Day 18 Petra
Trip Start
Oct 14, 2008
1
18
23
Trip End
Nov 05, 2008
Wadi Musa, Jordan
Friday, October 31, 2008
We waited at the lobby to get picked up by Aiman.. could have just meet at the entrance since it was only a few feet away. Since the group is staying at difference hotels we have to somehow get everyone together.
We get to the entrance and then waited for Aiman to get the ticket. While there of course I have to take a picture of the 'famous' Indiana Jones Snack shop. A cat came out of no way and started to hang out around my backpack
Alter
. Sorry kitty can't take you with us... Aiman came back with our tickets and also he has to arrange for a buggie ride for some of the people in our group who has trouble walking. We ended up with just me, Dave, Mike and Tammy guided by Aiman to walk the Siq. Each section has rule about transportation.
You can take the horse drawn buggie from the entrance to the Treasury the whole way.
From the entrance to the beginning part of the Siq, there are only horses allowed. From the beginning of the Siq to the Treasury, only horse drawn buggies . 2 passengers and the driver squeeze into the small seats thru the very bumpy path. You can ride the horse from the gate to the entrance of the Siq. Horses don't get pass that point. From there you will need to walk if you are not on the horse drawn buggie already.
There is a lot of activities around, horses, carriages, tourists, tour groups speaking all different languages are all here.The rocks formation along the way is amazing. reminded me of Arches National park except a lot of the formation were man made. Big Nabatean blocks call Djinn can be found everywhere. You can also see tombs craved into the mountain side. The first one you will see if the Obelisk tomb and many smaller tombs along the way.
We arrived at the entrance to the Siq. The path is very narrow with tall rock face on both sides. Sunlight barely pass through.
Along the Siq you can see water channel built by ancient Nabateaian to gather water to the city. There are also water basins along the way for the traveler to wash/drink
Buggie ride
. These channel are all dried up now. You really need to walk the Siq to appreciate all the history and the view. The path of the Siq still have many patches of cobblestone road remained , possibly over 2000 years old. You can see markings of chariot and wagon wheels have worn into the stones. Along the walls of the siq are many small niches containing block gods of various kinds. There are also many places for pray and offering.
I wish I can stop longer to take more picture but have to keep up with the group.
Very soon we arrived at end of the Siq where you can peek through just to see the beautiful Treasury glowing in the morning sun. You really should try to be here as early as possible. Because the rock face is so high, very little sunlight can come through. The sun only shines on the Treasure in the early morning.
I love taking the 'peek-a-boo' picture from the Siq looking at the golden Treasury. What a site!
We met up with our group who were waiting for us since they took the buggie ride in. Aiman explained the history of the Treasure, how it does not have any Treasury it is really a tomb for a Royal Family.
The top of the Treasury has an url which was shot up by bullets
Djinn Rock
. Some believe it was were the 'treasure' was hidden so they tried to shot at it hoping to 'break it open. It is just craved out of the mountain, there is nothing 'inside'.We then walk toward the city of Petra passing other tombs along the way.
We stopped at a cafe to rest , use the washroom and have a drink. Lots of vendors selling souvenirs, little kids following you to try to sell you postcards and jewelry made by their mothers. You can take a camel ride or a Donkey ride to the city.. No buggies or horses allowed.
We passed by the one of a kind theater that is cut out of solid rock instead of build with rocks. It is not a Roman theater as some guide book may say, it was built by the Nabataean long before the Romans arrived in Petra.
Above us on the hill side are the Royal Tombs. These Tombs were built high on the mountain side, and requires climbing up a number of flights of stairs. We were told that if time permitting we can do this on our own later.
The Colonnade Street runs through the center of Petra. You walked on cobblestone path and imagine this was once the main street of the city of Petra
Greek writings on the wall
. You walk thru the gate way and soon you will see what's left of the temple of Dushares.. not much is left really. Ahead is where we stopped for lunch. There are a few places to eat, we are having lunch at the Crown Plaza restaurant where the smoke from the BBQ chicken wings filled the air... smelled wonderful. We had lunch - a buffet with lots of salads as well as the traditional Jordain food.After lunch we are free to visit and will find our own way back to the hotel after.
We decided to make the track up to the Monastery. I heard it is not an easy path, all uphill with over 800 steps.
I had to stopped a number of times to catch my breath.. The path is full of Donkey pooh so you really have to watch your steps. You can take he donkey ride up but I really wanted to say I made it on foot.. There are a number of vendors along the way selling crafts and other tourist junk... The view is fantastic...
You also have to dodge the donkey going up and down the path.. It is pretty crazy. The funniest part was I moved aside to let some donkey riders pass by then I realize the riders were the people from our group who said they are 'walking' up ... It seems like forever until we reached the top... took over an hour.
It was worth it..
Indiana Jones Snack Shop
. It is amazing... The monastery was not craved as detail as the Treasury but the location made up for it. We found a high spot which gave us a great view of the Monastery. We just sat there for a while to enjoy the view.Time to walk back down I can feel my legs are getting very tire with the constance pounding.
We wanted to get a chance to go back to the Treasury and take more pictures before it gets dark. We also do not want to be walking thru the Siq in the dark as there is no light at all. I did remember to pack my flashlight, so I am not too worry. I really wish we have more time (and energy) so that we can walk up the Royal Tomb but I don't think my legs are going to make it and still walk the 2KM back to the hotel.
I really hate to leave here.. but as the sun's going down, we started our walk back.
By the time we got back to the hotel, it was pretty dark.
After we cleaned up a bit we decided to walk up the street to find someplace for dinner.
By accident we spotted Petra Kitchen. We heard about it and saw it on the TV show Departure. We walked in and a small group of people were already there drinking wine waiting for the lesson to begin
More Niches
. Petra Kitchen is like a cooking class that they teach you how to make local dishes. We were greeted by the same guy we saw on the TV show.. He explained how it works and we decided that we would try that..Each table has the ingredients and receipts to make a dish. My station has the lentil soup and salad.. I was asked to chop onions then in charge of the lentil soup. It was fun, you get to cook, taste and serve the dishes.
The table we were at has other travelers from Australia. They were telling us about their travel and we all had a great time..
