TO JORDAN

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21 April. Well, our trip to Jordan across the Red Sea (the Gulf of Aqaba) was certainly exciting. Since Intrepid neglected to provide a trip leader for the crossing, things got interesting when Gilbert, our Malaysian group member, was separated from the rest of the group by apparently ignorant Jordanian immigration agents. Gilbert's wife immediately asked Tom to rescue him, so Tom followed the agents and Gilbert into a far office, using a helpful Syrian to communicate with the agents. We never did figure out why they were so interested in Gilbert, except (perhaps) that they had never heard of Malaysia or (perhaps) they were afraid he was an Arab whose origin they couldn't pin down.

22 April. Apparently, Intrepid doesn't have any employees in Jordan, but they did get us a good guide, whose name is Osama. (He says that's caused him all sorts of problems, even as a Jordanian citizen in Jordan.) Once we freed Gilbert, we went to Wadi Rum, a protected wildlife area that's famous as the center of the Great Arab Revolt against the Turks in the early hears of the 20th Century. (This is where Lawrence of Arabil lived and fought.) We spent about 4 hours riding in 4 wheel drive vehicles across the Wadi (means "valley") and spent the night at a Bedouin camp. That was great!

23 April. Yesterday, we came to Petra, an archaeological site just added to the list of Wonders of the Ancient World. It was a stopping place for camel trains going to and from Yemen, India, and Europe, located in a gorge between mountains carved out by water. After the fall of the Roman Empire, it was "lost" for hundreds of years before being rediscovered in the 1800s. We walked down into the gorge and found beautiful buildings carved from the rocks -- and thousands of tourists. Another neat thing: in the middle of the modern town, just across the street from our hotel, is Moses' Spring, where Moses struck a rock with his staff to get water for the wandering Israelites. It's still the only green area for many miles. Jordan is the poorest of the Arab countries, and it looks like all the tourists coming to Petra might help improve the lot of theJordanian people. It's clean and still a lot richer than India -- we're enjoying it more than Egypt.

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Photos

Wadi Rum
A protected area where the Bedouin people still live and raise their herds of sheep and goats.

First Glimpse of Petra
As you walk down into the gorge, you see the "Treasury" building between the walls of the canyon.

The Treasury
The most complete building in Petra, carved into the sandstone walls.

Petra Temple
Located in the central market area of the gorge.

Comments

[Paula Jenkins]

great photos....
Sandy and Tom: I am so envious....always wanted to go to Petra! The photos are great. Can't wait for your visit to Turkey....