Geo: 30.5852, 36.2384Today we headed into the desert for a night in a desert camp. This is a camp styled after a bedoiun camp. We were the only ones there which was nice. After lunch we did a 3 hour ride through the desert in the backs of pick up trucks outfitted with benches on either side of the truck bed. It was super fun going up, over and down the sand dunes. One truck got a flat tire so we had to wait for a replacement vehicle. What do you do in the desert with time on your hands? Make a human pyramid!!On our way again to two natural bridges hewn by nature. It was so like being in Utah and very fun to see the reactions of folks who have never seen anything like ... read more

Geo: 30.32, 35.48We stopped at 3 places on our way to Wadi Musa - Mt. Nebo (pronouced nay-bow) which is where Moses spent the last 12 years of his life after the long walk through the desert. There isa church being built at the top which will be a huge draw once it is completed.We then moved on to Madaba where there is an ancient church with an amazing mosaic map on the floor that depicts the 'holy world' as it was hundreds of years ago. I will add more specifics later. The mosaic is no longer complete but there is a very large part of it that shows the Jordon River, Dead Sea, Jerusalem etc.Then to Karak Castle - the largest and late-Islamic castle in Jordan. This is a famous castle from the crusades and ... read more

Geo: 30.5852, 36.2384I arrived yesterday along with the bitter cold, wind and rain. I was lucky enough to get my room right away so I pretty much hibernated for the day. I realized I was exhausted so it was nice to have a break.Today, the 2nd, there is a group meeting at 6pm. The day is still cold but not as windy and rain is intermittent. I didn't venture very far but did head over to Rainbow Street which, during the day, is pretty dull. There are lots of restaurants but many only open for dinner. I assume this is because it is low season for tourism so that might play into it as well. The area is supposed to be a beehive of activity...oh, well. I grabbed a falafel sandwich and bought some snacks and ... read more

Geo: 31.0461, 34.8516I have waited to post about this day because it was quite overwhelming. After breakfast we left the Bedouin camp and headed off to visit the Duhaishe Camp for Palestinian refugees and then onto Bethlehem. The camp was established in 1948/49 to temporarily house Palestinians who fled their homes during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. The conflict over returning to their homes is still unresolved so the camp is actually a small city unto itself. This is an extremely complicated situation with apparently no willingness by anyone involved to compromise in any way. Our Palestinian guide was 19 and believes, as his father and grandfather do, that they should be able to return to their exact town/home. I am confused about who controls what but the people living in this camp get aid from the ... read more

Geo: 31.0461, 34.8516I am on this trip with G Adventures a tour company based in Canada. I found them via a search for small group tours as I wasn't comfortable traveling solo in the middle east.Their are 9 in this group - 5 women and 4 men. Only 2 people knew each other before this trip. All are very well travelled in spite of their ages. All but 2 of us are under 30. They are very nice, positive, curious people. A few of them have done several trips with G and have been very happy with them.This has turned out to be a very god choice for me.... read more