When we got to the airport we were in for quite a surprise! Because of a mix up with the credit card, our tickets had been cancelled and none of us were the wiser. We ended up having to book business class seats because that's all they had left. I know, I know...poor us! Haha! Getting this all done was a big ordeal and took A LONG time! This meant we had to make a mad dash to our gate before they closed it. We literally pushed and "excuse me'd" our way through the security line. I'm pretty sure the other passengers thought we were crazy and just moved out of our way. After we got through security, we ran...in abayas...through the airport. It was quite the exciting start to a great trip!
Thankfully we made it to the gate in time to board the plane and we got settled in to our fabulous business class seats. We were way too excited about decent food, linen tray table cloths, and real plates!
We were met by a guide at the airport who took care of all the immigration hassle for us and we were on our way to the hotel in no time! Our driver told us a little about Jordan and reassured us that we were very safe despite being so close to the Syrian border. We were also very close to Israel. So close that we were able to see city lights from across the border. We actually saw signs for the Baptism Site before turning onto the highway our hotel was located on. It is believed that site is where Jesus went to be baptized by John. Pretty neat!
About an hour after leaving the airport we were all checked in at the Movenpick! The manager opened the bar for us so we were able to indulge in some local wine and girl talk before heading off to bed.
Good morning Dead Sea! What a beautiful view from my hotel room!
After breakfast we started our full day of pampering at the hotel spa. It was amazing! We had a few treatments, lunch, and more treatments. All we wanted to do that day is relax and we were definitely successful! The spa used products rich with minerals from the salt and mud from the sea so it was extra indulgent.
After the pampering was over we walked down to the water to catch the sunset and find out what all the fuss about the Dead Sea was. It is a closed sea and with a salt content of 34.2%, it is one of the saltiest bodies of water in the world. This means that animal life can't be sustained and you pretty much automatically start floating when you get in the water.
The water was extremely rough so we weren't able to get in, but the sunset was awesome!
I had no idea we were at the lowest point on Earth!
Me and my fellow Cajun. We were a long way from home!
Some of my favorite people!
The infinitely pool at the hotel is amazing!
We would have enjoyed this for a lot longer if it wasn't so cool and windy.
So we couldn't get into the Dead Sea itself, but the hotel has a small pool that is filled with water pumped in from the sea. It is indoor and heated so that was a plus. It was so neat to float in it! We couldn't stop laughing!
After dinner we went to the lounge for drinks and belly dancing.
The next morning we got up and started our three hour drive to Petra. Because of the size of our group we had an armed tourism police officer with us and our driver. That was a little surprising, but we just rolled with it and off we went.
The ever so studious Beth doing grad school work on the way.
On the way we stopped to check out this place where the attraction was some rock and water. I won't even pretend to remember what the significance was. I think it had something to do with Moses.
We finally made it to Petra! I'll be honest. When Heather mentioned that we should go to Jordan, I had no idea what was there that would warrant a trip. She pretty much just had me at girls trip and I didn't care where we went! I had no idea that Petra even existed! Apparently it is one of the most famous archeological sites in the world and is now one of the Seven Wonders of the World. It dates back to the first century BC, when the Nabataean Arabs carved their city into the mountains.
While Petra isn't exactly my "thing", the site was fascinating to look at and imagine what it was like when the Nabataean lived and worked there.
Bedouins actually lived in the site up until they were forced to relocate when Petra was designated a World Heritage Site in 1985. The government set up a place for them to live outside of the site, but every day they come back in their trucks and on their horses, camels, and donkeys to set up shop and try to earn money. They are actually really annoying and very pushy, which took away from the experience of being there. A lot of the men make you feel very uncomfortable and they are really abusive to the animals. I just so happened to have been there with one of the biggest animal lovers I know and it didn't sit well with her. Let's just say I thought Tanya was going to take out a couple of kids at one point!
The colors in the rock are awesome!! It is often referred to as the rose red city.
This is a really cool rock that our guide pointed out. It looks like a fish from this angle...
but from the front it looks like an elephant!
There are really cool rocks everywhere!
The Siq is this main road that leads into the city. It ends at the Treasury, which you can see through the opening.
The Treasury is incredible! It is mind blowing that the Nabataean were able to build something like this! It is unclear what the Treasury may have been used for, but some believe it may have been a temple or a place to store documents. A graveyard under the Treasury has been discovered during recent excavations.
The Treasury reminded me of the library in Ephesus. So cool!
What a good looking group!
You can pay for a camel ride through the site or get run over by them if you aren't paying attention.
I bought sand art for Connor from this guy. It was really cool to watch him.
There is a camel scene on one side and "Connor" in Arabic on the other.
Overall we had a great day, but it was a lot of walking and when it was time to go I was beyond ready. We retreated to our hotel to relax, have some down time, and go to dinner. Afterwards we got into our pjs, ordered more wine than we'd care to admit, and had a girls night in one of our hotel rooms. We laughed so hard we cried at times and it was such a fun night! There may have been a phone call to the front desk where the conversation turned into gas stations and mini marts! Haha!
We had a great weekend, but the next day we made the three hour drive back to Ammam to catch our flight to KSA.
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