Free Birthday Drinks!

Amman, Jordan

A whole bunch of us went out last night to celebrate my birthday with dinner at the Blue Fig, which I can't believe I never visited when I was here with Peace Corps. The food is delicious, the atmosphere really fantastic.... (It's an expat restaurant/bar in Abdoun, the richest part of Amman ... which is probably why I didn't go as a Volunteer, but I'm a bona fide tourist in Jordan this time!)

Then I remembered that the last time I had a birthday in Jordan, and Anyess was not only having her birthday but also celebrating her engagement, we got free drinks at the irish pub in the Dove Hotel. I remember the Dove Bar as a dark, crowded, dingy little hole-in-the-wall bar/dance club dive, but I remember it fondly, especially when I was getting free birthday drinks! (Also, it doesn't have a cover charge!) So we decided to round out the evening with some dancing at the Dove Bar.

Wow. Has it ever changed! The dance floor is gone, with its colored lights, the whole place has been repainted, the bathrooms were cleaner.... It's a pretty respectable bar now, which explains this rumor I've heard that Peace Corps Volunteers are no longer welcome there... (though I've not heard why!). But there are still free birthday drinks, and at the end of a large, electric blue birthday drink, we decided we were going to dance anyway, and by the time we left, it was just like old times!