Blogs from Jerash, North, Jordan, Middle East - page 3

Salah had a thing for lettuce. So much so, he blamed the wind it made him pass, on the banana trees in the fields. Or at least I think he did. Eating a whole head of lettuce in one go has not only got side affects but its got consequences. The side affects being that it makes you pass copious amounts of wind, the consequences are that the person sitting in the back of the taxi has decided to declare it to the world through the world wide web. Salah was our taxi driver for the day, and other than his denial about his flatulence he was a perfect gent. We were picked up by him at 10am for our trip to see Jerash and Ajloun. Both of these are in the north of Jordan and ... read more

Where did you grow up? What did you learn at school? And than...where did you or are you travelling? All these may be granted for most of us, but it is actually the beauty of what make humans so different. I studied latin and greek in high school for 5 and 6 years, Mari's father is fluent in ancient greek and latin (and in a few more languages). For us, the Roman Empire history is part of our education, deep down there. We grew up visiting sites and learning about our ancient past. You will see my point very soon. Leslie is born in Asia. He has been for few years in an International American school and for the last 18 month in an International English school. English system in Year 6 study the Aztecs, but ... read more

Jerash is a fantastically well preserved Roman city and a definite highlight of any trip to Jordan. It was one of the Roman provincial cities known as the "Decapolis". The colonnaded street, that runs on a north-south axis, is probably the best preserved surviving Roman road and the chariot tracks that mark the road are very evident. The Jordanian special forces stage chariot races, and demonstrate Roman Legionnaire tactics and gladiator fights in the original hippodrome. The chariot races are similar to the Calgary Stamped rodeo chuck wagon races, and the Gladiator fights are reminiscent of WWF Wrestling. The Legionnaire tactics and training are authentic down to the commands given in Latin. Only the announcer's British accent seemed out of place.... read more

WIKI Info: Located some 48 km (30 miles) north of the capital Amman, Jerash is known for the ruins of the Greco-Roman city of Gerasa, also referred to as Antioch on the Golden River. It is sometimes misleadingly referred to as the "Pompeii of the Middle East", referring to its size, extent of excavation and level of preservation (though Jerash was never buried by a volcano). Jerash became an urban center during the 3rd century BC and a member of the federation of Greek cities known as the Decapolis ("ten cities" in Greek). Jerash prospered during the 1st century BC as a result of its position on the incense and spice trade route from the Arabian Peninsula to Syria and the Mediterranean region. Jerash was a favorite city of the Roman emporer, Hadrian, and reached its ... read more

16 April 2010 After two days at Petra we left early morning to head to Madaba. We had a huge day of sightseeing and driving which included Kerak Castle, swimming in the Dead Sea and finally Mt Nebo. Kerak Castle has been built over previous structures by crusaders from the 2nd Crusade around 1100 to 1200AD. You can still walk through some of the underground passage ways and look down from the impressive stone castle walls. Next stop after couple of hours drive the Dead Sea. It is 400m below sea level, about as low as you can go. Pretty cool experience, not all as pleasurable as you would think. After about 15minutes in the water, you get the feeling you are actually swimming in petrol. However the floating experience is fun. The Dead Sea is ... read more