JORDAN HOLIDAY
23rd February to 26th February 2017
When the thought of doing something during the three days
National and Liberation day weekend came to my mind, the first place I thought
of was Dubai. When I put it up to the
family in the comfort of our living room, two other names came up, Georgia
which is located somewhere between Turkey, Armenia and Russia and quite a hot
destination and the other one being Jordan.
Yesssssss Jordan!!!!!
Having been already on my bucket list for some time, it was
easy selling Jordan to my adventurous family and everyone was unanimous in
wanting to swim in the Dead Sea, exploring Wadi Rum and of course visiting Petra
which is listed as one of the 7 wonders of the modern world.
The next step was doing research on flights, weather, visas,
hotels and sightseeing and we decided that instead of breaking our heads over it we should contact a travel agency in Kuwait
to prepare an itinerary for us, keeping our requirements in mind. I am so very glad we made this decision, as
we were able to get an extremely affordable package through Connel Fernandes, who is a
Business Travel Executive with Jumbo Travels (Tel: 22581609 connel.fernandes@jumbotravels.com.) Connel is a good friend of my friend Everest,
and after exchanging like a hundred emails, flooding him with inquiries, questions and add-ons
which he graciously provided without complaining, we finalized our itinerary as
below:-
23/2/2017 (Thu) Day One – Arrive
in Amman by Royal Jordanian (evening 6:00pm flight from Kuwait) – check into
hotel (3/4 star)
24/2/2017 (Fri) Day Two –
Sightseeing in Amman – day tour pre-arranged to cover important places in
Amman. Travel to Petra in the evening by road. Check into Petra
hotel (4 star) close to monuments.
25/2/ 2017 (Sat) Day Three – Sightseeing in
Petra – day tour pre-arranged – including dinner desert safari to Wadi Rum.
26/2/2017 (Sun) Day Four – Check out of hotel
and travel to Dead Sea. Spend some time at Dead Sea and travel to airport
for late night return flight to Kuwait by Royal Jordanian Airlines.
Cost of the above trip including air fares, transportation
from and to Airport, hotels with breakfast, sightseeing with an English
speaking guide on all days, assistance at airport upon arrival, and sightseeing
tickets, worked out to KD.208/-
(USD.685/-) per head which seemed relatively reasonable and we immediately confirmed
the package.
My friend, Everest (Evra), his wife Larissa, sister in law
Lydia, my daughter’s friend Alzeena and a close friend Bernard (Bernie) from Qatar decided to join us as well and including the
five of us ( my wife Zinia, my daughter Valerie and Amanda and her husband Mikhail)
we were a total of ten in the
traveling party.
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| Our Group |
23/2/2017 (Thu)
Day One
Traveling for the first time on Royal Jordanian, check in at
Kuwait Airport was quick and we were pleasantly surprised on boarding the well
maintained Royal Jordanian aircraft with good legroom, friendly flight
attendants, decent meal and on-board entertainment. The flight to Amman takes about 2 hours and
we arrived right on schedule.
Indian passport holders are eligible for visa on arrival in Jordan provided they carry all the necessary
documents. Visa at the airport costs
JD.40/- but we did not have to buy the visas as we traveled on a tourist
collective visa prepared by our tour agent United Travel Agency www.uta.com.jo in Jordan and it also meant visa
fees were waved off. This is a special
feature Jordan has for guests arriving on tours through their own agents in
Jordan. Also we did not have to stand in
queue for immigration, rather our meet and assist person collected our
Passports and instructed us to go directly to the baggage claims and he did the
immigration formalities on our behalf. After
the mandatory stop at the Amman Duty Free where we could choose from a
reasonable selection of alcohol (of course not like Dubai), we decided to greedily fill our trolleys with
Grey Goose, Chivas, Bacardi , some wines and beers and then breezed through customs without a hitch. As per Jordanian custom regulations, each
person is allowed to carry only 1 liter of alcohol into the Country. Once
outside, we were quickly bundled into a waiting mini bus and driven to our
hotel ‘Belle Vue Amman’ http://www.bellevue-hotels.com/
which is in the heart of the city. Upon arrival at the hotel, we were informed
that dinner was complimentary the first night, courtesy our tour company. While waiting for our meal to be laid out,
they even let us open our duty free booty and enjoy a few ‘one for the way’
shots.
Since it was only about 10:00pm and nobody in the mood to
hit the pillow, we decided to take a walk on Rainbow Street which was just
about 10 minutes walking distance from our hotel and a popular place for locals
and tourists to hang out. Rainbow Street is full of restaurants and
shops and on the weekends it’s the place to be.
Since it was late and most of the restaurants and shops were already closing,
we treated ourselves to some ice-cream and the best knefah (from Nafisa Sweets)
we had ever eaten.
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| Monkeying around on Rainbow Street |
24/2/2017 (Fri) Day Two
We got to meet our guide Ali for the first time today. After a decent breakfast, we assembled in the
lobby and he introduced himself to us as our guide and friend for the rest of our trip. Ali and our group hit it off almost
immediately from the very moment we set eyes on him. A Jordanian national with an excellent
command of the English language, Ali reminded me of Harrison Ford in Indiana
Jones and as he told us later, one of the Indiana Jones movies was in fact
filmed in Al Khazneh in Petra. Six feet
one, medium built and good looking, Ali became such a friend that parting at
Amman Airport while departing Jordan was pretty sentimental for all of us, but
more about that later.
There are two sides to Amman as Ali explained to us, the
modern city and the old town. There are
also the well to do urban Jordanians who live on the hillside (they call it the
Beverley Hills of Amman) and downtown where the poorer class live. Jordan he explained to us is mostly dependent
on tourism, medical facilities, colleges and other service industries. Although an Arab Country, Jordan felt like any
pretty European city, clean and well maintained. Tourism is their mainstay, but as Ali
informed us, after the Arab Spring revolution, it’s only a trickle now and
hurting the economy.
Our first stop was to see the King Abdulla Mosque which is
only a stone throw away from an Orthodox church, and perfectly justifying the
peaceful coexistence of Muslims and other religions in this wonderful
country. Next stop, Amman’s Roman Theatre built in the
2nd century and truly a beautiful landmark. Ali explained how in olden days without the
use of microphones the romans used architecture to echo what was spoken for
audience sitting far away to hear. After
a quick stop at the Jordan Archaeological Museum to see artifacts from
prehistoric times, we trudged to the Amman Citadel. This hilltop location boasted of ancient
civilizations including the Romans and offered a classic and panoramic view of Amman
city.
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| King Abdulla Mosque with church in background |
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| The Roman theater |
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| At the Citadel |
We then got into our mini bus for the journey to the
historical city of Petra which is approximately 230 km from Amman and takes
about 3 hours with a stopover for lunch in between. A word about our chubby and friendly driver
Mohammed who was very accommodating and never got irritated to stop and allow us loo breaks, pit stops for picking up groceries
and local Jordanian Arak. While in the mountains, he even stopped the
bus and watched in amusement as some of us got to touch snow for the very first
time. Being February, the weather was
quite chilly and the snow had just started melting in the mountains making it a sight to behold.
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| snow in the mountains |
We arrived into Petra at around 4:00pm and immediately
checked into Edom Hotel http://www.edomhotelpetra.com/
which is just about five minutes’ walk
away from the Ancient city. Petra is the
most visited tourist attraction in Jordan and considered one of the places in
the world to see before you die. For
dinner, Ali took us to a local restaurant where we got to try the famous
Jordanian dish ‘Mansaf’. Mansaf
is a traditional dish made of lamb cooked in yogurt and served with rice. Needless to say, the dish was delicious with
the restaurant owner himself waiting on us and explaining the history and the
etiquette of eating it. The meat was
soft, tender and falling off the bone and served on a large tray with everyone
sharing from it. The restaurant owner
explained to us that it is the national dish of Jordan and served at all
important events and functions.
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| Mansaf Dinner |
After dinner, we spend some time shopping for gifts in the little souvenir shops that dot the
area and after a night cap, settled in for the night expectantly looking
forward to the next day when we would finally see the Khazneh (Treasury) and
the unique rock formations leading to
it.
25/2/2017 (Sat) Day Three
Everyone was up early, as Ali had informed us the previous
evening that visiting the Khazneh involved a lot of walking and the earlier we
left, the better it would be to beat the sun.
Since our trip cost included tickets to all important sites, entry was
quick and we had a choice of either riding a donkey to the site or
walking. We preferred the latter, not
only to take in the views, but out of
respect for the donkeys as well.
The entrance to the ancient city of Petra is an
awe-inspiring, jaw dropping experience that none of us will ever forget. The place has to be seen to be believed, and
with Ali giving us a full running commentary, the 40 minutes’ walk through the
narrow gorge, flanked on either side by huge soaring cliffs (known as the Siq)
was truly breath taking. Petra he
informed us was an important stop over for the silk, spice and other trade
routes that linked China, India and other European countries and the civilization
was over 2000 years old. The Khazneh
(Treasury) itself is a huge red/pink architectural wonder that has been carved
from a single rock and one can keep gazing at this monument in awe. Other interesting sights here were the tombs
in the rocks, the roman style theatre, obelisks, temples and sacrificial
alters. There is also a Monastery which
the younger members in our group ventured as it meant climbing about 800 steps.
The walk back to the entrance (starting point) can be quite
tiring, but we had the choice of either taking a horse chariot or riding a
donkey for a small fee. The weather
being quite pleasant, we decided to walk back.
For anyone planning a trip to Petra between May and August, the summer
heat may not be as forgiving. Tired, we
stopped by a local restaurant close to our hotel for a light afternoon meal as
Ali had specifically instructed us to remain starved for the grand buffet
dinner at Wadi Rum which we would be traveling to in the evening.
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| Lunch at Sand Stone Restaurant |
If you have seen the movie ‘Lawrence of Arabia’ or the recently released ‘The Martian’ The movie was filmed almost entirely in
Wadi Rum depicting the great landscape of this magnificent valley as the
surface of Mars with its classic
red cliffs and vast deserts. The drive
from Petra to Wadi Rum takes about one and half hour (105km) and as part
of our tour itinerary we had a dinner reservation at the Sun City Camp www.suncitycamp.com
which
is located in the heart of the Valley and surrounded with majestic sandstone
and granite mountain carvings. We arrived
there at 6:00pm and the highlight of the evening was a Bedouin dinner of rice,
lamb, chicken and vegetables cooked in an underground oven . The ceremony of unearthing the sand covered
oven and getting the first whiff of tenderly cooked lamb was something we will
never forget. After dinner we spent a
couple of hours under the stars having Arabic coffee and shisha, and then it
was back to the hotel.
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| Dinner at Sun City Camp , Wadi Rum |
26/2/2017 (Sun) Day Four
Today we got up feeling sad and excited, sad that it was our
last day in Jordan, but excited that we will be visiting the Dead Sea before
leaving for the airport. The previous evening while googling the route to the dead sea from Petra which is approximately 137 km (about 2 hours
journey) I noticed that the baptism site of Jesus was only about 18km from the
dead sea and immediately discussed with
Ali and Mohammed if they would be able to take a diversion for us to visit this
important site in our religion. Since it
was not originally included in our itinerary, Ali said he would check with the
Tour Company and advise us the additional cost the next day. The first thing Ali informed us after we met
him in the lobby after breakfast was that the Tour Company had given the go
ahead for the detour to Baptismal site and the good news was that it would not
cost us anything extra. This we found
was something extraordinary and it was an experience we felt during the entire
trip. Nobody ever tried to fleece us, be
it at the hotels we stayed, the restaurants we ate at or the souvenir
shops. Ali had further good news for
us that we could have a buffet lunch at the Holiday Inn Dead Sea Resort where
we were to spend the afternoon as day guests, for just an additional sum of
USD.8/- per head, which we immediately agreed to.
We left at 9:00am sharp for the Baptismal site and Dead Sea
and on our way passed through wonderful Jordanian countryside with pretty picturesque
landscapes, vast valleys and scattered little homes dotting the road on either
side but hardly any crowded towns.
A deep sense of peace and quiet greeted us as we passed
through the Jordanian checkpoint to enter the Baptismal site. After getting our entry tickets, and as we
trudged through the sand and mud cobbled pathway, we realized that we were
actually walking through the land Jesus walked and was baptized. New churches and the ruins of old ones
greeted us, demonstrating how every sect of Christianity wanted to make their
presence felt here. The baptismal site
itself is a little spring with the River Jordan having changed its course over
the years and we spent some quality time here reminiscing and praying. The river Jordan itself felt a little
disappointing as we had imagined it to be a large flowing river, but what it
actually is a little rivulet with Jordan on the east side and Israel on
opposite. It was strange to see Jordan
and Israel divided by a little river and tourists from this side of the river
greeting Israelis on the other. The visit
to the baptismal site is indeed a moving experience, not to be missed when
planning your tour of Jordan.
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| the place where Jesus was baptized |
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| Dipping our feet in the river Jordan |
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| The other side is israel |
We then continued our journey to the Holiday Inn Dead Sea Resort,
www.holidayinnresorts.com/DeadSea which was about 20 minutes away. As day guests at the hotel, our itinerary
included use of their facilities including changing rooms,
towels , pool and a private dead sea swimming area. Since it was already around 1:30pm we decided
to have lunch first before venturing into the sea. All the
staff at the resort were friendly and welcoming and even assisted us with the
mud body mask. The Dead Sea our guide
explained to us is different from other seas due to its high concentrations of
salts and minerals and it is known to have numerous health benefits. Floating in the Dead Sea is a unique
experience owing to the fact that it’s impossible to sink. Being February the water was very cold, but
none of us wanted to miss this once in a lifetime experience. As per the hotel staff recommendations, one
has to spend 10 minutes in the water, than cover yourself in mud and stay out of the water until it
dries and then wash off for another 10 minutes.
The water is so salty, that if it gets in your eyes, they will burn.
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| floating in the Dead Sea |
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| glorious sunset in the dead sea |
Since our return flight to Kuwait was at 10pm in the night,
we spent the rest of our time relaxing by the beautiful hotel pool overlooking
the Dead Sea, and enjoyed one of the
most beautiful sunset, and as it slowly got dark and we realized it was
time to leave.
The distance from the Dead Sea to Queen Alia airport was
about 52 km and we covered it in about 40 minutes. Saying goodbye to our new friends Mohammed
the driver and Ali our guide was not easy.
Somehow during the three days we spent in their company, we all had
become close, sharing jokes, family
life, discussing politics, religion, and just bonding. Ali too shared the same sentiments, and felt
that ours was a unique family group he handled as a guide in his many years as
a tour facilitator.
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| Farewell time... with Ali and Mohammad (second from right) |
Yes indeed, ours was a special group. When Evra, his wife Larissa and her sister
Lydia first decided to join us, we were not sure how things would work out as
although they are good friends, we had never done an overseas trip together. However, things just worked out perfect, and the
group jelled right from the word go. Evra,
was of course our man Friday, taking care of all the little nitty gritty
requirements, preparing the mixes we enjoyed in the hotel and bus, cracking the
silliest of jokes and keeping everyone entertained throughout the trip. During the long journeys from Amman to Petra,
Wadi Rum and the Dead Sea, he made sure the refills kept coming to keep us in
high spirits. Larissa his wife, is such
an unassuming person, and was game for whatever we wanted to do. Lydia was our part time navigator, and although
not a chatter box, she was great company.
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| Lydia |
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| Evra and Larissa |
When Amanda told me that her friend Alzeena would also like
to join us on the trip, I was a bit apprehensive as she is such a fun and witty
person but would she be able to keep up with the early morning schedules? Well, she did keep up and was super company,
keeping us entertained with her wit and constant badgering with our driver
Mohammad.
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| Alzeena (right.. duh) |
Last but not the least, Bernie our friend from Qatar who has
been with us on numerous adventures before, is a gem of a person. Kind, friendly and patient, he is game for
any adventure, and was our live entertainer during the entire trip. His rendition of ‘I did it my way’
echoing in the Siq at Petra amidst the gorge still gives me Goosebumps.
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| Captain Bernie |
Over the years I have traveled to many parts of the world
and have had some wonderful holidays, and I can confidently say, the trip to
Jordan is right up there among the best.
As the words of the song Bernie sang in the Petra Valley
still ring in my ear…
I planned each charted course
Each careful step along the byway
And more, much more than this
I did it mmmyyyyyyyy way.
Julio Cardoso
Kuwait
Tel: 00965 99519439
