It's early evening - night fell like an axe a couple of hours ago. I'm back where I left you last time - same city, same hotel, same room! Have had the most fantastic few days in between though. On Monday the group met up, there were three of Aussies (plenty of not-so-gentle light-hearted banter about the cricket and rugby!), a Canadian couple, two girls from Yorkshire and a Kiwi guy. All very mellow. That morning we had a short briefing about the trip that lay ahead and then we headed east out of Amman in a mini-bus to visit the Desert Castles. We crossed miles of barren sandy, scrubby wilderness to reach these ancient reminders of a time when Jordan and the Middle East were filled with the violence of the Crusades - no, not the one now embarked upon by the idiot Bush and his 'crusade' for more oil to please his buddies at Haliburton! These heavily fortified castles contained the some of the most fantastic wall frescoes. I drifted away from the group and soon found my imagination taking me amongst the knights clad in chain mail settling down to their meals, fearful of the ever-present enemy just outside the thick stone walls. The castle at Azraq even pre-dates the time of the Crusades, it was built during Roman times, but best of all as far as I was concerned, it was used by Lawrence of Arabia as his desert headquarters, he rested here with his Bedouin followers, while preparing to vanquish their Turkish foes. Later we returned to Amman and had supper at a bustling cafe near the walls of the great Amphitheatre - very ghostly, very atmospheric - all lit up against the night sky.
Tuesday we drove south to the city of Aqaba, a journey of some six hours to the Red Sea coastline. Once there, most of the group headed off to do watery activities in the Red Sea, me - I have all the buoyancy of a Philippino ferry service - I chose to wander around town - nosing around the markets, chatting to the traders (no I didn't want to buy slippers or gold), later I just sat at a table in a street cafe and watched the world go by whilst sipping some very strong coffee and nibbling on some sweet pastries. Early the next morning we travelled north to Petra via Wadi Rum. Wadi Rum was fabulous. According to a Bedouin tradition, in order to understand Jordan, you must allow yourself the peace and time to clear your mind in the vast expanse Wadi Rum - we only had 4 hours, but it's left a lasting place in my heart. Our guide, Omar promised us that this was the most beautiful desert on the face of the earth, arriving there, it became pretty obvious that he wasn't over-hyping the place. We climbed aboard a couple of jeeps and headed into the valley (Wadi means valley) We passed Bedouin women herding goats, stopped for a drink of tea (awful) with a Bedouin family at their traditional camel hair tent, we passed men on camels, appearing from a mirage ahead and disappearing into the dust kicked up by our jeeps behind us - it was all very cinematic. After a couple of hours we stopped in the heart of the valley, climbed down and took in the views, soaked up the peace and the silence. No one spoke, there was just a steady click of cameras. I looked to the mountains, their red sandstone peaks jagging up into the liquid blue sky, shot off nearly a roll of film. It was magical and so romantic - no wonder Lawrence fell in love with the land and people.
The next morning we were all up bright and early for our visit to the rose-red city of Petra - the place/sight that most of us had come to see, and - as the leaflet handed out by the tourist office put it; 'the most mystic and glorious of Jordan's ancient treasures'. The city has a spectacular setting deep inside a narrow desert gorge (siq), it was built by the Nabataeans before the time of Christ, drawing on Greek, Roman, Assyrian and Egyptian architectural influences. It was a little after 8am when we began the walk through the siq, the walls closing in as we passed through the heart of the mountain before opening out to reveal the stunning beauty of the Treasury as the first rays of the rising sun caught the carved sandstone facade - and lit it up as if from within, like a halloween pumpkin - sorry, terrible analogy, I know. The pathway then broadened further to reach Petra's massive theatre, a giant bowl that could seat some 8,500 people - it dates from the 1st century BC. We spent the rest of the day just strolling around the ruins of this ancient city. We learnt from Omar about its refined culture, incredible architecture and the ingenious complex of dams, fountains and water channels that kept the city verdant. We climbed the steps to the High Place of Sacrifice which offered a stunning view over the dramatic expanse of Petra. We caught glimpses of tombs nestled into rugged mountain sides and walked on sands that change colour from rose, to deep reds and to purple. And as the day drew in, we took the monumental staircase to the Monastery and walked to the 'end of the world' for a spectacular sunset over the wild Negav mountains.
And so to today, Friday. After breakfast we headed north along the Kings Highway back to Amman, pausing at Kerak Castle, where we had a couple of hours strolling around the 12th century fortress. It's visually stunning, sitting atop a high desert plateau some 1000 metres above sea level - a desert Oz if you will. There were towers, ramparts and a dark maze of underground tunnels, vaulted halls and passageways. Just south of Amman we stopped again, this time at Madaba, a city famous for its mosaics which were everywhere - on churches and souks of course, but also on ordinary homes. We walked the dusty streets to the church of St George, where one such mosaic lies - it is the oldest known map of ancient Palestine - it has been built around throughout the centuries but is still in superb condition. Ten minutes up the road lies Mount Nebo, the presumed site of Moses' death and his burial place. It was here that Moses reached his goal, setting eyes on the holy land, but knowing he was never to set foot in it. We walked up the slopes along an avenue of pine trees - at the top we were treated to a breathtaking view across the Jordan valley and the Dead Sea. We sat there for over an hour, watching the sunset. It was beautiful.
It's nearly 11pm now, we've been out to see what Amman on a Friday night had to offer - not a lot as it transpires! Going to turn in now, it's been a tiring few days and I think I still need to unwind a little - maybe I should head back to Wadi Rum for a few days. Tomorrow we head up to Jerash and the Dead Sea - just for the day, then on Sunday it's time to move on again, to Cairo.
Del