Wonder of the World 3 (cont.): Amazing Jordan - Petra

And finally, our destination.

PETRA.

Our third wonder as a couple, and mr t’s fourth wonder. Sorry, some of you might not know that mr t and I have this promise to each other that we want to see the seven new wonders of the world eversince we got together in India and saw the Taj Mahal (our first wonder) and then when we went to Beijing for the Olympics and climbed the Great Wall (our second wonder).

And like all other great marvels of the world, one has to suffer first before finally seeing that beautiful work of mankind, all 2000 years of it.

So mr t and I went on a hiking trip. Truth be told, it was not really a hiking trip for somebody fit like my husband. For somebody so physically unfit, I was panting like a dog (more on that later).

We walked on a relatively easy 1.5 km paved path starting from bab al siq.siq is the narrow gorge, which resulted from the natural splitting of the mountain, that leads you into Petra.





















And suddenly it was there, peeping.



The most picturesque Jordan site. The Treasury.



It was beautiful. It was red-rose. It was amazing.









And silently, in my mind, I thanked God for giving us the opportunity to be in this place. And on my birthday.

Honestly, I thought that was it.Where Indiana Jones went, etc. etc. Sorry I just have to mention that. Haha. I did not realize there were more sights to see.

So off we went.

From The Street of Facades...







The Theatre...







The Collonaded Street...







The Great Temple...







and Qasr al-Bint...





And then mr t had the brilliant idea to traverse the last area in Petra called The Monastery. The map said it would take 800 steps to go there. So I figured 800 steps.That should be easy.Of course, my foggy mind thought it was 800 steps on a straight path .Uh-oh.Not really. 800 and more steps (!) on an uphill, crooked, craggy, bumpy mountain.













My heart was already racing fast and I was trying so hard to catch my breath.We stopped many times just for me to breathe properly. Mr t was getting worried and he actually wanted to go back. Well, I looked at him and he looked like he was just walking in a park. I wanted to cry, but I really wanted to reach and see this area.

No wonder it’s not as hyped as The Treasury. With the kind of tourists they have(read: elderly), most of them would have heart attacks upon reaching it. So we went.

There were others taking the easy path by riding donkeys, but we thought they looked stupid and we did not trust them enough as there were lots of cliffs just waiting for their next victim.





After an eternity, we reached a bend and there it was. The Monastery. Bigger and (maybe) more magnificent than the Treasury.I heaved a sigh of relief and said it was all worth it. How did the ancient people build this on a rock, I really don’t know.







I think we just spent around ten minutes in that place, then we went down again as the sun was setting and we did not want to get caught up in that mysterious, dangerous, craggy mountain. PLUS I had a spa appointment at 8 p.m.

By this time my legs were almost buckling down, but my spirits was high. We ate our words and decided to ride the donkeys as soon as we reached down. The donkeys took us to the theatre.

We stopped for a few minutes at The Treasury again to take photos as the sun was setting and it looked even more pinkish!







We then took a horse cart ride from to which was fun ‘cos it was so fast.





It was almost six by the time we left Petra.

We were worried that I would miss my appointment since it takes about 2 and a half hours to 3 hours to reach the Dead Sea from Petra.

But that did not stop us from gasping at one of the magnificent sunsets we’ve ever seen (with u2's "elevation" in the background)









So we reached the hotel at around 845 pm and my heart was already heavy. I was tired and I was looking forward to this spa treatment as a birthday treat. The spa’s regulation specifically mentioned that cancellation should be done hours beforehand and that no-show means we still have to pay. Ugh.Double jeopardy. But I told mr t that we should still go and try. It was my birthday after all.

I will not go into details anymore, but the spa receptionists let me in and I went ahead with the Skin Brightening with the Dead Sea Mud Treatment! I was ecstatic. The therapist was male, but I did not care anymore. I was just so happy to do it. If you are in the Dead Sea, it’s almost a sin not to go for a spa. It’s like going to Bangkok without trying the pad thai.Or going to Paris without seeing the Eiffel Tower.



THAT WAS ONE AMAZING TREATMENT.

Mr t was outside the spa reception looking really nice as we were about to go to dinner. I was still in my hiking gear (dugyot, in short) so we went back to our room so I can change.

We went to Il Terrazo, an Italian place where we had this view and these meals:









A perfect ending to a perfect birthday. Thank you, God.

Next: Amman