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Published: March 25th 2008
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Bab el-Siq
This narrow gorge opens to reveal the greatest monument at Petra - The Treasury It's six-thirty A.M on Valentine's Day and we get picked up at our hotel in Eilat to be taken to the Jordanian border. After leaving Israel and walking across the two hundred metre "no mans land", we arrive at the Jordanian immigration desk (staffed by one person) and get caught up behind a very large Eastern European tour group which delayed us forever...eventually we are able to enter Jordan and head to Aqaba to meet our guide and begin the two and a half hour drive to Petra.
Following a couple of photo stops en-route (at which point we realize just how cold it is), we arrive in Wadi Musa the small town on the fringe of Petra and meet with our local guide. The "lost" city of Petra was carved (literally) out of the mountainside by the ancient civilization of the Nabataeans between the 3rd Century BC and 1 A.D before being consumed by the Roman Empire in 106 A.D.
The approximately 1 km walk through the narrow canyon known as the "Siq" is filled with examples of Nabataen carvings and tombs eroded by wind, water and time as well as rock walls of coloured sandstone. Walking through
the siq you can only wonder how Johann Ludwig Burchardt, a Swiss explorer and adventurer, felt in 1812 when the gorge unexpectedly opened to reveal the pink facade of the Treasury, the most beautiful and important building in the "rediscovered" lost city.
Even though this was my second visit to Petra, the amazement felt when viewing the stunning Treasury was diminished in no way. The soaring structure is hewn directly out of the massive cliff face and the skills of the artists and architects that created it in the 1st Century B.C are apparent. After spending some time at the Treasury we continued our guided tour and visited the Royal Tombs and the Theatre before dropping into one of the canvas stalls for some Bedouin coffee and to warm our freezing hands (it was so cold that my camera even froze up!). It was then that the cold, grey skies opened and a frigid, almost freezing rain began to fall.
After spending some time sheltering with the local Bedouins, the rain began to slow then became a light drizzle before coming to a complete stop. We then decided that we should continue our visit at Petra and in
spite of Janice's worsening cough, mounted donkeys to ride up 800 rock-cut steps to the monumental and very well preserved temple, known as the Monastery. The temple, dedicated to the deified King Obodas 1st, is known as the Monastery because early Christians used the building as a church.
Making our way down the mountain, we visited the area known as the City of Petra before climbing another hill to take a closer look at some of the Royal Tombs. The Urn and Palace Tombs are particularly impressive and speak volumes about the sophistication of the civilization that created them. Then it was time to head back out towards the Siq and due to the long day and miserable weather we decided to ride camels back to the entrance - after a brief stop at the Treasury we were back near the entrance to the Petra complex. It was then that we witnessed one of the most beautiful sunsets I have ever seen - absolutely spectacular!!
As soon as we stepped inside the visitor center, it began to rain a freezing cold rain which then turned to sleet and finally to snow. Luckily this only lasted a few minutes
and after being assured by the staff that "Petra by Night" would run that evening (it's a twice weekly event where the Siq is lit by candles and a show is performed at the Treasury - A great thing to do on Valentine's Day Eve) we headed to our hotel to rest and freshen up. When it was time to leave we headed outside and were pleased to see a pleasant, starry sky - things were looking up!! We headed back to the entrance to Petra and on arrival were told by the same staff member - "Sorry, not on tonight" - you can imagine that I wasn't impressed. We then tried to get a refund and where told to go back to where the tickets were purchased - after walking up the road to the agent from whom our guide bought the tickets we explained the situation and where then told that our guide had to come and collect the money!! Aargh...could our night get any worse?
The next morning we travelled north through Jordan to the Crusader Castle at Kerak. Built in 1142 by a Frankish Lord the castle was part of the Crusader fortifications between Jerusalem
and Aqaba before it fell to Saladin in 1188. Then it was off for a brief stop beside the Dead Sea before making our way to the Israeli border at King Hussein bridge - finally we were back in Israel after an exhausting two days!!
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Craig Goldsmith
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Amazing Stuff
Amazing stuff Daniel and Janice, sorry to hear Janice still isn't 100% and how annoying about the show not being on. The photos are fantastic, the snow in the desert, the sunset! Top stuff.