At eight the next morning, we are on the bus heading for Petra.. at last! Basem, bless his heart, timed our departure so that when we exited the Siq into Petra.. the sun would be a its very best for photographs. Because of the depth of the canyons, the famous Treasury lies in shade for most of the day.

We walked down through the Siq and although it was about a mile long, it seemed to take no time at all. Of course in addition to my feeling of awe and excitement.. it was all down hill, too.



Along through the Siq we saw a number of shrines carved into the wall of the canyon... one was especially interesting: Dash-ur.. the Stone God. It was a blob of rock... really, just a lump of rock... he must have been the God of Unimaginative People.

The Siq is so narrow in places it really is like walking though a crack.. as Cuz says she was doing, with the walls over 600 ft high.. and sometimes so close together, the tiny horse buggies have to squeek thorough one at a time.

When we got to the end, the Treasury gradually came into full view and it was astounding. And yes.. the light was perfect to show it at its very best and most detailed. The Treasury (El Kazneh) is really a tomb, but early Bedouins inhabiting the valley thought that the decorative urn on the very top was filled with treasure.. and used to take pot shots at it in hope that gold coins would rain down upon them.



Petra was created by the Nabateans who were eventually absorbed into the Bedouin tribes over time. Although there are few free standing buildings left, there are over 800 edifices carved into the sandstone canyon walls.



As we continued down the wider portion of the Siq which contained a city of carved tombs in the walls.. Basem led us off the main path into the hilly area as the Siq widened into a valley which actually, at one time, contained the city of Petra, as well as a large amphitheater carved into the stone. We wandered through caves and saw additional tombs.. The walls of the caves were layered with amazing, vivid colors caused by a variety of mineral deposits. Until just a few years ago, the Bedouins inhabited many of these caves.. but the government has built them a town outside Petra.. to preserve the antiquities. Now, it is only the Bedouins who live in this town that can conduct business in Petra.. souvenirs, camel rides, consessions, or buggy transportation and the like. Their reward for allowing themselves to be relocated.



After we regained the main trail.. we visited some temple ruins and a museum and had lunch. At the museum we saw what we had been looking for.. The God of Frowny Faces. We had seen him on a postcard in Amman, and immediately became smitten with him. We thought he would be about six feet tall.. so seeing him in person was something of a shock. I don't recall who he really was, but he was the grumpiest looking god I have ever seen.. we loved him even better than the Rock Blob God.

After lunch some of our group.. with more energy than Gyspy.. elected to do some climbing to see some other treasured places of Petra... but Gypsy, who had walked seven miles in the blistering heat and sand worked on getting back to the Treasury, where it all started. And a long, slow walk it was.. too. And of course, now everything is uphill. Frisky camels, bouncy donkeys, happy tourists.. they all passed us by. Fortunately, we had the presence of mind to reserve a horse and buggy for the mile ride back through the Siq. There were a limited number of vehicles available, and had we not reserved one.. Gypsy would be writing this narrative in Jordan now.. I never would have made it out of Petra.



Tonight we repack our things to be ready for the trip back to Amman and the flight back to Cairo. We are saddened to see this adventure in Jordan end.. it has been so much fun, our guide so wonderful, and our group so companionable.

The next morning during the ride to Amman, we learned some interesting things about camels. They mate in January and become so cranky that nothing can be done with them.. so they are turned loose for the mating season. They have been known to attack and kill their owners.. and here I was worried about being spit at! Annual camel races are held at this time also as after mating.. the camels become increasingly lazy through the year.. until the next season. Then Basem related an incident he knew about where some Italian tourists thought they could drink camel milk like the natives do.. and they spent their entire day at Petra in the rest room at the visitor center.

Before we leave Jordan, you must, however, meet a Petra camel who loves to drink Coke or bottled water. Folks.. meet ZuZu.

Also we got a lesson on the lives and attitudes of the Bedouin people. It was fascinating and added a great deal to our adventure in Jordan.

Back at the airport almost everyone set off the metal detector. Cuz even had to go into a cubicle and be "frisked" by a matron. What is going on here? We went through check point after check point.. and more metal detectors.. and set them off too. Poor Cuz got caught every time trying to sneak those metal skirt buttons through security! There was much discussion with airport personnel regarding some people's tickets and travel arrangements.. it was nothing like our smooth arrival a few days earlier. We later learned that an EgyptAir plane had been hijacked and this was the reason for the heightened security.

Eventually, we all got through the airport security and screening and settled in for our return flight to Egypt.

Take the plane back to Cairo....