Aqaba, Jordan April 4, 2022. Day 2

 We wake to another hot and dry-air day,  at 7 it is already 82, the high 95.  That’s not too bad.  We are excited to visit the Wadi Rum, whose stunning rock formations date back to more than 12,000 years.  The  section of the Wadi Rum our tour took us to is also the area from which Lawrence of Arabia staged his various missions.   The Wadi Rum has become a major tourist attraction and all along our ride through the canyons we saw Bedouin-style platform-tent-accommodations.  Solar panels and large cisterns were hidden among the rocks that provided some necessary creature comforts tourist demand and certainly did not exist during the Arab revolt  in 1916 against the Turks during World War I.   Our closet reenactment of those times was our camel ride, while not particularly comfortable, was thrilling.  The Jordanian camels are not as tall as the ones we had ridden in Egypt.  However, I felt that their backs and therefore their saddles where rather wide, causing an uncomfortable spread of the legs.  Well at least for these legs, that no longer can do a split.  We stopped several times to take in  our surroundings.  The first a very tall dune that most of us, of course,  had to climb,  then a Bedouin style rest stop, where we were treated to a lovely herbal tea,  shade,  and a shopping opportunity.  (Yes, souvenirs of sorts were offered there, in the middle of nowhere.)  Then a stop to look at some stone carvings of Lawrence of Arabia and Abdullah I, the first King of Jordan,  hieroglyphics and petroglyphs  providing directional information.   Our last stop was a a huge tent, again associated with one of the many tourists camps, where we found shade, lovely drinks and snacks.  The cookies and dates where so delicious we had to go back for seconds which our host was eager to provide.  Then our four by four trucks took us back out of the Wadi Rum to our bus, which took us back to the ship.   It was a very enjoyable tour and surprisingly the air was so much cooler and clearer in the Wadi Rum than it was in Aqaba.  

The highlight of our Wadi Rum trip,  riding a camel.

Leaving the city of Aqaba

Heading towards the Wadi Rum about an hours drive.  We come along a Bedouin herding his sheep.  One wonders what the sheep can eat, its just nothing but sand and rocks and occasional desert shrub. 

A lonely camel next to a Bedouin camp

Our 4 by 4 await us to take us into the heart of the Wadi Rum,  4 people, two on each side of the truck bed outfitted with bench seats and luckily a little bit of cushioning.   It’s a bumpy but fun ride.  

Getting ready to leave into the unknown.

Incredible landscape greets us at every turn.   

Hard to spot but at the bottom of this hillside is our caravan of 4 by 4s and most of us were adventurous enough to climb this dune to the top.  

The view from on top was magnificent, the vastness, the bareness, the quietness of this area was to be appreciated.    So peaceful.  The skies so blue, which we have not seen in a long while.  

Just one of the many vistas

The travelers,  yes we both made it to the top.  

A Bedouin tourist camp

Now we travel on camel to our next destination.  Though only a few of us opted this method, most chose to continue in the 4 by 4s

We reach the next resting spot  and are treated to herbal tea, shade and souvenirs.  The tents are nestled up against the stone walls, which provide shade and are actually cool to touch.    

A stone carving of Lawrence of Arabia

Stone carving of the first King of Jorden  and documented in hieroglyphics

Another carving of Lawrence of Arabia

Petroglyphs, these provided directional information to the nomadic tribes

 

The last resting spot a huge tent, with restaurant and bar.  We were treated to refreshments and snacks consisting of cookies and tasty dates.  

Heading back out of the Wadi Rum, here you see the remnant of once salt fields.

And we are back in Aqaba passing by a beautifully landscaped area, such a treat from the typical brown you see everywhere.