Petra Palace Hotel Wadi Musa

... you no matter where you are in the world, you cannot run, you cannot hide.

Day 3, the tour clouds part and becomes truly AWESOME, head to the Dead Sea and float like rubber duck in a bath, get dead sea mud bath, skin is so soft, zip to Petra for delicious buffet then have 5 layers of skin scrubbed off in traditional Turkish Bath.

Day 4 PETRA the lost city, the jewel in the crown of the trip. Would it hold up? Would it meet my expectations ...

... skills were incredible to be able to carve such detailed works in the rocks. Petra is the number one tourist attraction in Jordan so the place was heaving with people and here was the main attraction of the huge area of Petra right here, the treasury. It was difficult to get a photo without people or horses or camels in it. We vowed to return at daybreak to capture it in its best light so we moved on down the pathway to more buildings and tombs carved in rocks. We ...

... of the desert evening was only interrupted by the hooting of owls in the far-off distance, or the occasional howls of the hyenas which lived in the nearby mountains.

The next morning, I decided to get up early for the sunrise. I wandered off a fair ways from the campsite, and the silence was eerie. The moon was my only companion, I awaited the breaking day, and I was soon rewarded by a stunning sunrise. I also had time to reflect on this trip and the profound effect it ...

... whole area was teeming with life and forrests, then the Ottomans arrived and cut down everything. I can't wait to see this place in about 30 yrs when all the trees have grown back. About another 1hr along we stopped at a look-out by the side of the road and there it was below us, our first glimps of the city of Petra. All we could see was part of one of the canyon that made up some of the entry path to the city. There were a couple of old buildings we could see as well. We were all on ...

... lay Israel. To our side were several other spots, some higher, affording views, and a few mountains away, one was topped by what is said to be (Biblical) Aaron's tomb. But just next to us was...a gift shop, of course. We bought some things at the End of the World, and headed back down, past a dozen or more Bedouin women vendors, each with her own set of jewelry and wares, each with a come-on as you either hiked up or headed down. It was mind-blowing to think that ...

... a candle, and when you get to the Treasury they had mats set out on the ground and everyone sat down to listen to a local Bedouin play the lute, a traditional guitar-like instrument and then something that sounded like a flute. Absolutely beautiful right under the stars. I had every intention of spending 2 full days at Petra but I overdid it the first day and ended up with some major blisters, so instead I ended up taking the 2nd day off ...