Getting up this morning was a little rough, we all had very sore legs from all the walking and hiking from the day before. Hopefully we can find an alternate form of transportation today besides our feet! We saw a lot yesterday but didn't really get to take the time to appreciate all the city has to offer. Petra is by far the oldest and most historic city we've visited so far on our trip. Today we decided it would be good to focus on the rich culture and history of Petra. The city has so much history that it will be difficult to absorb it all in one day, so were getting an early start! We stopped at the government rest house to grab a map and paid 20 dinars, the cost for a one-day ticket for non-Jordanians. Since our legs were so tired from yesterday we hired a couple of the locals to take us on their horse and buggy for the day. We headed down the long path into the city and began to see some of the rich historical sights immediately. We first saw the Obelisk Tomb, according to our map the tomb contains Five graves were found inside the tomb, four represented by pyramid-shaped pillars and the last by a statue between the middle pillars.
As we entered the city we saw the remains of the arch and the two statues of the gods Dushara and al-Uzza which were put there to protect the entrance and hex unwelcome visitors, I hope were welcome! Next we saw the amphitheater, according to our brochure the amphitheater was thought to have been constructed around the time of Christ. We passed by it yesterday but didn't really get to take it all in. The seats weren't all that comfortable but what can you expect from a 2,000 year old amphitheater. I wish i could go back in time and be a member of the audience and see a play put on here, that would be pretty cool. Under the stage there is a room with a marble statue of hercules which was awesome!
The next place we stopped at was the Byzantine church. This was truly an amazing sight. The isles of the church are paved with 70 square meters of remarkably preserved mosaics. These depict native as well as exotic or mythological animals, as well as personification of seasons, ocean, earth and wisdom. According to the brochure the church was thought to be a major fifth and sixth century cathedral. In 1993 a collection of 152 papyrus scrolls were found at the sight, written in Byzantine Greek and possibly late Arabic. This group of scrolls is the largest collection of written material found in Jordan. These are still being deciphered and are giving a wealth of information on the Byzantine period in the area. People are currently working on preservation of the church and its mosaics.
After a long day of sight seeing and history learning it was time to head out of Petra and grab some dinner. We stopped at a local place and we each had a traditional Jordanian meal called makloubat for 10 dinars each. The only recognizable ingredient was chicken, I'm not sure what else was in there. We all thought it was terrible, except for Alison, she loved it and ordered it again.
Most of us are really starting to miss that good American food. We wanted to find something fun at night but since we were in the middle of the desert that was a little difficult. So we just went back for the night and hung out and crashed for the night.
Money Spent : 120 Jordanian Dinars
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