Petra #5

I forgot to show you, this is what some of the Sandstone looks like.

Petra #3

After entering the "Siq" we walked for another mile. Along the way we saw

the beginnings of what the Nebateans had built. We saw small carvings that

some say were practice carvings for the larger structures. We also saw many sections of the road leading to Petra that had been paved by the Romans 2,000 years or more ago. It was very cool to touch them and hear the tour guides riding their horses up and down the canyon, with the clip clop sound of the horses feet along the Roman road. It made me think of the Roman Chariots.

At the end of the long walk we were finally rewarded with what you are seeing above. The moment I was anticipating all along, the first hand view of the "Treasury" that has been made famous by Indiana Jones. I learned today, that Petra

has recently been named as one of the "New 7 Wonders of the World." Well for me that means I have 6 to go. But what I didn't know was that what you see in the movie is really only the

beginning. Accross from the treasury and around the corner, we walked another mile or so finding carving after carving with caves that we could walk in and out of. We also learned that a further down the valley was were the Nebateans actually lived. The carvings actually were decorated tombs. And there where hundreds of them. Some of them were massive, but most were modest and small. (Click on the picture and get a nice looke at that spare tire I'm carrying around. They to my left is waiting for my autograph. He thinks I'm Kevin Costner :-)

Petra #2

After buying our tickets and preparing to descend the mountain, the first thing I saw was a sign for "Indiana Jones Gift Shop." But this place was not like in the movie. In the movie it was quiet and desolate. But Today Petra was full of people. Tourism is the #1 economic stable for the country of Jordan, and they have taken big steps to utilize it. I heard at one point that there would be 800 visitors from on Egyptian cruize ship. There were many more than 800.

After walking down the hill for almost 1 mile, we entered the "Siq" which means "passageway."

This is the official entry into Petra. Just walking through the canyone was exciting for me but knowing what was on the other side made it even more fun. Here is a picture of the canyon.

(remember, double click on the picture for a better view of my lovely face.)

Petra #1

This Morning we traveled 2.5 hours straight to the south of Amman to Petra. On the way we were able to see the Bedouine who were camped along the way. The Bedouine are a people who live in tents and sheapherd sheep, goats and camels. The journey was pretty quick. One of the highlights for me on the way was to look into the distant west and I could see clouds hanging right at ground level. In reality, these clouds were hovering over the Dead Sea. Since the Dead Sea is below sea level it gave the appearance that the clouds were at ground level. There was also a large valley heading in the direction of the Dead Sea. I am sure that this is not the one, but It was fun to think that the Isrealites

had traveled this valley on their way to Mt. Nebo. When we finally arrived

at Petra. I got really excited. This is a picture of the valley to Petra. The peaks in the background are where it is located. Double click on the picture for a better view.