Life in the fast lane

Petra (The Treasury to be specific) by Night

Feels like ages since I've made a post.  I've seen and done quite a bit in the last 2 weeks, so let's get to it! I spent week 1 throughout most of Jordan.  Main highlights include a trip to the Dead Sea, Wadi Musa (location of Petra), and Wadi Rum (famous desert in southern Jordan).  The Dead Sea trip is an easy day tour from Amman.  Being at the lowest point on Earth (400 m below sea level) is quite the experience.  "Swimming"  in the Dead Sea is a very bizzare experience.  Holding your legs straight underwater is like trying to balance a top - due to the high salt content, a force is constantly pushing your legs upward toward the surface.  Over 30% salt - the water feels really oily and has a very different feeling than regular water on your skin.  Swimming isn't easy because you have to use extra force just to keep your legs under water.  Not to mention, if you get any water in your eyes, it hurts like no other.  Floating in a lounge like chair position is the best way to experience the Dead Sea. 
     After 4 days in Amman (Capital of Jordan) and touring the various areas around it (Dead Sea, Mt. Nebo - place where God allegedly showed Moses the promised land, and Jerash - Roman ruins 40 mins north of Amman), I made my way south to Wadi Musa, the town next to Petra.  For those of you who don't know about Petra - it is an ancient city originally built by the Nabataens.  Throughout History, it changed hands several times.  It isn't strictly a Nabataen site anymore. Either way, Petra was voted as a New Wonder of the World and rightfully so.  Tombs 40 m high built into the side of enormous rock cliffs, Petra is best seen in person.  Petra is pretty spread out and provides endless breath-taking views.  If you go, bring your hiking shoes and a heavy wallet.  Admission into Petra is now up to $75 or so, by far the single most expensive admission ticket I've purchased on this entire trip.  Despite the cost, it was still VERY worth it.  On day 1 in the park, I hiked around for about 12 hours.  On day 2, I spent another 4-6 hours inside Petra.  Exhuasted and sore, it was a very rewarding experience.

Landscape around Wadi Musa

   Interestingly enough, the first day I arrived in Wadi Musa (aka Petra), I only visited Petra by night - a separate ticket for about $16 that lets you see the main site, the Treasury, by candle light. I thought about going to Petra during the day, but decided to wait until I could utilize a FULL day (the bus didn't get me into town until 10 or so).  As fate would have it, my lens on my nice camera lens broke that day, and at night, I ended up becoming sick.  For the next 3 or 4 days I sat around my hostel, waiting to be let go from the imaginary leash that tied me to the toilet.  Getting sick while travelling seems to be included in the ticket no matter what you do, but when you're in Wadi Musa overlooking Petra outside your room window and knowing that your lens for you nice camera no longer works - well let's just say it's a humbling experience.  A very frustrating one, but it gives you a little backbone because you realize you really have no control over the situation and that you just have to roll with the punches.  Moral of the story, I healed up, still had my point and shoot camera, and still had an unforgettable time.
     After my time in Wadi Musa, I travelled further south into Wadi Rum, an amazing desert in southern Jordan.  About 1.5 hours from Wadi Musa, I hopped on a bus and ended up joining a tour group into the desert for a day and night with local Bedouin people.  Not only was the desert completely stunning, but our group of people was equally enjoyable.  Myself, 1 other American, and 8 Japanese tourists.  From stone tossing games, singing and dancing with the Bedouin people in the tent, and a sumo wrestling tournament, it was easily the most fun I'd had in a while.  You'll be happy to know that yours truely took home the Championship trophy for the male contestants in the sumo tournament.  I took a million pictures in Wadi Rum, but as always, the pictures don't do the place justice.  Reminded me a bit of Monument Valley and the Outback in Australia, but I still found it to be very unique. 

Dome of the Rock, Jerusalem

    After my stay in Wadi Rum, I made my way back to Amman where I then spent the better portion of 5 days in Israel.  Holy smokes!  I could talk about this place forever.  I made it to Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and Bethlehem in the West Bank.  Jerusalem is an utterly fascinating place with so much historical and religious importance that it boggles the mind.  When you go into the "Old City" of Jerusalem (a walled section of the city no larger than 1.2 sq km) I guarantee you will be blown away.  Split into quaters (Jewish, Christian, Muslim, and Armenian), approximately 40,000 people inhabit the Old City.    From the Church of the Holy Sepulchre (where Jesus is believed to have been hung on the cross and also placed in his tomb), the Western Wall (the ancient wall for the Temple of the Mount), to the Dome of the Rock (where Muhammad ascended ino Heaven), one begins to realize how important such a small area is.  Everywhere I walked within the old city, the only thing I could was "powder keg" - The Dome of the Rock sits on top of the alleged site of the Temple Mount, the Holy Sepulchre Church sits in the Christian Quarter, but a large portion of the "Via Dolorosa"  (the path that Jesus walked while carrying the cross) runs through the Muslim quarter.  Throw this all in the pot along with 1,000's of years of conflict and history  - just left me brain dead.  This may offend some people, but the whole thing seemed a little ironice and slightly amusing to me.  SUCH a small area of so much importance to so many people, it just seems absurd to fight over!  But this is the State of things, and within the irony of the situation, it is a sad reality.  Trust me, while the absurdity of the situation seems slightly amusing to some degree, a larger portion of me feels sad and disheartened to know that for all of the people who believe in these holy sites and hold them important that such measures are taken in fighting/hurting others for them.  I'm trying to avoid a political and/or religious debate on the matter but I felt I had to at least bring this part up. 
    In keeping with the same theme for a second longer, I did visit Bethlehem inside the West Bank.  Seeing the alleged birth and death places of Jesus in less than 24 hours is pretty crazy to think about.  Bethlehem is only 40 mins by bus from Jerusalem.  In fact, adding a geographical context to several important Biblical moments was one of the more incredible parts of my trip to Israel.  In one day you can walk in and around the Old City and see several important moments in Christianity (I'm sure the same can be said for Judaism and Islam, but I'm not as educated in these religions so I won't pretend to know what I'm talking about).  The tomb of King David, Room of the Last Supper, the place where Jesus "rested" before being arrested, the Via Dolorosa, etc.  The list goes on and on - and it's ALL right there.  Even if a lot of them are "alleged" sites, you can probably safely assume that it is at least somewhere in the very near vicinity. 

The wall that separates the West Bank and Israel

    I mentioned getting to Bethlehem from Jerusalem takes about 40 mins - not necessarily the case on the way back.  Safety checkpoint and the giagantic wall that separates Israel and the West Bank had a little something to do with this.  The Church of Nativity in Bethlehem was interesting, but the art/graffiti along the wall between Israel and the West Bank was far more interesting for me.  In the U.S. I feel like every other day you can read something about the Israeli/Palestinian conflict.  It seems as if the fighting has been going on since the dawn of time with no end in sight.  After a while, the news reports don't have that much affect on my thoughts or feelings - but man, going through the security check point and seeing the wall - well, it was literally a reality check.  Granted, no "conflict' occured while I was there, but you could easily still see the remnants of it. 
   Well, I feel as if I've written a small novel and still feel as if I've inadequately described what I've seen and done.  Such is often the case when trying to update you readers on what I've been up to.  This doesn't even begin to scratch the surface of what this trip has been like.  For the time being, I'm back in Amman, relaxing and saving a bit of money before I fly on to Turkey.  Over 8 months into my trip - less than 4 to go.  The closer to home I get, the more conflicted I become.  I'm excited to come home and see everyone and possibly have a semi-normal routine.  I'm also scared.  Looking for a job, finding a place to live, and most importantly, not necessarily having a 100% freedom to do what I want each and every day will probably take some getting used to.  It'll be a harsh reality, but if travelling has taught me anything, I know everything will work its own course, whether I like it or not.  : )   Go with the flow. 

January's Speedo Shot at the Dead Sea
The salt that got in my eyes
for this shot burned a LOT