I've Still Got It!

Amman, Jordan

I was beginning to wonder if I would ever learn Arabic well enough to be a simultaneous interpreter of Arabic, which is my current career goal, or even if I could still pull off a career in interpreting at all, but today I proved to myself that I've still got it!

We had a really special field trip today to Raghadan Palace, the seat of power (literally! We saw the throne) and oldest of Jordan's royal palaces, where we were treated to a tour (in Arabic, of course) of the palace. We were accompanied by an external auditor for the Critical Language Scholarship program, a delightful linguist who, however, speaks no Arabic, and so I asked her if she might be interested in a little translation. She was, of course, so I went right ahead. I was a little slow at first, very out of practice, but by the end of the tour, I knew that I had it back.

Not only can I still interpret, but when the subject matter is fairly familiar, I can even intepret Arabic. Another year or two here in the Arab world, a summer or two in Germany, and I'll be ready for the Monterey Institute!