His is not a one-sided affair as Zureikat and his guests are treated with Mansaf Urden, a traditional, sumptuous Jordanian food made with yogurt and meat. The locals in Ghor Al-Mazraa, one of the poorest areas in the country, cannot afford such feast for themselves except for special occasions or revered guests.

Most families work in the fields or graze cattle. The local faces persecution at the hands of other groups or foreign nationals. Zureikat explains, “The elite or foreigners buy the land of cash-starved indigenous families at low price.”

While the visitors learn about their responsibility towards people, the local residents win back self-confidence.

“We spent our time in learning the indigenous skills such baking certain types of bread and cooking their authentic food, or in drawing patterns of henna and home-made eyeliner,” says Amal Abdullah, one of the volunteers after a recent trip.

Interestingly, the families benefit from the so-called loan rotor, collected from fees (35$ per head) paid by the visitors for a day trip in Ghor Al-Mazraa. The loan is then returned in smaller installments.

Katrina Najar, an architect who resides in posh Amman neighborhood, says, “I am amazed to see those green fields stretching across the plains of Ghor Al-Mazraa.” She desires to come again for vacations.

"It is a new find as I did not know about this beautiful area in Jordan, where hospitable people grow fresh fruits and vegetables.”

Katrina learned during this visit many skills that residents of Amman are oblivious to, like baking traditional bread.

"I feel rejoiced when I see both the people learning and understanding each other" Zureikat says proudly.

Unlike the past, houses in Ghor Al-Mazraa are painted red, green, yellow and blue, something unusual for the region. "Our guests pained our home with different colors. When the color turns red from brown for example, it reflects changes within us as well. We love our homes more now," says Saeed Al-Maghsbah, a resident of the picturesque valley.

Zureikat is keen to promote the artistic and cultural dimensions of life. His team organized a song contest in 2010 in a bid to explore talent in this conservative town.

Suja Al-Maghsbah, (18), who won the ‘Voice of the Ghor’ contest, has been invited to sing on many television channels. She believes: "Zikra broke social barriers and cleared concepts of the people.” Now she perform in national events with her family's approval.

Several training workshops for the people of the region have helped people learn filmmaking, painting, ceramics and photography.

Saeed Al-Maghsbah, Suja's father, performed in a play ‘fish on surface of the sea,’ which explains the suffering and loss of Ghor Al-Mazraa resident at the hand of land mafia.

Zureikat did not have a smooth sailing. Talking about his share of difficulties, he recalls: “I had to work without volunteers so I changed my style and adopted ‘exchange instead of donation’ that became really popular amongst the youth.” Zikra has some 30 employees with no death of volunteers.

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