Petra, Part 2
After I had coffee in front of my new Mormon friend, our group left for Petra. Arriving around 11:30, we entered the park to be accosted by Bedouin guides offering us horse, camel, or donkey rides down the canyon to the main attractions of the ancient city. Bedouins are, as my friend describes, “hippies in the desert.” They live a nomadic lifestyle, are Muslim, seem generally darker in complexion than Arabs, and are very laid-back. We declined the offer for a ride, and began walking the long corridor through canyon to the city carved from rock (check out my pictures and http://www.see-jordan.com/petra.html for more details). The dramatic entrance facing the Treasury after walking through the canyon was incredible- it was like finding a cut diamond inside the natural beauty of an unfinished emerald. We immediately met up with a Bedouin whom Deb and Leanne had met the day before and shared a cup of tea with him. We then explored the many carved rocks and rooms of Petra, most of which were nearly a couple millennia old. The city is featured in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, but many Christians believe it is the place to where the remnant of Israel will flee in the End Times (for me info, see http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=22539). Before visiting Petra I thought this belief was superstitious and a bit crazy. After seeing the city and its vast amount of bunkers and rooms, though, it was really easy for me to imagine a large community of people taking shelter there.
For the late afternoon we trekked up some 1000 stairs to see the Monastery. From there, it was a short distance to a mountain peak that offered stunning views of Jordan and Israel. My breath was taken away to see the magnificence of God’s creation, and I was really humbled by the grandeur of the moment. I sat speechless on a very high peak, wondering why God, the Creator of the heavens and earth, would care for me, such a small and insignificant person. What a wonderful and amazing love is our God’s, and what a privilege is it for us to be known by Him!
The mountain was so calm. The sun warmed the rock upon which I sat, and a slight breeze made the day perfect. It seemed like I was a thousand miles away from all civilization, and a few birds flying in the distance were the only signs of movement I could see. Sitting where I was, on the precipice of a lofty cliff, it seems like I should have been afraid of falling. Still, save for being in the arms of my parents as I child, I cannot recall a time when I have felt more safe or secure than I did when looking down from the mountain-top. David’s words in Psalm 62:6, “He only is my rock and my salvation: he is my defence; I shall not be moved,” were made very real to me. Though on my own I may have fallen into very deep chasm, the rock was holding me up. There is hardly a greater feeling in the world than to know that I am able to go to the eternal rock- God- whenever I am about to fall off the cliff of life.
We watched the sunset from high upon our perch. Thankfully, some gracious Bedouins offered to take us out of the park after the sun went down (the mountain-top was nearly a two-hour hike from the entrance to the park). So, after it got dark, we began our hike down the mountain. The stars – clearer and brighter than I have ever seen -- came out and illuminated our treacherous path. One of our Bedouin guides told us, “You go back to your hotel with five stars, I go to sleep under a million.” The park was much different by night, being both more romantic and more treacherous. The way back through the canyon, for example, seemed like the perfect place to “fall among a band of robbers,” but the Treasury by starlight was a sight I will never want to forget.
We made it back to the hotel in one piece to be greeted by an extravagant Middle Eastern buffet that cost us 5 dinari. We went to bed shortly after that. Josh and I returned to the park in the morning to do some more exploring of caves, and decided to leave Jordan on that afternoon.
On the way back to the Israeli border, we decided to take the services. Our cab driver in Petra, who took us from the park to the central bus station, told us the services weren’t running and that he could take us to the border for 25 dinari. I wasn’t about to take his lies, and ended up in a near-shouting match with the driver as I demanded that he take us to the central bus station. Josh thought it was pretty funny, but our manipulative driver ended up dropping us off where we needed to be. We took a service from Petra to Maan, and then from Maan to Aqaba. The total cost of our return trip was $14 dinari, compared to the $35 dinari trip that was required of our initial arrival.
Some general observations about Petra:
We saw a Muslim lady in the park who was wearing a Burka. Her husband was taking a picture of her, completely veiled, with their small daughter in front the Treasury.
On the service from Maan to Aqaba, they made the girls on the trip sit next to each other.
Bedouins are looked down upon by Arabs, but the former were by far the friendliest and most-honest people we encountered on our trip.
Some of the Jordanian land we saw looked like Mars. Other parts reminded me of poppy-seed rolls.
We couldn’t speak in Hebrew or on anything regarding Israel while we were in Jordan, for fear that we might upset the Muslims. This was really tough to do.
For the late afternoon we trekked up some 1000 stairs to see the Monastery. From there, it was a short distance to a mountain peak that offered stunning views of Jordan and Israel. My breath was taken away to see the magnificence of God’s creation, and I was really humbled by the grandeur of the moment. I sat speechless on a very high peak, wondering why God, the Creator of the heavens and earth, would care for me, such a small and insignificant person. What a wonderful and amazing love is our God’s, and what a privilege is it for us to be known by Him!
The mountain was so calm. The sun warmed the rock upon which I sat, and a slight breeze made the day perfect. It seemed like I was a thousand miles away from all civilization, and a few birds flying in the distance were the only signs of movement I could see. Sitting where I was, on the precipice of a lofty cliff, it seems like I should have been afraid of falling. Still, save for being in the arms of my parents as I child, I cannot recall a time when I have felt more safe or secure than I did when looking down from the mountain-top. David’s words in Psalm 62:6, “He only is my rock and my salvation: he is my defence; I shall not be moved,” were made very real to me. Though on my own I may have fallen into very deep chasm, the rock was holding me up. There is hardly a greater feeling in the world than to know that I am able to go to the eternal rock- God- whenever I am about to fall off the cliff of life.
We watched the sunset from high upon our perch. Thankfully, some gracious Bedouins offered to take us out of the park after the sun went down (the mountain-top was nearly a two-hour hike from the entrance to the park). So, after it got dark, we began our hike down the mountain. The stars – clearer and brighter than I have ever seen -- came out and illuminated our treacherous path. One of our Bedouin guides told us, “You go back to your hotel with five stars, I go to sleep under a million.” The park was much different by night, being both more romantic and more treacherous. The way back through the canyon, for example, seemed like the perfect place to “fall among a band of robbers,” but the Treasury by starlight was a sight I will never want to forget.
We made it back to the hotel in one piece to be greeted by an extravagant Middle Eastern buffet that cost us 5 dinari. We went to bed shortly after that. Josh and I returned to the park in the morning to do some more exploring of caves, and decided to leave Jordan on that afternoon.
On the way back to the Israeli border, we decided to take the services. Our cab driver in Petra, who took us from the park to the central bus station, told us the services weren’t running and that he could take us to the border for 25 dinari. I wasn’t about to take his lies, and ended up in a near-shouting match with the driver as I demanded that he take us to the central bus station. Josh thought it was pretty funny, but our manipulative driver ended up dropping us off where we needed to be. We took a service from Petra to Maan, and then from Maan to Aqaba. The total cost of our return trip was $14 dinari, compared to the $35 dinari trip that was required of our initial arrival.
Some general observations about Petra:
We saw a Muslim lady in the park who was wearing a Burka. Her husband was taking a picture of her, completely veiled, with their small daughter in front the Treasury.
On the service from Maan to Aqaba, they made the girls on the trip sit next to each other.
Bedouins are looked down upon by Arabs, but the former were by far the friendliest and most-honest people we encountered on our trip.
Some of the Jordanian land we saw looked like Mars. Other parts reminded me of poppy-seed rolls.
We couldn’t speak in Hebrew or on anything regarding Israel while we were in Jordan, for fear that we might upset the Muslims. This was really tough to do.
posted by Jason | 4:42 AM
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