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Published: June 27th 2008
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The only way to see Wadi-Rum is with a guide. We book a 4x4 tour from the hostel in Petra but unfortunately it seemed like nobody else was going so we had to pay a slightly higher 45 JD per person for a private car. When we got to Wadi Rum however the guide had a Japanese couple that was to be in our group, but since they couldn’t refund us any money we decided to demand a private car anyways. We justified it by thinking that we would want to hike around and take our time all day at the sites before reaching the overnight Bedouin camp.
It tuns out we have to wait for the couple and vice versa as the drivers decided to be best buddies anyways so Japanese Couple is with us everywhere we go. It was a little comical considering all the drama we went through in trying to adjust the price when at every turn in the sand and every stop we made, they were right there with us. We go from site to site but honestly I didn’t think much about 5/6 stops we made along the way. I had heard from other
people that Wadi Rum was not to be missed. The landscape was magnificent (and a rock-climber’s wet dream,) but nobody told me the sites you were taken to along the way were totally useless. Not surprisingly, I also lost any interest to hike through slippery sand in blasting Middle Eastern heat. While the 3 hours riding around a desert in a Jeep was fun enough in itself, I could barely bring myself to get out for most stops. I took pictures that my brother described as “pictures Mom would take, you know the kind of rocks and stuff that nobody really wants to look at later,” just for the sake of remembering what we saw. And Steve’s thoughts on the Japanese... “Poor Japanese, I feel bad for them. I mean I don’t feel bad for us, but what if they are on their honeymoon or something?” If there was a way to see Wadi Rum without taking the stops for “attractive rock inscriptions” and the Lawrence of Arabia sites, I would recommend it. Our guide even told us the Lawrence sites were fake, they were only sites for the movie and they make them into stops named “Lawrence’s Spring,” “Lawrence’s
House” just for tourists. I was a little surprised they would just offer this information so widely, but I guess he had our money already.
In Damascus, Victor debated the authenticity of the Bedouin experience in Wadi Rum with some Thinker. I hadn’t been yet so didn’t follow, but I see now what was so debatable. Now I am no expert on modern-day Bedouins (all I know is what Bedouin bride get-ups vaguely resemble,) but I didn’t learn much about them while in Wadi Rum that is for sure. You have to wonder if the Wadi Rum culture has just turned into a giant tourist trap. The tour menu is quite sophisticated and they push purchasable POS Bedouin women’s crafts in the pamphlets as another window into their culture. They take you to cinematic sites that historically are completely insignificant. And what kind of nomadic desert tribe uses cell phones? Doesn’t that sort of negate one of the coolest reasons for being nomadic? I’d gotten the impression that we were staying overnight in Bedouin camps, but when I asked the guide if we would be able to talk with them he chuckles, “Sure, if you see any Bedouins!” Shot
down. Upon arrival after the tour, it turns out the “Bedouin camp” is really just a site of tents for tourists, not an actual Bedouin village of any sort (although today we only have us four people here which is pretty sweet.) The only Bedouin there is the one that comes to cook us dinner, and he is largely overweight and wearing a tank top and basketball shorts.
I can complain about the unauthenticity of the Bedouin camp, but the surroundings are amazing. I really don’t think there are any other people in a 5 or 10 mile radius, or as far as the eye can see. I haven’t seen any Jeeps come by and haven’t heard anything but the wind since arriving.
P.S. - I wouldn't recommend booking with Zidane who runs one of the independent tour businesses. We booked through the Petra hostel and I think it may have been a little cheaper, but he was pretty rude, distant, and not helpful after he sent us off in the morning. We were to be waking up at 5 in the morning to catch the 6:30 bus to Aqaba (I confirmed this with him before we left),
and the car broke down in the desert. This may not have been his fault, but we missed the only bus to Aqaba and needed to get to Egypt that day. He wouldn't even offer a 10-min lift to the main highway for us to hitch a ride, so we ended up having to pay for a taxi about 30 USD when it should have cost us 5 per person. Bastard man.
So if somebody were to ask me what I thought of Wadi Rum, I would be sure to give a complete answer. If you are coming for some beautiful desert scenery, seclusion, and sleeping under a blanket of stars in the middle of nowhere, it hits the mark. However, I would have to say it is just that. If you are coming with gung-ho dreams of “experiencing traditional Bedouin culture,” forget about it. Wikipedia would probably give you a better picture.
Sorry about the brevity and lameness in the last couple blogs. I just don't feel like writing. Think the heat is draining my brain juice. That or I need to stop falling off the camels head-first.
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