Tuesday, April 17, 2018, Petra, Jordan

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On today’s shore excursion from Aqaba, we traveled by bus for 2+ hours to one of the ancient world’s most astonishing sights:  The rock-hewn city of Petra.  One of the new Seven Wonders of the World, Petra is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  Sculpted into cliffs and rocky mounds 3,200 years ago at the height of the prosperous Nabataean culture, it was once a bustling trade center that controlled ancient routes between Arabia and the Mediterranean.  After arriving at the town we set off on foot with our guide to explore, approaching via the half-mile-long narrow siq, a gorge surrounded by towering walls that block out the sun.  At the end of the slim passage, we marveled at the Khaznah, or Treasury, the iconic facade carved into a 130-foot cliff that was featured in the movie, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.  We continued on to view more of Petra, a vast repository of homes, temples, royal tombs, and an amphitheater, all sculpted into the rose-red rock.


Did you know that Petra won the 2nd place on the New 7 Wonders of the World Contest?  The New Seven Wonders of the World is a project that attempts to revive the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World concept with a list of modern wonders.  A popularity poll was organized by the private New 7 Wonders Foundation, with winners announced on July 7th, 2007.   The Swiss-based New 7 Wonders Foundation claims that more than 100 million votes were collected through the Internet or by telephone.

We encourage you to visit http://www.visitpetra.jo to see spectacular pictures, video, and descriptions of the area.  The history is fascinating.

More websites:
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Old Petra tombs.  After use, bones were removed, similar to crypts in New Orleans.







Wadi = valley.
The "pot" in center was burning Frankincense.
Siq = gorge.
Water was/is very scarce.  The troughs were designed to collect every drop possible and channel it down to collecting pools.


Pot holes were spaced out to slow flow of water in the troughs to control it for collection.

Roman street coverings.  They took over a century or two after AD. 
Narrow canyon (siq) to get from current town to the old, original Petra.
Optional carriage rides are available but extremely rough riding.
Alter carved into the siq walls.




Lower half of a camel and lower half of sheppard.





Initial view of the Treasury.

View inside of Treasury; no longer accessible.






Steps for access to the heavens (above).



Lotsa vendors.








Amphitheater.  Enlarged by the Romans after their take over.







 The Royal Tombs.





Liche fruit.
In this extremely dry, arid place even a few plants can grow.




Picture inside the Petra Hilton Hotel where we enjoyed a great lunch.


Tonight we will travel west a few hundred miles so we can visit the temple of Karnak in Luxor, Egypt tomorrow.

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