Who said camels aren't soft and cuddly?
Tuesday morning we met our tour guide, Yasser - the same guy that took us to Jerish, Umm Quays and Ajloun - at the gates of the university. He is an amazing tour guide. He's so friendly and easy to talk to, he can speak great English and he's ALWAYS on time or early (something not many Jordanians can boast). He was waiting with his car before we got to the gate. And we headed South (again) towards Aqaba.
But this time we weren't going to the sea. We were stopping about 80km North, well into the southern desert region. Our destination was Wadi Rum - a fantastic desert valley and nature preserve. Wadi in Arabic means river valley, but this wadi doesn't have any water. We arrived at our camp (one of two permitted camps in the area) just before noon - before all the tourists arrived. We snacked on some food that we brought and then got ready to go out 4-wheeling. For 20JD you get 2 hours riding with one of the guides out in the desert. Our driver, Yousef, was probably in his early 20s. He's lived in Wadi Rum for his whole life, and was a great guy to take us around. He down-shifted up the hills and coasted over the sand like a pro. The views were spectacular. Undoubtedly the most beautiful place in the whole country (for those of you who like deserts).
Awesome Wadi Rum Panoramics
After we returned back to the camp I decided to go on a short hike. I wanted to make my way out to one of the larger rock outcrops to climb, but, since it was getting late (a few hours to sunset) I decided to just go up the closest outcrop to the camp. I made it to the top where I took a break, opened up my pack and grabbed an orange (a nice snack for the top) and enjoyed the view. Towards the west there was a small sandstorm brewing. It was a pretty windy day and by the afternoon the sand was picking up pretty good. After some pictures, I came back down and relaxed in the bedouin tents that were set up as a few tourist busses rolled in.
In total there were maybe 50 people at the camp. The site can hold upwards of 200 in the peak season, so it was relatively sparse for us. My brother and I got our own, huge tent (made for 4 people) and my parents got the same. For dinner they had made some traditional bedouin-type food. Of course, being the seasoned Jordanian food expert that I am, I was one step ahead of the tourists. It wasn't too bad, considering the conditions, aside from the sand in the rice and Freekeh (a common wheat product - very good when there is no sand) and the carrots that were a little too pickled (salty).
After a chilly, windy night out in the desert we woke up early, drank our Nescafe and ate our hummus and fuul and headed North-West to Petra. The actual site of Petra is pretty important to the Jordanian Dept. of Antiquities. It is one of the top two most-funded historical sites in the country, for restoration and whatnot. Jordanian citizens pay an entrance fee of 1JD/person/day (written on the sign in Arabic, a clever deterrant that doesn't fool experts like myself), but Foreigners get the fantastic price of 22JD/person/day. So, we argued heavily to make our case as Jordanian citizens. And we got it, after a phone call and some persuasion.
You may remember Petra from the Indiana Jones movie "Raiders of the Lost Ark," with the Siq - the narrow, winding valley that he entered in from - and the Treasury - the giant city entrance carved into the wall where a good amount of the movie's action took place. It was constructed by the Nabateans in around 150AD. They were able to master successful agriculture in one of the most aride regions of the country, and is where the Arabic word for vegetarian ("nabatean") originates. We headed down the Siq and approached the Treasury as the morning sun shone from the East - perfect sunlight to illuminate the rose hues in the rock and create spectacular contrasts on the Treasury.
Of course, by this time of day the Treasury was pretty busy with visitors. We had planned on walking to the Treasury and then going straight back to the Monastery (at the other end of the valley and up a small mountain), though. And what better chance is there to ride a camel?! We bargained with the owner for a reasonable fare (the guy started asking 15JD/person but we got him down to 7JD - its probably worth about 5JD) and got on for the ride. Now, camels are really sweet. They're sort of cumbersome and difficult to get on to, but once they get going they're so awesome.
Anyways, we got to the Monastery and hung out there for a little bit and then headed back through the Petra to check out all the sites. It is really beyond explaination, so hopefully the pictures can give you some sense of what it is like.
That evening, after spending the afternoon exploring the Petra and then checking into our hotel (which was really nice, BTW) my brother and mom and I went to a traditional Turkish Bath. This was a really cool experience and was totally refreshing after spending two days out in the desert and sand. After a REALLY long sauna I was scrubbed with a brush and then given an awesome massage.
What else could make the day any better? Beer. Yea, our hotel had a bar in it, which was fantastic. I got to try this awesome beer called Killkenny. Its an Irish Stout that has a nature similar to Guinness, an excellent beer to enjoy and savour.
So, I personally REALLY enjoyed this trip. Wadi Rum and Petra are, in my opinion, two of the coolest places in this region. There is some fantastic history in both. Wadi Rum was the site of Laurance of Arabia's base during the Arab Revolt and Petra is just incredible as far as archeology goes. Quite a fantastic few days.
But this time we weren't going to the sea. We were stopping about 80km North, well into the southern desert region. Our destination was Wadi Rum - a fantastic desert valley and nature preserve. Wadi in Arabic means river valley, but this wadi doesn't have any water. We arrived at our camp (one of two permitted camps in the area) just before noon - before all the tourists arrived. We snacked on some food that we brought and then got ready to go out 4-wheeling. For 20JD you get 2 hours riding with one of the guides out in the desert. Our driver, Yousef, was probably in his early 20s. He's lived in Wadi Rum for his whole life, and was a great guy to take us around. He down-shifted up the hills and coasted over the sand like a pro. The views were spectacular. Undoubtedly the most beautiful place in the whole country (for those of you who like deserts).
Awesome Wadi Rum Panoramics
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In total there were maybe 50 people at the camp. The site can hold upwards of 200 in the peak season, so it was relatively sparse for us. My brother and I got our own, huge tent (made for 4 people) and my parents got the same. For dinner they had made some traditional bedouin-type food. Of course, being the seasoned Jordanian food expert that I am, I was one step ahead of the tourists. It wasn't too bad, considering the conditions, aside from the sand in the rice and Freekeh (a common wheat product - very good when there is no sand) and the carrots that were a little too pickled (salty).
|
|
|
After a chilly, windy night out in the desert we woke up early, drank our Nescafe and ate our hummus and fuul and headed North-West to Petra. The actual site of Petra is pretty important to the Jordanian Dept. of Antiquities. It is one of the top two most-funded historical sites in the country, for restoration and whatnot. Jordanian citizens pay an entrance fee of 1JD/person/day (written on the sign in Arabic, a clever deterrant that doesn't fool experts like myself), but Foreigners get the fantastic price of 22JD/person/day. So, we argued heavily to make our case as Jordanian citizens. And we got it, after a phone call and some persuasion.
You may remember Petra from the Indiana Jones movie "Raiders of the Lost Ark," with the Siq - the narrow, winding valley that he entered in from - and the Treasury - the giant city entrance carved into the wall where a good amount of the movie's action took place. It was constructed by the Nabateans in around 150AD. They were able to master successful agriculture in one of the most aride regions of the country, and is where the Arabic word for vegetarian ("nabatean") originates. We headed down the Siq and approached the Treasury as the morning sun shone from the East - perfect sunlight to illuminate the rose hues in the rock and create spectacular contrasts on the Treasury.
|
|
|
Of course, by this time of day the Treasury was pretty busy with visitors. We had planned on walking to the Treasury and then going straight back to the Monastery (at the other end of the valley and up a small mountain), though. And what better chance is there to ride a camel?! We bargained with the owner for a reasonable fare (the guy started asking 15JD/person but we got him down to 7JD - its probably worth about 5JD) and got on for the ride. Now, camels are really sweet. They're sort of cumbersome and difficult to get on to, but once they get going they're so awesome.
|
|
|
Anyways, we got to the Monastery and hung out there for a little bit and then headed back through the Petra to check out all the sites. It is really beyond explaination, so hopefully the pictures can give you some sense of what it is like.
That evening, after spending the afternoon exploring the Petra and then checking into our hotel (which was really nice, BTW) my brother and mom and I went to a traditional Turkish Bath. This was a really cool experience and was totally refreshing after spending two days out in the desert and sand. After a REALLY long sauna I was scrubbed with a brush and then given an awesome massage.
What else could make the day any better? Beer. Yea, our hotel had a bar in it, which was fantastic. I got to try this awesome beer called Killkenny. Its an Irish Stout that has a nature similar to Guinness, an excellent beer to enjoy and savour.
So, I personally REALLY enjoyed this trip. Wadi Rum and Petra are, in my opinion, two of the coolest places in this region. There is some fantastic history in both. Wadi Rum was the site of Laurance of Arabia's base during the Arab Revolt and Petra is just incredible as far as archeology goes. Quite a fantastic few days.
posted by Aaron Berdanier at 12:26 AM Permalink
