The morning started at 6am. 6am! That is far too early for backpackers. The bus to Petra left at 6:30am and the awesome staff prepared some breakfast to eat on the go as I jumped in the taxi to the bus station. I was traveling with Hannah who I met in the hostel in Amman.

4 hours later we arrived in Petra. A quick detour to check into the hotel before we were of to explore the ancient city of Petra.

The admission into the site was quite steep (33JD) but I stopped my complaining once I reached the city.

First was the walk down the Siq – a kilometer long canyon which is the entrance to the city. The canyon itself could have been a tourist attraction – huge walls of stone loom overhead as it snakes its way thru the rock. The is the odd old carving remaining in the walls, and there is an old water channel carved into both sides of the road, but nothing hinting at what lies beyond. Horses pulling carriages went back and forth – frequently stopping to try and lure tourists to their services.

I turned a bend and could see the end ahead of me – and thru the gap in the rocks, one of the most famous ancient images – the Petra Treasury.

Made famous by the Indiana Jones movie, the Treasury overwhelms you as you exit from the Siq. As the guide eloquently puts it “no amount of word prose could describe it”. Complete with a couple of camels parked out front, it looms high above. Getting closer to the facade and you really appreciate the sheer size.

After I had soaked in enough of the Treasury – it was time to set off and explore the rest of Petra. The valley zigzagged for some distance, past more facades and past a huge amphitheater – carved right out of the hillside!

As soon as I thought I had reached the end, another huge building would appear in the distance. I climbed on of the hills to get a better view and ended up completely overwhelmed by the amount of caves, temples and tombs.

Everywhere in Petra are the Bedouin – the native nomads of the area. They sell drinks, trinkets and of course donkey and camel rides. “Donkey”, “Taxi” they would yell out. “Bedouin Ferrari” and “air-conditioned” they would follow with, laughing at their own humor.

The other big attraction at Petra is the monastery. You climb more than 800 stairs carved into the mountain side; twisting and turning around boulders and crevasses. Donkeys are passing you as you stop to catch your breath and take a drink – usually with a stereotypical tourist riding on the back taking photos. Once at the top however the monastery is overwhelming. It is even bigger than the Treasury, but you don’t realise the full size of the carved out structure until you walk up to it.

From the top you can also see down into the next valley. Signs to the lookouts are prominent and lead you to one of many little sheds precariously perched above the canyon edge. A few Bedouin will be lying around making little effort to sell you trinkets while they sip on their tea and admire the view.

Late in the day and the sun starts to disappear. My travel buddy Hannah was exhausted and set back to the hotel while I stayed to try get some sunset photos. I heard that the Monastery was the place to be – but I was more than halfway back, so I climbed up the other side of the canyon and watched the sun disappear while sitting on top of one of the many tombs carved in the side of the cliff. From here the view is pretty amazing.

I was exhausted as I headed back thru the Siq to the township – walking past people setting up candles as I went. I enquired to their purpose and was told that there is a night tour of the Siq and Treasury by candle light. That would be awesome – but having been walking all day I was totally exhausted and ready to put my feet up back at the hotel.

While I could have easy spent a few days in Petra more thoroughly exploring the ruins and beautiful canyons – other places lured me away. I slipped out at 6am in the morning, on the road and heading south.

This post is tagged Jordan, Petra