I love the simplicity of the Bedouin life. Perhaps I only like it from a distance or for short spells. It’s easy to observe something and like it. It can be totally different thing to actually live it. The people seem content and happy though, and that is a real blessing in today’s world.

I thought I’d camp out under the stars last night. First the mozzies found me (no mozzies, I was told. Someone forgot to tell the mozzies!). Then the wind kicked up. I endured it for a while but it was more stubborn than me. At about 03:30 and covered in sand, I retreated, tail between my legs to the bedouin tent.

We started walking at 07:00 and entered Petra from the back of the site rather than the Sik like most. It was a long but super walk lending itself to some amazing views of Wadi Araba. There was one “interesting” section where we had to climb over a ledge about 20cm wide with just a sheer drop of nothingness to catch you if you slipped. It’s so rough and rocky on these trails the most amazing thing is how the Bedouin donkeys navigate them. The Bedouins live up here in caves and come backwards and forwards on their donkeys. One smart, tough little animal. Our first view of Petra was Al-Deir (The Monastery) and it truly is magnificent. At 50m x 50m it is the biggest monument in the site and it’s detail could almost rival that of the famous Treasury. Being set so high up adds to its majesty. If you go a little further up, you’ll find an alter. The Nabataeans loved a sacrifice and there are alters everywhere, scattered over the cliffs. After a short break (I was a bit over short breaks by the end of the day. Aren’t we here to see things not sit on our rear ends and complain about the heat??), we headed down to the main site and had lunch. The Bedouin have their little tourist stalls perched in the most interesting of places. You turn a corner on a cliff face, and there’s a stall waiting for you. The downside of Petra is the rubbish. It’s strewn everywhere and really detracts from the place. Surely more pride should be taken in this “Wonder Of The World”.

The area of Petra was first inhabited by Neolithic types from about 7000BC. We were able to see the ruins of on of these villages on up walk to the Monastery. It was built about the same time as Jericho. The Nabateans (a nomadic tribe from western Arabia) who are responsible for most of the ruins didn’t arrive here until about the 700BC mark. Being located on a main trade route, they made their money by demanding taxes from travellers for safe passage. (Nothing has really changed. It costs JD33 (about GBP30) to get in!!). They were able to keep the Romans at bay for a while, but after a couple of not so successful run-ins with Herod The Great Roman control was the order of the day for a big slice of their territory.

Next it was time to take a wander along the Cordo (the old main street). Although originally Nabatean, the layout of what’s left is typically Roman. Here is found Qasr Al-Bint (Castle of the Pharaoh’s Daughter) and the Great Temple (which is still being excavated). In here there is still the slight hint of the original art work and a small theatre. By this time I was surrounded by tourists with gaping mouths like goldfish all complaining of the heat (ok..so it was about 40C but it’s a dry heat and really not that bad). I mean really…..you came to the Middle East in Summer. What did you expect? Snow??

Surrounding all the monuments and in all the cliffs, there is the constant reminder of the Nabateans’ great skill as engineers. Yes with their buildings, but even more so their water system. Drains, often ornate and great cisterns are scattered everywhere. Next it was a climb up to the Byzantine church with it’s mosaic floor before heading over to the Royal Tombs. These are terribly impressive, even if you exclude the ornate sculptured rock facades. The colours and swirls of the natural rock is something else. I don’t think that any art work could compare. A clamber down to the main road then saw us close to the Theatre, passing little stores…many run by the kiddies at this time of day with school finishing at about 14:00. They are quite entrepreneurial. Having been told that an item was JD1, when I showed interest it suddenly got bargained all the way up to JD3!! No sale, funnily enough! Even though the Theatre looks very Roman, it was built by the Nabateans (they loved the Romans and enjoyed a bit of the culture that came hand-in-hand with them before the little disagreements that followed later). Opposite we hoped to find Marguerite van Geldermalsen, a New Zealand woman who famously married a Bedouin and lived in the caves of Petra back in the 1970s. Her book is well known globally. She wasn’t there but we met her son, a good looking chap with a very strong Kiwi accent! We then went to take a daylight view of the very famous Al-Khazneh….. Treasury (the one you see in all the photos of Petra!). Although carved out of the rock face by the Nabateans as a tomb for their king Aretas III, it is Hellenic in design and has both Greek and Roman gods decorating the facade. It received its name The Treasury as there’s a story that a Pharaoh being persued by Israelites hid his treasure in the urn at the top. We exited the site via the winding sik. This is not technically a canyon but a large bit of rock ripped apart in one go by tectonic forces (feel free to use that bit of trivia to impress friends at dinner parties!).

By 16:30 it was time to head to the hotel. My next aim was to wander the streets of Wadi Musa in search of fruit, vegetables and nuts. Mission accomplished. Found a great little fruit market. The raw produce is soooooo cheap over here! I love some of the shop names over here…. “Every Thing Supermarket”, “Magic Hand Barbers”, “Love Lion Shop”, “Why Not Shop”. Had tea with some locals next then headed back home.

Dinner was at a place called Petra Kitchen. Here you make your dinner and then eat it. Nice idea but it possibly didn’t receive the energetic response it deserved seeing we’d been up since 05:30 and had spent all day at an archaeological site in 40C heat. Nice fresh food though and an awful lot of it! The left overs, we were told go to feed someone’s family and neighbours. Nice little racket if you ask me. Get some tourists in and charge them to cook a meal. Give them a little bit then take the rest home to feed the clan. Oh well….whatever works. Should take notes.

XXX