Petra, Jordan

I am still behind on my plan to blog once a week, but at least I am not running out of topics. I still have to share our trip to Petra with you.

To be honest, I was rather reluctant to shell out around 200 Euro for a day trip and getting up at a crazy time, just to add another stamp to my passport and see one of the "New Seven Wonders of the World" (I still think the election for these was a little skewed), but it was definitely worth it!

But first things first: Getting up at 3 a.m. is something my sleep cycle is never happy about - driving over an hour in a cramped bus didn't make it any better and a lot of fog that prevented us from seeing the sunrise from the ferry from Nuweiba to Aquaba in Jordan did not make me happier. Still the ferry ride was enjoyable as it was rather empty and we were able to take a nap there and we learned that Egypt uses old Tallink-ferries that have been going between Helsinki and Tallinn on this route. Mostly because all the signs are in Finnish and Estonian and there was a map of the Estonian capital on the wall.

After another bus ride with the obligatory "toilet break" at a gift shop to earn our tour guides living on commissions, we finally arrived in Petra. The tour of the main part takes you through a valley first and then into a narrow canyon that was used as the main entrance to the city that was built around 1200 BC by the Nabateans. First, you are impressed by the enormity of the canyon and the natural beauty of this passage carved out of the rock by a river. You start seeing more and more structures carved in the wall until finally the canyon opens up and you can see Al Kazneh, the Treasury, which is the most famous and probably most photographed building in the city - which didn't keep me from shooting some pictures of it myself.

After we had finally survived the "official" part of the tour - including a stop in a cafe/gift shop - commission, you know - Riin and I finally had some time to walk through Petra on our own. We were very lucky as February is not the busiest season anyway and due to the "Arab Spring" fewer people travel to the Middle East. This even allowed me to take some pictures without Japanese tourists jumping in front of my lens.

In conclusion, I think what makes Petra a real gem and worth visiting, is the fact that it is both a natural and a man-made "wonder". The colourful stone canyon alone would probably attract tourists, but with these impressive buildings carved out of the rock it is really unique (well, not quite, as there is a quite similar sister city in Saudi Arabia, which is closed to the public though). If any of you has the chance to go to Petra, you should definitely do it!