Day 1 - Thursday November 5. 2015
Oslo - Wien - Amman
Once more out on an adventure for the second time this year. This time for a roundtrip in Jordan.
Yours truly with a newly purchased Palestinian scarf. (Photo: Terje Pettersen-Dahl, 8/11 2015).
I had done the packing the night before so that the luggage was ready when the alarm clock rang at 03:30! The airport bus left at 04:01 as the first one of the day. Once on board the flight bus after the morning routine, it was time to try to sleep a little on the bus to Gardermoen. But that idea was dashed when a small family came on board and mother and father sat and chatted together right behind me.
Once at Gardermoen Airport, I met the other guys and we had our luggage checked in. We made it through security and sat on the gate while waiting to board. After a while we got on board the plane and were ready for departure at 06:20 to Vienna where we were to change plane further to Amman. Unfortunately, there was fog in Vienna and the departure was delayed 50 minutes from Oslo.
In Vienna, there was stress and haste to get to the next flight, which was scheduled to leave in 20 minutes. When we arrived, however, we were told that the departure had been delayed for 50 minutes. The fog caused most of the departures from Vienna to be delayed, many because there were onward flights coming from other destinations. The weather had also been bad in Amman, with heavy downpours in the morning. And we got to feel it on the approach when the plane had a couple of strong drops/shakes.
Delayed, we arrived in Amman where we were met by a local representative inside the airport. He arranged visas for the entire group of 20 people – 5 from Norway and 15 from Sweden. We collected our luggage and came out into the departure hall where we were met by our guides, Agneta from Sweden and the local guide Wailid. After someone exchanged some money for local currency - Jordanian dinars - we got on the bus and were driven to the Grand Palace hotel in Amman where we would stay for two nights. On the way to the hotel, Agneta told us a bit about the program for the next few days as well as some practical information.
At the hotel, we gathered in the lobby where we received some more practical information and our room keys. We then went to our rooms and waited for our luggage, which arrived relatively quickly. I took a shower and wrote a little in my diary and was then ready for the evening.
In the evening there was dinner with a buffet where you could eat when it suited you. The three of us went down early and ate after taking our mandatory medicine - a gin tonic. After dinner I had quite a headache due to a stiff neck, so I chose to go to bed early.
Day 2 - Friday November 6. 2015
Gerasa and Amman
On the way to the Oval square in Gerasa. (Photo: Terje Pettersen-Dahl, 6/11 2015).
Then it was time to be a tourist too. Today we were going to visit the city of Jerash not far from Amman where we were going to see the ancient Roman city of Gerasa. After breakfast we got into the bus and were driven the short way north to Jerash. The whole trip took just under an hour, so it wasn't a very long trip.
Gerasa, ruined city in Jordan, about 30 km north of Amman.
The city in which Gerasa is located is today called Jerash and has around 40 thousand inhabitants.
Remains of many large buildings from ancient times have been preserved, and the area where the old city was located is therefore today an important tourist area.
The place had been inhabited since the Bronze Age (approx. 3200–1200 BCE), but the city itself is said to have been founded by Alexander the Great or one of his generals.
In 63 BCE the city became part of the Roman province of Syria and eventually became part of the Roman Decapolis.
It later became an important city in the Byzantine Empire, and retained its importance under the Muslim Umayyads.
Gerasa was destroyed by several earthquakes (749 and 847), and the many wars in the area over time have contributed to further destruction.
The very first excavations took place already in the early 19th century, but systematic archaeological excavations only began around 1920.
A great many of the monumental buildings turned out to be from the first century AD.
Outside Gerasa, a triumphal arch from the time of Emperor Hadrian, a stadium (hippodrome) and a naumachia (for naval battles) can be seen.
Inside the city, remains have been found of a temple dedicated to Zeus and one dedicated to Artemis, several theaters, a public well and two public baths.
The remains of a Roman forum and 800 meters of the main Roman street Cardo have also been excavated.
Around two hundred pillars still stand along this forum.
From Byzantine times there are the remains of a basilica, built in 530 AD.
Under this again, remains of a mosaic floor with Hebrew inscriptions were found, and it is believed that it may have belonged to an earlier synagogue.
(Groth, Bente: Gerasa in "Store norske leksikon" at snl.no.)
Arriving at Gerasa, we walked through the bazaar and into the area itself. The first thing that greeted us was Hadrian's Gate and then we visited the Hippodrome. This was outside the actual city of Gerasa, but built adjacent to it. Then we went through the Filadelfia Gate or the South Gate and into the old city. Here we arrived at the Oval Square (Forum), where Agneta told us about the city as such. We then strolled leisurely down the Cardo Maximus, stopping now and then to take in the sights along the way. At last we had come so far that we could see the Damascus Gate or North Gate at a little distance and we turned off up to the North Theater where we entered and looked inside. We then continued up to the Temple of Artemis. The Temple of Artemis was one of the main buildings in the city since Artemis was the city's patron. Then we saw a reconstruction of how they had cut blocks of marble, before we went to three churches next to each other. We stood on a small hill and looked down into the nearest church and a magnificent mosaic floor. None of the churches were open so that we could enter them, so what it was like in the other two churches is not known. We then walked back towards the oval square and took in the South Theater and the Temple of Zeus. There was a lot of details, and large parts of the city were still unexcavated. And all along the way we had small stops where Agneta told us about what we stopped for. Finally we got some time for ourselves, before we went back to the bus. Then of course we had to go through the bazaar again where someone made the first trade of the trip.
After the tour of Gerasa, it was time for lunch. We drove a few minutes and arrived at Artemis Restaurant where we had our lunch. We three guys had lamb stew, while some others in the group chose chicken stew. In addition, we could choose some cold salad from the buffet prior to the main course. And some dessert and fruit were also included. Coffee or tea to finish, however, we had to pay for ourselves.
The Temple of Artemis and the surrounding area in Gerasa. (Photo: Terje Pettersen-Dahl, 6/11 2015).
Amman Citadel is an archaeological site in the center of Amman, the capital of Jordan.
The L-shaped hill is one of the seven hills that originally made up Amman.
The citadel has a long history of being occupied by many different civilizations.
Traces of settlement from the Neolithic have been found and the hill was fortified once in the Bronze Age.
The hill became the capital of the kingdom of Ammon sometime after 1200 BCE.
It later came under various empires such as the Neo-Assyrian Empire, the Neo-Babylonian Empire, the Ptolemaic Empire (Egypt), the Seleucid Empire (Babylon), the Roman Empire, the Byzantine Empire and the Umayyad Caliphate.
After the fall of the Umayyads, there was a period of decline and the hill decayed into a pile of ruins only sporadically used by Bedouins and seasonal workers until 1878.
Despite this gap, the Citadel is still considered one of the world's longest continuously inhabited areas.
Most of the sights that can be seen are from the Roman, Byzantine or Umayyad periods.
The main attractions on the hill are the Temple of Hercules, a Byzantine church and the Umayyad Palace.
Jordan's Archaeological Museum was built on the hill in 1951.
Although today's attraction is the hill with its ruins, the different periods have controlled a much larger area.
There are therefore many attractions outside the Citadel, such as The Roman theater down in the city.
Although archaeological excavations have been carried out for a long time, still only a small part has been excavated.
After lunch we drove back to Amman where we visited the Amman Citadel. Here too we went on a tour and saw different parts such as the Temple of Hercules, the great water cistern and the Umm Ayyad area, before we arrived at Jordan's Archaeological Museum. As in Gerasa, we made small stops along the way where Agneta told us a little. In the museum we went on our own and looked around, before we gathered again outside and went down to the bus.
We then drove down into the valley and were supposed to see the Roman theatre, but unfortunately it was closed. The reason was that the rainwater from yesterday's downpour was still in the lower parts, where they worked hard to get the water removed.
Thus the excursion of today was over and we drove back to the hotel. Now we had a couple of hours to ourselves before we had to gather again for dinner. For my part, I chose to write the diary for the day's experiences and list the day's photos and name them. A little before the gathering of the group, the three of us gathered in the bar to take the day's malaria medicine.
When the whole group had gathered, we got on the bus for departure to the dinner restaurant. Then we discovered that it had rained while we had been at the hotel. But now there was no more rain, so it went well. The bus took us to the Tawheer al Hawa restaurant where we were to have dinner. We were served a bunch of starters consisting of some salads, some dips and some small sausages, as well as bread. And you had to taste all the dishes, almost. Next came the main course consisting of kebabs, chicken and lamb, with fries and baked onions and whole roasted chilli. The dessert was fresh fruit. No alcoholic beverages were served, so the options were water or juice. You just had to try lemon and mint juice...
The Temple of Hercules with parts of Amman. (Photo: Terje Pettersen-Dahl, 6/11 2015).
Good and satisfied, we returned to the hotel. But the evening was still young, so we three guys found that we needed an extra medicine today. And eventually even some of the Swedes came for a little evening snack. Then it was bedtime for old boys. It had been a long day with a lot of walking and tomorrow would be a long day's journey down to Petra.
Day 3 - Saturday November 7. 2015
Amman - Mount Nebo - Madaba - Shubak - Little Petra - Petra
Then it was time to say goodbye to Amman and travel further south. We had breakfast and left at 08:15. (Which is late for a tour with TEMA, but the guide Agneta wasn't much of a morning person either, so there was hope for not too early mornings.)
We drove south and since it was Saturday and a public holiday, there wasn't too much traffic. As the first stop on the road, we arrived after a while at Mount Nebo. In the Bible, this is mentioned as the mountain where Moses looked out over the promised land for the very first (and last) time.
From the mountain, one can thus see beyond the Jordan Valley to Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nablus, Hebron, and many of the other cities on the West Bank, possibly Judea. Furthermore, in the valley below, one could see a green area where Moses had set down his staff and a (water) spring had emerged. In the year 2000, Pope John Paul II had visited and marked the site with an obelisk and a newly planted olive tree on top of the mountain.
Parts of the mosaic floor in the basilica on Mount Nebo. (Photo: Terje Pettersen-Dahl, 7/11 2015).
Nebo mountain is a mountain ridge in Jordan, about 817 meters above sea level.
The place is mentioned in the Bible as the place where Moses looked out over the Promised Land he never would be allowed to enter.
From the top there is a great view towards Israel and Palestine, and to the north a small part of the Jordan River.
You can normally see the city of Jericho on the West Bank from the top, and you can see all the way to Jerusalem on a clear day.
According to Christian tradition, Moses was buried on the mountain, but the burial place is not specified.
Some Islamic traditions claim the same, and some claim the tomb is located at Maqam El-Nabi Musa, 11 km south of Jericho and 20 km east of Jerusalem in the wilderness of Judea.
At the highest point of the mountain, Syagha, are the ruins of a church and a monastery, which were discovered in 1933.
The church was built in the second half of the fourth century to commemorate the place of death of Moses.
The church is shaped like a typical basilica.
It was built on in the late 4th century and rebuilt in 597.
The church is first mentioned in a description from a pilgrimage made by Aetheria in the year 394.
Six graves have been found cut into the rock under the church floor, which is covered with mosaics.
In the choir of the modern chapel on the site, you can see the remains of mosaic floors from various periods.
The oldest of these is a panel with a braided cross which is placed on the east end of the south wall.
On March 20, 2000, Pope John Paul II visited the site during his pilgrimage to the Holy Land.
During the visit, he planted an olive tree next to the Byzantine chapel, as a symbol of peace.
(Based on article in Wikipedia.)
When we got to the mountain and were supposed to look at the view, it was unfortunately foggy, so there wasn't much we could see. But while we were there, the fog fortunately lifted, so that eventually the various parts emerged. We didn't get to see the ruins of the church (basilica) on the mountain as it was under renovation. But in the museum, a number of different mosaics from the site and from surrounding churches that were no longer in use were preserved.
After the visit to Mount Nebo we drove back just a short distance before stopping at a mosaic workshop where we still actually were on Mount Nebo. Here we were introduced to the art of laying mosaics, both the old variant with cement and the new one with superglue. Many of the people who worked here were also disabled. After the review it was time for shopping...
We then drove on for a short while to the town of Madaba. This is the mosaic city in Jordan, but now we were just going to look at a special mosaic and not shop. We entered the narrow streets where the bus hardly ever arrived and where most of the streets were one-way traffic. Therefore, it was a bit complicated to get to the car park.
Part of the mosaic map in the Church of St. George. (Photo: Terje Pettersen-Dahl, 7/11 2015).
Madaba is a city in central Jordan and the administrative center of Madaba Governorate, with a population of around 85,000.
The city is best known for the mosaics from the Byzantines and the Umayyads, in particular a large mosaic map from the Byzantine era of the Holy Land.
Madaba is 30 km southwest of the capital Amman.
The Madaba map was discovered in 1896 and attracted the attention of researchers worldwide.
The mosaic shows a map of the region, dated to the 6th century, and is preserved in the floor of the Greek Orthodox Basilica of St. George.
With two million pieces of colored stone, the map shows hills and valleys, villages and towns in Palestine and the Nile Delta.
(Based on article in Wikipedia.)
From the car park we had to walk a short distance to the Greek Orthodox Church of St. George. In the church floor here, there was a unique piece of mosaic that showed a map of the whole of Palestine, i.e. Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian territories. When they discovered this mosaic at the end of the 19th century it had been complete, but now unfortunately only parts of it remained. The reason was that in order to be allowed to build the church at the end of the 19th century, they had to build it on a place where a church had previously stood. So the mosaic floor was actually from the former church and had been damaged during the construction of the new church.
Furthermore, in the church there was a picture of a Madonna where in the year 2000 a miracle had happened in that the background had changed color from white to blue and that an extra hand had appeared in the picture, or the icon as it really was.
We finished up at the church and went back to the bus. We were only going to move a short distance within the city to the Dana restaurant where we were going to have lunch. Then it was a longer drive south towards Petra. On the way we had a short stop to stretch our legs and have something to drink at the Pillars of Jerusalem.
Shoubak castle. (Photo: Terje Pettersen-Dahl, 7/11 2015).
We drove on and took a small detour and a photo stop at the Shoubak castle (Castle Monreal). This was an old crusader castle that was located on a small hill and today was just a ruin. While we were standing there taking photographs, the guide Agneta hustled to find a small flower that was in bloom. Finally she found a Colchicum, right next to the bus of course...
Montreal or Qal'at ash-Shawbak in Arabic, is a fort built by the Crusaders and further strengthened by the Mamluks, on the eastern side of the Arabian Valley, on a rocky, conical ridge, above a fertile area below.
The ruins are located near the modern city of Shoubak in Jordan.
The Crusaders, who wrote their chronicles in medieval Latin, Old French or Occitan (from Provence in France), mention the fort as Castrum Saboach or Scobach, or as Mons Regalis, Mont Real, and Monreal.
The second variant refers to 'Royal Castle' or 'King's Castle', i.e. the king's castle.
The Arabic name is variously spelled as Shobak, Shawbak, Shaubak, Shubek, etc.
In Arabic, qal'a is the word for castle or fort.
The fort was built in 1115 by Baldwin I of Jerusalem during his expedition to the area when he captured Aqaba on the Red Sea in 1116.
Originally called 'Krak de Montreal' or 'Mons Regalis', the fort was named in honor of the king's importance in the fort's construction.
The fort was strategically important as it controlled the trade route from Egypt to Syria.
This allowed those holding the fort to tax traders and pilgrims on their way to Mecca and Medina.
A major problem for the fort was the lack of a stable water resource, something that the Crusaders experienced all over the Middle East.
This was solved with a tunnel down the hill to a area with two cisterns.
In this way, the defenders could use the tunnel to fetch water, without exposing themselves to danger from the attackers.
The fort was owned by the royal family of the Kingdom of Jerusalem until 1142, when it became part of Transjordan.
At the same time, the headquarters of Transjordan was moved to Kerak, a stronger fort north of Montreal.
After taking Jerusalem in 1187, Sultan Saladin besieged the fort for almost 2 years before it fell.
(Based on article in English Wikipedia.)
The last item on the program was a visit to Little Petra, if we managed to get there before dark - which we did. Here we entered a narrow valley and got an idea of what actually awaited us the next day when we were to walk around Petra. This was a kind of Petra in miniature, but without the most spectacular parts. Nevertheless, it was a preparation for what was to come.
We drove on the last short distance to Petra and checked into the Petra Guest House Hotell, where we were to stay for the next few days. We weren't supposed to have a bus the next day, so we were asked not to leave anything on the bus. In the rush, I overlooked my black laptop in the seat in the dark, and therefore forgot it on the bus. When I discovered this, the bus had driven, parked and the driver had taken a taxi to his accommodation. But since he wasn't going to use the bus the next day, I would get the laptop back the day thereafter. We ended the day in the usual way with a GT before dinner, a shared buffet dinner at the hotel and a GT after dinner before going to bed.
From Little Petra. (Photo: Terje Pettersen-Dahl, 7/11 2015).
Little Petra, also known as Siq al-Barid, is an archaeological site north of Petra and the city of Wadi Musa in the Ma'an Governorate of Jordan.
Like Petra, it is originally a Nabatean settlement, with dwellings dug into sandstone walls in a gorge.
As the name suggests, the site is much smaller than Petra, consisting of three open areas connected by a 450-meter-long gorge.
The site is part of the Petra Archaeological Park, although with its own access, and included in Petra's description as a world heritage site.
It is often visited by tourists together with Petra, not least since it is free and far fewer people.
Like Petra, the site was probably built at the height of Nabatean influence during the first century.
Although it is unclear what many of the buildings were used for, archaeologists believe the entire site was a suburb of Petra, the Nabatean capital, used to house traders along the Silk Road.
After the Nabateans lost their influence, the area was abandoned and for centuries only used by Bedouins and nomads.
Little Petra was first explored at the end of the 20th century.
In 2010, it was discovered that a biclinium, or dining room, in one of the caves had detailed murals of grapes, wines and putti (chubby children) in different colors, presumably in honor of Dionysus and the drinking of wine.
Day 4 - Sunday November 8. 2015
Petra
This day we were only going to spend in Petra, on foot. And in order to get as much time as possible, there was a wake-up call at 05:45, as the only day we had to get up early. We had breakfast and at half past seven we started walking into Petra. The first bit was in open countryside down towards the narrow passage in the mountains. But already out here we were met by rectangular stone blocks with and without decoration - the so-called djinn blocks - and burial chambers.
We continued together inwards until we reached the pond. Here the Nabataeans who built Petra had made a dam to prevent flooding of the city and provide water for it. Here began even the narrowest part of the passage, the so-called As Siq. Right in the transition there were remains of an arch which had probably been part of some kind of gate. We continued inside, and down, because here the floor sloped down all the way into the Treasury. Channels were built along the wall all the way to guide the water. These gutters now and then had larger rectangular rooms, which probably functioned as cleaning places. In addition, in some places you could see that the gutters were made of thin ceramic pipes or half-pipes into which the water had flown. Along the way in, there were always horse and carriages driving with tourists, so it was just a matter of going to the side and letting them pass. However, this would get even worse on the way back in the afternoon. In several places inside, there were different excavations in the stone wall for different purposes. Some were ornate tombs, but otherwise there were also hints of sculptures and presumably sacred places to pray. Many times during the walk in we stopped and Agneta or Waleed told us about what we had stopped at. We continued through the passage which was narrow, widened a little and then narrowed again until we arrived at the Treasury.
On the way through the siq to Petra. (Photo: Terje Pettersen-Dahl, 8/11 2015).
The treasury is an enormous facade in the cliff wall. It is over 40 meters high and was probably not a treasure chamber, but a burial chapel for one or more of the kings. This monument is an impressive sight with its decorations and its size. And also in the immediate surrounding area there were both other smaller burial sites and a cave that had been a dwelling.
After spending some time together and then on our own at the Treasury, we moved on together. The next point was a number of burial chambers along the last part of the passage called Street of Facades, before it widened into a larger open area. Towards the open area, we stopped at a small cafe and had something to drink, either cold or hot as desired. After wandering around a bit and gathering new strength, we continued our walk to the theater just before we came out into the open countryside. The theater was supposedly the only theater in the world that was excavated directly from a cliff face and had room for more than 4,000 listeners.
Out in the open countryside, we took a small side road that brought us a little higher than the main road and gave us a little more of an overview of the area. From a vantage point here we could see the different parts of the open part of Petra with the Royal Tombs, the water source, the Cardo Street with columns on the sides, the Great Temple, the Byzantine Church and the main temple Qasr al Bint, as well as the new city in the distance. Until 1980, people had lived in the various caves, but when Petra became a national park and entered the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1985, no one was allowed to live here anymore, but was moved out to new places of residence.
Going a little to the side, we entered another path that went around a small cliff on the other side of the open lot. We continued and walked around this small cliff and noticed how the different layers of the sandstone each had their own colors in light brown, red, yellow, black and blue, which has also left its mark and mystery on Petra. When we rounded the back, we suddenly came into a small garden and a house where it turned out that a person actually lived in the area. According to reports, Muffa as he was called, and who was born in Petra, had been given permission by former King Hussain to live here for the rest of his life. However, all eight of his wives had moved and the daughter was living in Switzerland(!), so he lived here alone, but in close contact with nature - and he didn't have to pay taxes... We sat down and bought a cup of tea and had a chat with Muffa, before it was time to continue around the small cliff. It was a bit tight on the other side, but not worse than we got down wothout any problem. And when we started the descent, we passed what was supposed to be an old crusader castle, but...
Once down at ground level in the open area, we went to the restaurant and had some lunch. That was the end of walking together as a group, and everyone was left to ourselves. Geir and Kristen chose to turn around here and calmly walk back via the Byzantine church and the Royal Tombs, while I chose to go further up to the Monastery and the viewpoints before going back. We parted ways and I started on the long road to the Monastery. In advance, it was stated that there were 800 steps up and that the trip would take between 50 minutes and an hour and a half one way, and the same back again. And since the area closed at 17:00, I would not have more time than just to go up and back again.
And it was an effort up. In some places there were decent steps, in other places there were steps dug out of the rock and in some places the steps had worn down so there was only a slope. In addition, some were a few steps high, some steps low, while most were normal after all. In addition, you could meet on donkeys up or down at any time, and every 10 meters or roughly so, there was a stall.
The Treasury. (Photo: Terje Pettersen-Dahl, 8/11 2015).
About halfway through I was almost shanghaied by a young lady who was going to sell me a traditional palestinian scarf. After much back and forth, I agreed to a glass of tea, and then of course there was no going back, and the deal was eventually done. (By the way, she is the one who took the picture of Terje "Ali" Pettersen-Dahl. Lacking a mirror, she took a picture so I could see how I looked.) I continued up the winding road with steps in almost every direction, but which had led me on from the Siq and the open lot. Several times I just had to stop a little and take a short breather, before continuing towards the goal. When I turned around and looked back, it occurred to me that I had also walked a good number of meters in altitude, and considering that I started at an altitude of over 1000 meters, it wasn't really that surprising that I started to feel it in my legs and on the breath.
Finally I had arrived at the Monastery. And on the whole long road there was only one small temple – the winged lion – which had otherwise been of interest (and I only saw it from a little distance). But otherwise, of course, nature itself was also a spectacle. But at the Monastery it was well worth the trip and the effort. And it turned out that most of the group actually made the whole trip up here.
But we were not quite at the end point yet. You could walk a little further to a lookout point on a small hill at the top of the mountain. And on the way there it turned out that there was also another lookout point, a little to the side. Once I had gone this far, I took with me both lookouts where you could see further into the mountain area. Beforehand, I had imagined Jordan as a desert country, but here it also turned out to be a mountainous country. And on one of the peaks in the mountain home was supposedly Aaron's grave.
The theater. (Photo: Terje Pettersen-Dahl, 8/11 2015).
On the trip up I had spent 50 minutes, including between 5 and 10 minutes shopping stop. And the journey home would go even faster. After finishing at the top, I started on the same road back again. Now, of course, there weren't that many photo stops, and even though there is a greater strain on the knees, it still went down relatively quickly. Once down in the open area, I visited the Byzantine church and looked at the mosaic floor here, but I didn't think I had time to go closer to the royal tombs. So therefore I went down to the main road again to the old pistachio tree and continued back past the theater and the Treasury and into the Siq. And now it was slightly uphill all the way back to the dam, - and a lot of horse and cart traffic as mentioned earlier. For anyone who had overestimated their strength, or was beginning to run out of time, now got into a carriage to get back quickly. And after dropping off the customer at the entrance, it was full speed back to the open lot or the Treasury to get new customers. Those of us who went back had to find ourselves simply jumping out quickly to the side when a horse and carriage came furiously past in the narrow passage.
Back at the pond, I got into a conversation with a young Asian lady, who turned out to be American with Danish family. She and her husband were part of an American group that had not made it further than the Treasury, as they had only had the afternoon available in the area and were also staying in a hotel 2 hours away by bus. So of course we were lucky to stay at the nearest hotel and not be dependent on transport before and after the visit.
Once back at the hotel, it turned out that I had spent 2 hours on the walk from the lookout point and back via the Byzantine church. But then I also felt it in my legs that I had done something that day. When I arrived, Kristen was sitting at the bar with a beer. And I was not difficult to persuade to sit down with him and one of the Swedish couples, for a beer for me too.
Later I went up to my room and took a well deserved shower, before going back down to the bar and the guys for some medicine before the usual buffet dinner in the evening. And since we ate fairly early, there was also the possibility of a second medicine after dinner, especially since the laptop was in the bus.
The Monastery. (Photo: Terje Pettersen-Dahl, 8/11 2015).
Petra, originally known by its inhabitants as Raqmu, is a historic city and archaeological site in southern Jordan.
The city is located on a slope of the mountain Jebel al-Madhbah ("Mountain of the Altar"), which forms the eastern side of the Arabah valley, which runs from the Dead Sea to the Gulf of Aqaba.
According to Hieronymus of Kardia, the name "Petra" was given by Greek traders who observed that in the spring the city's inhabitants practiced sacrifices to a deity on a large rock, i.e. a petra.
It is believed that the site has been inhabited as early as 9,000 BC. and that it was possibly established in the third century BC. as the capital of the Nabateans.
This was an Arab, nomadic people who were attracted by Petra's proximity to the trade routes and who established a regional center for this trade there.
Trade provided the Nabataeans with considerable income, and Petra became the center of their wealth.
The oldest historical references to Petra were given by Greek historians.
They referred to an attack on the city in 312 BC. which was ordered by Antigonus I Monophthalmos of ancient Macedonia, one of Alexander the Great's successors.
The Nabataeans, unlike their enemies, were used to living in a barren desert and could repel attacks by exploiting the area's mountainous terrain.
They were particularly skilled at collecting rainwater, farming in dry environments and cutting stone.
Most of the Nabataean rulers embraced Greek culture, from the first of these, Aretas III (87-62 BC), nicknamed Philhellen ("friend of the Greeks"), up to the last of the Nabataean kings, Rabbel II Soter (70-106 AD).
Petra flourished in the 100s AD. when its famous structure Al-Khazneh ("the treasury"), believed to be a mausoleum of King Aretas IV, was constructed using Greek architectural elements, and its population reached its peak with a population estimated at around 20,000 inhabitants.
Although the Nabataean kingdom became a client kingdom of the Roman Empire in the first century BC, it was not until AD 106 that it lost its independence.
Petra was conquered by the Romans and the kingdom became a Roman province under the name Arabia Petraea.
The city's importance declined when trade routes began to go by sea, and an earthquake in 363 destroyed many of Petra's buildings.
During the Eastern Roman Empire, a number of Christian churches were built, but the city had gone into decline after attacks from the Persian Sassanid Empire, and by early Islamic times only a few nomads lived in the city, which had been largely abandoned.
Petra remained unknown to the world until it was rediscovered in 1812 by the Swiss traveler and explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt.
To get to the city, one has to pass through a 1.2 km long gorge called al-Sīq, "the shaft", which leads directly to Khazneh.
Petra is famous for its carved architecture, carved out of the rock, and its system of water pipes.
Petra is also called the Rose City due to the color of the rock from which it is sculpted.
The site has been designated by UNESCO as part of the World Heritage since 1985.
UNESCO has described it as "one of the most precious cultural assets of the cultural heritage of mankind."
In 2007, Al-Khazneh was announced as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.
Petra is a symbol of Jordan and is Jordan's most visited tourist attraction.
The number of tourists topped 1 million in 2010.
The following period saw a decline due to unrest in the region, but the influx of tourists has since increased, with around 600,000 tourists visiting the site in 2017.
(Wikipedia)
Day 5 - Monday November 9. 2015
Petra - Wadi Rum - Aqaba
Now we had seen Petra, so this day we continued south towards Wadi Rum and Aqaba. We left at 08:00, but as we boarded and found our seats on the bus, someone thought that I should wear the scarf as I had done the previous day. I hadn't learned how to tie this, but had observed when others tied, so here it was just a matter of doing my best. And big surprise, I did it, with many impressed spectators on the bus (because they didn't expect me to...).
Rock carvings in Wadi Rum. (Photo: Terje Pettersen-Dahl, 9/11 2015).
At the outskirt of Wadi Musa, as the town near Petra was called, we stopped at a lookout point and looked into the mountain home of Petra.
We drove on after the lookout point and down to the desert area with Wadi Rum. Since Wadi Rum is a national park, it was not allowed to enter by bus. On the other hand, we got a ride with some jeeps where we sat 5 and 5 on the cargo bed and shook well. We drove a short distance in, where we got off the jeep and headed up a small sand dune to the top of a small rock cliff. Here we got a small view of the desert landscape. The mountains were much the same as in Petra with many shades and layers, but they were not as dense and thus there was a blanket of sand between them. In the sand up to the small cliff there were traces of many animals, such as gerbils and birds.
We gathered again and drove on to a cliff where there were rock carvings. Whether they were all old, or whether there were also some new ones among them, was said to be uncertain, but we probably established quite quickly that not all were of an older date. On the other side of the cars was a Bedouin tent where you could hire a dromedary for a short ride. None of us three guys did this, but some of the others just had to try.
At the same time as they rode, the rest of us drove in advance to another Bedouin tent in a small valley depression. Here we again got out of the cars and into the camp and had a glass of tea. When the riders had arrived, we gathered at one end of the tent where Waleed told us a little about brewing Arabic coffee. Among other things, the hand grinder had to be made of pistachio wood. This is because when you hit the piece of wood down to crush the beans, you also hit the bottom, which reverberated between the rocks. A sign that someone was making coffee and everyone around was welcome to have a drink.
Once we finished making coffee, we headed back to the cars and drove through the desert back to the starting point and the bus. Back at the starting point, we were all "shaken and well stirred". Before we drove off, we paid a short visit to the private house, and then we set off towards Aqaba.
From Wadi Rum. (Photo: Terje Pettersen-Dahl, 9/11 2015).
Wadi Rum is a desert area and the largest wadi in Jordan.
Wadi Rum lies approximately 70 km north-east of the port city of Aqaba in southern Jordan and runs parallel to Wadi Arabah in the west.
The area is located at 800 m above sea level, has an area of approximately 720 km² and is approximately 100 km long and approximately 60 km wide.
The highest heights are Jebel Um Adaami at approx. 1832 m and Jabel Rum at approx. 1754 m.
The village of Rum is the only place in the area and is inhabited by the Zalabia Bedouin people.
The village is about 35 km from the main road "Desert Highway" (which connects Aqaba and Amman) and about 6 km from the village is also the Visitors Centre.
Wadi Rum has a fascinating landscape characterized by the red desert sand surrounded by sandstone and granite cliffs in yellow, white, red and brown and is a popular excursion destination.
The most famous geological formations are Jebel Burdah and Wadi Rum Monument.
The area is a protected area (Protected Area of Wadi Rum) and is managed by the company Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature.
Wadi Rum has been inhabited since prehistoric times, among others by Thamudians and Nabateans.
A number of rock paintings such as the Alameleh drawings and the Anfashih drawings and other remains such as the Aretas temple bear witness to this.
The area became widely known through T. E. Lawrence who spent a long time here during the Arab revolt against the Ottoman Empire in the years 1916 - 1918.
Lawrence later wrote extensively about the area in his autobiography Seven Pillars of Wisdom.
A number of films have been shot in Wadi Rum, including "Lawrence of Arabia" 1962, "Red Planet" 2000 and "The Martian" 2015.
In 1998, Wadi Rum was declared a nature conservation area.
(Wikipedia)
Once in Aqaba, we had lunch at the Floka restaurant, which was a fish restaurant. The fish tasted lovely, but the flies could sometimes be a little too close. On the way out of Aqaba we made a tiny detour to visit a post office to buy stamps for the postcards, i.e. those who needed it. We then drove out of the city and south towards the border with Saudi Arabia to Tala Bay where our Radisson Blu hotel was located. This was a typical beach hotel and area. Once checked in, we got ready for dinner with some medicine and then the usual buffet dinner, and the usual medicine after dinner. Then it was back to the room, where I could then write a little more in the diary. The previous two evenings the laptop had been in the bus, so now I was well behind schedule.
Day 6 - Tuesday November 10. 2015
Aqaba
The hotel in Aqaba. (Photo: Terje Pettersen-Dahl, 10/11 2015).
This day was a day off for everyone, so we three guys had agreed on breakfast at 8:00. Once in the breakfast room (which was the same as the dinner room in the evening) I had to make a short trip to the toilet. And then a small problem arose. Because there was no water in the toilet! So I had to go back to the room to wash my hands, and then back again to the breakfast room to eat breakfast. But by now the boys had already almost finished their breakfasts. But, but, it was a holiday and no stress.
After breakfast we parted ways and I went back to the room and continued writing in the diary and took a shower. Since breakfast lasted until 11:00, I took my laptop with me to continue writing while I had some tea. Agneta sat there with her late breakfast and we sat and chatted for quite a while.
Around 11:30 others also appeared, including Geir and the two of us went down to the pool bar and had a beer while we waited for Kristen. We had previously agreed to meet there at 12:00 for lunch. Actually, we had intended to eat at the restaurant next door, but it didn't serve lunch, only dinner later in the evening, so it was a simpler lunch of burger and pizza by the pool.
After lunch we each went our separate ways and I, for my part, went back to the room and continued to write in the diary so that I could send travel documents home later in the evening. But once I was at the Red Sea, I eventually took a break from writing and went down and had a little swim. It would be far too embarrassing to come home and have to admit to having been there without bathing...
After updating the diary it was time to gather for some medicine before dinner. We took the medicine in the lobby bar since it was happy hour there and hence half price. After a little while with some of the Swedes, we went down to dinner and the buffet table. A plus was that the hotel had actually managed to have a different selection on the buffet this evening compared to the previous evening. This evening we also had wine with the food and not beer as usual. Moreover, this evening we had been given a couple of long tables and enjoyed the food and chatted about loose and firm. After dinner there was no mood for anything else, so we each went our separate ways.
From the mosque in Aqaba. (Photo: Terje Pettersen-Dahl, 11/11 2015).
Aqaba is the fifth largest city in Jordan.
It is special in that it is the only city on the coast, and thus has the only port in the country.
It is located in the very south of the country and in the very north of the Gulf of Aqaba, east of the city of Eilat in Israel.
The city is the most populous city in the Gulf of Aqaba and in 2015 had a population of 148,398 inhabitants and a land area of 375 km².
Aqaba is the administrative center of the Aqaba Governorate.
The city has an important role in the development of Jordan's economy with extensive tourism and trade.
The Port of Aqaba also serves other countries in the region.
Aqaba has been inhabited since 4000 BC. due to its location on the trade routes between Asia, Africa and Europe.
The city is mentioned in the Bible as a place where King Solomon built ships.
Since that time, the city's importance has fluctuated with changing regimes.
The Crusaders built a fortress there which is still preserved.
During the First World War it was conquered by T.E. Lawrence and from 1925 it belonged to Transjordan.
In 1965, King Hussein traded 6,000 km² of desert land for 12 km of coastline in Saudi Arabia, giving the city access to the Yamanieh coral reef as well.
With this, the city gained expansion opportunities and tourism could begin to develop.
(Wikipedia.)
Day 7 - Wednesday November 11. 2015
Aqaba - Amman
After getting ready in the morning, I went down to the breakfast room and had breakfast with the guys. This day, too, we could sleep a little longer, as there was not such a big day's programme.
The Dead Sea. (Photo: Terje Pettersen-Dahl, 11/11 2015).
The whole group got together and we went on a city tour of Aqaba. First we went to the mosque in the town, where we had a tour. We then went to a lookout point in the city where we could see over to Eilat in Israel. We then went to Beir Mathkour, a small town in the desert north of Aqaba. On the way back we had a short stop at the Dead Sea to take some photos. Finally, there was a stop at a shop for products from the Dead Sea area. Not all the world's shopping from our group though. We then went back to the hotel in Tala Bay.
The rest of the day we took it easy. Of course with a medicine before the last dinner with the group on this trip. After the meal we finished early and went to bed.
Day 8 - Thursday November 12. 2015
Amman - Wien - Oslo
Then it was time to travel home. We had to get up early to drive back to Amman and catch the plane home from there. Without any problems on the way, we arrived in good time. We checked in, went to the gate and waited for the flight to Vienna. Once in Vienna, it was just a matter of getting to the gate for the flight to Oslo. Once back in the old country it was getting very late, so we said thank you for now and I found the bus home. Once at home, it was just a matter of getting into the bunk.
And thus that journey was over too!