Jordan, Part 1 – Aqaba
- At September 24, 2023
- By Jessica
- In Travel
0
Jordan occupies a precarious place in the world. Its border with Syria is 180km, with Iraq 375 km, with Saudi Arabia 744 km, and with Israel, 350 km. Talk about being in the thick of it all!
Our ship docked at the port of Aqaba at dawn. Aqaba is located on the northeastern tip of the Red Sea and is surrounded by mountains and desert. Aqaba = Obstacle
With its central location between Africa and Asia, Aqaba has played a significant role in the region's trade for thousands of years. Today, its prosperity rests in its position as the sole port of the nation.
In 1917, T.E. Lawrence (known as Lawrence of Arabia) led troops in the Battle of Aqaba here. The white-robed Englishman helped the Arabs run the Turks from the city's fortress during a camel charge. Famously, Lawrence used nearby Wadi Rum, a vast desert canyon, as base camp during the campaign.
Emerging from the cruise port to meet our guide at 8 AM, we thought we had landed on the moon. Having never been to the moon -yet - Jordan is most like Monument Valley in Arizona of the places we have been. (Elon Musk be damned, we are waiting for a Moon Cruise.)
The actual town of Aqaba is a pretty few block strip of new hotels, fast food restaurants, and shops. The investment money comes from China.
We headed north to the ancient city of Petra. For the longest time, all we saw were craggy mounds of rock shaped by centuries of wind and weather.
Speaking of which, it is only 60 degrees today. Drastic drop from 95 degrees in Saudi Arabia. And foggy. It was so foggy, in fact, that we witnessed a multi-car pile-up on the road to Petra. This road is called "orphanage valley" due to lots of accidents. So glad we have our own driver
It snows in Jordan, especially in Amman and Petra. Did you know that? We didn't.
We passed random camels on the side of the road, just like the deer we pass on Route 95.
Next we passed by Wadi Rum, where Lawrence of Arabia lived while fending off the invading Turks, as mentioned above. Now it is a nature preserve where many sci-fi movies are filmed. Wadi Rum = Rock Valley. Also called Moon Valley.
Fun Fact: The Dead Sea, between Israel and Jordan) is the lowest point on Earth at 400 m below sea level.
The city of Amman is surrounded by 21 mountains and when the muezzin calls for prayer it echos across all the mountains.
Fun fact: The second name for Amman is Philadelphia.
From Wadi Rum we took the Jordan Trail to Petra. We were well prepared by a friend who recommended we read I Married a Bedouin, the true story of a New Zealander who married a tribesman.
