by Kate Barba

Jordan is the perfect place for a Middle East adventure!  It is one of the safest countries in the world, and the people are some of the warmest and most welcoming we have met in our travels.  It also has biblical sites, natural beauty, and historic archeological sites to amaze even the most seasoned traveler.  Finally, Jordan is budget friendly, once you get here, and easy to get around on your own if you wish.

Petra

Petra feels a little unreal, as if you’ve dropped straight into a movie or traveled to another planet.  This exotic planet has vast landscapes with rock and sand that remind me of the western US, but the colors and scale are wildly more dramatic.  You expect cliffs, but get highly decorated facades.  Instead of caves you find perfectly shaped and decorated rooms.  The carvings in Petra are amazing; they are all one piece, directly out of the cliff rock.  Natural red and tan rock colors give way to intense swirls of every variation.  I loved it.

There’s a lot to do and see in Petra if you enjoy hiking and scrambling around rocks (which we do), so we spent two full days and could have spent at least another morning or full day.  The first day we slept in and so did not beat the crowds through the main entrance to the Treasury, famous from its cameo in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.  So we decided to enter the park through a slot canyon for some challenging scrambling (above) before we descended into the main road through the ancient city of Petra.  From there we explored the Royal Tomb facades and other sites on the main road.

After lunch we hiked UP to the highest point called the Monastery (above).  The huge Monastery was gorgeous and the views of the wilderness beyond were equally breathtaking.  The donkeys and souvenir shops kept us on our toes as we hiked back down into the valley and then back out of Petra at the end of our 12 mile day.  Pete didn’t look at the Treasury because he wanted the wow moment coming from the other way.  I peeked.

The next morning we left early for another full day, this time leading the crowds into the ancient city as intended, through the Siq, a winding and narrow rock canyon.  Finally we saw the famous Treasury (above and title)!  After posing for pictures we took another strenuous hike up 900 steps to the Place of High Sacrifice which itself didn’t look that dramatic, but the views were spectacular (below).  Scrambling around rocks, up and down stone staircases, and finding the places less traveled was lovely.  If you go to Petra, do yourself a favor and get off the main road as much as you are able.  There’s a lot more to see if you have the time and energy to explore the side trails.

Wadi Rum

After Petra we headed down to a protected desert area of Wadi Rum, famous as the stomping grounds of Lawrence of Arabia and more recently, a filming location for The Martian.  We stayed in a permanent tented Bedouin camp inside the reserve (above) and appreciated the Mars-like red sand and sculpted rock formations.  We spent the whole next day with a local guide, Hussein, who drove us around in the back of his truck to natural springs, ancient rock carvings, tall sands dunes, and rock bridges.  We even rode camels long enough to get the knack, and encountered a wild herd foraging through the desert (below).  It was our kind of day with more rock scrambling and photography!

Hussein prepared delicious meals for us over an open fire, first in a narrow slot canyon for lunch and the second at a glorious sunset viewpoint.  He also set up a camp and cushions to sleep under the stars!  The bugs and wind had us choosing the pup tents, but the Milky Way gazing after dinner was stunning.  A memorable experience for sure.

Aqaba

Our next stop was to Aqaba, a small city on Jordan’s small coast of the Red Sea.  This is what we got SCUBA certified for!  We did two great beach dives with Aqaba Moon Divers.  We all remembered our excellent training and had successful dives!  We saw multitudes of colorful fish, lots of beautiful corals, sponges, and sea urchins, and a kelp lawn popular with jellyfish and turtles.  

I wish we could have done more dives, but unfortunately, the next day I was feeling pretty rotten.  Pete and the kids enjoyed the pool and good eats, but by the time we left for the Dead Sea it was clear I was not going to get over it soon.  One test later and the inevitable became reality.  I had COVID for the first time.  Now we understood why Drew had been uncharacteristically tired in Petra and Wadi Rum!  He was probably fighting it off and yet he pushed through and was able to conquer high hikes and long days.  He’s tougher than we give him credit for, and through we never tested him we are sure he’s been naturally boosted.

Dead Sea

Anyways, we quarantined at our resort in the Dead Sea where we unfortunately did not get to enjoy the facilities as planned.  We got it together enough to take some “Dead in the Dead Sea” pictures on Halloween.  It is so strange to float like a cork and have salt crystals form on your skin when you get out!  Don’t get it in your eyes though, as Drew can tell you.

Luckily we had scheduled in some down days, because Pete couldn’t avoid my germs and got his first case of COVID as well.  We decided it wouldn’t be right to fly to Istanbul while we were still contagious, even with a mask.  So we rearranged our reservations and hunkered down in Amman for some boring days of feeling wretched and eating delivery.  Thankfully Gwyn fought it off and was a great help.  We used the time for school and catching up on time-wasting apps and videos.  Ah well, getting sick was bound to happen and we can only hope to avoid it as much as possible.  We are extremely thankful that none of us suffered severe symptoms so our trip interruption was relatively mild.  Onward!

Thanks for reading to the end.  Next up: Turkey!  Don’t forget to check out our past stories and subscribe for future articles as well.  Find us on Facebook and Instagram for bonus content!  As always, if you are planning a trip to any location we visit we are happy to provide more details and opinions, so feel free to contact us.