I had been looking forward to be awoken by the call to prayer at the local mosque...but not at 3.30 in the morning. And when sleeping in an unconditioned room, with a 6 am wake-up required to pack, have breakfast, and leave by 7, then this certainly wasn't needed. Did have the iPod handy, and attempted to get some leverage out of it by getting some recordings. Haven't actually listened to them yet, in fact there really hasn't been "time" to get in any iPod action. Apart from using it for flights and bus trips, listening to your stuff whilst trawling any city or town in a country/culture foreign to yours seems pretty pointless - travel requires using your ears as well as your eyes.
So, tossed and turned, may be got an hour or so in, awake at 6, shower, (incidentally, check out the bathroom) complimentary breakfast at 6.30 - pita bread, a boiled egg, a sachet of processed soft cheese, apricot jam, and some Nescafe (like I said, you get what you pay for), met my driver for the trip. I was supposed to go on a tour provided by the hotel for 25 Dinar, provided they had at least three people sign up. Sadly, I was the only taker, so they organised a taxi and a driver for 70 Dinar. Was kinda hoping for a bus and a whole crowd of passengers, just so I could perhaps get some reading in before meeting up with my American colleagues in a few days time, but at least with a Taxi at my disposal, I guess I could pretty much take my time with the trip and visit wherever I wish along the way.
My driver was Ahmad, a delightful 28 year old gentleman from Madaba. English was ok, but he proved to be a valuable resource for practicing my Arabic (ie a total of seven words!!!). Ahmad had agreed to follow the sites that were supposed to be on the tour to Petra, passing through the valley of Wadi Al Mojib, Karak Castle, Wadi Al Hasa, Dana, Al Shobik Castle, and finally get to Petra.
Wadi Al Mojib is a valley that looks like the Grand Canyon. As a wilderness it is massive and relentless. Still awesome to look at, but you don't want to be caught out there during the day. Stopped to take a couple of shots, Ahmad having kindly supplied a couple of cucumbers for morning tea.
Karak castle was a crusader castle stronghold, dating back to the 12th century, though the site has apparently been a fortress since biblical times. Situated above the town of Karak, it overlooks a valley that's dry and desolate. The town is primarily Christian, and many of the families there can purported ly trace their origins back to the Byzantines. Ahmad dropped me off to get my ticket, and he'd wait for me at the Al Fida Cafe, run by a mate of his. Ticket was 1 Dinar.
Overall the castle is roughly 220m long, 125m wide at the north end, and 40m wide at the southern end. Though the masonry is primarily of Crusader origin, there's is evidence of later Arab work featuring softer limestone - not that I was able to tell the difference. The castle also features a higher hill as part of the complex, apparently a favoured artillery position for Saladin and his forces.
Wadi Al Hasa is another valley where we stopped to get a few shots in. I should mention that just prior to this photo of myself taken, a couple of the taxi's window shades and my hat had blown of over the "cliff". Well, when I say cliff, it was in fact a steep incline, but hat and the screens could be seen further down the steep rock strewn hill. There's was no way I was leaving my hat, so down I went. Although when I say it was steep, I mean REALLY steep. The sort of steep where if I stepped on a loose rock and went down, I'd probably go down with a huge rock slide. With Ahmad shouting "Mister Mister, Danger Danger" behind me, I was beginning to realise it wasn't such a good idea. But I'd started this, I wasn't going to quit now. I continues making my way down, convinced I was going to die, but hey, I wasn't losing my hat. Obviously I'm prepared to risk my life for all the important stuff. Grabbed my hat, made a diagonal up the steep incline to grab the window screens (still with Ahmad's Danger Danger in my ears), but eventually got to the top, Ahmad pulling me up. I had made a bit of a faux par earlier, crossing my leg in the taxi so that the soul of my show was pointing toward him. Totally absent minded on my part, but in Jordan you don't point the sole of your foot towards ANYONE. In any case, I don't think it was a big deal, thankfully this act of extreme bravado on my part scored me some points with my Jordanian friend (at least that's the B-S fantasy world I live in anyway).
[Insert Showbak Shot]Second castle of the the journey was the Al Shobik Castle in the valley, its construction dating from the same period as Castle Karak. This fortress features a natural moat which incorporates a system of valleys that surround the central hill from all directions. This particular crusader stronghold fell to Saladin about 75 years after initial construction, and inscriptions can still be found on its walls, left by his successors.
It was about 1pm before we entered the town of Wadi Musa, the village that had sprun up around the Petra site. I was booked for three nights at the Petra Moon hotel, and despite Ahmad's insistence that his mate who runs the Petra Palace could do me a good deal, I adamantly stressed that I already had a reservation. For a start, it had a rooftop pool, and I cannot stress who underrated hotel pools are. Check it out, just look at what you can gaze upon from the safe confines of aquatic bliss!!
It was time to say farewell to Ahmad, but he's offered to pick me up from Petra and take me along the Dead Sea to Madaba, for a reasonable price, so I'd be seeing him again Sunday. Petra Moon was/is fantastic. Not cheap (about $A 90-100 per night), but they have above mentioned pool, complimentary breakfast, and it's about 5 mins from the entrance to the Petra site. And it has a tele with about 300 channels. Most are Arabic, but Al Jazeera English and BBC World Service are my new best friends for the lonely evenings. The Hotel was also hosting a BBQ that night on the rooftop terrace for 12 Dinar, which was worth it just for the view from the terrace.
Stayed as long as I could for the BBQ (including a couple of non-alcoholic beers), before heading off to Petra by night. Every Thursday night, the trail down to Petra is lit up with candles, leading to the Treasury building accompanied by candles and a show. Most people talk about the religious experice that come when first glimpsing Al-Khazneh. I can't say I felt such experience, going through that slit of rock at night (even when lit up with candles, only allowed one to see the general outline of Treasury. Everyone was asked to be seated, served a small cup of sweet tea, and are treated to a show which includes a bedouin playing oud and singing, a flute player, and a story teller. Couldn't really get a decent shot of the evening (this one's from the net), but I did meet a new friend...
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