Petra, Day Two

The first night we arrived at the hostel we watched Indiana Jones, In Search of the Holy Grail with 15 other multinational visitors. Watching the movie before visiting Petra got us all excited about exploring Petra. We decided to stay an extra day in Wadi Musa, gateway to Petra. We enjoyed wandering back through the Siq (canyon) to the Treasury. I was able to find my way up the back of a mountain which eventually led to awesome cliff-side views of the Treasury. Mariella and I also hiked to a huge monument called the monastery where we enjoyed a picnic lunch overlooking the Arabian Desert and the ruins of Petra. Mariella’s highlight was likely the donkey ride down from the monastery followed by a camel ride to the treasury. Tomorrow we hope to exit Jordan through Jerusalem and continue on to Egypt. We hope to make it to Mt. Sinai. The plan is to wake up early the following morning for a pre-sunrise assent. After descending we hope to catch a bus to Cairo for the eight hour journey.

Petra

Yes! The rain stopped. We spent the day hiking around Petra. What an amazing ancient city! I would love to transport back in time to observe the city in its prime.

Jordan

This morning we walked to the Egyptian consulate in Eilat, near the Red Sea and we obtained the visas in less than one hour. We welcomed the friendly costumer service unlike the service from the crazy guy at the Egyptian consulate in Tel Aviv. After obtaining visas we tried to hitchhike to the Jordanian border, but were unsuccessful in the twenty-minute hitchhiking window we allowed ourselves. We settled for a cab ride. We paid the exit fee for leaving Israel and walked the 500 meters to Jordan through various check points. Upon entering Jordan we haggled with the cabdrivers who were trying to get us to pay double the amount for a cab ride and trying to set us up with different tours. After threatening to get out of the cab drivers car he cut the price in half. We also met an Aussie upon entering Jordan and we split the cost of a cab to drive two-hours north to Petra. It was interesting seeing herds of camels walking in the desert near the highway. We arrived in Petra safely, but got caught unprepared for the rainy weather. Mariella and I left our bags at a hostel in Israel and too small day bags for a few day excursion in Jordan. We packed light, leaving our fleece sweaters and rain jackets behind. We hope the weather clears up tomorrow as we venture out into Petra’s canyons. We will need to find some warm clothing. The Jordanian people we’ve met today have warmly welcomed us. While waiting under an overhang for the rain to let up two young Jordanian guys invited us to have Bedouin coffee with them. Hopefully we can catch up with them after dinner. We should have more pictures to share in the coming days. Our German friend, Thomas, let us barrow his camera while we are in Jordan. Thank You!