Has anyone else struggled to make friends after moving to Jordan?
I've been living in Jordan for almost a year now, and honestly, I'm finding it much harder than I expected to connect with people and build genuine friendships.
Sometimes I genuinely feel like I don't belong here or that I'm somehow not Jordanian enough. I find that many people's perspectives and attitudes towards life are quite different from what I'm used to, and I often struggle to connect on a deeper level or trust people enough to build a friendship.
I've tried making friends at work, but even there I haven't really been able to break the ice or build meaningful relationships. I've also joined different sports groups, social circles, and clubs, hoping that sharing an activity or interest would make things easier, but I still haven't managed to properly connect with anyone.
On top of that, other things have made the transition frustrating. For example, I've been trying to transfer/get my driving licence here, but I've repeatedly failed driving tests for reasons I honestly don't understand, despite having driven for years outside Jordan.
Before moving to Jordan, things felt much easier socially. I was able to meet people and make connections more naturally. Here, I feel like I'm stuck in a routine: work, home, going for walks alone, or visiting places alone. And while I don't mind spending time by myself, doing almost everything alone for such a long time is starting to affect my mental health.
I'm not trying to insult Jordan or Jordanians at all. I'm genuinely trying to understand whether this is something other people who moved to Jordan have experienced this. How do you actually make genuine friends and build a social life in Jordan as an adult? Has anyone else felt like they don't really belong?