Blogs from Madaba, West, Jordan, Middle East - page 3

If only they had a Starbuck's here, I would never leave the Dead Sea Marriot! Pictures can’t do justice to the beauty and opulence of this place. Anything that I would attempt to capture would be insufficient, so for those who are interested, I refer you to the website (http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/qmdjv-jordan-valley-marriott-resort-and-spa/). In addition to the beaches and spa, the hotel has two movie theatres, seven restaurants and bars, a real gym with weights and aerobic machines, a games room, three swimming pools, and the mineral pool. Once you finish bathing in the sea, the attendant on the beach hands each swimmer a handful of dead sea mud (you would think I would have had enough of dirt by now), which you rub on your skin and let sit for five minutes before rinsing in fresh water. The ... read more

The ancient city of Madaba offers the largest and best preserved range of mosaics in Jordan. A short one hour mini-bus trip from Jordan's northern bus station, this city is setup well to stroll around to each of the sites. These included the the Madaba Archaeological Park, St Georges Church, Madaba Museum and Church of the Apostles. The Archaeological Park contains a number of original floors in the Church of the Virgin and the Hippolytus Hall, as well as a studio and workshop to learn and continue the art of mosaics. St Georges church has what remains of the floor, which was originally a very detailed decorative map of the greater Jordan Valley area. It also has many new mosaics and paintings, all very impressive. The Church of the Apostles has the very impressive "Personification of ... read more

...doesn't look so promising from the air. Dry, and very hot. After landing at the airport (I only slept for about 45 minutes all night), we drove to the town of Madaba. Here we enjoyed a wonderful lunch at a mostly empty restaurant. During Ramadan, Muslims do not eat or drink from sunrise to sunset. Imagine a day of 104 degrees, and you can't even have a sip of water! We then traveled to Mount Nebo. I stood in the very spot where Moses looked across the Jordan River into the Promised Land before he died. The city of Jericho is visible straight ahead, and the Dead Sea is off to the left.... read more

26 Aug - feeling back to normal today. We start our journey south through Jordan. First stop, Madaba - the City of Mosaics. I instantly get a good vibe about this town and definitely think I'll come back here next week when the tour finishes and I have 5 days on my own in Jordan. It's laid back, not too touristy, friendly and mostly Christian. Mosaic rules in this area, culminating in the oldest Mosaic map - the Great Map of Palestine from the 6th century, which is housed within a cute, wee Greek Orthodox church. We then head just 15 mins west of Madaba to Mount Nebo, where Moses was shown the Holy Land and is believed to be buried. It is completely breathtaking and beyond belief to look out over Israel, Jericho, Jerusalem and ... read more

Country of the Hashimite Kingdom (which means the kings are direct descendants of Prophet Muhammad), Jordan is richer and more orderly than Egypt. With phosphate and cement export, mostly to China, and aids from US for its important role in Middle East peace process, Jordanian economy is very strong. 1 USD = .7 Jordanian Dinar. Jordan's strengths is also visible in its work force. Egyptians, Philippians, and Africans fill most of the service jobs here. Day 13 - Wadi Rum Wadi means valley in Arabic. This is a well preserved national park, with landscapes resembling that of Utah and Colorado. It also contains many TH Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia) sites, such as the valley where the Arab army camped when fighting the Ottomans in the Arab revolt during WWI, the mountain range he named 7 ... read more