hi again! i always have a hard time starting these posts. the biggest news lately is that we have, as of now, lost two trainees. maybe it was for the best, but they will be missed. this place isnt for everyone. it is hard to find where you fit in here. especially in a homestay. i personally feel that i am not my own person right now. sort of jump when they say jump, go when they say go. when we all get to our own houses we will feel much more independent.
i guess i am going to have a tv in my new house, which means i will have access to arabic news as well as the bbc. when i came i was hoping to get away from stuff like that. but that just isnt life here. everyone (jordanians) thought i was crazy for not wanting a tv. so now the other volunteer who is leaving the site is leaving hers for me.
the houses here are interesting. they are all glass and concrete and stone. no wood to speak of. actually, i saw a stack of lumber the other day, and it looked so foreign. made me think of home. all the houses blend right into the land because there is limestone everywhere. most of the houses are made of limestone. any house that isnt beige sort of leaps out at you. the land also feels very old sometimes. like this place has been here forever, relatively untouched. there are ruins everywhere, from every stage of jordan's development as a country. there are stone fences everywhere, kind of like california's central valley. you know, the old stone corrals? apparently nothing is ever torn down. there is a cool castle near to jennifer, one of the other volunteers. i am hoping to check it out. it apparently is the oldest castle here and is full of secret passages and stuff. another of the volunteers is in ghura safi, which is right next to the dead sea. so i guess that makes her the lowest peace corps volunteer in the world. the problem is that it is really really hot there. but her site sounds really cool.
she and her counterparts are the only light skinned people living there. the black population in jordan is really discriminated against. the girls at her center were asking her why there were never black people on tv here, or even represented anywhere for that matter. so i guess she has a project, although it would be an overwhelming one. maybe i will talk more about race when i have more time.
one last note, i have my new address! i will be there as of september 15th. my address is:

Andrea Girard
P.O Box 139
Wadi Musa / Petra
71810
Jordan

i guess if the package is shoe box sized or smaller i can get it in my po box. if not it goes to a bigger post office a couple towns over. no big deal though, i think it is a 20 minute bus ride or something. and i will have a lot of time. dont get me wrong, i am not expecting you all to send packages, but if you write letters i will write back! i need the rancho's new address. i have a postcard i have been meaning to send, but i didnt have the address. but now it is too late so i will wait till the tenth. isnt that when you guys are moving?
also, matias: can i have your number? delfino was on the ipod the other day and i was going to send you a text message, but couldnt.

text messages are super cheap for me to send, so you guys may get one from time to time. ok. till next time.