The Guidey Award Goes To….
Ossama! He was our tour guide in Jordan, and from the first smiles on the bus, I knew that it was going to be a fun 5 days together. From impromptu Arabic lessons on the bus, to stories about the different archaeological digs, and stories about his own family, Ossama added a personal touch to our tour. He spent time with all of the group, getting to know each of the 14 of us, and asking us about our countries and lives.
fashion lessons on the bus
Even though he has been to all of these places so many times before, he presented each historical site with enthusiasm. He showed us through Petra, pointing out things that we would never have noticed on our own. He showed us around the Wadi Rum desert in the footprints of Laurence of Arabia. It was that night, camping under the stars in the desert that we got to really appreciate his sense of humour. Thanks Ossama to being on scorpion patrol!
At the end of the trip, we exchanged contact information, and have continued to be penpals over the last few months. I’m glad to have made such a nice friend in a far away land. I’m learning so much about the everyday life of a tourguiding nomad!
To thank him for his fantastic tourguiding, I made him some lovely wool socks for his birthday….but they got lost in the mail (which makes me quite upset).
the missing socks
So, Ossama….I’m sorry that these haven’t found you yet. When you are in Amman, take a close look at the footwear of those around you. Let me know if you find these socks walking around somewhere. You’ll know they are yours….they have a “small fox” on each sock.
(for the knitting geeks out there: Socks were knit cuff down, and fox sewed in afterwards with duplicate stitch)
Tags: best of 2009, duplicate stitch, FO, knitting, socks, travel
