1- It is considered courteous to refuse a meal three times before actually accepting it. It’s actually an Arabic tradition to offer sharing food or drinks, as it’s a sign of generosity of the host.
The Arabic Gulf’s old culture was full of praise for people, who are kind and generous, who care for neighborhood’s rights, and who take the leadership of being good-neighborly and peaceful with others. As people gave great attention to look so generous in front of others, they do every possible effort to let you have a drink or share food once you become a guest by them. Even if you don’t want to drink or eat something, they will insist several times until you finally accept that, so your host would be happy taking this honor of being a generous host.
2- Mansaf is Jordan's national dish made of lamb cooked in a sauce of fermented dried yogurt and served with rice or bulgur and served in a large Bedouin style platter.
If you are foodie or like to taste new food in general, you will definitely love this meal. As they cook lamb with the rice and yogurt with eastern spices at the same time in one big cooking pot, make it smell good and tasty. By the way it’s all served in one big dish. Funny to know that Arabs used to eat this dish cooked well done and with their bare hands.
3- Jordanian people are likely to believe that over-praising kids can actually bring bad luck and this act is generally avoided. You may hear that acting like this with kids make them spoil. They think you need to be assertive most of the time with kids in order to let them learn how to be a man (or a good person).
4- It's said that John the Baptist was imprisoned and beheaded at Machaerus, known today as Mukawir.
5- The lowest point on earth is located on the surface of the Dead Sea (over 1300 feet below sea level).
6- The Treasury at Petra was used in the final sequence of the film, "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade". Also, it’s appeared as main scene in one of science fiction films of “Transformers”, as Petra was one of ancient places on Earth where they had to hide the key of ultimate power to control Autobots and Decepticons.
7- Aqaba's reef is alive with untold variety in its coral and fish. Common species are branch coral, fungia and montipora, and the rare Arcelia, a black, tree-like specimen found at great depths and first discovered by King Hussein himself.
8- Some of the world's earliest known churches have been recently discovered in Jordan. The remains of a mud-brick building in Aqaba may be the world's oldest known purpose-built church. This Aqaba early church dates from the late 3rd or early 4th century AD.