Jordan Trip: Day Three in Petra

On the third day of our trip to Jordan, Anwar and I woke up very early in the morning to catch a bus to Petra, Jordan, probably the most popular tourist destination in the country. Petra is a three and a half bus trip south of Amman, and it is the site of an ancient city carved into the mountains.

The way into the ancient city is through a long, narrow path through a gorge called the Siq. The walk through the Siq provides a perfect prelude to the magnificent spectacle that awaits at the end. There is the Treasury, a giant facade carved into pink rock that seems to glow in the sunlight.

Through the Siq to the Treasury

The Treasury

Beyond the Treasury there is an open area surrounded by mountains, cliffs, caves, and more carvings on the face of the rocks. Inside there are Bedouin people selling jewelry, teapots, scarves, and donkey/camel rides. As one Bedouin man told us, the Bedouin people are the "true" Jordanians, as opposed to Jordanian-Palestinians who were mostly pushed out of the land of Palestine and settled in Jordan. These Bedouin live inside the mountain city and count on the tourists who come through for their livelihood. Many of the Bedu we met grew up in a cave with their families and speak several languages, which they learned from tourists. They know the terrain better than anyone, and it's amazing to watch Bedouin children on donkeys that clamber effortlessly up and down the mountains.

A Bedouin man with his camels

Caves in the mountainside

Anwar and I decided that we wanted to get a better view of the whole area, so we decided to take a climb up the mountains. Along the way we encountered more Bedu, mainly women, selling their wares to hikers on their way up the mountain trails. This is the view we saw at the top:

Great view of Petra

After coming back down to the main area, Anwar decided to get more in touch with his Jordanian roots by trying out the Kohl eyeliner that Bedouin men and women wear. A very nice Bedouin man offered to apply it for him, explaining that he makes the jet-black Kohl himself from ingredients found in the area. He also told us that the Bedu don't wear the eyeliner just to look more beautiful as most people think, but also because it protects the eyes from sun and helps to clean the eyes.

Anwar having Kohl applied by a Bedouin

In a Bedouin shop with pashmina and keffiyah scarves

By the end of the day, after a long hike up and down a mountain and throughout the city, Anwar and I were fairly tired and decided to ride camels back to the entrance. Our Bedouin camel guide walked beside our two camels, explaining that he could speak Japanese, Russian, English and Arabic. We discovered that he also speaks camel.