The dead sea

It was raining so hard, we only got out long enough to take these photos. The Jordanians are trying to develop this area by building fancy resort hotels. Other than that there is nothing else. Israel is just across over the other side.

A rainy day

This happened to be the rainy months in Jordan. The sun was shining that morning and I discarded my umbrella but as soon as we were a few yards away from the hotel, it started to rain and did not abate at all the whole day. We went around Madaba in the rain. The great thing about this hotel which was in the old part of Amman is, besides being dirt cheap, they have tours to any place. Their staff has their own cars and are able to take you anywhere you want to go. The charge is pretty nominal. We hired this guy for the whole day to take us to Madaba. Food is quite cheap too. We had lunch in Madaba standing in the rain.

More excavation

Jordan is also called 'the other Holy Land'. It, together with Israel form the land given to Abraham and his descendants as written in the Bible. After the death of Jesus, His followers began to scatter because of persecution. They went to Asia Minor which is today's Turkey and a lot of places in Turkey has historical significance in the Christian Bible.

St Mary, excavation

Excavation is going on..... It's amazing to see so many churches in this little town. Some of the beautiful mosaics are still on the floor. Madaba is also called the city of mosaics.

St Mary

Madaba was an important and thriving city in the days of the Byzantine empire. There were numerous churches in this small town, only St George which was rebuilt is in use. The rest including St Mary is in ruins. Excavation is going on in dribs and drabs, this being a muslim country and there is probably little funding to keep excavating. What survived of the beautiful mosaics is on display.

The map museum

Growing up in North Borneo, we had the good fortune of having all kinds of people from all over the world come and teach us and rule over us. The British were the government, our teachers came from Southern India, we had our local natives, we were of Chinese descent, our ancestors were from South China.... the lists goes on. This meant that we need to know where in the Atlas these countries were and what kind of cultures were there. This was good fortune because it caused us to look outside of our little corner of the world. Unlike people in the USA who are so self sufficient and insular, they have no clue where most places are in the world. Even though there might be conflicts in some of these places, still they have no clue and are not interested. I think it is for this reason many do not travel abroad. I work with people who wouldn't touch food they are not familar with. This is a sad situation. I have always embraced the world and probably for this reason I have wanderlust. I have pretended that I was born on Wednesday because Wednesday's child has far to go! Seeing a cartography museum was exciting. The Madaba map is so amazing. I guess only a lover of maps would find this to be so.

the Madaba map

Found on the floor of the church of St George is this mosaic map of the Holy Land especially of Jerusalem. The time it was constructed was the sixth century. Most of it survived, some parts are missing. Simply called 'the map' or 'the Madaba map', it is about the oldest surviving map of any form. The detail is just amazing. I came away with wonder and awe as I do with most antiquity that I have seen. In the olden days there are people whose job it is to map the world. Now all we need is are satellites and Google earth. Cartography sure has gotten easier.

Madaba, Jordan

Though it was sttled since Nabataean times, its most important days was when it was an important Byzantine city. Byzantine churches abound and even till today about 15 Byzantine churches exists in Madaba. During Byzantine times it was renown for its mosaics, it is also called 'the city of mosaics. The most important piece of mosaic was found on the floor of St George church.

more bedouins

On the way down we met some bedouin children. Their family run this ramshackle souvenir store. The official word is they go to school. I don't think so but as they grow up they pick up languages from the tourists. Most of them speak incredible English.

Continuing downwards

I'm still amazed that we didn't get lost. The signage was poor and the steps cut into the rock were shallow in some places. In other places it was quite impassable because of debri. But we made it down. This was actually the way up in the olden days as pilgrims climb to the high place of sacrifice. What a beautiful and amazing place, Petra is. I'm so glad I came.

the colored triclinium

There's more to see as we ventured down from the high place of sacrifice. This was our last few hours in Petra. We were almost at the bottom of the valley and soon would be returning to the entrance. The trip was indescrible, seeing pictures of Petra all these years and then finally to set foot in it is surreal. What can I say? But onward and forward...there are other places to be explored.

the soldier tomb

Tomb of the Roman soldier.... just across from the garden tomb. It has three niches that house the figures of three Roman soldiers. We didn't go inside but I read that the whole interior has been blackened by the soot of fires lit by bedouins seeking shelter, an unintended consequence.