Travel from Aqaba to Amman, Jordan Friday, January 3rd, 2014 Today was a pretty leisurely morning. We didn't start out too early and there wasn't much on the schedule. We were making the trip back to Amman from Aqaba which was to take about 4 hours via the Desert Highway. Unlike the Kings Highway, the Desert Highway is a lot straighter, a lot quicker and there is a bit more traffic. We made pretty good time though with a couple little stops for food and shopping.
The scene as we left Aqaba and headed back into the heart of the desert.
Camels, camels everywhere. This one, like most we drove past, was hobbled (front or back legs tied so they can't wander too far). That gives you an idea that these are not wild camels but belong to someone in the area.
Through the haze you can see Israel. It really is that close. We would travel along this close for most of the 4 hours. Security towers and fences are a common sight along this stretch of the highway.
One of the security posts along the way. I like the laundry drying on the roof.
One of the many UNHCR tents you will find along the road. You will find thousands of UNHCR tents in the area belonging to refugees from Syria. I think I mentioned that nearly 2 million refugees have crossed into Jordan from Syria to escape the fighting there. So amazing because Jordan is a small country with very few resources but they are doing everything they can to help their neighbours.
They are growing vegetables under those little greenhouse domes. You will see field after field of these. They do a great job of turning otherwise useless land into fields of tomatoes and watermelons and other such things.
These tents most likely belong to gypsies.....nomadic Jordanians. You will find a large number of gypsy camps in this area. Funny thing.....they all have satellite dishes.
Now I cannot find the name of these rock formations but there is a long story about a father and his 2 daughters (pretty sure it's in the bible). Not a lot of other tourist stops along the highway.
The sun over the Dead Sea. A little bit more sun today than the day we went floating.
The water looks pretty and inviting today.....but there would be no swimming this time around. This was basically a travel day.
If you zoom in on this picture you can make out a trickle of water flowing here. Normally there would be more but the dam is closed and not controlled by Jordan.
Eventually we made it back to the hotel. We said goodbye to a few people who were travelling on and then the rest of us headed out for dinner. After dinner we hit the clubs. Final night in Amman so the whole group of us went dancing. Dancing lasted well into the morning, finally heading back to the hotel about 2am.
Saturday my tour of Jordan officially ended. Before my flight I managed to run a few errands including shawarma and mailing postcards (sorry no one actually got them, but I did write them I promise). It was a really amazing week. Met some wonderful people, experienced some great history and just had an all-round good time. It's a quick trip to Jordan so I can easily pop over for another visit to see anything I didn't get to see this time around.
Travel to Aqaba, Jordan, Thursday, January 2nd, 2014 This morning we had a pretty early wake-up call......but this time it came with camels. And what could be better than a wake-up call with camels.
It was not a warm morning but so worth it. I love camels. They're awesome.
My view from my camel. I don't think he had a name. I just called him " Cutie".
Early morning sky.
A little video of that camel ride. I'm not saying they are the most comfortable thing to ride, but you make it work. Over the years of camel rides (I've had a couple) the locals have taught me some tricks.
A little chilly on those camels but still smiling.
The sun is up now. Made it a little bit warmer.
Look no hands. No I would not have tried this while they were moving. It's not a smooth ride.
Oh look at Cutie.......how cute is he?
Resting after his morning trek.....and still smiling.
Eventually we transferred from the camels to the jeeps and then back to our van and started the trek to Aqaba. It was only about an hour drive from Wadi Rum to Aqaba and I mostly used the time to nap. Once in Aqaba we had a totally free day so people did all kinds of different things. Chisoto, Sarah and I decided we would do some shopping, but not before a shower and some food. Turns out the best shawarma place in town was like a minute down the street from our hotel.......it was so good.
The view from my hotel room. A nice little city right on the Red Sea. If I had more time....and energy I would have gone to the beach.....but shopping was just about the pace I needed.
Found in one of the parks in the city. Lots of families around enjoying the day.
Later that night we headed out for dinner as a group at a really great restaurant in Aqaba. Obviously being on the Red Sea, seafood was on the menu. It was really good seafood too. I think I've mentioned that the food in Jordan is pretty top notch. Really enjoyed it. After dinner we headed to a local Irish Pub for a few drinks and to relax.
That's Steve presenting Ayman with a little gift from the group. He was a really great tour guide who made sure we enjoyed all that Jordan has to offer. Ayman's mother is Croatian so he also does tours in Croatia. Having visited Croatia, I can imagine Ayman would be a great tour guide there too.
Hard to believe that my trip to Jordan is almost over as we will head back to Amman tomorrow.
After a not so early breakfast, we headed out from our one desert camp to another desert camp. This time we were heading out the to G-Adventures camp, which is much more isolated and quiet in an area known as Wadi Rum or the Valley of the Moon.
A look at our NYE camp in the daylight.
That's the main cooking/eating area.
It was a quick (but slightly chilly) ride in the back a few jeeps to make our way to our new camp. Also neslted in nicely against some rocks and just down a little hill (so out of sight from anyone driving by), we arrived well before lunch time.
Our G-Adventures home in the desert.
My little tent. I wasn't sharing so lots of extra blankets. Nights in the desert are a wee bit chilly, especially this time of year.
A little walk up the sand hill from our camp and this is the view. Not bad if I do say so myself.
There is just something about the desert.
No trees around and other than some rocks I'm the only one able to cast a shadow.
Why am I standing on this fire looking like I conquered it? Well that's because the boys tried and tried and could not get it started.....they eventually gave up. I got it going though.
We had some lunch at the camp and then it was off to the Deseih Desert for a jeep ride. The area is full of natural rock formations and we would get to see a whole lot of them.
Some pretty views on those big sand hills.
Our jeeps.....seriously not very warm but good fun.
Part way through we stopped at a Bedouin camp for some tea and refreshments.
We were treated to some traditional music as well.
Just one of the amazing natural rock formations we got to see.
One of the highlights of the tour was our stop at Burdah Bridge, which at 35 metres (114 feet) high is one of the highest natural bridges in the world. Although I never knew it's name before I certainly have seen pictures before.
Looking down from the top of Burdah Bridge.
I took that last picture from where you can see those people standing. It really is high up but worth the climb to get up there.
A little video of our trek through the desert.
Before heading back to camp we found ourselves a nice high location to watch the sunset.
Pretty Sky.
Still a bit of light left, but not much.
The last light of a really great day.
After the sun disappeared we headed back to camp for another great traditional dinner. Again everything cooked in the ground.....so good. After dinner Ayman lead us on a trek out into the desert. Absolutley pitch black with zero light pollution we were able to see pretty much every star in the sky. We had a nice little fire, some tea and had a nice enjoyable time.
Eventually we made the trek back to camp, warmed up with some tea next to the fire before heading off to bed. Tomorrow would be another early start.
Petra, Jordan Tuesday, December 31, 2013 Well, it was the final day of 2013 so it was best to do something spectacular. And I assure you today did not disappoint. The group of us got up before the sun so that we could be one of the first groups to enter the ancient site of Petra. And it was totally worth the early wake up call.
The first thing we noted in the parking lot. Made me smile and pretty much set the tone for the day.
Of course when most people think of Petra they think of the Treasury, made famous in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (hence the Supermarket sign above), but I assure you Petra is so much more. Petra is one of the Seven Wonders of the World and was named a World Heritage site in 1985. It was established as the capital city of the Nabataeans as early as 312 BCE. Carved into the stone over 2,000 years ago the knowledge of the city was lost to the western world for centuries until 1812 when it was rediscovered by a Swiss Explorer, Johann Ludwig Burckhardt. Of course it wasn't lost to the locals for those years and when Johann rediscovered the "Lost City" he did so by disguising himself as a Bedouin and joining the tribe who called the city home at the time. As you can imagine Petra is a very popular place for tourists to visit in Jordan which is one of the reasons why we decided to get up so early. We wanted to enjoy some of the sites without hundreds of other people around. I can tell you the place was empty when we arrived but that certainly changed by lunchtime. Here are a "few" pictures from a fabulous day.
The long path you must take to enter the city. You can actually do this section by horse (included in your admission fee) but with no one else around, the walk was nice. This stretch is known as Bab as-Siq (Gateway to the Siq).
One of the dwellings you will find outside the main entrance to Petra.
The Siq.....the main entrance into Petra. It is never more than 3 metres (9.8 feet) wide and winds through the rocks for 1.2 kilometres (0.75 miles).
That guy has some terrible climbing form. I don't think he would make it very far up those rocks.
Seriously a cute kitty but this picture demonstrates why Petra is also known as The Rose City. The name comes from the colour of the rocks.
If you look closely, you can still make out the camel that was carved into this wall. Over the years many of the carvings have disappeared due to erosion but many are still visible. Below the camel you can see some of the remains of the drainage system. The whole city had a very good drainage system built in that made sure buildings were not flooded and to collect rain water. Obviously there is a water shortage throughout Jordan and even back then the builders did what they could to save every drop of rain. Unfortunately much of it was damaged in earthquakes.
There are actually 3 sets of legs. All that remains of these statues.
These are the final few metres of the Siq leading to Petra's most famous site.
A sneaky first glimpse.
And a little bit more.
Getting closer.
And there it is.......Al Khazneh (The Treasury). I look pretty small in front of it and for good reason. This building is huge standing over 40 metres (131 feet). The sight as you walk out of the end of the Siq and into this courtyard takes your breath away. The reason why we got up so early was so that we could experience this with the least number of people possible. Totally worth the early wake-up.
Oh look.... I found camels. Naturally I went to say hi. They were very friendly.
A closer look at the entrance. Unfortunately you can no longer go inside. It has been closed to tourists do to vandalism and damage being caused to the building.
Looking straight up from the bottom. Of course this is known as the Treasury but it's exact use is still up for debate. However, most people seem to agree that it was never actually used as a treasury. It was most likely a temple or Royal tomb.
Hmmmm.......nearly postcard perfect.
A little donkey hanging out in one of the old dwellings. Technically he shouldn't be there but wandering through Petra you will find many little donkeys in the old houses. No one lives in Petra anymore but during the day you will find lots of locals with donkeys, horses and camels offering rides to tourists around the site. Many owners leave their animals here at night.
Good question. We had more Petra to see but we would get back to the shops later.
Another one of the large buildings on site. This is the Royal Tomb although which Royal the tomb belongs to is up for some debate. Either way it is a really amazing sight.
This is part of the stairway that leads up to the Royal Tombs.
Climbing above the tombs this the Urn Cathedral. Many tombs were turned into churches when the Christians arrived.
Another one of the large buildings in Petra. Sorry I cannot find the name of it but it's huge.
This is the Dier or Monastery. It is monstrous. You can see the people standing in the door way. By the way to even get into that doorway you have to climb up. I would have needed help. That step is well over my head.
The Jordanian Flag with an amazing view in the background. We did a lot of climbing on this day.
A few of the mosaics that remain at the site.
Ahhhh.....look at the cute little donkey I found. They ferry tourists up and down the ruins....for those who don't want to or can't walk. I chose to walk but had to take a picture with this cute little guy. And yes, at this point of the day it was cold enough for a touque.
A look at the valley we would be making our way up.
It would have been easier on a donkey but I enjoyed the walk. Much easier to check things out. You can see the little market in this picture. There were spots for shopping and tea all the way to the top.
Oh look....another cute little donkey. They get to walk down all on their own. They know the way.
I have no idea how that cat got up there......or how it was getting down.
This is part way up our hike to the top. Pretty beautiful.
We'll they tell you it's the best view but I guess I'll wait to get up there to see.
Looking back at the Monastery from the walk up to the best view.
Full view of the Monastery from our hike up to to the best view. Even from here it looks monstrous.
And we've made it to the best view. It was a little hazy but I think it's pretty good.
The more than the best view.......I guess we'll climb up there too.
During busier season and better weather this tent is a great place to grab some tea or other refreshments. No so much on this day.
A look at the more than the best view.
Totally worth the climb.
That tent looks dangerously close to the edge of that cliff. Maybe it's not the best place to stop for tea.
Oh look......goats. So if you're counting that's camels, donkeys, cats and now goats. There were also horses but I didn't take pictures of them. We found them on our way back down.
This is Sarah, from Scotland. We felt we deserved some tea after our climb to the best view and the more than the best view. Plus we still had more climbing to do. This was just a pit stop.
And on our next set of climbing. I'm not sure what I'm looking back at right here but you can get a sense of the immense size of some of the buildings.
In the foreground you can see the remains of one of the temples. It is one of the newer buildings on the site. In the background you see some of the older buildings carved into the stone.
Once again, no idea how that little goat got up there but I guess they are pretty nimble.
I am also not totally sure what this building but it is in a pretty hidden location as you climb up the other side of the mountain.
If you didn't turn back, you would have walked right past this one.
The best building I could do at Petra.....and some of the only plant life you will find.
After about 8 hours of walking and climbing and exploring, the rain started to fall and it was time for us to leave Petra. I did a quick bit of shopping before I left (magnets, postcards etc)........I guess the postcards never made it to their destinations though. Pretty sure I could spend another day there and find a whole different set of ruins to check out. From here we headed out to the desert. We were supposed to stay 2 nights in Wadi Musa but as this was New Year's Eve Ayman wanted to make sure we had a great place to go, so we headed to a desert camp to spend the night.
My little tent. Those blankets were super warm....but I still had 2 of them.
Dinner coming out of the ground. We had a great dinner being prepared in the traditional way, with hot coals under ground.
Look at that feast. It was so good and there was tons of it.
The rest of the night was spent relaxing and dancing and having a good time.
The boys dancing in the New Year.
Our NYE fireworks.
Steve fell asleep at about 2330 so we decided we would go wish him Happy New Year. That's Chisoto, Sarah, Me, Steve and Greg. Pretty sure Steve had no idea what was happening.
Shortly after the fireworks, our very long day ended. More adventures to come on New Year's Day. HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!
