Blogs from Jerash, North, Jordan, Middle East - page 4

Overnight at the Olive Grove We left Aqaba on Wednesday afternoon, heading to a friend's parents' farm house near Jerash, an ancient city which was once part of the Roman Decapolis. Look in my older posts to see some photos of the ruins there. We drove from Aqaba to Amman and the sky was amazing. We took the King's Highway through the desert. We organised a room at a friend's hotel, the url=http://www.travelnow.com/hotel/propertydetails/210842/;jsessionid=C1E00FBD960952C1E18F4FBFB9A5A868.tn01tc01?currencyCode=USD&cid=54073 Dove Hotel in Amman. It was a quaint old place with lots of character, and an Irish Pub which had a great feel to it. It is only a two-star hotel, but the bed was comfortable and we were looked after very well. I had a meeting at Princess Sumaya University for Technology, and then we recommenced the road tri... read more

We went to Gadara simply for the view, and it more than met our expectations. As border junkies, we looked forward to seeing a corner of the Earth where Middle East countries meet. We sat at the highest point with binocculars in hand and peered across the borders into Syria and Israel (or Palestine, depending on your politics). We could see the Sea of Galilee, Tiberias, the Jordan River and the path that Dad and I followed when we visited Israel several years ago. It was a walk down memory lane that only got better as we sat in the desert sun with a cool breeze admiring the agriculture of the Jordan River Valley. Dad looked to the South and saw Mount Tabor (where Jesus revealed himself after his death!) We left our home, Shamrock Farms, ... read more

So this will be my last night in Jordan! Tomorrow I head north to Damascus. Yesterday Joe, Steph and I made the 3-hour trek up from Wadi Musa into the heart of the beast - Amman. I have to say, we did pretty freakin' spectacular navigating all the way through town into the very centre. We even found a parking spot straight away. I'm pretty proud. I was sad to say goodbye to Joe and Steph and the awesome conversations we had. Getting out of Amman was hardly straightforward, which begs a brief description of what Jordanian "driving" really consists of: First, if you're used to street names and signs...no such thing here. In fact, you'll be driving along, and suddenly the road will "split"...it's up to you to pick left or right...or up the hill. ... read more

Despite being very tired, I found it difficult to sleep in a very cold room (the windows had been left open) with a pillow the size of a small mountain. Nevertheless, I must have slept because the alarm woke me at 07h30 and the pillow was on the floor. I showered and headed downstairs for breakfast by 08h00 and found myself taking orange juice and black coffee with Pauline and Andrew, who had taken a coach down from Sheffield to Heathrow. Breakfast was a simple affair with bread, jam, oranges, dates and some funny green stuff. The introductory chat was interesting and before long, it was all over and we had to go and get ourselves ready for the day. Back downstairs by 09h00, I found myself part of a group of nine comprising three couples ... read more

Attempted bravery today and drove out of Amman on a roadtrip to the east first to see some castles. ... read more