May 2018
Oh Jordan, so unique, so different, walking through narrow clefts and suddenly the amazing architecture of the Al Khazneh in Petra – one of new 7 wonders of the world revealed to my eyes, wow…
Hiking in the big Jordanian desert in Wadi rum between the high cliffs, that strong red color controlled my mind, it looked like we were almost out of Earth, and reached Mars. So where am I?
I wanted to visit Jordan for a long time, and somehow it never was the “right time”. And finally, in the last may I went to amazing Jordan.
It all began in Israel in the southern border near Eilat city, “Rabin border” that border connects you with Aqaba city, actually you can see Aqaba from Eilat, and Eilat from Aqaba if you will ever visit one of the sides.
To pass the border you need to pay a commission of 100 Shekels (about 28$).
at the border, you can find also a change .the entire process will take something about an hour and a half in holidays, and less in regular days.
Pay attention, if you are more then 5 people you will need to take a local guild in Jordan
Unfortunately, I was in Jordan only for 3 days, but now after my first visit there, I can tell you that I will definitely go back there.
Day 1 – Aqaba, Jeep tour in Wadi Rum and Thomas Edward Lawrence house
After we have passed the border from Israel to Jordan, we went to Aqaba, and traveled in the old market, ate some good Arabic sweets and played with a sweet parrot : )
you can find in the old market everything in a very good price, much cheaper than Israel.
After a few hours in Aqaba, we drove to Wadi rum where our camp was located,“Hasan zawaideh camp”. on the way we stopped near the historical train “Hejaz railway”- the Hejaz train existed from 1908 and takes you all the way from Damascus to Medina – 1,302 KM of railways. pretty nice.
When we got to our camp, the camp crew took us to a 4 hours Jeep tour in the wadi – one of the special experiences in Jordan, it was so confusing, where was I ? on Earth ? on Mars? I’m not sure, the wadi looks like you are out of Earth with the strong red color that controls your mind, the high cliffs, every cliff with a different shape, takes you and your imagination far far away .. besides that it’s an amazing desert and there is a lot to see there.
The Arc of Wadi rum – the power of nature, impressive natural arc in the wadi .besides the amazing shape, when you climb to the arc you discover a really nice view, sit there, enjoy the view and take few minutes to chill and feel the wind softly touch your face.
Thomas Edward Lawrence house- was a British archaeologist, military officer and a diplomat that one of his jobs was in the middle east, he used to live for a period of time in wadi rum, and you can find the ruins of his house there.
around Thomas Edward Lawrence house there is some tradition in these days that people take few rocks and put them one on other, it is very nice, and a good picture : )
The petroglyphs of wadi rum – some petroglyphs are from the 8th BC.the petroglyphs shows a few humans like a small family, its so nice to see those petroglyphs, and to understand the deep meaning of the old days.
So it’s not surprising that the movie “The Martian” with Matt Damon was filmed because it looks so much like Mars ..when you are surrounded by the red sand it makes the perfect place for filming a movie about Mars.
After that, we went back to the camp, and ate some local dinner, sitting under the sky and covered by sweet blankets full of stars.
more photos from Wadi rum – scroll
Day 2 – good morning Wadi rum, and Hello Petra, Wadi Musa
When you open your morning by the knowing that today you gonna visit one of the new 7 wonders of the world it’s a great morning!
After an amazing morning, while my bare foot touched the warm sand and a good local breakfast we continued to Wadi Musa where Petra is located.
Let’s be honest, I was very excited about that…
On the road to Petra, we stopped in a nice point of view on the “king’s road” and watched Mount Hor, in a good day when the sky is clear you can also see Israel from that point of view.
One day in Perth will cost you 70$.
please note – if you assist yourself with a local agency it’s probably included in the itinerary.
At the entrance of Petra, you have to walk 800 meters to the beginning of the historic place. There is an option to take a horse and ride the 800 meter, its free if you have a ticket, you only need to pay the tip to the owner of the horse.
Oh Jordan, so unique, so different, walking through clefts, and suddenly the amazing architecture of the Al Khazneh in Petra one of new 7 wonders of the world revealed to my eyes, wow..in that moment I realized where I am.
more photos from Petra- scroll
We spent all day in Petra and it’s not enough, Petra is a really big city, with a lot of history and very diverse. It contains a history of various nations,like the Romans, Muslims, Jews, and some small tribes.
Petra was an important place, located in a strategic place and used as a trading center in the old days. Petra is also called the lost city – for a period of 400 years the city disappeared and people did not knew where is Petra.
besides the amazing architecture, Petra was built in the 9th century BC by the Edom’s.Petra was built using the method of quarrying from top to bottom.. amazing!
Great spot to take a picture above the Al Khazneh – when you will ask the local people there how can I get to this spot, they will tell you that you have to take a local guy with you – it’s not true!
There is an option to climb it by yourself from the left side of the Al Khazneh, it takes 15 minutes of climbing to get there.
I used a different way, and hiked to the top of the other mountain, and then went go down to the wadi and crossed a small wood bridge – its a long way, but if you like to hike, it is a better option : )
Recommended sweets place in Petra – at night we went outside to find some of the best local sweets, and I would like to recommend you about a nice place there that is called :
“Almond Sweets” after a long day in Petra you will have to pamper yourself in this delicious place.
Day 3 – Little Petra and back to Aqaba
We began our day in Little Petra – where the Common people of Petra used to live, its a really nice place , more authentic than the “big” Petra, we traveled there for a few hours.
you can find there antique houses and antique lounges, Fresco paint and more, but what I love there the most is to get knowing better the local tribes, to talk with them and to drink hot tea together.
there is nothing better than knowing the local people and their traditions . its the best way to “visit” the country.
It was a really good trip, thank you Jordan I will be back!
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for any question feel free to contact me : )