Jordan

It took a long time [most of it waiting in the airport in Vienna] to get here but this was a highly worthwhile and enjoyable experience. While the trouble in Syria is only about 35km away we have at all times felt completely safe and welcomed. We only had to walk along the street in Aqaba to hear: Welcome to Jordan - genuine, no strings attached kind of welcome. How could anyone not respond to this positively. We would highly recommend Jordan as a Middle East tourist destination. Our experience with Peregrine and Mohammed our guide [ and driver Sami] was broad based: informative and active. Right from our 1.30am arrival in our Grand Place Hotel in Amman.

AQABA

This was our first stop after leaving Amman at the southern tip of the country on the Red Sea. Snorkelling in the Red Sea was never on our bucket list but the near tepid water and the hospitality of our boat crew and the array of fish life both on the natural reefs and in the sunken army tank serving as an artificial reef made for a relaxing and leisurely afternoon while we waited until sunset. Aqaba is Jordan's port and is just km from the Israeli town of Eilat which is very close to Egypt and the Sinai Peninsula. In the other direction about 20km away is Saudi Arabia so this part of Jordan is wedged in between three other countries.

Harbour view on the Gulf of Aqaba

From Aqaba Hotel looking towards Eilat, Israel in the distance

WADI RUM

Magical desert experience. Rickety old jeeps took us through the desert past vast swathes of sand and rock. Huge monoliths of mountains: sandstone on granite - that is hard solid bases brought up from the sea via volcanic action and layered over the top with softer rock. The combination helps to give the variety of desert colour which was changing throughout the day and night we spent there. Through the Wadi to the fort of Lawrence of Arabia in which were stored the weapons to fight off the Ottoman Turks towards the end of WW1. On to the Bedouin Camp where we stayed the night in comfortable [not flash] tents but excellent to get a bit of the Bedouin experience. The sunset brought change of light and change of colour; the evening started off with a Bedouin meal cooked in the ground [like a Hangi] and after a trip to the nearby observatory to watch Saturn through the huge desert telescope and lying on the hot rocks watching shooting stars and satellites against a myriad of stars in the Milky Way we were lucky enough, before we went to bed, about 11.30pm to see the start of the Meteor Shower which coincided with our trip to Wadi Rum. The next morning we took  a jeep ride to a a camel station and were carried back in a Caravan [of Bedouin Limousines] to Wadi Rum village and the end of our stay.

Camel's Eye View heading towards Wadi Rum Village

Desert campsite, Wadi Rum

PETRA

Before we went our image of Petra was limited really to the Treasury which is the postcard image of this ancient town built up by the Nabataean people living in Wadi Musa and Petra in about the 6th Century BC.  We spent about 9 1/2 hours walking around this ancient old city cut off from the rest of the world until 1812, hidden between the mountains and accessed by an ancient Siq or passage which was reconstructed by the Romans under Hadrian. The images associated with the Royal Tombs, the Roman amphitheatre, the Place of Sacrifice and the Monastery all exude the incredible architecture and construction of peoples who have been long gone before us.
It was also in the town of Wadi Musa [or Wadi Mousa] that Moses is said to have lived at some point during the 40 years of wandering in the desert - which is what Bedouin people have been doing for millenia.  [ We even got to see the well from which Moses and his people drew water 4000 years ago and which still today provides water for the local people.
Hair cut also occurred here! Clive went to get a haircut - No 3 blade all over, the standard cut. About 30 mins later he emerged with hair cut, full facial mask and facial treatment, waxed nostrils, floss to remove stubble from the face and ear hair removed by flame [and rapidly extinguished]. All for 16 Dinas. Definitely a bit more than the 5 minute haircut.

Al-Khazneh  - Petra's Ancient Treasury

The Monastery (Ad Deir) - 800 steps above Petra

Local Transport parked above Ad-Deir - the Monastery, Petra

PETRA - AMMAN

The way back to Amman took us via the Kings Highway via Shoback Castle and the Nature Conservatory at Dana where we stopped at a co-operative run by women to keep women employed in jewelry craft work - and similar!

JERASH TO THE DEAD SEA

The last day in Jordan took us to 35 minutes from the Syrian border to the ancient Roman ruins at Jerash. The remarkable thing about these is that the new town of Jerash as grown around the  ruins which are very similar to those of Ephesus in Turkey.  Temperatures of around 33C made the day a bit of a battle to begin with but like every other day in Jordan, the sun pierced a brilliant blue sky. There was little opportunity for shelter. Water! water! water! Cold and refreshing. After the visit to Jerash we took our air-conditioned bus the the Dead Sea - 400m below sea level and a good 10C warmer than than the higher altitudes of Amman not too far distant. The Dead Sea - on the fringes was warmer than our hotel shower and like everybody who goes here we got to float in the salty water. Didn't look any different from any other lake or inland sea but definitely WAS different. Floating was the order of the day. The resort swimming pools where we were visiting made a welcome refreshing dip in the mid-high 40C temps of the afternoon. It was interesting to see that Muslim women were swimming in the same pool as the men [locals and foreign visitors like us]  completely covered as they would be on the street. But that is Jordan and the tolerance and flexibility they allow ;people to practise their beliefs. And there Jordan ends. Highly recommended.

Hadrian's Gate - Jerash

The Roman Collonades at Jerash

 Fell down walking on [Dead Sea] water