Guys, it’s been five years.

September 30, 2009 at 11:13 am · Filed under Geek Culture & Tech, Roba

I started AndFarAway one lonely September night in 2004. It was my first year in Amman, and I hadn’t yet found my niche.

AndFarAway was my escape, a place where I could write (and I really enjoy writing), a place where I could save awesome art (and awesome art made me happy), and a place where I could teach myself to like the new city. 

Today, five years after that lonely September, AndFarAway is lightyears beyond that escape spot. It’s home.

It’s drawers and drawers of things that need tidying, it’s memories, it’s thoughts, it’s life-changing experiences. And a lot of you were a part of that :)

This is to the people who have been in the 5 years run of blogging, perhaps celebrating their own 5 year anniversaries soon, or earlier.

This is to Lina, to Isam, to Hareega, to Naseem, to Mariam, to Natasha, to Ziad, to Iyas, to Ahmad, to Ibra, to Hala, to Khalidah, to Nader, to Ammar, to Eman, to MMM, to Sabbah, to Wael, to Tololy, to Shaden, to Kinzi, to Jad.

This is to Omar, to Farooha, to Ahmed, to Eve, to Sam, to Ziad and Hana, to OBCS, to Zeyad, to KabobFest, to Moryarti, to Omar, to Silly Bahraini Girl, to Mahmood.






  • http://allouh.wordpress.com mohammad

    Congratulations on the wooden jubilee ;)

    hopefully AndFarAway will continue and celebrate its golden jubilee :)

  • http://www.kinziblogs.wordpress.com kinzi

    I remember those early posts and pics and thought-dumps!!! Thanks so much for the mention with that illustrious group.

    Uqbal meet sani! (or something like that) And Far Away is a special blog home.

  • http://7akifadi.com 7aki Fadi

    Mabrook Roba :).

    I think five years in blog years equals 10+ in real years. What an amazing accomplishment to go that far.

  • http://www.confessionsofachubby.blogspt.com Ali

    Congrats Roba, You deserve the best, I have been following your blog since a long time, You and humied are the reason is started my own blog, Keep going, And i will be reading every post in the next 10 years ;)

  • http://catsrule2k.blogspot.com/ Anisah

    That seems like a long time, but it does go fast, doesn’t it! It’s nice to have a place to vent and to “meet” people.

  • http://www.grapeshisha.com grapeshisha

    Congratulations! Love reading your blog!

  • ziad d

    Sweet! Mabrouk Roba. So many things have taken place and changed in the past 5 years. It is great to know that there were a few constants in my life, and checking you blog daily has been one of them. Recently, I have been more complacent (read lazy) in leaving comments, but rest assured I am still at my habbit of visiting every day.
    Please keep it up, your blog is my ‘morning coffee.’ Thank you very much!

  • Stephen

    I started reading your blog probably just over a year after you started, I came across it when I tried to find out more about Jordan before my first visit. Been reading it ever since, love it!

    Here’s to another 5 years :)

  • Chris

    Congratulations!!
    Love stopping by-great stuff,but I’m always amazed that with all those creative juices flowing through you that you’ve been able to stop yourself from constantly tinkering with your blogs design.I like it though,bright/streamlined/easy to follow/plus the best damn banner on any blog i visit!

  • http://saudijeans.org Ahmed

    Happy blogversary Roba! Yes, it’s kinda hard to believe it’s been five years, but here we are today. Also, I still can’t believe that we haven’t met in person yet, but I hope we will before the next blogverasry. Here’s to many, many beautiful years :-)

  • http://andfaraway.net Roba

    Mohammad, lol, I love the wooden jubilee! That’s very funny. I guess in Arabic it would be Yobeel Il Tanak :)

    Kinzi, yup. I know you haven’t been blogging for five years, but you have been following the blogosphere and being an active part of it for a very long while fa I had to include you!

    7aki, my favorite blogging mama, 10+ years you think? It does feel like that honestly…

    Ali, thanks! I’m glad to hear that I encouraged you to start blogging, you keep blogging yourself, and 3o2bal your own five year anniversary.

    Anisah, it is indeed. I haven’t been venting as much though…. I should go back to that.

    Grapeshisha, thanks! I love reading your blog too!

    Ziad, btw, I know you don’t blog, but you are the unlinked Ziad in the “thank you”s. Your comments have always made me like my blog a little more :)

    Stephen, great! Next time you’re in Jordan, email me and maybe we’ll go have coffee.

    Chris, lol, so I shouldn’t change the banner? I was actually contemplating adding a photographic header as I feel like the illustration is kind of getting old. No?

    Ahmed, 3anjad it’s a little crazy that we still haven’t met. Dude, I’ve been telling you for years, you have to come to Amman!

  • http://www.black-iris.com Nas

    alf mabrook!

    five years. dang.

  • Jad

    celebrated my fifth two years ago :D Mabrookulations.

  • http://aquacool.subzeroblue.com Eman

    Seems like yesterday when we all started blogging and we first met, doesn’t it?

    Congrats dear Roba, I’ve always cherished meeting you, and MMM, myself and Adam wish you the very best for more years to come :)

  • natasha

    Mabrook!!