Ancient city of Petra

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To get to the ancient city of Petra, we had to walk through a large canyon that hid the city from the world for many years. During the walk through the canyon, our Jordanian guide showed us markings on the walls, places of worship and the aquaducts that were created to catch as much water as possible to supply the city. It was a great surprise to see 'the Treasury' past a curve in the canyon. The site remained unknown to the Western world until 1812, when it was "discovered" by a Swiss explorer and in 1985, it was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Evidence suggests that the Horites, probably cave-dwellers inhabited the area that had traditions such as burying the dead in tombs and offering worship in half-excavated caves. The next wave of inhabitants were the Nabataeans, 6th century Arabic nomads. Over time these people became a rich and powerful kingdom by plundering their neighbours and later charging the passing caravans tax. Their rule expanded over time as a zone of influence, which spread as far as Syria and Rome.

In 106, Petra was absorbed into the Roman Empire and the native dynasty came to an end, but continued to flourish for a century later. Eventually, the building of tombs ended and trade moved away from Petra, when the Romans diverted the trading route to nearby Syria. Then it fell into steady decline over the centuries.

We climbed up to see the Monastery, a beautifully carved facade in the rose-coloured rock. There is so much to see and more than what we could fit into our afternoon. There is more to see than is physically possible in a day, as the city is spread out over such a large span of land and hills.

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Photos

Interesting tea pots
At a store within Petra.