Geography
Amman – it is the capital of a peaceful country juxtaposed with more volatile members of the world stage. With roughly 2 million people, Amman is the largest city in Jordan and is set atop a series of hills in the northwest of the country. Here, some 800 metres above the Dead Sea, there is desert nearly all around and sandstone cliffs to the south. Yet Amman is stepping forward as a modern city of the Middle East, a place where the old and new are always intertwined. airBaltic is pleased to offer cheap flights to Queen Alia International Airport.
Languages
سلام (pronounced Salam, meaning hello)! Here in Amman, the official language is Arabic. Visitors will find that English is so widely spoken, however, that a city-break in Amman is easy enough with a simple phrasebook. In many hotels and restaurants, other major European languages are spoken as well, meaning that, one way or another, you are sure to get what you’re after.
See and Do
Amman is a modern Arab city with two faces much in contrast to one another. But that makes the character of the city itself, a meeting place of east and west, of present and past. Come to Amman to marvel at the mosques, most notably that of King Abdullah I and the Abu Darweesh Mosque – which is hard to miss with its black and white checker top, rising from the city’s highest point. Overlooking the city is the Citadel with Ummayad Palace at its north. Here, travellers can enjoy a fantastic view over the city before exploring the nearby notable points. Spread out in three separate villas is Darat al Funun overlooking the city centre and housing a collection of artwork. Meanwhile, just by stands the 1,500 year old Byzantine church, built upon the ruins of a Roman temple. Find more rich history at the Nymphaeum, possibly once a Roman pool dedicated to the goddesses of the river, or at the 500 seat Odean, an amphitheatre dating to the 2nd century AD. An absolute must during your travel should be the National Archaeological Museum, containing many artefacts from the region and even a few fragments from the Dead Sea Scrolls.
Take in all the flavour of the city by walking through the Balad, the old Amman, with its many street vendors and souqs. Continue on to Wakalat Street, an all pedestrian street with its shops and boutiques and later visit Rainbow Street, which is making leaps and bounds as a cultural hotspot. After the excursion, stop in at the Al-Pasha Turkish Bath for some first class pampering. And when the night begins, all the fun is found in West Amman, loaded with restaurants offering western, Asian and Middle Eastern cuisine and plenty of first rate nightclubs. |
