Petra and Aqaba, Jordan

It was well past time to get out of Cairo. By then it seemed anything would be a welcome change. We rode a bus for about seven hours across the north of Egypt to the city of Taba on the Red Sea. From here we knew to walk across the border to Eilat, Israel(a very picturesque but expensive resort town). Next a ten minute cab ride to the border at Aqaba, Jordan. Aqaba is also a nice resort town, slightly less expensive with an amazing mountainscape. We haggled a little for a cab and were soon on our way to our hotel on the south beach near the border of Saudi Arabia. That evening while relaxing in the low cushioned lounge area, we were greeted by someone who we would soon learn to be the owner of the hotel. A rather suave but important looking older man, he slowly approached, stopping breifly to pick a peice of basil as an offering to us. He removed his shoes, placed the basil sprig in an empty clay vase and found a comfotable spot adjacent to us. After conversing for a few minutes he was on his cellphone, pulling strings to find us a very reasonably priced ride to Petra the next day. And for no extra fee might I add, just pure and genuine helpfulness. We continued chatting as his attention drew to our iPod on the table. He was very interested in Google Earth and pointed out "his" nearby water treatment plant. Turns out this guy was quite a big deal in Aqaba. The only reason I am writing about this is to show the utter contrast to my previous blog. This man, and his complete sincerity really added to our experience in Jordan.

Now for Petra! We were picked up at 8:30 by a very young man in a taxi for our long ride to the site. He (and his friend, whom he picked up shortly after us) drove for two hours through the mountains and Bedoin camps. Halfway though this very fast ride we were pulled over at a checkstop and he was issued a 15 Dinar ticket for either speeding or for some fiddling with the removable taxi sign, I'm still not sure. It's a bit scary being stopped in the middle of the desert, by police who you are still feeling skeptical about, listening to yelling in a language you cannot understand...not knowing if you will make it to the place that is the only reason you came to this country for. But, we survived.

We pulled into the parking lot and were told to be back in two hours, we said we were told three, so he had no choice but to agree. By this point in the trip we are just right on our toes about this kind of thing. We ascend down the long path to the treasury at Petra.

It's true what they say about the long walk through the canyon, at every bend you think it is just around the corner. The rock is all swirls of rose red, orange, tan and white. To add to the excitement we are both humming the Indiana Jones theme song! We finally see the rock canyon parting in the distance, and through it this hazy, sun-bleached structure comes into view. To make this vision that much more fantastical, there is barely a soul in sight (besides some locals selling jewelery and camel rides). It was awesome! We explored the massive attraction that some people spend days touring, there was a village around the corner, tons of tombs, and a monistary. By midday the heat was unbearable, and our time was nearly up. We were satisfied but still wanting more. I think we both agreed that Jordan is a place we might one day come back to. And why not Israel too...