I never post directly from my journal, but the words I wrote
at lunch after my nearly 6 hour mini-exploration of Petra (if my legs could
have done it, I would have loved another day or two) are the best encapsulation
of the experience.
Sorry, this is going to be a long, sometimes overly
dramatic, post, but I promise there will be pictures :)
I’m writing this from a bar built
into a Nabatean cave from the first century B.C. I am sitting next to a stone
column that was carved from the sandstone hillside over 2,000 years ago. Living
history.
Petra has been the Adventure of a
lifetime. The events of this morning cannot be captured in the ink of my pen or
the lens of my camera, but I shall try to capture it here as I tried, quite in
vain, to capture it with my Nikon.
My friend and I arrived in Petra at
6:30 this morning. Very few tourists were up at that hour and we mostly had the
park to ourselves. Entering the Siq was like entering a film set. We were
completely alone for the entire 1 km, winding walk between the cliffs. It was
stunning and breathtaking and awe-inspiring to the point where none of these
superlatives do it any justice.
The entire journey down the siq, I
was full of butterflies of excitement for the ‘big reveal’ when the treasury
would emerge ahead through a simple glimpse between the cliff walls and moments
later be in full and awesome splendor before us.
I cannot stress enough that I was
not disappointed.
Seven travelers, three Bedouin, and two
camels were the entire ‘crowd’ at that early hour. (A stark contrast to the
HUNDREDS of tour-group tourists that were swarming the site at noon when we
departed). It was amazing.
We walked a bit further to the
amphitheatre and hired two donkeys and a local Bedouin guide to take us to
the monastery for 10 dinar a piece (about $12). We rode “Whiskey” and “Jack”
about 15 minutes, passed a sign that said it was dangerous to proceed further
without a guide (a sign that later would be surrounded by ‘guides’ and donkeys),
and entered a narrow canyon. The canyon narrowed and continued on to the right
as some ancient stairs cut out of the stone led steeply upward on our left. Our
guide then began to explain how to ride the donkey UP the steep steps, which
had a steep drop on one side and a cliff wall on the other.
This is when I got off the donkey as
quickly as I could, thanked our guide, paid him the full amount, and asked how the Monastery was. “About 35 minutes,” he replied.
Leaving the guide and his donkeys
behind for braver customers, we began to proceed on-foot up the more than 800
stairs, through a winding mountain pass, to the monastery at the top of the
mountain; which we reached over an hour later. The ascent was more than 900
feet, and we were almost completely alone except for some Bedouin traders going to open
their trinket stalls along the path, and a single tourist – a British man
bravely riding his donkey up the stairs who doffed his hat with a cheery ‘Good
morning’ as he rode past.
Along the climb, each time I reached a plateau I would turn back to view the misty, breath-taking view of the valley, or examine the beautiful sand patterns on the cliff walls to either side.
We reached the monastery around 9 am. The only visitor other than we was the man who had passed us on the donkey. Facing the monastery was a cave-turned-coffee shop and trade post where I enjoyed a 'Jordanian Coffee' (without the cardamom which is traditionally added); watching as a few more travelers arrived...who were shortly followed by large groups of tourists (whom we passed in droves on the way down, often making the descent somewhat cumbersome).
The Monastery as viewed from the coffee cave
Reaching the valley floor, I
quickly realized the timing of our arrival and climb could not have been
better. Families of every nationality were being packed onto donkeys for the
climb, hundreds of people swarmed every available surface, and the peace of the
morning was broken.
My friend and I, exhausted from the climb to the monastery, clambered over a few more
monuments before heading against the throngs of tourists, towards the siq and
out of the park. It was crowded and difficult: swimming against a tide of badly
dressed tourists and ill-mannered children was wearing down my patience so we
hailed an empty horse and buggy headed toward the treasury and paid him 25
dinar (aka A LOT of MONEY) to turn around and GET US OUT OF THERE.
The magic of Petra is in the quiet
majesty of it.
Traveler's Advice: Even though the light is more brilliant
for photographs in the afternoon, getting a photo without a million people in
it is unlikely. Go Early. The guidebook said that most people would be ‘burnt
out’ on the sites by 3 and heading home. I left the park at 1 and most people were just
heading down the Siq and getting to the treasury and it was a mob scene. As
tourism has increased significantly in the last few years (as have entry fees)
there are few chances to see the beauty of Petra without the annoyance of the
masses unless you go EARLY. Note: the guidebook said the same thing about
Topkapi Palace in Turkey being empty in the afternoon; however, there it was, again, mobbed as I left around 11 am;
but was quiet and lovely at 9.
