Yours truly atop the citadel in downtown AMMAN.fresh off my spring 2o07 tour in Jordan...got a couple of remarks to make about the Hashemite Kingdom...it rocks! - literally...plenty of rocks to go round...rocks at Wadi Rum- the fabled place where majestic desert cinematography was captured for the story of Lawrence of Arabia. and Petra..a petrified city that was in fact carved into stone mountains and cliffsides 2000 years ago.
Well, here's the rundown...1st off...Royal Jordanian Airlines rocks! Great airline, staff, TV menu and it felt regal enough. Arrived in Jordan at 7am and grabbed a bus headed for Amman. Amman is a big city and I enjoyed a day there. Went to the Citadel and the Jordan Archeological Museum. Dead Sea Scrolls my friends, Dead Sea Scrolls, and how about an Ummayid Mosque and some gargantuan classic columns oozing history.
Met up with another ELF...actually a Senior English Language Fellow, who is now completing his 2nd and final year of work. Mr. David Roderick is a gentleman and carries a good humor befitting of an Oregonian...Eugene, that is. Oregon is definitely a place in America that i need to visit soon.
David treated me to lunch at the culinary arts department restaurant at his university campus. Oh how I love culinary arts and again, I feel the need to devote some learning time in the future to haute cuisine.
In the p.m. I went to SAFEWAY. Safeway Amman beats Safeway DC by a mile. Had some fun just perusing around...sushi dept., cheese selection etc. mmmmmm Picked up some H2O & snax for an excursion to Wadi Rum. I went along with some Americans working on various development projects in Jordan. Interesting to meet others from different fields. Along the way, there was a commmotion... a wedding caravan on a major highway. lol
In Wadi Rum, I met up with Kathleen Keiser, a friend of a friend, who I actually had met in NYC last summer when she hosted a rooftop party in August. That was the weekend I went to Brooklyn to see Manu Chao! what a great weekend that was! - Anyways, Kathleen was gracious enough to invite me to accompany her colleagues and friends on a trip to Wadi Rum. We were to hike Ad-Daali, reputed to be the highest point in Jordan...from the peak we'd be rewarded with eagle eye views of Saudi & Israel. Gnarly huh?!
We checked into camp with our guides. Drank tea...ate food in a tent, and then naturally, sat down by the campfire and made...SMORES. God bless Amber! She was gifted with the foresight to plan that delight. :)
Next day...the mountain was ours...of course, with the help of local tribal guides. Without them, we'd 've needed maps and gps and alot more time. lol
So great workout, nice hike, but terrible visibility. hmmm, u can plan all u want, but if mother nature has other plans, then the weather can affect your time. By the way, 4 days outta 7 in Jordan I enjoyed precipitation.
Next day...PETRA. Phantasmagorical. That's all I gotta say. Beyond description and belief...this lost Nabatean city bewilders one and all with it's majestic setting and workmanship. Easily spent a whole day hiking and checking out the ruins. Not bored at all my friends...not bored at all. wondrous wondrous, supercalifragilisticexpialadocious! If u go get the 3 day ticket...it's worth it.
Spent the next morning checking more of it out with Emmanuelle from Bordeaux. She was independent traveler that also wanted to go to the Dana Nature Preserve. We split a taxi there for 13 JD (Jordanian Dinar ; 1JD=$1.40) and got to check out Showbak...a Crusader castle, along the way.
In Dana, we hiked around for a couple of days. It's a great nature lovers place. Set amidst mountains, there is flora and fauna to delight eco-tourists. There's a cool funky backpacker place to stay..."The Tower Hotel". Hamza the manager is very friendly and informative. The food is definitely worth it there too.
Next day, I set out alone for the Dead Sea...hitching rides here and there. For the most part it was easy as pie. The Dead Sea is a trip. I guess I can say I came back from the Dead now. All u do is float...rub mud all over your body and get a tan. This was the perfect recipe after 5 days of hiking.
Then I went back to Amman and went over to David and Nola's place . (Nola is his wife) So good to take it easy then. It was nice comparing notes about Jordan and Yemen and America, Turkey, Oregon, really all kinds of things. They're good people. I am indebted to their hospitality and their words of wisdom.
On the last day, I followed Edward's advice. (Edward is the Director of Amideast Aden and knows the Peninsula quite well). He had suggested several places including a place called Jerash. There I found a great site of Roman ruins. Again, we were blessed with rain. :) That pm I topped off my weeklong sojourn with a visit to the 5-story Mecca mall. Starbucks!
Jordan is a wonderful country with so much history and there is alot I didnt see. Much of it relates to biblical times...John the Baptist, Jesus, Moses, Mohammed etc. I found it interesting that there were a fair number of Arab Christians. There are also a good number of Palestinians and I heard Israel on the radio. There are quite a few French tourists that go there, and really just a lot of tourists compared to Yemen at least. My Arabic was functional and useful there, which was encouraging. Though, it seems my visit to Jordan has somehow teleported my mind into another realm and I'm still adjusting to life back in the wild wild place called Yemen. Gotta love it! esp. b-cuz I'm heading home so soon. Maybe it's all the Spurs mania that brings on a wave of nostalgia coupled with the upcoming end of the school year. Put your orders in for souvenirs now. ;)
for more info on Jordan checkout wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jordan
