Blogs from South, Jordan, Middle East - page 6

We have the whole day to explore Petra at our leisure. Our driver collects us after breakfast and suggests he takes us to the back (the tradesman’s entrance) rather than the Tourist front entrance. We wonder if he’s saying this because it’s more convenient for him. But he’s right again. He drops us at the top of the hill and we walk down into Petra. We are alone apart from the occasional Bedouin riding his camels/donkeys/horses to work. The road is lined with caves and ancient carvings. We have a lovely day exploring Petra, have a picnic sitting on a rock at the top of the Siq, then head for the meeting point to pick up our coach to Eilat. The group have had problems at the border and only 20 minutes in Petra. It’s a ... read more

Our Bedouin camp at Wadi Rum. October 19th the final adventure. We are leaving the remains of ancient desert nomads behind to join living nomads inhabiting the desert today. From the Nabataeans to the Bedouin. They inhabit Wadi Rum which is also a UNESCO world heritage site. A 'Wadi' is the valley of a dry river hence Petra is in Wadi Musa. The &Rum& part I don't know about! Mind you, many of the men there could be family to Pirates from the Caribbean.... looking little Jack Sparrows, so who knows.......! ? Our driver was funny, fast talking, good natured with a thick accent. He obliged us by making photo stops as we left Petra. The desert landscape continues to impress and stun me. Who knew that barren land could be so varied... rock types and ... read more

PETRA . Long awaited much anticipated. Tuesday October 17th. Today we travel toward one of the main highlights of my entire journey, the ancient Rose red city carved out of rocks by the the Nabataean people. Petra. My mother had enthused me with her rapture over its beauty. Now, post mortem, I carried her portrait so that she could visit the city which she never saw but loved so much. While en route I'd arranged with a driver for us to visit three important tourist spots in Jordan: MADABA with its renowned Byzantine mosaics, Mt NEBO of Moses' Promised Land fame and the DEAD SEA a global phenomenon with water so salt your body floats effortlessly. The driver was part of a transport package I'd negotiated with Solayman of the Wadi Rum Sky Bedouin camp. One ... read more

Middle East and Mediterranean Marvels - Spring 2017 Time to head back to my favorite region of the world - to cavort in the sands of the Persian Gulf before beginning my next adventure – this time on the high Seas of the Arabian, the Red and the Mediterranean for the next few weeks. Today I leave for the airport at 8am, definitely a pleasant change from my usual zero-dark-thirty departure time; I even get to sleep in until daylight. The big blue chariot awaits outside and with my bag in the back, we are off to McCarran. Fast and efficient as always with the priority lane and I speed thru TSA security like a whirlwind – Delta sure pampers their elite flyers. First leg halfway around the globe is cross country to New York, and ... read more

What a trip! Definitely a memorable hike! It started for me when Shai (Shai Bytner, a great tour guide) messaged me: “Hi Ben, would you like to join a group as rappelling guide to Wadi Fayed?” Well, duh! Of course I would! Despite the short notice, and despite the fact that I just got back from a hike to the Golan the evening before (see my blog: https://www.travelblog.org/Middle-East/Israel/North-District/Golan/blog-949438.html). So I got home from the Golan, unpacked, repacked and Amichai (Amichai Spector http://www.spectours.co.il) brought all the group’s rappelling and cooking equipment directly to my car. Early the next morning Avi joined me and we started on our way towards Eilat. On the way we picked up Shai and then drove down to the Rabin border crossing, j... read more