Petra, Jordan – “The Rose-Red City”

Known as “The Rose-Red City half as Old As Time.” It is sometimes considered the Eighth Wonder of the World.  Petra is by far one of the most spectacular sites in the Middle East. Archaeologists date its existence to prehistoric times. Only a few local Bedouins and Arab tradesmen knew it until 1812 when a young Swiss explorer rediscovered it.

Mountains with passages and gorges surround it. The Nabateans, who dominated the lands of Jordan during the pre-Roman times, constructed Petra. They half-built and half-carved into solid rock and created a land of dusty pink temples, tombs and elaborate buildings.

Originally, it was a fortress city, which became a wealthy commercial crossroads between Rome, Greece, Assyria, Egypt and Arabia. Much later it was incorporated into the Roman Empire.

Approach can be either by foot, horseback, donkey or camel and/or horse-drawn carriage to the SIQ, a cleft in the rock that narrows to less than 16 feet wide. After winding around one mile, the Siq suddenly opens upon the most impressive of all Petra’s monuments, the Treasury (or Al-Khazneh), carved in the early first century as the tomb of an important Nabataean king.

Carved out of solid rock into the mountain with a dusty pink rock-face, it is awe-inspiring and a most elegant remains of antiquity.

“Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade” featured Harrison Ford on horseback riding through the Siq and coming onto the area in front of the Treasury in 1989.

From the Siq, you will be walking along the pathway gasping over the beauty of multi-colored pink and striated shades on rock formations, and elaborate rock-cut tombs above in the higher levels with intricate carvings intact. All these have survived the ravages of time, earthquakes, and other weather conditions. Of note, one must see the High Place of Sacrifice and the large Roman theater, which could accommodate at least 3,000 people. A walking tour of the area would afford the intrepid traveler more of a photo op than carriage or horse. Comfortable shoes are a necessity.

After soaking in the beauty of the area, the building in the rock itself, and the over-whelming presence of antiquity, I would heartily recommend Petra as a place to visit for several days.