Our first couple of days in Jordan

Saturday, September 16, 2023
Jerash, Jerash Governorate, Jordan
After our late night, we were able to sleep in the following morning for our travel day. With 35 of us on the Israel tour, only 26 were going onto Jordan with the others going their separate ways. 
We were given coach transport to the Israel/Jordan border which was about a 45 minute drive, and then about a 45 minute wait to get through the checkpoint. They seemed to simply be checking under vehicles with big mirrors at this location. 
And then we drove to the next stop which was where we exited Israel - we had to get a ticket from the machine, pay an exit tax (about $75pp so substantial!) and then go through immigration. We were met by our new driver who organized our bags transfer, pointed out our new bus (very luxurious) and drove us about 15 minutes to the entry point for Jordan. Here, we met our new tour guide who collected our passports and went to arrange our visas. This took about half an hour, but at least we could sit in our roomy coach for this period of time and chat. And then about an hour to the capital - Amman.
Amman is a big city, with a population of over 4 million. We checked into our hotel at 2pm (security is tight, you need to go through a scanner whenever you enter the hotel) andTim and I put our bags into the room and jumped into an Uber as we were hungry! We headed for a well rated restaurant about 20 minutes away in a colonial building. We sat in the colonial gardens by a fountain and had 3 exceptional dishes. Such a gorgeous location. The restaurant was located on Rainbow Street - which is full of restaurants and cafes and is known to be a destination in itself. The drive to and from there was interesting. We drove through a street which had about 100 pet shops, so if anyone is in Amman and wants a budgerigar we know where to go!  
We then had an included dinner at the hotel - where an additional 5 travelers joined us. And then finished up in the sports bar for a few more drinks. It’s an excellent sports bar for a hotel.
We had an early start as we drove out of Amman. Our first stop was to a Women’s Association. The women make cards from recycled paper, crockery and various foods. We had a lovely traditional Jordanian breakfast (even though we have already had breakfast at the hotel) of tea, olives, bread, dukkah and labneh (yoghurt balls which we have had in the Hunter valley) and then we rolled our own labneh balls which were bottled for us to take away. It was a lovely stop.
We then drove to Jerash. The ancient city of Jerash is one of the most popular attractions in Jordan behind Petra. It is considered one of the largest and most well preserved sites of Roman architecture in the world outside of Italy and its history goes back more than 6,500 years. Located north of the country’s capital, Amman, we marveled at the stunning colonnaded streets, public squares and hilltop temples. Archaeological digs have been ongoing for 85 years but it is estimated that 90% of the city is still unexcavated. 
During its prime, Jerash may have had a population close to 20,000. But during the 3rd century, the city started to decline. It was later invaded by the Persians and then the Muslims and suffered earthquakes, causing damage to the city. Soon, it was abandoned.
We were surprised at our big the ancient city was - and we spent a couple of hours looking through the amazing sights. The theatre had incredible acoustics, with some locals putting on a show. The ancient streets were incredible. It was about 32 degrees so quite hot - although bearable compared to the temps we had in Dubai and Israel. 
We then stopped for lunch at a local restaurant where there was so much food! More hummus, breads, salads, and roast chicken and roast potatoes. It was delicious. 
On returning to the hotel at about 4.30, there were 6 of us who decided to head straight for the sports bar which is where we stayed all night. It was a decent session and included some light snacks for dinner.
The following morning, we had a luxurious start of 9am as we headed further into the desert. Our first stop was in the city of Madaba where we had walked through the shopping streets - there was a crazy amount of dolls for sale. 
The town is famous in historical cartography for the Mādabā mosaic map, thought to be the oldest surviving map of Palestine and the neighbouring territories. The mosaic map, which formed the floor of one of the many ruined ancient churches in Mādabā, was discovered in 1884. The map dates from the 6th century CE, was originally 22 by 7 metres in size, and showed the area from ancient Byblos(modern Jubayl, Leb.) in the north to Thebes (Egypt) in the south and from the Mediterranean Sea in the west to Amman, Al-Karak, and Petra in the east.
After this we had a refreshing choice of either freshly squeezed orange or pomegranate juice.
We then visited Mount Nebo which is an elevated ridge located in Jordan, approximately 700 metres above sea level. Part of the Abarim mountain range, Mount Nebo is mentioned in the Bible as the place where Moses was granted a view of the Promised Land before his death. The view from the summit provides a panorama of the West Bank across the Jordan River valley. The city of Jericho is usually visible from the summit, as is Jerusalem on a very clear day - although the far distance was a bit hazy today. There is a sanctuary on site built around mosaics and relics from the past - very well preserved. 
We then visited a workshop that provides employment opportunities for women and they create mosaics. They were beautiful but very expensive and very heavy. There were also very pricey other items as well so not too many people bought anything. 
We then visited Shobak, an authentic 12th century crusader fortress, perched on the side of a rocky mountain, standing guard over a barren and desolate land. We admired the towers and Arabic calligraphy on the external walls before discovering the original Crusader chapel, palace complex, and even a set of secret passages. The whole fortress was quite well camouflaged into the surrounding landscape and the views from above were stunning. 
Some other tidbits:
  • Jordan is poorest country in terms of water availability 
  • There are tanks on top of the houses for water. 
  • Consumption of olive oil is very high 
  • Many of the houses are unfinished - this is to avoid property tax (have seen this in Morocco also)
  • Out of Amman, there is rubbish everywhere in the fields. It’s ugly to look at! 
  • There are many phosphate mines in Jordan.
  • We now use the Jordanian Dinar. 1 JOD is about $2 AUD.
Unfortunately one of the couples have had to abandon the tour this afternoon due to health issues - they are getting a taxi to Amman and then a flight back to the States overnight which is very disappointing for them. 
After a busy day of sightseeing (and a lot of desert scenery) We arrived at our hotel in Petra and it’s gorgeous! We had a delicious Jordanian dinner here, and joined a few other couples for some after dinner drinks in the outside lounge. We are all very happy to be in this amazing place and looking forward to seeing one of the new seven wonders of the world tomorrow. 
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Comments

Suey
2023-09-19

Again!! So interesting. I very much enjoyed your update!!

2025-02-16

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