Hello from Petra, Jordan!
 

Hello friends! Writing from Petra, Jordan. We've been to see Mount Nebo where Moses was taken up by the hand of the Lord at about age 123. Tomorrow we will see where his brother Aaron is buried.



Also, we will go into the Siq (slot canyon) and to Petra, where Indiana Jones went on his Last Crusade. There is actually a tourist shop on the way called "Indiana Jones" where they sell the fedora hats to tourists. I plan on wearing my new scarf and band (briefly) tomorrow for a picture opportunity on a horse or camel. Its a real one (like the local men wear) that I picked up at a shop today on our 5 hour bus ride.



Our Tour group organizer, Jim Gee (my cousin's husband) is a wealth of knowledge. He comes to Petra each summer to dig for artifacts with a group from BYU. He tells such fascinating stories that I call him the modern day "Indiana Jones." He is very modest, but eager to share his passion.



He and my cousin Jim Drollinger were comparing mule and horse stories after dinner tonight. Apparently they are much friendlier and willing to work, unlike horses. And smarter, too. If they get their leg caught in a barbed wire fence, they won't struggle to get it loose. Instead, they'll just stand still (even for hours) and wait for someone to come rescue them. One of the Jims just sold a 33 year old mule to an older lady who just wanted a pet. Oh, and they'll work until the day they die. They don't get broken-down and sway-backed like horses.



I am sharing a room with Frances, who is a widow and in her early 70's. Nice lady, but keeps losing her room key. Me too, but at least I remember that I have one, lol! We both like chocolate, so we are a good match. She has a sis-in-law joining her in a couple of days when we arrive in Jerusalem, so I will be assigned a newly-arrived roommate, Rosina. I believe she lives in SLC and works as a nanny for a family. Her employer is sending her on this trip as a gift!



I am holding up much better than I thought. After having such a difficult time adjusting to the difference in time zones when we visited Great Britain a few years back, I made sure to bring my "stay awake" and "go-to-sleep" pills. Surprisingly, I hadn't needed any of them! I hope I don't all of a sudden run out of gas!



The day after tomorrow Jim Gee will take us up a very steep and treacherous hill/mountain to see the Petra Treasury. His wife, Carol, refuses to ride a mule along this path. She will take non-participants shopping (which I also want to do -- but I will wait).



We are staying at a 5-star hotel called the Crowne Plaza. Very fancy! Even has an outdoor pool and tennis court. The pool won't do us any good, though, because it was snowing on our bus trip here. Blowing very hard too! Apparently the 2 weeks before our arrival the temps were in the high 60's, low 70's. Figures!



Its after midnight here and I'm the only one besides the guy at the front desk, who is still up and around. Last night it was the same -- I was in the lobby at the gift shop at 11:00 p.m. buying postcards. The cards were cheap: 10 for $1 USD; however, stamps are $1 each, and it takes two to mail a single postcard! Yikes! I sent some to the grandkids, but my friends will have to wait until I can mail them from the USA.



Have a great time! Much of the landscape looks like home, very dry only without sagebrush and tumbleweeds, so I have to remind myself I'm not in Utah anymore!



My 30 min. is up -- gotta run!

Lucky you!

Have fun!

Every time I think of Jordan I think of King Hussein. The guy was only 5 foot tall and wore a military uniform with 40 pounds of medals on it... I wasn't very comfortable around him when I met the guy.

Mules are cool!

Tom

Oh wow oh wow, Ro! You are walking where He walked!! I'm so happy for you!

Enjoy! Have a safe and wonderful trip.

Oh Twink!!! I am so envious of you. This is a trip I can only dream
of ever taking. I have wanted to go there so much.

You have a safe and wonderful time. And no falling into any of those
Indiana Jones Snake Pits :eek::eek:

Be Safe :hug:
Jappy

How cool! Jim was there back in 1987. He met King Hussein too Tom. We have a few pics with the Jordanian soldiers and Jim swapping hats. haha

Twink you have a great time. Remember, don't show the bottom of your shoes and no waving. lol

cool twink....travel safe.:hug:

Oh! One of my very few regrets is saving that trip for retirement! Take a million pics and bask in the glow. Amazing.

hey Twink ...

are you taking pics to post for us when you get home?? btw - when DO you return home??

would like to see you in the scarf and on a mule!! (*hint hint*)

Sound as if you are having a wonderful time. I am trying to keep my envy in check. Enjoy!!!

Wow, Twink, what a wonderful trip.

Yes a pic of you riding a camel would be perfect. :p

To Petra and beyond
 

Oh my! I am double-dog tired!

We left at 8:00 and walked and walked until we got to Petra. Then we walked and walked until we got to the "treasury" (similar). Then we walked so more. The temps changed and I would remove my Jordanian scarf and "Petra" golf-type hat every now and then to adjust, but it was an absolutely GORGEOUS DAY! Could NOT have been nicer! And to think it thundered and rained and lightning-ed during the earlier part of the night.

Temps were nice and brisk for the long walk. And then -- I rode a donkey up the mountain. There are ancient steps carved into the rock. Along the way, Bedouins display their trinkets, hoping you will give them a few dinars. BTW, I always thought they were dee-nars, but our guide says "dinners." :)

The donkey ride was like nothing else I've ever experienced! My donkey-handler boy said there are 850 steps up the mountain. It winds up and down and back and around. And just when I thought we should be pretty close to the ancient Monastery at the top, there would be another stretch of stairs.

BUT...coming down was an entirely different experience! My larg-ish cousin Jim, who is 67 and has Lupus, rode a mule down with me (they are larger than the poor little donkeys). He actually had to dismount his donkey on the way up because it was worn out (poor thing -- they work SO hard!)

Another lady Frances (my roommate), was terrified because her saddle was pretty loose and she thought she'd fall right off.

I decided that on the way down this extremely steep mountain (its about 400 feet down, but seemed more like 4,000) that it was best if I didn't look at the donkey's feet -- it was just too frightening to concentrate on how she was going to get me down those steps without both of us falling into the abyss!

And yes, my dear friends, I DID manage to get a picture of me in the traditional men's scarf and headband. My cousin had to take the pics because I wore out two (2) TWO(!) point and shoot digital cameras today! The batteries just couldn't take any more!

And I'm being very careful about only drinking bottled water. The food is mostly quite wonderful -- a very good variety, too. I tried their "lasagne" last night. Nope, I didn't get the recipe -- it was weird!

But the hummus and flatbread is so tasty, as is the dessert table (a little TOO tasty for this chunky monkey). :cool:

We ate in a Bedouin cafe on the trail today. The bathrooms were a little scary (you have to remember to take your own TP and sometimes you see a sign that requests you drop your used TP into a basket so you don't clog the system.) But the food was great. The buffet was actually located in a cave.

They would accept a Visa card, but (believe it or not) another place in the middle of nowhere did. You've seen those little bottles where they use sand to make designs -- I ordered some of those before I went up the 850 steps, and they were ready when I came back. I got the last names of my co-workers drawn in them, along with a couple of camels. They are packed in there so tight, that if you break the glass, the sand still holds together and kind of looks like a piece of ancient pottery.

Our guide told us to have a pocketful of dinars for the little Bedouin kids. They sell postcards, necklaces and even plain old rocks--anything to get some money. They can earn up to $200 a day badgering the tourists! You would not believe how many packages of postcards I purchased!

I have to be packed and ready to go at 6:30 in the morning. I signed up for yet another donkey ride (hey, it sure beats walking!) We are going just as high up tomorrow, but the mountain is steeper and has switchbacks. There are some tombs or something up there.

I'm going to time-out here any minute. I'll check in again in a couple of days. Bye friends! I'll write you from Jerusalem!

Twink, I can't be there, my donkey riding days are long over, thank you for teling this trip to me, I'm almost there!! Looking forward to your next installment!!!

All I can say is wow! You have an adventurous soul! Hope you continue to have a wonderful time.

It sounds wonderful Twink! I'm glad you're having such an interesting tour and look forward to seeing your photos when you return.

I am so very jealous of your trip. I will eagerly await the next report.

oh twink, I'm almost jealous. I've always wanted to make this trip! Glad you are having a good time tho..I will enjoy the trip through your pics!

Awww... Twink... I am living vicariously through your journey!!!

I've always wanted to go there but know that it's not likely to happen...

Thank you for sharing your journey!! Can't wait to see some pictures!!

Have fun!!!
:hug:
Abbie

Wow Twink, what a wonderful experience! It's great that you can go now in case the MS beast raises it's ugly head in the future. Thank you for sharing with us......we're all right behind you!! Looking forward to seeing some pics!

Take care......Judy :)