Red Sea & Wadi Rum - Thursday September 28
It's 9:30 pm and I'm typing this post from our hotel in Amman, Jordan. The hotel only has one internet connection ($4 CND/hour) and there was a line up, but I thought I should stay awake and try and write a few lines. There are a couple of internet places close by, but I didn't feel up to taking a walk in the dark, even though J went out to the store to pick up some drinks and snacks for us.
After my last post on Wednesday we had a bit of time to do some shopping in Aqaba. Supper at the hotel was at 7:30 but for some reason I misread my watch and it was 8:30 before we headed down. Everyone else had already eaten, but fortunately they saved some food for us and we were able to get a bite to eat before heading out. We wandered around the area for a bit and went through many shops, all of them duty free. Aqaba sells lots of fresh nuts and of course, Dead Sea products. Walking down the streets reminded of us walking into a health food store - everything smells like spices and fresh produce. Bought some souvenirs but I think we were both too tired from our early morning Sinai trek to really enjoy everything.
Thursday morning we left the hotel around 9:30 to enjoy a few hours at the Red Sea. We paid to go to one of the beaches at a hotel and were able to rent snorkeling equipment there. It was quite wavy but the coral was fantastic and there was quite a variety of fish to be seen. We headed back to the hotel around noon, packed up our gear and tried to find some place that was open for lunch. Most of the restaurants were closed but J managed to walk down to the McDonald's and found they were open. However, they would only make food for those taking it away and nobody was allowed to eat in the restaurant as it was Ramadan. Many of their foods weren't available either but we did manage to score some burgers and ice cream cones. (It cost approx. $8 Cnd for two burgers, some fries and two ice creams)
Our destination for the afternoon was Wadi Rum - a protected nature reserve area where the local Bedouin still live. We all piled into two jeeps and headed out into the dessert to see some sights. Our first stop was at the Lawrence of Arabia springs, now dried up, but some ancient rock carvings were left behind. We also enjoyed some Bedouin tea and stopped to chat with the locals. Our second stop was at a canyon with more rock carvings - can't remember all the details as to how old the rock writings were. The area has lots of pink sand and huge rock formations similar to the Sinai region. One of the rock formations forms a natural stone bridge between two huge rocks so we clamored up some sand dunes and walked across the bridge to enjoy the scenery from above. We were all covered in pink dust by the time we boarded the bus and I emptied out a pile of sand from my shoes that night. I would love to go back here and camp for a week in the dessert or take a camel trek for a couple of days. The rock formations look like they belong on the moon and the whole area is quite amazing!
After our visit to Wadi Rum we continued on to Wadi Musa (Valley of Moses) where we stayed the night. Around 6:30 pm we stopped to watch the sun set over the Rift Valley, while our driver, who had been fasting all day, broke his fast and had some food. (I wonder how safe it is to have drivers who haven't had anything to eat or drink all day?) Arrived at our hotel around 7:30 and then those of us who wanted to see "Petra by night," left at 8:30. J opted not to go on this excursion but our guide book said it was a "magical experience" so I forked out the $27 Cnd and went for it. In the end I was a bit disappointed, as the walk from the entrance of Petra, through the Siq and to the Treasury took over 30 min and was only lit with candles. It was hard to walk in the dark, and even though they could be smelt and not seen, there were some camel and donkey paddies lining the way. At the end of the walk there were more candles in front of the treasury, but not enough to get a good picture. Everyone was served some tea, while two locals entertained us with some Bedouin music. We walked back out shortly after and arrived home just before 11 pm - I think I should have saved the money and enjoyed my sleep!
Red Sea
Camel Crossing
Middle of nowhere!
Herd of goats under tree
Red and white sand!
Climbing up the sand dunes and rock formations
Natural rock bridge
Sunset over the Rift Valley
After my last post on Wednesday we had a bit of time to do some shopping in Aqaba. Supper at the hotel was at 7:30 but for some reason I misread my watch and it was 8:30 before we headed down. Everyone else had already eaten, but fortunately they saved some food for us and we were able to get a bite to eat before heading out. We wandered around the area for a bit and went through many shops, all of them duty free. Aqaba sells lots of fresh nuts and of course, Dead Sea products. Walking down the streets reminded of us walking into a health food store - everything smells like spices and fresh produce. Bought some souvenirs but I think we were both too tired from our early morning Sinai trek to really enjoy everything.
Thursday morning we left the hotel around 9:30 to enjoy a few hours at the Red Sea. We paid to go to one of the beaches at a hotel and were able to rent snorkeling equipment there. It was quite wavy but the coral was fantastic and there was quite a variety of fish to be seen. We headed back to the hotel around noon, packed up our gear and tried to find some place that was open for lunch. Most of the restaurants were closed but J managed to walk down to the McDonald's and found they were open. However, they would only make food for those taking it away and nobody was allowed to eat in the restaurant as it was Ramadan. Many of their foods weren't available either but we did manage to score some burgers and ice cream cones. (It cost approx. $8 Cnd for two burgers, some fries and two ice creams)
Our destination for the afternoon was Wadi Rum - a protected nature reserve area where the local Bedouin still live. We all piled into two jeeps and headed out into the dessert to see some sights. Our first stop was at the Lawrence of Arabia springs, now dried up, but some ancient rock carvings were left behind. We also enjoyed some Bedouin tea and stopped to chat with the locals. Our second stop was at a canyon with more rock carvings - can't remember all the details as to how old the rock writings were. The area has lots of pink sand and huge rock formations similar to the Sinai region. One of the rock formations forms a natural stone bridge between two huge rocks so we clamored up some sand dunes and walked across the bridge to enjoy the scenery from above. We were all covered in pink dust by the time we boarded the bus and I emptied out a pile of sand from my shoes that night. I would love to go back here and camp for a week in the dessert or take a camel trek for a couple of days. The rock formations look like they belong on the moon and the whole area is quite amazing!
After our visit to Wadi Rum we continued on to Wadi Musa (Valley of Moses) where we stayed the night. Around 6:30 pm we stopped to watch the sun set over the Rift Valley, while our driver, who had been fasting all day, broke his fast and had some food. (I wonder how safe it is to have drivers who haven't had anything to eat or drink all day?) Arrived at our hotel around 7:30 and then those of us who wanted to see "Petra by night," left at 8:30. J opted not to go on this excursion but our guide book said it was a "magical experience" so I forked out the $27 Cnd and went for it. In the end I was a bit disappointed, as the walk from the entrance of Petra, through the Siq and to the Treasury took over 30 min and was only lit with candles. It was hard to walk in the dark, and even though they could be smelt and not seen, there were some camel and donkey paddies lining the way. At the end of the walk there were more candles in front of the treasury, but not enough to get a good picture. Everyone was served some tea, while two locals entertained us with some Bedouin music. We walked back out shortly after and arrived home just before 11 pm - I think I should have saved the money and enjoyed my sleep!
Red Sea
Camel Crossing
Middle of nowhere!
Herd of goats under tree
Red and white sand!
Climbing up the sand dunes and rock formations
Natural rock bridge
Sunset over the Rift Valley
posted by The Patterson Pair at 2:36 PM
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