Istanbul Airport used to be magical, but it was so crowded I felt relief when the plane took off for Amman. Arriving at Amman Queen Alia Airport in the middle of the night made me realise I have never seen the airport during daytime, but my heart was pleased to be back. It almost felt surreal. Am I really back to Jordan? Then of course the torture with the visa began so the moment was gone. Seeing the driver hold a paper with my name written I felt like home.

Although the drive to Madaba was in the night I saw the glimpse of Tall Jalul and all the memories of former seasons just came flushing in.

My first morning can be described as strange. Almost wished I wasn’t here because of the sleepless night. But after having some tea and talking with people I realized it was just one bad night.

Best way to start a day off is to take a walk, buy water, change some money, spend some money… Madaba has changed a lot, more buildings then I can remember. Love the fact that almost all of the buildings follow a similar style. Three to four floors, white stone, simple decoration. But there is also so many abandoned houses and trash everywhere. Prices are higher and the sellers aren’t forcing you to buy. They got used to less tourists or to tourists that spend less.

At least the walk took me to the new part of the city. Found large backyard with remains of mosaic floor. They don’t call Madaba a mosaic city for nothing.

Time for some rest. As the call for the prayer echoes we wait for the lunch. The men were busy all morning with bringing some heavy equipment to the camp. I might help later. Now I just want to embrace the feeling of home at my Madaba home.