We are home safe in Colorado and it seems I left my creativity on the other side of the ocean. Nothing. I have not a creative ounce in me to write about Jordan. I’ve managed to get Ryan to commit to writing the Egypt blog and Joe to writing the Turkey blog. That means I’ve got Jordan. Jordan, Jordan bo bordan, banana fanna fo fordan, Jordan. That’s it. Not good.
What can I say about Jordan? “Toto we’re not in Kansas anymore.” What was your first clue? Maybe, the Burka clad women? Or, that all the men yelled at me as I started through the security line at the airport and then firmly re-directed me to the separate WOMEN‘s security line. Oops! That said, Jordan was FANTASTIC!
The countryside is dry, sandy, sand colored and a hot 45 degrees Celsius. One night sleeping in a Bedouin Tent in the Wadi Rum Desert was enough to make you dream of snowy Colorado. Life revolves around tea (regular Lipton brand with mint leaves) and we shared it with locals in castles, tiny villages and isolated mountain tops. We indulged in warm kunafa, a Jordanian sweet made from cheese, shredded dough, pistachios and simple syrup. Bobbing in the Dead Sea was like no other experience in our year of travels. With the salinity 9 times that of the ocean, you literally could not sink. In fact, you could barely keep your legs underneath you in the water (it is also the 2nd saltiest body of water on earth after Lake Aral in Djibouti).
Seriously. What can I say about a country reported to have the oldest map of Palestine recorded in a mosaic map on the floor in St. George’s Church (AD 560), the site where Christ was baptized in the River Jordan at Bethany, the spot where Moses saw the promised land at Mt. Nebo, where the first five apostles met and the early foundations of Christian faith were laid. The country speaks for itself. It is progressive, beautiful, welcoming of tourists (including “Americans”), full of incredible food, gracious people and home to Petra.
Petra, Petra bo Petra, banana fana fo Fetra, fi fye fo Fetra, Petra. :) Amazing! Petra deserves its place on the New 7 Wonders of the World list. We explored the Siq and Treasury Building at night by candle light and hiked 8 miles throughout the ruins by daylight starting at 6:30am to avoid the heat (and we still drank 6 liters of water each and only peed twice)!
My favorites:
Ahlan wa sahlan! = welcome or be as one of the family and at your ease
Mensaf = lamb, rice, pine nuts, with yogurt and liquid fat from the cooked meat…..yes, LIQUID FAT! …..and it was tasty!
Free Shipping = Jordan loves their tourists so much that the government pays for all shipping to the U.S.! Joe ‘s handmade mosaic table benefited greatly from this!
Shukran,
JJ&R
Our Photos:
http://picasaweb.google.com/kelloffj/Jordan2009?authkey=Gv1sRgCN2E6piC_buBkQE&feat=email#
