ALBANY - A group of Jordanians, visiting the United States for three weeks to promote international friendship, learned how to say ``grits,'' ``y'all,'' and ``magnolias'' Wednesday as they became honorary Southerners. <br>
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They also learned plenty about the small town South during a 17-hour bus trip from Raleigh, North Carolina. They didn't want to fly because they thought the bus would give them a chance to see rural areas. <br>
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Of course, if they knew they would have seen so much of the rural South, they may have considered flying. <br>
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The 17 Jordanians began their U.S. visit two weeks ago in Atlanta. After a week there, they spent a week in Raleigh, North Carolina, before heading to southwest Georgia. <br>
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During their week in Albany, they will tour a plantation, visit former President Carter's hometown of Plains and take a dip in the Gulf of Mexico at the Panama City, Florida. <br>
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The director of program services in Atlanta for Friendship Force International, Harriet Kuhr, said ``We're really excited about the visit of the Jordanians. It's the first adult group we've had from Jordan. We had a student group a few years ago. That's really exciting to us.'' <br>
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Friendship Force, formed in 1977 with the assistance of Carter and his wife Rosalynn, has 365 clubs in 55 countries and 40 U.S. states. It promotes peace through ``goodwill ambassadors'' who live in other countries with host families for a few weeks.
