At first I was afraid, I was Petra-fied.

Today we were in Aqaba, Jordan. Aqaba is a Jordanian port city on the Red Sea's Gulf of Aqaba. Inhabited since 4000 B.C., it's home to the Islamic-era Aqaba Fort. Its beach resorts are popular for windsurfing and other water sports, and the area is a top destination for scuba divers, with notable dive sites including the Yamanieh coral reef in the Aqaba Marine Park, south of the city. Aqaba's location next to Wadi Rum and Petra has placed it in Jordan's golden triangle of tourism, which strengthened the city's location on the world map and made it one of the major tourist attractions in Jordan. Egypt, which on the other side of the gulf, is technically the continent of Africa. Israel is a stones throw away on the other side of Jordan. So this area is truly ancient, historically relevant and rich in culture.

For our excursion, we chose the Lost City of Petra, which was a 2 hr bus ride each way. Stories abound here that historical figures like Moses and Jesus walked the streets of Petra; long ago buried and and rediscovered in the early 1800s. The area around Petra has been inhabited from as early as 7000 BC, and the Nabataeans might have settled in what would become the capital city of their kingdom as early as the 4th century BC. After Roman occupation, Petra's importance declined as sea trade routes emerged, and after an earthquake in 363 destroyed many structures. It remained unknown to the western world until 1812, when Swiss traveller Johann Ludwig Burckhardt rediscovered it. It is still being excavated, slowly but surely.

We set off at about 7:30 am and arrived about 10am. On the way, we experienced desert-like topography with granite mountains in the distance. Granite and marble are major exports. These pics aren't in order but the relatively greener pics are higher in elevation. It's hard to believe that in the rainy season, these vistas are green and lush.

Once at our destination, we were quickly immersed in ancient history, possibly the oldest structures we've personally ever seen. We've been to the pyramids of Giza which date back to 3200BC, and this area dates back further. The walk in total was about 3 miles, all down a slight grade. This is relevant because during the rainy season, the path we followed becomes a river and in fact you could see Grand canyon-like erosion that the seasonal river caused.

Here are some early pics before we reached the "town".

Once "in town", we saw the treasury, a monestary, an amphitheater, homes and other culturally significant artifacts very well resurrected with very little modern repair. Petra is one of the 7 wonders of the world and a UNESCO site which governs what can be done. Here are some town pics. The top ones are as we came through the thinnest part of the ravine to reveal the Treasury. Many of the carvings, like the top left pic, are dedicated to their 400+ gods they worshipped.

My favorite pic is the third row, center. This is a home. They chipped away the rock just to the point they revealed a natural layer of marble which became their ceiling. Who needs frescos when you can have a marble ceiling?

We then returned to the visitors center via a shuttle, which was nice. It wasn't too hot but the path was very rocky and uphill, 3 miles. Sounds just like how my parents got to AND from school as kids, uphill both ways.

I got an Arabian style head dress in the shops as did my buddy Scott.

Just middle aged people having fun.

It was 1:30 pm by now and we were hungry. The excursion included a buffet lunch at the Marriott in Petra. It was Ramadan here so most eateries were closed as fasting is required during the daytime. It was good with many local dishes I can't even begin to explain.

We had a 2 hr ride home which I thankfully slept through most of. Once back on the ship, a dip in the hot tub, followed by a very light dinner and then another folklorico event. This one, while culturally authentic, wasn't as entertaining as all the other folkloricos. The music (no dancing, no costumes) was chanting vs traditional music. The musicians didn't explain any of it, which was a huge missed opportunity for them and us. They had some different instruments as well which I would have enjoyed hearing about.

Then this blog to close out a fascinating day. We have 2 sea days now as we transit the suez canal. I can't wait. This was a bucket list item too.