When we
first booked the world cruise in May of 2014, we mentioned it to one of our
head waiters on another cruise and he said, “Leona, when you go to Jordan, you
must go to Petra. It’s unbelievable and
even better than the pyramids.”
Well, I
never forgot Artur’s words and when the excursions were published online, I
immediately booked us for Petra.
Our port
city was Aqaba in Jordan, which lies directly across from Ailat, Israel, only
3.5 miles away. Just beyond Ailat, we
could see Egypt from our balcony. Three
countries from one spot. Amazing.
We expected
to walk a great deal in Petra and were hoping for cooler weather. Well, I couldn’t have asked for a more
perfect day for our trek. Actually, for
the past two months, I have been dealing with humidity and, in my opinion, Sunday,
the 27th, was the first decent day.
(I’m actually able to finally sit on my balcony now that the
temperatures have cooled down and the humidity is gone …. so far.)
Our guide on
this excursion was Basil and he was terrific.
He provided us with lots of information about Jordan, Amman being its capital
and 4.5 hours north by car. I remember
King Hussein, who died several years ago, and who was married to an American,
Queen Noor. His son, King Abdullah II,
is the current ruler.
Jordan’s
population of about 6.3 million people is comprised of 94% Muslims and 6%
Christians. Arabic is the official
language but English is spoken widely.
As we’ve come to find out on our travels, diabetes has become a
world-wide problem because of all the sugars in food and the lack of
exercise. Jordan is not immune from this
disease.
On our
two-hour drive to Petra, Basil talked a lot about camels which I found very
interesting. The dromedary camel, common
to this area of the world, has one hump.
Their hair is used frequently in the making of pashminas and rugs. Their bones were used for tools and often, he
warned, merchants will tell you this or that is made from camel bone – “don’t
believe them. It’s plastic.” Camel meat is very healthy, very lean with no
cholesterol, and camel milk is used here instead of Viagra. Camels are branded to identify the tribe to
which they belong. What I also learned
was that camels store water in a spare stomach and when the camel sits on the
ground, it’s actually pumping the excess water throughout its body like a
ventilation system. They can walk up to
seven days without food and water and when they do drink, it will be 20-25
gallons.
On the road
to Petra, we saw olives, grapes and corn growing and Basil told us about the
Bedouins who still live here and their lifestyle. Bedouin homes will have tv, satellite,
running water, but still have a tent outside. Generations tend to live together and many of
the homes are unfinished so that when the next generation marries and needs a
home, the additional space on the upper floor will be available on the existing
structures. Bedouin society is comprised of tribes,
sub-tribes and families and was initially based on safety and security; today,
the Bedouin lifestyle is a matter of tradition.
In the past,
Jordanian women by the age of 22 and men by the age of 25 got married;
currently, the ages are usually 28 and 30, respectively, because it is too
expensive to get married and many young people have figured out that higher
education, and advanced degrees, are absolutely essential.
The Syrian
refugees are causing serious financial problems in Jordan. A couple of hundred a day are entering Jordan
with a total so far of 1.6 million.
That’s a lot of people to integrate into a relatively small country
without a booming economy. Startling as
it may seem, the fourth largest city in Jordan is the refugee location. Inflation is very high and unemployment is at
16%. Where tourism used to be first in
Jordan’s economy, it is now third because of the threat of terrorism.
I have to
admit that before leaving on this cruise, I didn’t do much research on the
places we were going to visit. I
sometimes like to be surprised by not knowing a whole lot. (That’s sound like a valid excuse.) Michael had, however, downloaded a few videos
for us to watch along the way and one was about Petra. We were introduced to this incredible site by
Debbie, our destination lecturer, but nothing could compare to actually being
there.
In our
travels, we’ve visited lots of different ruins and structures – Stonehenge,
Pompeii, the Forum, the Acropolis, and on and on. What makes Petra truly amazing is the fact
that the structures were carved -- not built.
Yes, carved with camel bones.
It dates
back to as early as 312 B.C. and pretty much disappeared by the third century
and forgotten. It was not “discovered”
until 1812. It is the fascinating city
built by the Nabataeans and is reached through a narrow passageway with rock
walls towering over 600 feet in height, known as the “Siq,” and, in some
places, only 16 feet wide. (If you’re
interested, a quick google will provide you all the basic information.)
We started
out at the visitor center, a very modern square with restrooms, shops, and
information and made our way towards the Siq.
The walk was an easy one going because it was slightly downhill. (It would not be so easy several hours
later.) Much of the Siq was rugged
ground and cobbled, and we were forewarned to wear sturdy shoes although we did
see people in sandals and flip flops.
There had been a flash flood just the day before and had we arrived that
day, we would not have been able to enter the site. That being said, there was quite a bit of accumulated
water over the cobble stones that we had to negotiate very carefully. As a group, it took us probably an hour to
walk through the Siq and our guide provided all sorts of information on the
way. There were altars, carvings and
writings, all carved into the walls of the Siq and our guide provided us
insight into the who/what/why of it all.
Walking was
not the only way into the site, however.
If we wanted, buggies were available – horse drawn carriages that seated
two passengers and the driver. When I
say buggies, I’m being very generous because these vehicles were simply an
enclosure sitting on top of two wheels pulled by one horse. From what I could see and the way the
passengers (not the driver, of course) were flopping around in the seat, there
was absolutely no suspension whatsoever.
Again, we were forewarned about this and you entered these carriages at
your own risk. We were also told to be
aware of the presence of these carriages because the drivers did not stop. The horse’s hooves galloping on the
cobblestones could certainly be heard much sooner than we could actually see
them as they raced by while we practically flattened ourselves against the
stone walls to avoid being trampled.
The drivers
are all young men, who may very well be Bedouins, and Michael actually saw one
with a cigarette in his hand holding the reins while texting on his cell phone
and going God knows how fast through the Siq.
So fast, in fact, that Michael couldn’t get out his camera quick enough
to take a picture. What I noted was the
fact that many of the men had kohl-painted eyes (similar to Jack Sparrow in the
Pirates of the Caribbean movies) and I forgot to ask Basil if this was
customary or just a fad.
While we
walked through the Siq (and, again, we were forewarned), many young men were
trying to sell us “silver” bracelets, one for a dollar, three for a dollar, and
the best deal was actually five for a dollar.
Of course, they weren’t silver.
Little children were also selling sets of postcards for a dollar as
well. You could tell that the children
selling stuff bothered Basil because he emphasized the fact that schools were
public, some right in the town where we left our bus, so there was no reason
for them to be anywhere except in school.
He said that we shouldn’t bother to say to any of them, “why aren’t you
in school?,” because they would have a smart answer ready for us. Michael also saw a little girl at a small table
selling Petra rocks for a dollar. I saw
a little guy, probably no more than 4 or 5, who was somehow related to a very
old man sitting playing a one-stringed instrument, who was selling
postcards. Obviously, the people are
quite desperate.
Once we made
our way through the Siq, our first view of Petra was the “Treasury.” It’s
an ancient tomb carved from solid sandstone; legend had it that pirates left
treasure in the urn that sits on its upper level. The bullet marks on the urn were made by
treasure seekers trying to shoot the urn open.
It was absolutely spectacular and, again, it’s important to realize that
these buildings were not built, but, rather, carved.
In the
center square, camel rides were available for about $20 – everything was
negotiable – as well as donkey rides if you didn’t want to walk any further yet
wanted to see more of this fascinating city.
Like the Siq, the ground was incredibly uneven and very hard to
negotiate without twisting your ankle.
There were many more buildings and tombs to see, all carved with
intricate designs, lots of little shops, bathroom facilities and cafes
available. Some of the structures
reminded me of the Anasazi dwellings in Mesa Verde, AZ.
Michael decided
before we got there that he would venture up to the “Monastery” and I couldn’t
tell you, at this point, how much farther it was. When we have a better internet connection,
I’m going to check the distance from the entrance into the Siq to the Treasury,
the Treasury to the start of the climb to the Monastery and then the climb
itself. We knew there were 800 steps up
to the Monastery and I wasn’t about to attempt the climb because our time was
very limited. After Michael left for his
climb, I did walk to the Amphitheatre, a stunning 8,000 seated open air
theatre, carved out of the rock in the 2nd century B.C.
As I said, Michael
went on ahead while I strolled (“strolled” may not be the right word because it’s
very hard to “stroll” on rocks and other uneven surfaces) through the city,
where 26,000 people once lived). Michael
successfully made it to the top and told me that it was quite treacherous. Because of the flash flood the day before,
sand covered the cobblestones and other surfaces and moved as you placed your
foot down making it very slippery.
I started
back around 1 p.m., making my way back through the Siq. Before getting to the visitor’s center,
enterprising young men continued to approach me attempting to sell me postcards
and bracelets and offering a “free ride with my entry ticket” on horseback to
the visitor’s center. Again, Debbie
warned that the horse ride up the hill was, indeed, free with the ticket, but a
tip would be expected at the end. It was
a lovely cool clear day so I decided to walk back, getting to the hotel around
1:45 p.m. for a delicious lunch of hummus, tomatoes, onions, cucumbers,
chicken, beef, lamb, rice and pita bread.
Times like
these, Michael is very lucky not being able to smell. Throughout the Siq, the “perfume” from the
horses was, at some times, overwhelming as you might expect, and the camels
were quite stinky as well. But, then
again, if you’re unable to walk, these modes of transportation were available
and many, many of the passengers took advantage of the carriages and camel
rides.
I wasn’t at
all concerned about Michael venturing out on his own and getting lost, as he’s
known to do, because I knew several people who were going “up” to the Monastery
and there’s only one way up and down so he wasn’t going to be completely
alone. However, when I texted him and
told him I’d meet him in the lobby of the hotel where our guide pre-arranged
for us to meet at a certain time, and he responded “what lobby?” I did start to
get nervous. As most of you know, Michael’s
not the best when it comes to directions.
But, not to worry, he arrived safe and sound around 3:15 (we were
meeting our guide at 3:30 so there was no time for him to eat lunch) tired but
not too hungry or thirsty (he had power bars with him and bought some water on
the way down.)
We stopped
again at the same shop we visited in the morning for last-minute souvenirs and
a bathroom break before returning to our ship.
Treasures like Petra should be available to everyone who has the
opportunity to visit. It is a shame
that, at this point, the Middle East is not on the top of everyone’s vacation
list.
Michael’s Observations: To really appreciate Petra, you need about a week to visit this
ancient city. There are ongoing
excavations by a number of different colleges and with so much area to cover,
six or seven hours is just not enough. I
believe only one-third of what actually existed is visible right now.
I had been
preparing for this adventure for some weeks by heavy cardio cycling and,
although normally lost, I did wear my brightest orange outfit which, in my
opinion, would be visible for fifteen miles.
I know that the distance from the visitor’s center to the Treasury is
1.25 miles. The next segment from the
Treasury to the Monastery is probably close to 3.0 miles. Normally, that would present no problem, but
because of the uphill climb over sand-covered stones, I had to be especially
careful not to slip and fall. Many of
the areas have no guardrails, and deep crevices, so be warned in the event
anyone wishes to visit here.
What I found
on my journey up were numerous vendors as well as donkeys coming up and down
loaded with enthusiastic but tired passengers.
I looked forward reaching the Monastery, one, because of its known
beauty and, two, for bragging rights.
Tourists who reach the top, will find a very nice restaurant with seating
and spectacular views of the valley below.
I, however, having received a text from Leona decided to head back to
the visitors center after snapping some photos and a short rest. I found the trek down a little more
treacherous but I made it unscathed.
On the way
down, I encountered two young tourists at one of the rest stops, enjoying a
beer. It was funny – these two young men
looked so relaxed sitting on cushioned chairs that I thought the only thing
missing was a big screen tv with a sports channel.
Overall, it
is astounding to realize that these ancient people carved this city into the
rock using tools made of camel bone.
Wow!
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