Marah Najem, a tradition fighter

When I read about Work and travel program at first I did not think that my parents would accept the idea, they were shocked when they heard that I am planning to participate and travel to US and as Jordanian female this idea was not commonly spread in Jordan.

I worked in two different positions at Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado State, one was food preparation worker and the other one was Cashier and Barista. So I learned how to make food, special coffee and how to deal with money.

This experience has changed my life, helped me to become a decisions maker for my personal life I became more social, more understanding to other cultures and I gained self-confidence way more than before.

i made many friends, American and worldwide friends. I learned a lot from them and shared my country’s culture and tradition with them, I even Cooked for them Middle Eastern cuisine and they loved it. i hope that I left a good impression from the way I represented my country.

I was impressed how many stores in the US try to reduce the use of plastic, especially plastic bags, and encouraging people to do so. I brought some environment friendly bags with me which is made of recycled plastic bottles and I use them now in Jordan. The environmental concerns were the biggest lesson that I’ve learned not just take it for granted.