Amman to Petra

Today, after very little sleep, we traveled from Amman to Petra. We met up at 10:30 with our driver Ahad and guide George Sweiss. Ahad is Muslim and observing Ramadan and George is Christian. George studied at University in Italy for tourism and is an encyclopedia of knowledge.

We first drove to Mt. Nebo where according to Jewish and Christian tradition, Moses was buried on this mountain by God himself, although his final resting place is unknown.

The view of the Jordan valley was something we did not expect. It compares to nothing we had ever experienced. At 820 metres in Mount Nebo you can view the Dead Sea at 400 metres below sea level, the hills of Jeruselum, Jericho and Bethlehem.

The path up to the church at Mount Nebo is laid out like the branches of a tree. Inside are many mosaics which the area is known for. The is a large wheel that was used to fortify the door of the monastery. When the wanted to keep people out they would roll it in front of the door.

A serpentine cross sculpture at the site is a symbol of the bronze serpent created by Moses and the cross upon which Jesus wa crucified.

We then visited Madaba to view the Mosaic map in the 19th century

Greek Orthodox St George’s Church. Unearthed 1864, the mosaic was once a clear map with 157 captions (in Greek) of all major biblical sites from Lebanon to Egypt. The mosaic was constructed AD 560 & once contained more than 2 million pieces; only 1/3 of the whole map now survives.

After a 3 hour drive we checked in to our hotel, Mövenpick Petra. After a lovely, but quick, dinner on a rooftop terrace we headed out to enjoy a walking tour of Petra by night. By the light of 1,800 candles, this is truly an out­ of ­this ­world experience! The walk is through the SIQ to the Khazneh following a candle­lit path, to conclude at The Treasury.

We couldn’t really see where we were other than what we could see from the light of the candles and a clear half moon. We stayed closely behind a couple with their iPhone flashlight on to light the way on a stone path.

When we finished walking the SIQ we arrived at our final destination The Treasury. It was about a 2 km hike. We managed to score a spot on a mat in the front row. The sky was clear and it was a perfect evening. The area was lit with hundreds of candles in paper bags filled with sand. The Bedouin’s sang their traditional music and served every one tea.

We could have stayed longer but decided to head out before the crowd of somewhere between 500 and 1000 other tourists headed back. We had a lovely quiet walk back alone, not knowing what was around each bend. Thank goodness for a flashlight on the phone to light the way. It was quite the hike back out, this time somewhat uphill.

I had read several reviews that were less than flattering of the Petra at night experience but others had suggested we shouldn’t miss it. Even without a full nights sleep since we left Toronto it was worth it.

After, Karen headed straight to bed and Geoff to the rooftop bar for a cooling beer before calling it a night. Ahhhh. A full 8 hours in a bed. Heaven!