• trail leading to the archaeological site
    When you arrive in Petra, you have a fairly long walk from the visitor center to the actual archaeological site. Along the way, however, you can already see multiple cave entrances, typical for this landscape that the ancient Nabataeans made good use of.
  • Souvenir shops abound. Solar panels provide power.
  • We were surprised that references to Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade weren’t all over the place, but then we did happen upon these jolly knights at the entrance to the Siq, the narrow Crescent Canyon that leads to the famed Treasury.
  • It is a good 40 minute walk from the visitor center to the Treasury and you can hire one of these buggies to shorten the trip. Alas, my hip hurt just looking at the passengers bouncing on their bench as the horse hurtled down the stony canyon.
  • And if you hurtled by, you would see the amazing rock formations like this “Elephant Rock.”
  • You also wouldn’t notice the faint remnants of the reliefs that used to grace canyon. Here you can still see a trader’s feet and legs and those of his camel behind him.
  • The undulating red sandstone walls of this narrow canyon reminded me so much of sites in Arizona.
  • A first glimpse of the Treasury!
  • Here it is!
  • And here I am, finally, in front of the Treasury at Petra. Major bucket list item!
  • Our guide explained that the facade of the Treasury survived the centuries because of the rock overhang above it, and its location in the narrow canyon, as both protected it from erosion. It was carved from above. You can still see the footholds going down the sides of the rock face next to the outer columns.
  • Everyday life and everyday items by the souvenir shops and rare toilets…
  • My favorite shot from this trip
  • Wandering farther along the canyon one passes more temple facade. They are a lot more eroded as they were more exposed than the Treasury. See the stairs carved on top? They provided access to the workers carving the site.
  • Of course, as this area was eventually ruled by the Romans, one finds a wider amphitheater in Petra as the canyon opens to a wider plateau.
  • I’m glad I caught that herd of goats roaming the theater.
  • The Bedul Bedouin inhabit the area of Petra and have the rights to run the tourist trade there.
  • How’s an ancient ruin for a playground?
  • There they are again, the jolly knights!
  • One last look at the Treasury
  • This guy with the broom had the job of sweeping up the horse poop.

This wraps up my trip to Jordan series. I used a new format for this post. Do let me know if you liked it or if you prefer my old photo essay style.

First installment of the trip to Jordan: Jerash

Second installment: Amman

 

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