Jordan, Petra and Wadi Rum ~ Where are the Jays

While we docked in Aqaba in the far south of Jordan, our day would take us inland in search of a New 7 Wonders of the World site. Petra, the ancient rock carved rose-red city that most of us were introduced to via Indiana Jones and the last crusade. We also visited Wadi Rum which is an amazing landscape you have seen in many movies. Both are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Our ship didn’t arrive in port until 10 a.m. and the expected high was 104F in Aqaba, so we were prepared once again for extreme heat and a minimum of 4-5 km of walking. With Tom and Linda, we boarded the bus and set out for a 2-hour drive through the mountains. It’s scenic, we keep saying how each country is so different and how wrong our preconceptions of the Middle East were. What a relief we discovered upon arriving in the mountains to upper 80s with an occasional drizzle, not the 104F at the port.

Lower image black line is from Lava being forced through cracks when the mountains raised up
Top shows dry wheat

Petra

Modern Petra is a town of about 30,000 that is ancient. It prospered as the capital of the Nabatean Empire in 1^st century BC, Nabateans became very wealthy and powerful by controlling the secret of where water could be found along the trade routes. Petra was strategically located on the “King's Road” which is mentioned in the Old Testament when Moses requested permission 3 times to traverse it. It reached its peak in 1^st century AD and was destroyed by an earthquake in 363 AD and abandoned by the 7^th century AD and lost to all except local Bedouin from the area. It was rediscovered by a Swiss explorer in 1812 when he convinced a Bedouin guide to take him to the lost city. Archeologists have uncovered ~25% of the remains with future projects occurring every year. (Click here to learn more about Petra History)

After a nice lunch we begin our trek into the chasm (or Siq). It was created over centuries of flood water cutting through the red sandstone. The Nabatean’s harnessed that water by creating an elaborate system to redirect the water and store it. Our guide points out to us a recreated dam and Nabatean carved ancient tunnel taller than a man to redirect water away from the gorge and into a cistern. Remnants of an archway can be seen where the chasm narrows. Along the walls of the chasm are manmade troughs to capture water coming down the walls. Every time there is another chasm joining the main, there is a dam to capture water. At one time, the chasm was paved with stones. It wasn’t until shortly before the movie was filmed that the chasm was excavated, and the troughs and pavers were uncovered.

Left tunnel built to take water to cistern
Right ledge catches water running down the cliff face

Pale yellow highlight depicts doors and arch

Far right circle is entrance to Siq
Middle circle is The Treasury
Theater is upper left
Google Satellite Image

As we descend further into the chasm, we see various carvings into the sandstone. The chasm narrows and the walls grow taller. Our guide shares a wealth of information as each turn has something new. Direct sunlight rarely reaches to where we are.

Contrast the two people to the height

The walk was adorned with carvings of small Temples to this scene of a man and what was once a camel, only the feet remaining.

Then we round a corner and there it is, bathed in light. It is a stunning site. The Treasury (El-Khazneh) you saw in the movie stands before us 45m tall and 30m wide.

Our first glimpse

The Treasury is carved out of the Sandstone walls. We speculated on how they may have carved such a structure as there aren’t any large trees to build scaffolding. Leading theory was to carve a means to reach the top and then carve from top to bottom. Better not make a mistake.

You can imagine the large, paved courtyard in front. I wanted to enter the structure to see what lies beyond the entrance. I remembered the line from the movie that “only a penitent man may pass.” In the real world, there is only a single bare room inside. No knight guarding the Holy Grail. That’s not to say there wasn’t a recently solved mystery. Archeologists discovered a lower floor below. The “Treasury” is actually a tomb where the leaders resided for eternity. It’s location in the narrow chasm protected and preserved it more than the others tombs that are more exposed to the elements. Its architectural style combines Nabatean with Greek. Legend had that the funerary urn at top concealed treasure. Unfortunately, that led some in the past to shoot at it to obtain its contents.

262.4 feet tall

Looking down at the front of the Treasury, there are a pair of steps and door to access the lower level on either side.

Close up of Urn, thought to contain treasure.
It’s solid rock

After the awe of seeing the Treasury, we look around and notice steps carved into the walls and tunnels leading to what can only be described as balconies overlooking the courtyard. The chasm takes a 90 degree turn to the left and we are overwhelmed with the multitude of tombs ranging from small to large at all levels of the cliffs.

Can you find the people on the balcony in the upper left?

Local kids were climbing very high on these steps

Tomb on left had a knock off of a Starbucks sign and was selling coffee inside.
Upper right is interior
Bottom right is just pretty

Another Tomb perched high on the mountain side.
We didn’t have time to make the climb

Area is called Tombs of the Kings

Further down the path is a theater with a capacity to hold 4,000 built prior to being occupied by the Romans in 106AD. It’s the only theater in the world carved out of solid rock.

Theater was built before the Romans arrived

Our schedule did not allow us to explore further into the ancient ruins of Petra. Like Ancient Greece, Archeologists have uncovered 800 individual monuments both free standing and carved into stone including:

A Colonnaded Street
Great Temple complex that covered 7,000 square meters
Wast al- Bing, a square Temple building estimated to be 23m tall
Baths
Funerary halls

Wadi Rum

Wadi Rum area consists of Mountain peaks arising from the sand. It’s also known as Valley of the Moon. It’s a vast protected area encompassing 280 sq miles. Tourists and Hollywood love this area. It’s known for rock climbing, star gazing and offers many hosted campsites from basic to geodesic domes. You probably have seen it in one or more movies, such as:

Lawrence of Arabia 1967 (T.E. Lawrence fell in love with the region back in 1917-18)
The Martian
Dune Part I and II
Star Wars, The Rise of Skywalker
And many more

Top Lawrence of Arabia
Bottom The Martian

Top Star Wars The Rise of Skywalker
Bottom Dune

Our bus delivers us from Petra to the Wadi Rum welcome center, where we then get in the back of pickups with simple upholstered benches to ride through the high desert to our Bedouin camp for dinner. Unfortunately, we arrive late, and we didn’t get the full benefit of the landscape. Our welcome included a vanguard of Bedouins, some with swords and a bagpiper playing. We then watched as they started to dig in the sand to uncover a large pot containing our dinner of Lamb, Potatoes and Vegetables that had been slowly cooking. We enjoyed an evening of entertainment and dining under a Bedouin tent.