Jordan pictures

Last December I talked about how we went to Jordan for our little Chanukah break. It was a fun trip. We may have gotten a little lost on our way down to Petra the first day in our rental car, but saw some spectacular scenery because of it. Not too far from Petra was one of the many Crusader castles in Jordan. Petra itself was AMAZING. We paid 21 dinar (about $30) to get into the park and apparently the price has since gone up considerably. If you haven't looked up the history of Petra, its worth a look. On the last day we went north of Amman to the Roman city of Jerash (well preserved) and then Starbucks in Amman.

The trip back was unforgettable, but not in a good way. Pregnant lady Beth had to use the facilities on the taxi ride to the border and the wonderful driver would not stop except for a big jump in the ride price. He stopped to pray at his local place of worship just outside of Amman and we waited for him. But he wouldn't stop for me. Nice. We were all a bit skittish around taxi drivers after that.  Oh, yeah and the rental car agency charged us for something we were pretty sure wasn't our fault. C'est la vie.

Crusader castle

The view south on top of the castle

The view west

Looking north

In Petra, the dishes with rice were really good.

The view out our window at the hostel.

Fancy hostel. Maybe not, but we got what we paid for. Except for the smell.

Morning view

Can you believe we didn't go into the Indiana Jones Coffee Shop?

Preserving the Siq (narrow passage way into Petra)

The Treasury

This gal wore these all the way into Petra.

Guard on duty...on cellphone.

More tombs

Cardo (mainstreet during Roman rule)

One of the temples

Another temple

Lots of different kinds of folks work in the park.

We made it up to the Monastery (later called that). It was tough!

For a price, I could've taken a donkey.

Jenny is so good at bartering, she got a free horse ride.

Jerash

To show off acoustics, this guy was playing the bagpipes, of all things.

Jerash's Cardo

Chariot rivets

Sugar Daddy's is a stinkin' good cake bakery on the same street as the American Embassy.

 Hope I can visit again someday!