Home Sweet Homestay

So I've been in Jordan less than a week, but it feels like it could have been a month.  I moved in with my host family about 24 hours ago and I already feel like a part of the family.  Granted, a rather quiet member of the family who understands maybe 10% of what's going on and can't really eat properly, but a member nonetheless.  About my family: my host dad works for Jordanian civil defense and is originally from the city of Jerash in northern Jordan; my host mom stays at home and cooks (really well!) and takes care of the house; I have a host brother named Fahed who is 16 and goes to private high school;  my host sister Lana is 10 and is a pretty good cook herself (she made lunch today), but is pretty quiet;  finally, my host brother Firas is 5 and very energetic and loud and seems to think it's rather funny how clueless I am.  The family is Catholic and so all the children go to private Catholic schools.  I moved in last night and after a delicious dinner went down the street to the house of some relatives (cousins or an aunt or something, I never really got a good explanation) and had the traditional Arab evening you read about.  Over tea (shai) and fruit, there was a long (and loud) conversation about topics from my host dad's recent trip to Europe to the concept of al-naseeb, or fate.  I'm already starting to pick up on some of the tricks to the local 'ammiyya, or Jordanian colloquial Arabic (think of it as the Jordanian accent).  I have no problem making myself understood within the bounds of my own vocabulary, but I'm discovering just how small that really is.  Luckily, maamaa (my host mom) has been very understanding and speaks a fair amount of English.  Breakfast this morning turned into an interactive (and delicious) vocabulary lesson.  Here in Jordan, the weekend is Friday and Saturday, so this morning everyone slept in until 11 or so.  I was up a little earlier and was able to get a couple of hours to myself, which was really nice after days of new faces, orientation presentations, and placement tests.  My family, though Christian, lives directly behind a huge mosque, so the dawn call to prayer, which is pumped through the minaret's loudspeakers around 4:30 each morning, definitely woke me up.  In addition, since Friday is the Muslim holy day, from noon until one this afternoon the house was filled with the noon prayers, which are also broadcast through the minaret's loudspeakers.  My family seems to be used to it, they just turn up the TV and then shout to talk to each other.  One thing that people don't seem to mind here is lots and lots of noise (the TV was on and volume up during the whole visit last night as well).  Usually the family just hangs around the house all day on Friday.  The Catholic schools actually have school on Saturday and are off again on Sunday to allow for mass.  My first class at the University of Jordan is on Sunday, though we were all told that the first week is always very relaxed to allow for registration changes and issues to be worked out.  I'm looking forward to getting into a regular routine and exploring the different perspectives from which I'm sure my classes will be presented this semester.  At some point I will try to post pictures here of what I'm up to.  Thank you all for the continued prayers.