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Published: March 27th 2011
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Day 15 - Dead sea and the promised land.
After taking a cloudy rainy day to recover and get things done it was nice to start early on day 15 and head straight to the dead sea for a dip in some of the saltiest water on the planet. You really are able to read a magazine or newspaper while sitting on top of the water, it was an interesting feeling being able to walk until your feet don't touch the ground anymore but your body just stays above water is if your still walking. After a dip in the red sea we ate a nice lunch buffet before moving back onto the road to Madaba along the way we stopped at what many consider to be the final resting place of mosses and we were able to see some of the amazing moziacs they have there. Once we arrived in Madaba and checked into our hotel we did a walk about the city and went for some sandwiches at a local shop that Gem our tour leader recommended. The sandwiches were 1-1.50 dollars each and were fantastic.
I have been amazed just how different Jordan is than Egypt
the cities are far cleaner, the shop keepers way less aggressive and there is so much more greenery.
Day 16 – Jerash
We were lucky enough to get to sleep in until 8am today before we got picked up for our trip to the roman ruins of Jerash. The city has been controlled b y many empires over the last 2500 years but most of the ruins are Roman. This was the first time I have ever had the chance to see Roman ruins and I was very impressed I can only imagine what the city looked like when it was thriving and 28,000 people lived there. The weather was perfect today about +25C and sunny with a slight breeze which really brought out just how beautiful the country side is. After the ruins at Jerash Tash, Stacey and I decided we couldn't resist the McDonalds along the highway on the way back to Madaba, I was surprised at just how many different options they had including the McRoyle, McTasty, and most importantly the Chicken Big Mac. The chicken big mac was great and I wish that we had it in north America. Stacey was not very impressed
with her McTasty as it had a weird cheese on it and some kind sauce that tasted like a mix of thousand island dressing and fish sauce on it.
After our greasy pit stop we continued onto to town and met up with the rest of our group back at that sandwich shop. It was at the sandwich shop that I realized that I had lost my sun glasses. After triple checking my bag and calling the cab we took asking him to check the back seat I gave up and asked decided to go shopping with Stacey and Tash to find some new glasses. Unfortunately I didn't think that idea through until I was standing in woman clothing stores in Jordan getting stared at by the shop keepers. I have a feeling that it is rare for men to go into such stores so I spent most the time standing outside the stores while Stacey and Tash shopped. Eventually Stacey found a long enough skirt to wear out our home stay in turkey and I found another pair of glasses which I ended up realizing later were scratched up but in the end it was a fun walk
through the city of Madaba and it was nice to get a refresher on just how nice the cities have been in Jordan on our last evening in town before we head off to Damascus Syria in the morning.
I hope things clam down in Syria tonight and that the border is open for us to enter tomorrow as the protests have been heating up all over Syria and there are talks of government concessions and more protests tonight. I know if the situation is considered unsafe intrepid will call our leader and keep us out of Syria or if we are in Syria get us out as soon as safely possible. During my stay in Syria I may go without internet for a few days at a time, do not be surprised if it is awhile before my next update. Should things erupt in Syria while I'm there I will post the intrepid site that will update on any safety concerns and the status of its clients.
http://www.intrepidtravel.com/quicklink/ourtrips/safety/
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