I've had a VERY lazy week here in Aqaba, but in my defence it is the perfect place in Jordan for a bit of rest and relaxation. It's balmy weather and location on the coast of the Red Sea ensure that locals and tourists alike spend many an hour swimmimg, snorkeling and strolling along its palm tree lined main street by the sea.
The beaches are no where near Australian standards, but in Aqaba when you are swimmimg you are within 20km of the coasts of four different countries: Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Israel and Egypt - so it definitely has its own charm. The dirt beaches are filled with families sitting on persian rugs and the footpath by the coast is lined by about a million stalls selling the same yellow blow up rings with a ducks head called the "floating quacker". I'm not sure how the makers of the "floating quacker" cornered the market but I'm seriously considering giving up teaching and starting an import business specialising in bringing the wonder of the pool pony to Jordan!
The balmy weather means that Aqaba has more of an outdoor vibe and in some ways it reminds me a lot of Darwin. More people relaxing outside has meant more interest from the locals for me than I had in Amman. Men everywhere saying "Hello, where are you from?" and after I reply with "Australia" I get a smile and then "Welcome! Welcome!". The younger men then follow up by asking me what my name is - and this is usually where the exchange comes undone. It turns out my name is not very common in Jordan and the locals find it near impossible to pronounce. I had to give my name to the guy at the bus ticket office the other night and after hearing it he asked me to spell it for him. I did spell it very slowly for him but my ticket for Amman now reads: bernidewte - so in future I think it will be safer for me to just hand over my passport. The other wonderful by-product of no one being able to pronounce my name is that they choose to identify me by my nationality instead. As I've now been here a week, some of the locals recognise me and, trying to be friendly, frequently yell "Australian Girl! Welcome! Welcome!" everytime I walk by.
After hearing its praises sung by almost every traveller I've met, not to mention every local I've spoken to on a bus as well as the family I hitched a ride back from the beach with, I finally decided I had to blow the budget and go to see Wadi Rum. The cheapest way for me to see it was to do a 1 day jeep tour with an overnight stay in a bedouin campsite - and given that the weather turned freezing and rainy today I'm very glad that I saw the spectacular scenery of the desert yesterday.
Wadi Rum really does have to be seen to be believed. The family I hitched with in Aqaba described it well when they said it is "beautiful - but scary, because it is so quiet". I didn't find it scary, but there were certainly times when I felt the heavy silence of its lunar-like landscape unsettling.
As you drive along the soft red sand, huge sandstone and granite landforms seem to grow before you. We came across camels, other jeeps and local bedouin herding sheep but for much of the day there was not another soul as far as the eye could see. I clambered over boulders in small siqs and slid down huge red sand dunes but by far my favourite sight were the desert flowers that I was lucky enough to see. They are only around for about 2 weeks of the year and there is something breath taking about walking past boulders in an orange, bare, arid landscape and suddenly coming across a carpet of tiny puple flowers. Just magic!
There was no one else wanting to book a one day jeep tour with Jordan Tracks yesterday so I had to pay a bit more and have a jeep and guide all to myself. The downside of this was that I didn't get to chat to other travellers, but this was quickly remedied with the communal dinner at the campsite last night. The upside was that I got the front seat of the Jeep and managed to strike up an interesting deal with my 21 year old Bedouin guide Attala.
As Attala and I chatted he asked me where else in Jordan I had been to and as I began to list the many sights I'd seen in his lovely country he interjected by asking, "Did you swim in the Dead Sea?". When I replied that I had, he said that he didn't know how to swim but would like to learn. I explained that in Australia because most people live near the coast most people know how to swim and children even do 2 weeks of swimming lessons each year at school. By this stage Attala knew what my profession was and he then exclaimed with much excitement "you can teach me how to swim!". I pointed out that the lack of water would make it quite tricky - but he insisted that I could still give him some tips to try out next time he was in Aqaba. I wasn't really taking him seriously until he said, "You teach me how to swim and I'll teach you how to drive the jeep".
I told him that I already knew how to drive - but that I would love a go at the wheel here in the desert. Attala said that normally he wasn't allowed to let tourists drive, but that because I was on my own he would give me a go because "It doesn't matter if you break just my legs!".
So high on a red sand dune I did my best to teach Attala how to master a "star float", straight leg kicking and the "bubbles and breathing" teachnique. Who could of guessed that those weeks I spent in Canterbury pool with the goldfish group would come in so handy in Jordan?
When we returned to the jeep, Attala said it was my turn to drive. As I jumped excitedly down from my seat and made my way around to the driver's side - Attala looked puzzled. He then said "No, no, next to me" and indicated that he wanted me to slide in close next to him. It was clear that Attala had planned to control the pedals and just wanted me in close so that I could do the steering and he would have his hands free to "help me". I laughed at his plan and insisted that I wanted to do the driving all by myself. He hopped out but pointed to the pedals and said "it is too difficult, see?". He seemed truly shocked that I knew what each of the pedals was for (he didn't know the word accelerator - but seemed relieved when I assured him that I knew it made the jeep go fast).
So Attala reluctantly gave up the driver's seat and I set off. It was soon apparent that the bedouin did not invest a great deal of time in vehicle maintenance as the direction and amount you turned the steering wheel bore little resemblance to where the jeep actually went. Having said that, it was heaps of fun driving along the desert tracks and down small sandhills. When I grew tired and said to Attala that it was his turn again - I discovered that the breaks that he had given the helpful advice on "you have to hit 2 times" actually didn't really work at all. Thankfully by the time I'd pumped the break about 12 times we had just rolled to a gentle stop in the sand!
The campsite I stayed in had running water and decent toilets but no electricity, so I was very glad I had a head torch with me. It came in handy as I stumbled through the sand after dinner, cloaked in inky darkess and trying to remember which of the 8 or so identical tents was mine. The candle-lit communal dinner last night was wonderful with good company, delicious bedouin cuisine and great entertainment from the local singers and lute player. The bedouin goat hair tent I spent the night in was more like a small raised hut. I was very glad I had the tent, which had mattresses for 3, all to myself because I needed all 6 of the blankets provided during the freezing night. Throwing open the wooden window hatch this morning though and seeing the pink sand dunes and imposing sandstone cliffs through the still morning light certainly made the arctic night worth it.
All in all, Wadi Rum surpassed its glowing reviews and I was very glad I blew the budget to experience it. Tomorrow I head back to Amman with plans for a quick day trip to Jerash before I say goodbye to Jordan and head to Syria. Can't wait!
The beaches are no where near Australian standards, but in Aqaba when you are swimmimg you are within 20km of the coasts of four different countries: Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Israel and Egypt - so it definitely has its own charm. The dirt beaches are filled with families sitting on persian rugs and the footpath by the coast is lined by about a million stalls selling the same yellow blow up rings with a ducks head called the "floating quacker". I'm not sure how the makers of the "floating quacker" cornered the market but I'm seriously considering giving up teaching and starting an import business specialising in bringing the wonder of the pool pony to Jordan!
The balmy weather means that Aqaba has more of an outdoor vibe and in some ways it reminds me a lot of Darwin. More people relaxing outside has meant more interest from the locals for me than I had in Amman. Men everywhere saying "Hello, where are you from?" and after I reply with "Australia" I get a smile and then "Welcome! Welcome!". The younger men then follow up by asking me what my name is - and this is usually where the exchange comes undone. It turns out my name is not very common in Jordan and the locals find it near impossible to pronounce. I had to give my name to the guy at the bus ticket office the other night and after hearing it he asked me to spell it for him. I did spell it very slowly for him but my ticket for Amman now reads: bernidewte - so in future I think it will be safer for me to just hand over my passport. The other wonderful by-product of no one being able to pronounce my name is that they choose to identify me by my nationality instead. As I've now been here a week, some of the locals recognise me and, trying to be friendly, frequently yell "Australian Girl! Welcome! Welcome!" everytime I walk by.
After hearing its praises sung by almost every traveller I've met, not to mention every local I've spoken to on a bus as well as the family I hitched a ride back from the beach with, I finally decided I had to blow the budget and go to see Wadi Rum. The cheapest way for me to see it was to do a 1 day jeep tour with an overnight stay in a bedouin campsite - and given that the weather turned freezing and rainy today I'm very glad that I saw the spectacular scenery of the desert yesterday.
Wadi Rum really does have to be seen to be believed. The family I hitched with in Aqaba described it well when they said it is "beautiful - but scary, because it is so quiet". I didn't find it scary, but there were certainly times when I felt the heavy silence of its lunar-like landscape unsettling.
As you drive along the soft red sand, huge sandstone and granite landforms seem to grow before you. We came across camels, other jeeps and local bedouin herding sheep but for much of the day there was not another soul as far as the eye could see. I clambered over boulders in small siqs and slid down huge red sand dunes but by far my favourite sight were the desert flowers that I was lucky enough to see. They are only around for about 2 weeks of the year and there is something breath taking about walking past boulders in an orange, bare, arid landscape and suddenly coming across a carpet of tiny puple flowers. Just magic!
There was no one else wanting to book a one day jeep tour with Jordan Tracks yesterday so I had to pay a bit more and have a jeep and guide all to myself. The downside of this was that I didn't get to chat to other travellers, but this was quickly remedied with the communal dinner at the campsite last night. The upside was that I got the front seat of the Jeep and managed to strike up an interesting deal with my 21 year old Bedouin guide Attala.
As Attala and I chatted he asked me where else in Jordan I had been to and as I began to list the many sights I'd seen in his lovely country he interjected by asking, "Did you swim in the Dead Sea?". When I replied that I had, he said that he didn't know how to swim but would like to learn. I explained that in Australia because most people live near the coast most people know how to swim and children even do 2 weeks of swimming lessons each year at school. By this stage Attala knew what my profession was and he then exclaimed with much excitement "you can teach me how to swim!". I pointed out that the lack of water would make it quite tricky - but he insisted that I could still give him some tips to try out next time he was in Aqaba. I wasn't really taking him seriously until he said, "You teach me how to swim and I'll teach you how to drive the jeep".
I told him that I already knew how to drive - but that I would love a go at the wheel here in the desert. Attala said that normally he wasn't allowed to let tourists drive, but that because I was on my own he would give me a go because "It doesn't matter if you break just my legs!".
So high on a red sand dune I did my best to teach Attala how to master a "star float", straight leg kicking and the "bubbles and breathing" teachnique. Who could of guessed that those weeks I spent in Canterbury pool with the goldfish group would come in so handy in Jordan?
When we returned to the jeep, Attala said it was my turn to drive. As I jumped excitedly down from my seat and made my way around to the driver's side - Attala looked puzzled. He then said "No, no, next to me" and indicated that he wanted me to slide in close next to him. It was clear that Attala had planned to control the pedals and just wanted me in close so that I could do the steering and he would have his hands free to "help me". I laughed at his plan and insisted that I wanted to do the driving all by myself. He hopped out but pointed to the pedals and said "it is too difficult, see?". He seemed truly shocked that I knew what each of the pedals was for (he didn't know the word accelerator - but seemed relieved when I assured him that I knew it made the jeep go fast).
So Attala reluctantly gave up the driver's seat and I set off. It was soon apparent that the bedouin did not invest a great deal of time in vehicle maintenance as the direction and amount you turned the steering wheel bore little resemblance to where the jeep actually went. Having said that, it was heaps of fun driving along the desert tracks and down small sandhills. When I grew tired and said to Attala that it was his turn again - I discovered that the breaks that he had given the helpful advice on "you have to hit 2 times" actually didn't really work at all. Thankfully by the time I'd pumped the break about 12 times we had just rolled to a gentle stop in the sand!
The campsite I stayed in had running water and decent toilets but no electricity, so I was very glad I had a head torch with me. It came in handy as I stumbled through the sand after dinner, cloaked in inky darkess and trying to remember which of the 8 or so identical tents was mine. The candle-lit communal dinner last night was wonderful with good company, delicious bedouin cuisine and great entertainment from the local singers and lute player. The bedouin goat hair tent I spent the night in was more like a small raised hut. I was very glad I had the tent, which had mattresses for 3, all to myself because I needed all 6 of the blankets provided during the freezing night. Throwing open the wooden window hatch this morning though and seeing the pink sand dunes and imposing sandstone cliffs through the still morning light certainly made the arctic night worth it.
All in all, Wadi Rum surpassed its glowing reviews and I was very glad I blew the budget to experience it. Tomorrow I head back to Amman with plans for a quick day trip to Jerash before I say goodbye to Jordan and head to Syria. Can't wait!
You saw purple flowers in Wadi Rum? I saw white spire flowers in late September just at the end of the dry season. I found the desert in Wadi Rum incredibly beautiful, compared to the desert in Dubai.
ReplyDeleteBTW, I'm really enjoying your blog entries as I've travelled to Jordan, Syria and Lebanon and I'm enjoying your perspective. You're also making me want to go back and see more, insh'allah when things have calmed down in the middle east :)