Machtesh Ramon, Wadi Rum, Taybet Zaman Hotel

We started the day by seeing an overlook of Machtesh Ramon. an amazing land formation in the Negev Desert.

An ibex that posed for us at a rest stop

 

 





What a fun day! I totally skipped over yesterday (later!) Okay, crossing the border into Jordan wasn't all that much fun, but it was interesting. We noticed a difference in the two countries soon after we crossed the border; mainly the bathrooms! We were spoiled in Israel!

 

 

 

After doing a drive-by of the Red Sea/Gulf of Aqaba we headed for Wadi Rum. After lunch we all were loaded into the backs of small pick-ups and headed out toward these magnificent, gigantic land forms.

 

The Seven Pillars of Wisdom

As you can see we were all loaded into the very "safe" seating in the backs of the trucks. We drove on trails made by our Arab driver. We drove out to a spot where we could climb on some boulders to watch the sunset.

 

 

As we were getting to load up and drive on, the driver realized that we had a flat tire. Oh we'll, I had to ride in the front with the driver while 2 friends rode in the back seat. I took his picture, but the road was so bumpy it came out blurry. He had no problem with me taking his picture.

My new boyfriend!

 

The dashboard of my boyfriend's vehicle

Two hours later we finally arrived at our hotel. It is the site of a village that was restored into a hotel.

We finally arrived at our hotel which is a restored village.

 

 

 

Posted with Blogsy

Petra

What a fun place to stay! The Taybet Zaman Hotel has been our favorite so far. We only have one more night in Amman and then we head for the airport.

We were able to spend the whole day exploring in Petra. The Nabteans were an amazing people. Evidently, Petra was at a crossroads so traders from all over the world passed through here. Their amazing structures were carved into the stone from the top down. The only way to enter the city is in a horse-drawn cart, by horse, or on foot. We walked in since the guide was giving us information as we went. The Siq is a passageway with rock walls vaulting overhead which ends at the Treasury.

Some friends in a house drawn cart

 

Frankincense sold at the shop

 

Myrrh - worth twice as much as gold!

 

 

The Siq with a carved water channel

 

The view of the Treasury as you come to the end of the Siq

 

The Treasury

We continued on walking after the Treasury toward the tomb of the kings. on the way we saw an amphitheater. And many caves carved into the sandstone.

Ampitheater as viewed through a carved arch

After lunch (I had a protein bar and trail mix. Some ordered a box lunch which came in a bag!), we began our walk up to El Deir (the monastery). It was about 1000 steps up the side of the mountain! I made it all the way to the top. According to a friend's pedometer we walked 2 miles straight up.

Here I am in front of the Monestery

 

With the Jordanian flag at the very top with the Monestery in the back ground

We walked back straight down the two miles and then a new adventure started at the Cardo! Camels!

 

Camel ride from the Cardo to the Treasury

 

Zuzu

Kings' tomb, on right, from the top of my camel

The walk up the Siq and the trail out was a gradual slope out. By the end of the day we had walked about 10 miles! This day was a highlight of our trip!

 

Posted with Blogsy