I will admit it – the week before I arrived in Jordan, I had started to dread coming here. I was sitting safely on a beach in Greece without a care in the world, thinking about coming to the Middle East (especially since I would be here on Sept 11). I wasn’t sure about the people, the food or the heat. I am so at ease in Europe, it was scary to think about coming to a place where I would again be out of my comfort zone. However, I couldn’t have been more wrong about Jordan. The people here are wonderful. There was not one time that I felt uncomfortable being here. I didn’t feel different if I wasn’t covered head to toe, no men came up an tried to touch me and everyone was so helpful, the people are really amazing. I think this is the most progressive of any of the Islamic countries I have visited yet, definitely not what I was expecting from the Middle East.
I came to Jordan to see Petra. A couple of years ago (on 7/7/07, to be exact) they conducted a poll for the “7 New Wonders of the World” and Petra was one of the wonders on the list. When I was planning my trip, I realized that I was seeing all of the Wonders of the World except for Petra. Now obviously, that just wouldn’t do, so I changed my itinerary one final time and here we are. This is the 5th wonder of the world I’ve seen and I can’t wait to see the others. Petra was built starting in the 6th Century BC and is so much larger than I ever thought it was. I thought it was just the Monastery (above) and the Treasury (below), but it was actually a city large enough for 25,000 people. The whole city is a series of caves and tombs carved in the pink sandstone and is just stunning. We spent the day hiking up the mountains and having fabulous views of this city that is over 2500 years old. I loved just sitting on the edge of a cliff, hearing only silence and imagining what it would have been like to live here thousands of years ago. Wow, just wow.
Besides Petra, the site I was so excited to visit in Jordan was the Dead Sea. I’ve been swimming in a lot of salty sea water recently, but that had nothing on the Dead Sea!
You don’t have to put in any effort at all – all your limbs just pop to the surface of the water and is nearly impossible to bring them back down. It is such an odd sensation. I made the mistake of tasting a tiny bit of it and it was the worst decision of my life – I’ve never tasted anything so horrible in my life! I will not complain the next time someone tells me to swish around salt water, it will be a piece of cake for me. I did manage to get a couple pictures of me floating though – you can’t go to the Dead Sea and miss those pictures!
The itinerary for Jordan also included visiting Wadi Rum, which is a large desert set in a valley. We had a great afternoon driving around in a 4x4, hiking around and just being kids playing in the sand. We spent the night in a desert camp, where I was able to look up and see 2 shooting stars. I would tell you what I wished for, but then it would never come true!
The next day we woke up in the desert and by noon we were out on a boat, scuba diving in the Red Sea. What an amazing day of contrasts and contradictions! Not the best dive I’ve ever had, but since the Red Sea was the first place I ever scuba dived, it will always have a special place in my heart.
Now I’m off to Nepal to hike to Everest Base Camp. Don’t be surprised if you don’t hear from me for a while!
Besides Petra, the site I was so excited to visit in Jordan was the Dead Sea. I’ve been swimming in a lot of salty sea water recently, but that had nothing on the Dead Sea!
The itinerary for Jordan also included visiting Wadi Rum, which is a large desert set in a valley. We had a great afternoon driving around in a 4x4, hiking around and just being kids playing in the sand. We spent the night in a desert camp, where I was able to look up and see 2 shooting stars. I would tell you what I wished for, but then it would never come true!
The next day we woke up in the desert and by noon we were out on a boat, scuba diving in the Red Sea. What an amazing day of contrasts and contradictions! Not the best dive I’ve ever had, but since the Red Sea was the first place I ever scuba dived, it will always have a special place in my heart.
Now I’m off to Nepal to hike to Everest Base Camp. Don’t be surprised if you don’t hear from me for a while!
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