Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Petra, Jordan

We flew from Kilimanjaro airport to King Hussein airport in Aqaba, Jordan on the Red Sea. From there, it was about a 2 hour bus ride to Wadi Musa (Valley of Moses) where Petra is located. Petra is the ancient city (or more correctly the cemetery) of the Nabataeans, who were contemporaries of the Israelites. The caves carved into the cliffs are burial grounds and temples. This area was unknown to the western world until about 200 years ago. Our friend Don Johanson (the discoverer of Australopithicus Aferensis in Ethiopia, aka "Lucy") actually slept in one of the caves with a Bedouin guide 25 years ago. Now, it is much more developed for tourism. You can no longer stay overnight. We are hoping to see it again on our upcoming submarime adventure in April.




The Siq leading into Petra. It is a couple of miles hike through a very narrow canyon (yards wide) into Petra.





The "Treasury" as seen from the Siq.


The "Treasury" This was used in the 3rd Indiana Jones Film.

The Nile River, Egypt


Our hotel in Wadi Musa, Jordan



The 'Treasury"



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