MAY 16, AMMAN TO PETRA JORDAN

MAY 16, THURS: AMMAN TO PETRA, JORDAN

My gang of 13 had opted to visit Petra instead of visit to Mt. Nebo planned by Riya.  We paid extra $200 each for the day trip to Petra, but it was worth it.  We got a package deal of minibus for us only, to and fro to Petra, 3 hours’ drive each way with meals and inclusion of tax and Guide.  We all got up early, and had breakfast, left by 6.45 to our new adventure.  Our journey of 3 hours went off so quickly, which we did not realise.  Our Guide was a great guy who not only informed us about Jordan, but its social, political and local conditions.  We had a local marriage scene conducted by him where the bride, Ipshita with her parents, Sen and Bharati and the Bridegroom Harinder with his parents Frankie and me.  Here the bridegroom family has to give Camels and Horses as dowry to the bride.  He had the music played with clapping n dances.

We landed in Petra, got down from our bus and we walked all the way with our Guide who led us, walking down the valley, flanked on both side by rocky hills, carved by wind and rain, in different shades and shape.  The canyons reminded you of Great Canyons of Nevada.  The concept of trade city reminded us of Dholavira (part of Mohenjo Daro & Harappa settlements in India/Pakistan) which we had visited last March.  It was very hot, all covered with hat and scarf and trying to walk on the shaded side.  It was lovely and good experience going through and there were lots of tourists from other countries.    Beautiful carvings and tombs built in the rocks, for the Noble folks.  We had to return back but climbing up this time, was too much but we made it.  Lots to walk but worth the trip

Petra originally known to its inhabitants as Raqmu, is a historical and archaeological city in southern Jordan. Petra lies on the slope of Jabal Al-Madbah in a basin among the mountains which form the eastern flank of the Arabah valley that runs from the Dead Sea to the Gulf of Aqaba. Petra is believed to have been settled as early as 9,000 BC, and it was possibly established in the 4th century BC as the capital city of the Nabataean Kingdom. The Nabataeans were nomadic Arabs who invested in Petra's proximity to the trade routes by establishing it as a major regional trading hub.
The trading business gained the Nabataeans considerable revenue and Petra became the focus of their wealth. The earliest historical reference to Petra was an attack to the city ordered by Antigonus I in 312 BC recorded by various Greek historians. The Nabataeans were, unlike their enemies, accustomed to living in the barren deserts, and were able to repel attacks by utilizing the area's mountainous terrain. They were particularly skillful in harvesting rainwater, agriculture and stone carving. Petra flourished in the 1st century AD when its famous Khazneh structure – believed to be the mausoleum of Nabataean King Aretas IV – was constructed, and its population peaked at an estimated 20,000 inhabitants.
Although the Nabataean Kingdom became a client state for the Roman Empire in the first century BC, it was only in 106 AD that they lost their independence. Petra fell to the Romans, who annexed and renamed Nabataea to Arabia Petraea. Petra's importance declined as sea trade routes emerged, and after a 363 earthquake destroyed many structures. The Byzantine Era witnessed the construction of several Christian churches, but the city continued to decline, and by the early Islamic era became an abandoned place where only a handful of nomads lived. It remained unknown to the world until it was rediscovered in 1812 by Johann Ludwig Burckhardt.

The city is accessed through a 1.2-kilometre-long (0.75 mi) gorge called the Siq, which leads directly to the Khazneh. Famous for its rock-cut architecture and water conduit system, Petra is also called the Rose City due to the color of the stone out of which it is carved.  It has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1985. UNESCO has described it as "one of the most precious cultural properties of man's cultural heritage".  In 2007, Al-Khazneh was voted in as one of the New 7 Wonders of the World. Petra is a symbol of Jordan, as well as Jordan's most-visited tourist attraction.

The Nabataeans worshipped Arab gods and goddesses during the pre-Islamic era as well as a few of their deified kings. One, Obodas I, was deified after his death. Dushara was the primary male god accompanied by his three female deities: Al-‘Uzzá, Allat and Manāt. Many statues carved in the rock depict these gods and goddesses.
Christianity found its way to Petra in the 4th century AD, nearly 500 years after the establishment of Petra as a trade centre. At least one of the tombs (the "tomb with the urn"?) was used as a church. After the Islamic conquest of 629–632, Christianity in Petra, as of most of Arabia, gave way to Islam.

Tombs in the southern part of the city
According to Arab tradition, Petra is the spot where Musa (Moses) struck a rock with his staff and water came forth, and where Moses' brother, Harun (Aaron), is buried, at Mount Hor, known today as Jabal Haroun or Mount Aaron. The Wadi Musa or "Wadi of Moses" is the Arab name for the narrow valley at the head of which Petra is sited.



We returned to our bus and they took us to restaurant for lovely Jordanian buffet meal, which had lots of salads and desert of fruits and pastries.  Heavy with food and tired, we slept all the way to our Hotel Sadeen, where we relaxed. We were told to have early dinner, to get up at 5am, breakfast at 6am and get ready to leave by 6.30am.