Day: July 11, 2019

Today we explored the former capital of the Nabataeans, Petra. It flourished in the 1st century BC as a trading city for frankincense, myrrh and spices. From the middle of the 7th century AD it was abandoned and fell into oblivion. An earthquake had probably destroyed much. We hiked a total of 16.5 km along the Main and Monastery Trail to the monastery. The last part to the monastery is about 800 steps uphill. From a vantage point behind it we could see all the way to the border with Israel. Donkeys and camel riders want to transport you for free, but a good tip is expected. We preferred to walk. The monastery itself is very impressive and large.

It was built in the 2nd century A.D. and later it was also used as a Christian church. To get there you walk through the Siq and pass by the treasure house and the theater, among others. By day it is a completely different atmosphere. The sandstone walls glow in many different colors, donkeys, camels, horse-drawn carriages and excursionists enliven the streets. There are no motorized vehicles and, except for a few restaurants and toilet blocks, no modern buildings. Souvenir stores are mostly hammered together in a makeshift fashion and line the paths. We had a packed lunch from the Hotel Cleopetra with us and twice we stopped in a Bedouin café for a tea. We really liked the Lion Triclinium, which is a bit away from the hustle and bustle in a small gorge.

Back at the car we noticed that we had a (almost) flat tire on the right rear. Since the hotel was not far, Reiner drove slowly there. In a workshop near the hotel they repaired then our tire (from the inside with bicycle patches). A screw had gone in and the valve was replaced.

We laid out the 20 JOD for now and hope to get it refunded. Our evening meal consisted of yogurt with fruit and oatmeal.

Silke

The Dana Tower Hotel spoiled us with a wonderful view at breakfast. Then we drove further along the road to our today’s accommodation Hotel Cleopetra in Wadi Musa. The hotel manager gave us the tip to visit first Little Petra/Siq al-Barid and in the evening the Petra by Night light show. Little Petra ( is about 10 minutes by car from Petra. An archaeological site or a “suburb” of Petra, the Nabataean capital. A temple and buildings carved into the walls of the sandstone gorge. Water channels that filled the cisterns have been cleverly carved into the walls. A dining room (biclinium) is decorated with relatively well-preserved wall paintings. Traders – caravans on the Silk Road could rest here and replenish their supplies. A few souvenir stores are built distributed in the gorge, which is about 350 meters long.

In the afternoon we rested in the hotel room and at just before 20:00 we went to the treasure house of Petra. The Siq, the 1.5 km long canyon to the treasure house and the square in front of the treasure house, was illuminated with over 1500 candles. The candles are in paper bags. A very beautiful atmosphere. In the square in front of the treasure house, carpets are laid out to sit on and there is a cup of tea. A singer, a flute player and a storyteller (English) offer a nice program.

Since the acoustics are very bright, the only thing that disturbs a bit is the babbling of some people (e.g. the police officers on the sidelines, who must have seen the screening several times before, so they were more likely to tell each other jokes). However, the overall experience was nice and pleasantly designed. We didn’t need a flashlight for the way back either, as the moon and candles lit the way well. By the way, Indian Jones and the Last Crusade was filmed here.

Silke