(Jordan), Jerash, Dibon, Petra, Bozrah, Amman

November 3 (11:00 p.m.)

This entry will cover 2 days November 2 and November 3

We left Jerusalem very early on Friday. We met the bus at 6:30. Dr. Paul Wright, President of Jerusalem University College will be with us on this part of the trip. There are 7 of us going on the Jordan extension. We were given our  breakfast on the bus. We had 2 muffins, meat, cheese, pita bread (still warm), boiled egg, yogurt, orange, banana, and can drink. More than enough and I saved some for later. They are taking very good care of us. We headed East out of Jerusalem and turned  North when we reached the Dead Sea area. We crossed into the West Bank and were stopped at this check point. That is the first time we have been stopped. The Israeli soldiers came on the bus and gave us a look over and waved us on through. The West Bank is called the West Bank because it used to be part of Jordan and this part of the country was across the Jordan River on it's West Bank.  Thus, the name, even  though this area is now in the Eastern part of Israel.  We crossed into Jordan at the Sheik Hussein border crossing. That was a really strange experience. We had to get off the bus and leave all our things in it except for our passport; show our passport and exit Israel; find our cleared bus and retrieve our things; get on a shared  bus with our bags; get off that bus and go through security; go through Jordan passport control; have our picture taken and be cleared for entry; meet  our Jordanian tour guide; and get on a smaller bus. Finally, we were underway. There is a lot of Old Testament history here in Jordan. Some examples; in the area of Gilead, where we entered Jordan, the event of Jacob wrestling with the angel,   Absalom getting his long hair caught in the oak tree causing him to be so entangled that his pursuers overtook and killed him,  Elijah was fed by the angel here, and John the Baptist was baptizing near here. Our first stop was Jerash, the best preserved Roman city (outside of Rome). This is a huge place and loaded with history. There are elaborate temples of Zeus and Artemis (aka Diana). An earthquake in 749 AD caused major damage to the city causing many of the structures to collapse or be damaged. However, there is a lot still standing. We ate lunch at the Temple of Artemis restaurant. The food was very good and the bread is made outside in a clay  oven where they throw the dough into the side of the oven where it sticks there and bakes. It was delicious.Then off again and headed South to Petra with one stop on the way at an archeological site in Dibon which was the capital of  ancient Moab. It was in Moab that the story of Ruth and Naomi takes place.  A  shepherd boy came right by us while we were discussing Bible events related to Dibon. He had  his shepherd stick  in hand and lead  his goats and sheep, with bells clanging, right by us. We drove several hours South down the King's Highway and the Desert Highway to Petra. We arrived there around 9p.m. And after a late dinner, went straight to bed.  Up early and after breakfast, we headed to Petra, the city of the Nabeteans. These were desert people who built this great city out of the sandstone rock and controlled the camel caravan travel from the East. The camel caravans carried goods from the Far East to the Mediterranean and had to pass by here on their way. The Nabateans taxed them as they came through and also sold them provisions for the rest of their journey. The Nabateans became very wealthy. They were very smart people and these buildings are evidence of just how extraordinarily smart they were.  Petra was the filming site for the movie Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and this place is truly like something out of  a movie. Words can't describe it adequately. The city went ou of business with the decline of the camel caravans. The citydisappeared  and Petra was lost for about 1,000 years. It was rediscovered in the 1800's.  In 1984, it became a UNESCO protected site and one of the Seven Wonders of the World.  We spent about 6 hours there and left for lunch at a nice local restaurant arranged by our guide. Next, we headed North toward Amman with one stop at Bozrah. There is an archaeological site there that is  thought to be the capital city of  ancient Edom. Edom was the land given to Esau after he sold his birthright to Jacob.  No one has worked on this site for over 30 years but it us hoped that someone will get funding and get working on it again. We made it to Amman around 7p.m. We are staying at a very nice hotel and someone important must be here tonight because we had to go through security before we came into the hotel lobby. I'll keep my eyes out for whomever it is. We had a very nice dinner at the hotel and are now settled into our rooms for  much needed  good night's sleep. Amman is a very big modern city as
opposed to the other places we have been in Jordan.

The colonnade at Jerash

                                                           The Treasury at Petra
                                                      (That's.me with the camels)