Aqaba, Jordan the Gateway to Petra

Jordan was refreshing after Egypt, no armed guard on the bus and no check points every few miles. Even the tour guide Salex was upbeat and fun. Mr. Attah drove the bus while Salex filled us in on Jordan, Petra, and the sites along the way like the famous Wadi Rum which means the Valley of the Moon. We had a two plus hour drive to the Valley of Petra and stopped along the way at a typical tourist trap Jordan style where we got some snacks, coffee and trinkets. Petra was crowded unlike Egypt and was not too hot maybe 88 degrees and sometimes a breeze to cool us off. It is about a two mile walk down to the treasury starting with a gravel walkway in the open and then a long walk through the red sandstone towering cliffs. The ancient people that built Petra had water ways etched into the rock going down to the city. On one side it was for irrigation and the other for drinking water. It is believed that an earthquake caused their water supply to fail and that is why the city was abandoned. We were able to see the treasury and just a couple other sights with the time allowed. There is so much more to see at Petra that we didn't have time for. We liked Petra better than Luxor and the valley and shall have to wait to judge the pyramids in Cairo later on our scheduled 9.5 hour trip there.