More Air Jordans Just Dropped
Sorry for the title, I just think it’s an amusing SEO click bait title, and I just went with it. And since I’ve been in a (WC) ticket hunting mood, it feels appropriate.
Driving abroad is quite fun. Rules are much looser, except when it comes to security check points for car bomb inspections. In a span of 10 minutes we had to stop for a goat herd, mules / donkeys (can’t tell the difference), people, cats, dogs, camels, etc. Gotta keep your head on a swivel and keep an eye out. While we were eating lunch a horse got rogue from somewhere and just started galloping past us. No one even chased after it!?
Siq al-Barid
Also known as Little Petra, this was our appetizer for the area. Probably not worth it’s own trip, it was very conveniently located near our glamping site and is free. But we got there at opening and had it to ourselves. There is a cool hike from there all the way to the main site, but we’re not that sporty. By the time we were exiting, the buses had arrived and a traffic jam had occurred on some of the narrower portions of the hikes.
Petra
The 7 Wonders of the World is a weird and strange contest held in 2000 to democratically pick 7 monuments across the world. However, certain monuments and nations didn’t lobby for theirs, in addition to the fact that individuals could vote as many times as they’d like, the results aren’t very consistent. Of the seven, there’s one outlier that feels incredibly wrong. Sorry, not sorry Brazil, but the Christ the Redeemer statue has no place on this list. In eighth were the Easter Island Moai, which I’d say are pretty cool. Also apparently the Pyramids of Giza are too old or too obvious and weren’t allowed to be considered. This will be my third Wonder from the messy list I don’t approve of.
Petra is much larger than I thought it would be. Most pictures or descriptions seem to focus on the Monastery or Treasury. Which makes sense, but is entirely misleading. It’s a city. A large ancient city. Surrounded by canyons and desert, (but with natural water sources and built public works infrastructure) it became a highly defensible location for the Nabataean Kingdom. They thrived on being a hub for caravan trade for the greater region, and became quite successful. Eventually the Romans come along and take over. During their rule the world’s trade and transportation shifts to naval based methods, leaving Petra to slowly decline. Add to that a rough earthquake that splintered their water infrastructure, eventually the city was abandoned, and only used by locals as convenient ancient short term accommodations.
There have been about 15 official restoration projects of the ancient sites (not excavation of new ones or expanding), the first of which was in 1958. Which means many of these sites have lasted 1,500-2,000 years old and are still standing. My mother convinced a lot of it is fake. Even at one point latching onto a Jordanian’s broken English pronouncing Royal as real. So when she heard him point as say those are the “real” tombs, she further believes in a conspiracy that it’s all fake and a way for the country to earn tourism revenue. The reality is that the structures that are in good shape are actually carved into the rocks, usually covered by the mountain / canyon wall that is above or even surrounding it. This protection, the lack of structural integrity required to still exist, and the general low rainfall annually, has retained its quality for us to see today. (This study calculated the worst erosion in the area was about 2.5 cm every century) Many of the “built” structures lie in ruins similar to other ancient civilizations. And it is considered that the majority of the city is still buried / hidden in some way.
Part 1 (Day)
First note. The “free” horse ride is not free, despite how much they insist. Zoe and I refused, assuming it was a gimmick of some sort. My mother accepted, and I gave them a $7 tip for what amounts to a 600 meter distance at the beginning of the trail. He complained and said he normally gets $30, I gave him the remainder of my Jordanian Dinar, which amounted to $13 and walked off. I didn’t foresee how forward the locals would be. Hard to blame them, because I’m sure their incomes are heavily tied to the tourists, but it was a lot. I eventually became a New Yorker, and just start ignoring them, and also used the, I don’t speak English move. Both were more effective than engaging at all.
Second note. There are a lot of people (tourists and locals). There’s really no way to avoid them. So don’t worry about it much. You’ll find pockets along the trail where it thins out, and you’ll be able to snag a picture. And people are pretty respectful at the main sites (despite them being mobbed) to take pictures from a distance so everyone can have a clean photo.
Part 2 (Night)
It’s $24 cash per ticket for the Night tour / access. It’s M/W/Th, from 8-10:30 pm. It’s even more crowded than the day because folks are limited to just the Treasury area. It’s overly curated with excessive flood lights and projections. I couldn’t tell if the musicians doing the couple of pieces were good or bad, or if I just don’t understand the local music. What is worth the ticket is just walking through the Siq on a clear night, staring up at stars through the canyon, your path only lit by candles (real candles, not electric, they’re covered in bags, which occasionally light on fire, but at no risk to anything because it’s a desert).
Also if you go, please don’t use flashlights, or at least be careful with them. It’s annoying when you’re just trying to adjust your eyes to the candlelit darkness, and you’re being blinded or distracted by someone oblivious to the ambience.
Part 3 (Day)
We returned to go deeper into the city, and try some of the hikes. Petra must be a hikers dream. I sorta dislike hiking. I’m a power through, with some music or a podcast, and just get to the good vista away from people. I really don’t understand walking for an extended period of time. It’s like jogging. They’re both terrible. It’s a means of transportation. To get from one point to another. Like one doesn’t just hop in the car to joyride… right? You might enjoy a drive, but you’re really just trying to get from one place to another?
Anyway, there are a bunch of routes you can go off into, and be pretty isolated from the crowds. We obviously didn’t try all of them. The Monastery is considered the popular “difficult” one. It’s physically farther away, but it is well traversed. Pretty crowded, lots of shops on the way, and some chaos mules and horses going through, but it’s capped off at the end with a nice seating area and shop that takes credit card (with a minimum). I appreciated just relaxing there at the end. It’s very similar to the Treasury building, but a lot less crowded.
But I have to recommend the High Place of Sacrifice. It was a lot less crowded. And at the top, it’s very quiet, with a much more impressive, albeit dangerous view of a lot of Petra. I was there for about a half hour and only saw 3 other people. Most people seem to stop short at some nice viewpoints and don’t realize you have to climb a bit more to get to the top. Pack a picnic. And post up on top and enjoy the view, fresh air, and sun. I had a cat give me a lot of company. But mostly I listened to my Spotify Wrapped.
My Spotify Wrapped 2022
Which is amazing, if you haven’t checked it out yet, they aggregate your data for the year through October, and give you a fun summary of it. It’s always so enjoyable for me.
It’s now multiple years running that Stomp and Holler is my top genre. But also in the Top 5 are Soundtracks. I listened to my top soundtrack songs on top of Petra, and I’ll share them for you all here. Just sit somewhere and enjoy the music and take a moment.
Quick complaint about people obsessed with social media. Sometimes the picture isn’t perfect, and that’s fine. Please don’t hold up everyone who may want a picture in a spot, by taking dozens, reviewing each, and doing reshoots. It’s pretty inconsiderate.
Wadi Musa
Didn’t get to explore this town much. I will fully recommend the Petra Guest House as your accommodations. WiFi is strong, rooms are adequate, but it’s literally the closest place to the entrance of Petra, you have to pass a checkpoint to get there. And it has free parking. It also is home to the Cave, which is a cool bar / lounge. Perfect for watching World Cup matches and having a locally brewed beer (with actual alcohol in it). The food was meh at best, but the prices were reasonable. It was fantastic to finish our treks with a beer immediately.
Alright, headed back to Qatar for the third time!