JORDAN IN A BETTER LATE THAN NEVER NUTSHELL

We arrived in Aquaba in Jordan at the end of a chaotic day spent at the Egyptian port of Nuweiba. Decided to hang out there for an extra night to recover even though there's not really alot to see bar lots and lots of shops selling bed linen and blankets. We did buy the most beautiful peacock blanket but more about that later, and some pillow cases to protect our wee heads from the germs of the some of the middle eastern hotels in which we have had the pleasure of laying our weary bodies down.




Next stop Amman, Jordan's capital, which we were quite excited about exploring only to discover that there wasn't really much to explore. Soldiering on however, we tried to make the most of our stay. The bazaars in the Downtown area were charming enough and the falafel sandwiches were extemely cheap and tasty. We also paid a visit to the National Gallery of Fine Art and saw some interesting works by many Middle Eastern and African artists. Amman has very little to offer in terms of bars or eateries but we did find a really cute rooftop restaurant, with a very friendly and helpful Egyptian waiter, where we ate for a couple of nights on the trot.



From Amman we took a trip to the Dead Sea, our first Jordan highlight and the most bizarre experience ever. You really are unsinkable! Wouldn't advise getting any in your eyes though, stings like crazy.



We left Amman the following morning, smiles on our faces and made the shortish journey to Petra full of new energy and expectations. Petra didn't let us down. The little town of Wadi Musa, right beside Petra, houses all of the visitors to the site. Again not a very charming place but we promptly forgave this as we walked in through the rocky gorge leading to the treasury. Wow! What a spectacular sight, no pictures could possibly do these massive facades justice nor reveal their scale. Petra is every bit as beautiful as you would imagine and so much more. We spent the whole day wandering around the site and even climbed the 750 steps to the monastery looking down over an immense rocky valley-scape interrupted by mammoth relief sandstone facades shining pinkish in the scorching Petra sun.