Jordan- Petra

Today, we ventured out early to explore Petra by camel and foot. We stayed literally right across the street from the entrance at the Movenpick Hotel, so we could just walk over and through the entrance gates in the morning- very convenient and there was a big breakfast buffet. I am a breakfast eater, so I was happy. We also left early, so that we could see the façade of the Treasury when the light hits it in the morning.

Petra is an amazing ancient city. Walking through the siq, the mile long long corridor that leads to the Treasury, I saw shrines and rock carvings. We walked alongside a water channel carved into the rocks. Of course, it is truly wonderful, when you come to the end of the siq and see, framed by the rock walls surrounding you, a piece of the Treasury. As I mounted a camel by the Treasury, our camera crew got permission to climb up high on a rock ledge to get the famous angle of the Treasury, a shot from Indiana Jones.

Riding a camel is not easy. Filming riding a camel is even harder. My guide Ibrahim told me about the local legends of hidden treasures inside the Treasury as Greg, our photographer, filmed from atop a third camel. We then led our camels further into Petra towards the ampitheatre.

There is a lot to see in Petra. I could have spent days here hiking around and letting my imagination run wild. We rode our camels towards a small shop where Marguerite van Geldermalsen, author of the book “Married to a Bedouin” happened to be selling her wares today. I was lucky to be able to meet and interview her.

Darley Newman is the host of the Emmy Award-winning Public Television series Equitrekking®, which takes viewers on horseback riding vacations around the world. Equitrekking is broadcast on PBS stations and on international networks in over 30 countries.

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