My trip to Lebanon

After I left Jordan, I visited another Arab country in the Middle East: Lebanon. Lebanon is a very small country located right on the Mediterranean between Israel and Syria. It is a truly beautiful country. I had a fantastic time visiting it.

My trip to Jordan, part 3: I experience Ramadan

My trip to Jordan was particularly exciting because I was there during the month of Ramadan, which is an important time for Muslims. As you will remember, I have previously visited three other countries where the majority of the people are Muslims: Pakistan, Tunisia, and Turkey. Like those countries, most of the people in Jordan practice Islam. Ramadan is a month that occurs every year on the Islamic calendar. It begins with a new moon and lasts either 29 or 30 days until the next new moon. During that entire month, Muslims devote themselves to their religion by "fasting" while the sun is up. From sunrise to sunset, pious Muslims do not eat any food or drink any water.

My trip to Jordan, part 2: I eat the food

I ate so much good food during my trip to Jordan that I have decided to make an entire post about the things I ate. There is nothing more fun when you go traveling than eating the cuisine of the place you are visiting. I would really encourage you to go to an Arab restaurant or supermarket near your house if you want to try some of the things I talk about. I'm mostly going to talk about things you can eat for dessert (naturally!), but Jordanians, like other Arabs, also have a lot of great food that you can eat before dessert.

My trip to Jordan, part 1: I see the sights

I recently took a wonderful trip to Jordan with my friends Kyle and Arbella. Jordan is a country in the Middle East that borders Israel, the West Bank, Syria, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia. Can you find it on a map? It might be difficult to find, since it isn't a very big country. It's in a very dry place, and much of the country is covered by desert.

Jordan is an Arab country in which people speak Arabic. Do you remember which other Arab country I have visited before? That country was Tunisia, where I went with my friend Aisha. The people of Jordan and the people of Tunisia share a common language (Arabic) and a common majority religion (Islam). Even so, because these two countries are quite far apart, there are a lot of differences between them.

I attend the 2012 Summer Olympics

It's a great time to be in England right now because everybody is so excited about the 2012 Summer Olympics. The Olympics have been going on in London for the past two weeks. I have been excited about the Olympics ever since I went to see the torch relay, which I told you about last month. Two days ago, I finally got the opportunity to see some Olympic action for myself!

I celebrate the 150th anniversary of the first telling of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

In my last post, I pointed out a gargoyle that kind of looks like a cat and told you that some people think it might have inspired the Cheshire Cat from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. I think that particular story isn't true, but it is true that Oxford has a very close connection with that book. Lewis Carroll, the author, taught math in Christ Church (do you remember when I showed you pictures of Christ Church's dining hall a few months ago?). One day in 1862, he went on a boat ride in the Thames with the daughters of the dean of Christ Church. One of those girls was Alice Liddell, a 10-year-old who inspired the character of Alice. A few weeks ago, I attended a celebration in Christ Church Meadow to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the first time Lewis Carroll told the story he had invented to entertain little Alice.

I climb Magdalen Tower

Those of you who read my posts from Oxford will know that one of Oxford's colleges, Magdalen College, has a particularly tall tower. A few days ago, I finally got the chance to climb to the top of the tower. It was a very sunny day, so I got a great view. I have lots of pictures from my climb to share with you.