
Amman is a city that unfolds itself slowly. At first glance, it is little more than a launch pad from which to visit more coveted destinations like Petra or the Wadi Rum desert. But belying its modest facade—the streets congested with restless cab drivers, the shawarma often drab and slathered with mayo, the blaring calls to prayer that interrupt each night of sleep—is a dynamic metropolis with more complexity than any place I have encountered.