Shalom Sweet Friends!

As I said in my previous post, Petra deserves its own page as it was one of the stand-outs of my trip! When we woke up the next morning at 6:30 AM, the sun was rising over the desert mountains, and I could tell it was going to be a very hot but beautiful day. We headed over to the dining tent where one of the camp guides was busy preparing breakfast. Another of the Bedouins was asleep on the ground with only a sleeping bag as cover and no shoes. Unbelievable! I slept under like four blankets!!

My roomie Helen and I walked around taking pictures and playing with the cats until breakfast was ready. We/they had egg omelets, hummus, cucumbers, tomatoes, bread, olive oil and jams, along with coffee and water. Our guide told us we were leaving promptly at 8 AM so we packed our things and said our goodbyes and boarded the bus to Petra.

Petra is an UNESCO World Heritage Site and listed by Smithsonian Magazine as one of 28 places to see before you die! Inhabited since prehistoric times, this Nabataean caravan-city, situated between the Red Sea and the Dead Sea, was an important crossroads between Arabia, Egypt and Syria-Phoenicia. Petra is carved into the pinkish rocks and mountainsides, and is surrounded by passages and gorges. It is famous for not only the buildings that are literally carved into the mountain but also for an ingenious water supply systems that utilized dams, cisterns and water pipes to create an oasis in the desert. Additionally, there is only one way in and one way out so it was well-protected. The Romans tried in vain for 600 years to conquer the city!

The city also contains many tombs and caves where people lived. There is a huge theater with its seats carved into the mountain, a bath house, latrine and several suks or markets. Many of the beautiful buildings were palaces or tombs built for royalty. The most famous  and photographed is The Treasury. It was not a treasury at all, but a tomb, however, people thought it was the Treasury of the Pharoah and it became to be known as The Treasury. It was looted many times but no treasure was ever found.

The prehistoric Jordanian city of Petra was “lost” to the Western world for hundreds of years. Only in the early 1800s did a European traveler who disguised himself in Bedouin costume and infiltrated the mysterious locale. In 1985, the Petra Archaeological Park was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site, and in 2007, it was named one of the new seven wonders of the world.

Several scenes from the movie Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade were filmed in Petra. In the film’s final scenes, actors Harrison Ford and Sean Connery burst forth from the Siq and walk deep into the labyrinths of the Treasury in their quest to find the Holy Grail. But, as usual, archaeological fact bowed to Hollywood fiction when Indy came to Petra. In reality, the Treasury is nothing more than a facade with a relatively small hall once used as a royal tomb. But it sure looked good!

The Romans, after hundreds of years, finally conquered the city in 106 AD, so there are definite Roman influences and remains such as cobblestone roads, the baths and temples.

When the city was made a UNESCO Heritage Site, many Bedouins had to be relocated from the city. Jordan relocated the entire population to a newly built city just outside the old city and these are the only people who are allowed to work in the old city of Petra. They come everyday to work inside the shops or hawk the tourist items in the streets of the old city. There are people selling silver bracelets, offering donkey and horse rides, camel rides, Jordanian scarves, leather and other textiles, etc. It’s like every other tourist attraction I guess. Nonetheless, Petra is breathtaking! Despite all the locals hawking camel rides and donkey rides and selling trinkets, it is most definitely one of the many wonders of the world.

Our guide, Mah’di escorted us to the Treasury, about half way telling us about the city’s long history, and then he let us have free time to explore the rest of the city. It’s quite large and you would have to take a donkey in order to get to the monastery on the far side of the city. It’s quite a hike so we were unable to go since we had to be back at a certain time. We walked through the Roman ruins and the tombs and finally made our way back through the narrow Siq and gorges towards the entrance to the city. Mah’di was waiting there for us at a restaurant where we had lunch. All the meals were included in the price and we were fed very well! I’m telling you, Abraham Tours is the way to go when in Israel! I had yet another falafel wrap with hummus, salad and pita, and no I did not get tired of it. Everything was delish, and I was thankful to have something I could eat!

After a filling lunch, we boarded the bus and headed to the border crossing. We crossed at the King Hussein/Allenby Bridge crossing this time so the drive was a bit shorter, but it was still a little over two hours. Getting back across the border was time consuming but Mah’di made it painless. He was really a life-saver, and our trip could not have been better thanks to him. He is a wonderful Ambassador for his country. Thank you Mah’di!

We returned to the hostel around 8 PM and I eagerly crawled in bed after taking a long hot shower. I hadn’t taken a shower at the camp and I had been walking through dust all day at Petra. The shower felt amazing and the bed was warm and welcoming. Before falling asleep, I once again thanked the Universe for such a fantastic, once in a lifetime experience. I remain the luckiest girl on the planet!

I hope you have a blessed and happy day my friends! L’chaim!!