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Published: January 6th 2010
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Jordan, Nov. 21st - Dec.8th, 2009 Our only option for a direct ride from Beirut to Amman, Jordan was with a local taxi service. Early in the morning we piled in the car with two Jordanian men, a chain smoking driver and a trunk full of pita bread. Six hours, 2 boarder crossings, and 3 packs of cigarettes later we arrived in Amman. As soon as we crossed the border we were pleasantly surprised at how modern Jordan is. It is definitely one of the more developed Middle Eastern countries we have seen to date.
Amman is very similar to middle eastern cities we have encountered before; countless markets, roasting chickens, hanging lamb heads, the constant noise and of course the warm hearted welcoming people. The capital city of Jordan does not have much to offer in the way of tourism other then the Citadel perched on top of a hill over looking the city and yet another Roman theatre. Roman influence is everywhere! The highlight of Amman was definitely a day trip to the Dead Sea. The Dead see is located in the Jordan Valley and is 422 metres (1385 ft) below sea level, the lowest elevation on
the Earth's surface on dry land. The Dead Sea is by far one of the most spectacular natural wonders of the world. With 33.7% salinity, floating around in the waters was a surreal experience and completely effortless. One could even read a book while floating.
After Amman we were finally off to Wadi Musa to see Petra, which has been awarded the New Seven Wonders of the World title. Seven months to the day after our journey began, we walked through the famous Siqs and encountered the enormous structure of Al Khazneh ("The Treasury"). Amazingly the city of Petra remained undiscovered by the Western world until 1812, when it was uncovered by a Swiss explorer by the name of Burckhardt. Since the discovery it has become known as "a rose-red city half as old as time." Our exploration of Petra took two full days to complete and included a forbidden climb to the urn crowning The Monastery. A day in Petra is incomplete without seeing the city during sunrise or sunset, when the rocks turn an amazing shade or pink (we naturally opted for the sunset to avoid the early rise).
From Petra we made our way to
Aqaba for some much needed R&R for our sore muscles. We spent several days enjoying the warmth Aqaba had to offer by drinking, relaxing and snorkelling on the South Coast. We were pleasantly surprised to discover some of the most amazing reefs and colourful fish so close to the South Coast. The weather was a very nice change from the "fresh" temperatures of Wadi Musa.
While in Aqaba and Wadi Musa we met several travelers who highly recommended Wadi Rum, some even going as far as saying it is better then Petra. Naturally we wanted to see it for ourselves. We arrived in Wadi Rum armed with warm clothes, an open mind, and 2 liters of Whisky (mainly to keep warm)! We had heard that the best and cheapest way to explore the vast desert of Wadi Rum was with a 4x4 Jeep tour with the local Bedouin. Since there are three of us, we had some bargaining power and managed to negotiate a jeep tour, a night in a bedouin camp, dinner and breakfast for 25 JD each. Pretty good deal considering tour companies were asking for 60JD each! At noon we set off for our adventure with
high hopes for a gorgeous sunset and star gazing, little did we know what fate had in store for us. In the first two hours we saw the famous sand dunes, which awoke the competitive spirit in Dan and John (see video link), and the two rock bridge formations along with countless protruding cliffs, rocks and of course camels. All was going great until all of a sudden it clouded over, rain started falling and our Jeep broke down! A complete breakdown in the middle of the desert! Mahmoud, our Bedouin guide, tried fixing the truck to no avail. Change in plan. Mahmoud needed to go behind one of the mountains to try and call for help. As we waited for him to return, survival mode kicked in. We found a small inlet in the rocks and the boys returned to their boyscout roots to build a fire. I learned, all you need to build a fire in the desert is a good surface, small dry sticks, camel dung, toilet paper and most importantly ... a lighter! Within half hour, the rain had stopped, the fire was going and we were toasting our adventure with a Whisky and Sprite. Just
Making friends in Aqaba.
Just another day at the beach ... with an impromptu invite to a BBQ and shisha session. when we were getting comfortable, Mahmoud returned with his friend and a new truck to take us to our camp. Our night in the Bedouin camp was an unforgettable experience, complete with an authentic Bedouin meal, Mahmoud playing the loot, a huge fire and sleeping in a hut that had the hint of camel smell. Priceless!
Once again taking the advice of the many travellers we met in Wadi Musa we are off to the Red Sea coast of Sinai, Egypt instead of heading directly to Cairo. Incredible how quickly plans can change!
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