Jerash, Jordan

OK, time for one more mud bath before heading up to Jerash. This Roman archaeological site is huge, so thank heaven we had almost totally recovered from Petra. And at least we didn't have any major hills to scale. It was well worth the visit.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerash

http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&rlz=&q=jerash+jordan&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=univ&ei=6UPgTLLHFtGe4QaZ65D7Bw&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=2&ved=0CC8QsAQwAQ&biw=1222&bih=684

We spent the night in Amman before heading back to Cyprus - a very civilized idea. Then things got a little stressful. Arriving in Jordan is a much better experience than leaving. We had a huge queue to check in (the self service kiosks didn't work), another queue for immigration/passport control, then of course a very large queue for security. It was a big relief to finally be on the plane for our short one hour flight.

All in all though, it was a wonderful experience and well worth it.

xx

Dead Sea, Jordan

In retrospect we should have stayed one more night in Petra after our gruelling day. However, hindsight being what it is, it wasn't available to us when we made our plans. That being so, we had a long 3 hour drive up to the Dead Sea. I am sure the scenery was spectacular while we were driving in the mountains around many a hairpin turn, but unfortunately it was too dark to appreciate it. We were delighted when we finally made it to our hotel and had a little walk around the grounds before soaking our weary bones in a nice hot bath.

After a wonderful breakfast on Wednesday morning we ambled down to the sea to play in the mud. First we had a little float in the sea, which is amazing even when you are expecting it. You float so high that it is hard to keep your feet underwater unless you are perpendicular. It is very uncomfortable to float on your stomach as you have to arch your neck too much and yet on your back you can relax and read the paper if you choose. Then it is time to get muddy. They supply buckets of smooth, creamy black clay that is slightly gritty (the shore was covered in smooth stones, so it would have been hard to dig up ourselves). We covered ourselves from head to toe and then let it dry for a bit before heading back into the sea to rinse off. It is supposedly very therapeutic and many people were there because of arthritis and rheumatism.

Unfortunately it did nothing for my very sore muscles after all the walking and hiking from the day before. But our skin was wonderfully soft.

We then took some time off and lounged around on the beach, while I managed a few chapters of my book before fitting in another mud pack and soak in the sea.

At least on Thursday we managed to get to the gym. And we did drive around the area, but realized very quickly that our hotel was in the middle of nowhere. So . . . back to the mud. Heavenly!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dead_Sea

Petra, Jordan

We landed at the Queen Alia Airport in Amman and rented a car to drive to Petra. It is about a three hour drive so we stopped at a little kiosk to pick up some water and snacks. Next door we bought a batch of the best falafels I have ever tasted. I should have taken a picture of the little hole in the wall where we got them (most people would never have even gone in, but we get more venturesome as we get hungrier!) Our hotel in Petra was lovely and we had a marvellous roast lamb dinner.

Tuesday we were up at 0600 for breakfast as we were anticipating heat and crowds. By 0730 we were saddling up for the trek to the Siq.

http://www.sacred-destinations.com/jordan/petra-siq

The handler of our horses convinced Dale that we should avoid the crowds and take the back route (supposedly only half the time/distance!?!?).

I was unsure of our decision until we (finally) reached the spot with the view looking down on the entrance to the Siq; then it was worth the hike.

We continued on with our 'guide' to the 'High Place of Sacrifice' as seen on 'Indiana Jones Last Crusade'. http://nabataea.net/highp.html

It was tough going, but once we started down the 700 steps I decided that it beat going up them.

We set off on our own after that to see the Street of Facades and the Theatre; past the Urn Tomb and the Royal Tombs; down the Colonnaded Street to the base of the steps to the Ad-Deir Monastery.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petra

http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&expIds=17259,17315,23628,23670,23945,25646,25907,26761,26849,26869,27126,27365,27404,27445,27520,27582&sugexp=ldymls&xhr=t&q=petra+jordan&cp=6&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=univ&ei=60DgTPJflZHgBvKk8fIP&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=1&sqi=2&ved=0CCsQsAQwAA&biw=1222&bih=684

Dale was definitely not keen on the 800 steps to get there. I finally acquiesced to taking a donkey, as that looked to be the only way to get him there. It was such fun that I can't believe I almost missed the opportunity. My donkey was such a lovely creature. He knew exactly where he was going and I just sat back and enjoyed the ride. The views were spectacular and we probably wouldn't have seen as much if we were climbing, as you would have to watch your step. The donkeys were sure-footed and went at a perfect pace. There is no doubt that we couldn't have made it without our adorable little beasts of burden, especially after our first trek of the morning. At least going down on foot was easy (again).

We were still exhausted though as we started our way out, but of course we weren't done yet! We detoured to see more recent discoveries of Roman Ruins and in such amazing shape. By now we were utterly out of steam and still at the far end of the site. One foot in front of the other, but so much to look at that we didn't focus entirely on our poor feet. The Treasury was still a couple of kilometres away, thank heaven we were mostly in the shade.

Once we were at the Siq we forgot all about our aches. I have been through our 300 photos a few times and have not been able to delete any. What a phenomenal sight.

November 2010

This week has been lovely. Sunday evening we sat out in the square at Aphrodite Hills to listen to Ian's band jazzing it up. Unfortunately for them it was poorly advertised so there were hardly any people there; but fortunately for us we had great seats and had a lovely time.

On Tuesday we did a tour of Fabrica Hill in Paphos with our Archaeological Society group and got a real education on the difference between an ancient theatre versus an amphitheatre and an odeon. Dr. Craig Barker from the University of Sidney is the dig director and was very interesting and informative.

We also finally managed to be here while our good friend Pat Ellison was in town, so on Saturday we dragged him along to the FxPro Cyprus Rally - www.cyprusrally.com.cy - and then out for lunch to celebrate Maureen's birthday. We were out for lunch again today, so I have had to freeze the yummy pork stew I made as Dale and I are off to Jordan tomorrow. It will be nice to have when we get back.

Take care and I will fill you in on our latest adventure next week.

Love,

Laurel