Desert Beauty
Trip Start
Feb 24, 2008
1
5
14
Trip End
Mar 03, 2008
Wadi Rum,
Jordan
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Our group got in around 9 PM last night and we met them over dinner. They are a fairly diverse bunch of people from Australia, the UK and Canada (practically covering the globe!) who have formed a friendly group of travellers and one we are pleased to join. From the start and even moreso over the next days I had help from everyone making sure I was OK and able to see, find my way and not fall over obstacles. (To any of the group reading this, Thank you!)
We had made a group decision to forgo the snorkelling to spend more time in Wadi Rum, what a great decision
Wadi Rum Roman Road
.We drove back along the same highway we had been on yesterday so we had some idea of what we would see but, in fact, we had NO idea of what we would experience.
Our bus took us through some spectacular scenery, stopping to see the remains of a Roman Road, before arriving at the Bedouin camp at Disi. Time for a welcome tea and toilet break before we boarded our Bedouin owned 4x4 vehicles. These were the real rough-and-ready style where we could sit on the back in the open, and headed off into the desert. At one point in the drive they took us up and down a few sand dunes which was quite exhilartng, not unlike a roller-coaster ride.
WOW! We have been lucky enough to visit a number of deserts and there is no such thing as a typical desert. A Wadi is a valley, with or without water. Wadi Rum does feel like a valley as everywhere we drove is flanked by huge outcrops of rocks and mountains. The valley floor however is flat so feels like an ocean floor as it actually was many millions of years ago.
Our guide, Issa, appeared as at home in the desert as our Bedouin drivers and just as excited as we were to be there
Wadi Rum Roman Road
. He told us about a seven day trip he had guided through the desert, how I would love to do that.We visited a few specific places; at one we saw one of the world's oldest maps showing the Desert Camel Caravans where to go for water and resting places; another was for the fun of climbing to the top of a sand dune and, after everyone else had gone back down, sitting looking at mesmerizing views of the silent desert around us. Running down the dune was great fun too; at our last stop we saw desert art where the Nabatean Caravan members had carved drawings, inscriptions and messages; and a few other stops just to admire the awesome views around us and take more photos.
All too soon we had to head back to the camp where we were having a traditional Bedouin lunch of Mensaf. Yesterday was Ken's birthday so Cheryl, our tour leader, presented him with a cake which we all enjoyed for dessert :-)
Thankfully this was not the end of the desert just yet. We headed off to the visitors centre which has been built within view of the "Seven Pillars of Wisdom", named after T.E.Lawrence wrote about and called them by this name. They are an incredible sight of a mountain formed by these seven pillars, the last (or first) set a bit apart from the rest
Wadi Rum Roman Road
. To get some perspective of these mammoths I saw Jarrod walking towards them, see if you can spot him as a speck in one of our photos!Finally we had to be torn away from Wadi Rum to drive to Petra where we were staying for the next two nights. Most of the group went to see Petra by night which, as an amazing experience as they said it was, would have been a nightmare for me as it was a long, dark walk.
Instead we stayed at the hotel, had a leisurly supper, chatted about Petra with the restaurant manager and went for a walk to the nearby shop to stock up on water.
Then it was time for bed as Annie could hardly contain her excitement in anticipation of seeing Petra tomorrow morning!
