Jordan

Jordan/Israel

I'm sorry, I don't have a full journal for this trip - I've tried to re-create what I was doing on certain days by the use of receipts and credit card bills. If only I had total recall!

Itinerary - April/May 2000

Thr 20 April 2000
Jordan - While queuing for my visa, I noticed that the cost for Irish passport holders was rather cheaper than for UK passport holders. I put my bag down on the floor, with my UK passport and rummaged around for my Irish passport. When I stood up the guy behind me asked me how many passports I had in my bag!

Fri 21 April 2000 (Good Fri)
Jerash - Took a local bus from Abdali bus station to Jerash to see the Roman ruins there. In fact there's quite a lot left intact - including an almost complete Forum. After a day looking around Jerash it was back to Amman.

Sat 22 April 2000
Amman - Out to the Desert Castles. Took the local bus out to Qasr Al-Azraq. This castle is mot famous for being the winter base of Lawrence of Arabia. One of the doors is huge single slab of Basalt, and it still works today! A walk back into the local village, and a chat with some locals, got me a lift to see some of the other Castles. Qusayr Amra is a small castle, but it does have some amazing frescoes painted onto the domed interior roofs. Then it was onto Qasr Kharana a huge castle, which is almost entirely intact.I spent a good hour just running around exploring all the different rooms. On the way back to Azraq we had a close encounter with a police man!

Sun 23 April 2000
Jordan - Down to Madaba and Mt Nebo. In Madaba I visited the Madaba Map, an ancient mosaic map of the known world, with Jerusalem at it's centre. The mosaic is set into the floor of a church. From Madaba I also took a trip out to see Mt Nebo where, according to tradition, Mosses saw the Promised land and then died and was buried.

Mon 24 April 2000
Jordan - Ma'am

25 April 2000
Petra - brought a 2 day ticket, got to see the Treasury and the Monastery

26 April 2000
Petra - up early and got into Petra at day break - made it up to the High Places of Sacrifice

27 April 2000
Aqaba

28 April 2000
Wadi Rum Tour (overnight)

Driven out into the Desert in a 4x4, saw some of the most amazing desert scenery. Came across another 4x4 with a flat tyre - everyone got out to offer their assistance in changing the wheel. Later, while checking out a water hole halfway up a rocky outcrop, met a girl with her herd of goats - she seemed to spring from the barren landscape. Got some great photos.

Got to the overnight campsite, the middle of nowhere - climbed up the nearby dune to see, more desert!

Watched the sun set over the desert.

29 April 2000
Aqaba

30 April 2000
Amman (Toledo Hotel) coach up the Kings highway back to Amman

01 May 2000
Amman (Toledo Hotel)

02 May 2000
Jerusalem - took a taxi from Amman to the Israeli boarder, only to find that the Israeli's had closed the border. No one on the Jordanian side could say if or when the border would re-open. At about midday it did! Paranoid about getting an Israeli stamp in my passport, I asked if the stamp could be put on the immigration card. Then shared a taxi into Jerusalem.

03 May 2000
Jerusalem - rampart walk

04 May 2000
Jerusalem
Dome of the Rock

05 May 2000
Jerusalem

06 May 2000
Jerusalem

07 May 2000
Jerusalem

08 May 2000
Jordan - back across the border with out getting the stamp in the passport, and took a taxi from the border all the way back into Amman. Booked back into the Toledo hotel for the final night.

09 May 2000
Flight Home
Royal Jordanian Airways still have a smoking section at the back of the aircraft!

View the interactive map