I’m a gift-giving locavore, preferring artifacts sourced or created wherever I happen to call home. Jordan offers amazing experiences ranging from ancient sites to eco-tours, but if you want a simple souvenir with youth appeal the kingdom falls flat.

I stumbled across four Amman shops offering up artful clothing and jewelry that, despite contemporary styling, scream “made-in-the-Middle-East”.  Not highbrow, but locally designed and produced by owners who are also committed to supporting regional charities.

1. Jo Bedu (by 2022 not online) launched at downtown’s Souk Jara in 2007. Initial success selling too-cool-for-school tees pushed them into a proper storefront in Jabal al-Luwebideh.  In addition to streetwear, they also print their graphics on posters and pillows. Playful images aim to bridge different Arab sub-cultures. They have an outpost within the Virgin megastore in City Mall.

The company has a strong reputation as a supporter of Feed the Artist, and teams up with Jordan River foundation and Jabel Amman Residence Association for charitable promotions and events.

2. Mlabbas began as a City Mall kiosk in 2010, reborn from a stall at the first Souk Jara (2005). They claim to have started the Arabic tee-shirt thing after noticing locals sporting clothes tagged with foreign text, clueless to the meanings. Mlabbas offers Jordanians aa affordable way to self-express.

Their bold political messages attract clients from Lybia, Syria, Bahrain and Lebanon (they’ve been visited by the Mukhabarat – Jordan’s General Intelligence Directorate – regarding their more provocative designs).

Mlabbas recently branched out into stencils (think Banksy) for clients wanting to spread a message beyond their torso. They sell at City Mall and on Rainbow Street, and their shirt sales sponsor causes like the King Hussein Cancer Foundation.

3.  Korts (not online as of 2022) gifted King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein with a t-shirt in 2009, a gesture that kicked-off a home-based design business, with sales personally delivered by car. They opened a first shop in 2010, and a year later their main outpost in Jabal Amman, selling shirts and hoodies, hats and caps and scarves.

Korts considers a t-shirt as a personal canvas, an piece of clothing that you wear when you want to express your true self.

These designers pull inspiration from politics and try, through communication, to  harmonize different Jordan Valley cultures. They donate a flat rate from each sale to Somalian famine relief.

Korts sells online from our official website  and other online stores Khazanti and Sallaty.

4. 7arakat (by 2022 not online) started up last year, aiming to share creative ideas within Arabic culture. They sell shirts, sweaters, and posters online and in Amman bazaars.

A portion of proceeds support “Rahaf for Development” and the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund.

Shopping local, supporting area artists who produce their goods nearby, and giving back to make the Middle East a tiny bit better: try one of Amman’s new green tees.

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People usually associate a flea market with old, dusty clothes and other “junk,” consider it a sort of yard sale collision.  In Amman, however, Souk Jara is deemed a flea market and is a far better cry than that notion. A sort of upscale summer flea market, Souk Jara lets guests feast their eyes on a plethora of new, unique, handmade items on display by local artists – but that is not to say that antiques are not sold, too.

There is no rummaging through piles to find what lies underneath, as in typical flea markets.  But it’s a give and take: tediously combing through the crowd is always necessary, as the wide outdoor aisle that splits the merchant kiosks into two rows is packed with people.

Souk Jara is opened off of the end of Amman’s hip Rainbow Street nearest the downtown area.  Held regularly every Friday (except during Ramadan – the most recent picture posted on the Facebook page gives a “Souk Jara is Back!” notice) from 10am to 10pm during warmer weather, the market is a hotspot for tourists.  When I visited, I probably heard at least five different languages being spoken around me.

The same merchant kiosks can be seen every Friday.  Hand-painted glassware, woodworks, and ceramics; sand art; Arabic language books; and even Arabic Barbie dolls are among the treasures you’ll find here.

I fell in love with oil-painted cups and plates depicting palm trees and houses of bronze and gold, so I got to talking with the artist who created them.  It turned out that she had a store almost right around the corner which housed a greater selection of her merchandise.  I went there a few days later to find slightly cheaper prices, so it pays to talk to the vendors about their whereabouts around Amman!

A trip to Souk Jara is just not complete without taking a sharp left about halfway down the main aisle to find a wonderful array of food booths…with free samples!  (I’m the kind of girl who loves taking free pens at offices and mints at restaurants, so freebies at Souk Jara definitely made my day.)  Smoothies and slushies flavored with watermelon, lemon and mint, and lemon and strawberry, to name a few, are offered on trays held by enthusiastic young workers.

I was surprised to see an “MMM S’mores” stand with a Pokemon-esque marshmallow mascot, but then again, who doesn’t like gooey marshmallow and melted chocolate stuck between layers of graham cracker?  This booth even one-upped the classically American treat by offering to include Fruit Loops, too.

The International Relief & Development fund also has a permanent spot at the market.  Homemade goods are sold, and the proceeds go to vulnerable communities.

There are more food options, although traditionally Arabic, and hookah at the very end of the main promenade.  This “Souk Jara café” opens up to an outdoor concert setting, complete with folding chairs and a small stage for the scheduled evening’s live music performance. 

Admission is not free but cheap, and local talent gives a great show.

Souk Jara is a dense market; step inside and start walking, and there’s something completely new to see on the left and right within a couple steps.  Although you shouldn’t expect a typical “Sunday flea market” experience, do look forward to a unique shopping and browsing (and free-sampling!) experience now a trademark of Ammanian summer culture!

Image of Souk Jara signage from youinjordan.com

Following images courtesy of Kelly Vaghenas

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On my first free Friday in Amman, I walked to the downtown end of Rainbow Street and turned left to find the merchants of Souk Jara just beginning to set up shop.  Souk Jara is Amman’s tidy Friday Market, and walking casually down the wide grassy lane, with abundant kiosks on either side – not to mention sampling watermelon slushes and other fresh fruit smoothies from the food stands down a perpendicular path – is a pleasant way to start the weekend.

While most vendors sell handmade jewelry or hand-painted kitchenware, Ahmad Kamal Azban sells copies of the books from the program he and his friend Tony Michael Anqoud created.  When I encountered Azban that Friday, he gave me a winning sales pitch about his products.

Diwan Baladna, or “Our Country’s Meeting Place,” is a set of two informative books on Arab-Jordanian life.  The first is on culture, the second on language.  The books were published in January 2010 and May 2011, respectively.

You’d be hard-pressed to find a source for learning about Arab culture as light and humorous as the first book.  Chapters are divided according to major aspects of life in the Arab world, including greeting behavior, the influence of the evil eye, wedding and funeral traditions, and even the practice of pigeon-keeping!  An impending second edition boasts fifteen new topics.

Then there is the language book, which is promoted as “The Unprecedented Spoken Arabic Dictionary…separated by topic and covering every conceivable eventuality” and an assemblage of “the best portions of all the major language programs in Jordan.”

What makes it unique is its focus on colloquial expressions and casual tone.  As an Arabic student, my school studies are restricted to fusha, or formal Arabic.

Diwan Baladna, on the other hand, teaches the vernacular as well as popular “metaphors, metonymies, signs, and similes.”

Azban authored these books in the hope that foreigners, Westerners especially, would gain better understanding – and avoid misunderstandings – of Arab-Jordanian life.  “As a Jordanian, I want to bridge the gap of understanding between my own culture and that of our Western friends.  Diwan Baladna is a resource that can do just that,” writes Azban on the product page.

For those who are in Amman but not able to make it to Souk Jara and meet Azban himself, Diwan Baladna books are sold in Books@Cafe, Wild Jordan, and the Good Bookshop.  They are also available in E-book formats.

A valuable guide and easy read for those interested in the Arab world, the Diwan Baladna culture and language set is a wise purchase.  Even King Abdullah approves; in Jordan, the King’s Academy uses the materials for its new Arabic culture course.

::Diwan Baladna

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