombie apocalypse!"
- Leonard Maltin
"Easily one of the best films of the 21st century."
- Richard Brody, New Yorker
Goat. It's what's for dinner.
A little Friday afternoon window shopping at Aqaba's central market....
11 Feb 2024
On This Day Last Year (in Lekhnath, Nepal)
So, upon returning to our soul-crushing cubicle yesterday, we found a strongly worded Post-it® Note from our editor, passively aggressively reminding us that the people who follow this page like seeing animals, especially ridiculous looking animals with floppy ears and slightly evil eyes.
Luckily, we'd just happened across this furry little chap on a random walkabout through some farmland, in an ultimately failed attempt to procure some delicious (and deliciously cheap) veg momo from our previously mentioned favourite family-run hole in the wall. At least the day wasn't a total loss....
Super Bowl Ads
Without going off on too long of a tangent about the many (many, many, many) ills of contemporary neoliberal capitalism, wow, just wow. If you never watch American television except for an illegal bootleg sports stream every now and then, the advertisements are absolutely beyond cringey - they're literally grimace inducing.
It's a nonstop carousel of fake food, giant trucks, watery beer, terrible TV shows, ‘conveniences’ no one asked for or needs, prescription medications you should ask your doctor about despite the million side effects they may cause and like dozen different insurance companies that will somehow all save you $700 per year if you switch. Pure insanity, which has obviously become normalised.
Just a reminder: It's not normal. It's not normal at all. Maybe keep that in mind while you're watching the Super Bowl this evening/night/morning. Every single commercial you see was created for the express purpose of manipulating you into giving a massive corporation money for something you almost certainly don't need or want. Go 9ers!
If you've never read Propaganda by Edward Bernays, it's highly recommended.
tl;dr Both lauded (and reviled, but sadly much more of the former than the latter) as the godfather of public relations, and to a large extent modern marketing in general, the most surprising thing about Bernays’ modestly-sized masterwork from 1928 is how brazenly it explains exactly how to manipulate the masses for whatever purposes you might have in mind - selling them loads of crap they don't need, getting them to vote for terrible political candidates, or just convincing them that all the evil shit their government does abroad is actually righteous and just. It's as impressive as it is terrifying.
12 Feb 2024
Aqaba to Alexandra via… Abu Dhabi?!?
When your end goal is to travel to the country you can literally see out your window, but you almost end up flying via Abu Dhabi since compared to the ferry it's the same price, less hassle, your friend who lives there's birthday and (most importantly) exactly 2024 kilometres away. But then decide* to just take the ferry at the last minute instead. You're welcome Mother Nature!
*Other relevant info included finding out that Dahab is ridiculously cheap and also currently has perfect weather, so spending a week or more there might not be the worst idea....
When Animals Attack: Aqaba Hotel Lobby Edition
13 Feb 2024
