Our accommodations were very comfortable and we are in shade this morning and quite chilly until the sun came over the mountain. I am probable the only person ever to sleep with a CPAP machine here. I schlepped it with me across the border with a battery pack. Funny that no one ever mentions it, except at the Savannah airport. So in the pitch dark I had my trusty little machine blowing air and giving me a good night's sleep.
I got washed in our modern bathroom building with rose colored tiles on the walls and flush toilets in large stalls with toilet paper until it ran out. A nice breakfast was set out with more Bedouin tea, pita, cheeses and jams. Afterwards the French group set off to the visitor center, a two hour walk and their luggage was taken by truck.
It is impossible to measure distance out here as it is so vast. I could see occasional walkers and Bedouins traveling by camel in the distance. I sat on a bench watching the incredible scenery and an occasional bird. There were tiny white flowers blooming in bunches scattered in the red dirt. The mountains and huge rock formations kept changing color as the sun moved across the sky.
We were alone now with the Egyptian cook and the owner of the camp.
We waiting until 10:30 when our guide arrived with a new tire on his truck and two benches set up in the back. A woman from our Petra tour group was with him and she had spent the night in a hotel in Aquaba. We set off on our tour. Jeff and I opted to sit in the back and get the full experience. It was amazing! Unfortunately there was little commentary, but the scenery made up for that.
We made a few stops. First we got to a tent with a parking area and other jeeps and trucks with tourists. We walked down to a cave created by erosion. We climbed up the stone steps and walked in a bit. From here we passed a mountain with a sandy slope on one side. The sands were in four distinct layers, each a different color. So beautiful! Next was the adventure phase as we got to this high sand dune set against a huge rock. I decided to climb it along with our other traveler.
The red sand was very soft and came right up over our shoes and inside. It was a steep incline and we moved to the edge of the rock where we could hold on and pull ourselves up. At the top it was cool with breezes blowing over the summit. The view was great. Jeff and the guide figure it was about nine stories or 30 meters. Across the valley was a huge mountain with a white top. It is the second highest mountain in Jordan. Coming down was much easier than going up. You simply dug in your heels and let gravity do its thing.
Last stop was a spring that supplies drinking water and water for the sheep. There was a hose coming down from the spring which runs all year. A large stone trough was near the bottom for the sheep to drink. They get snow here in the winter and there is a steady, but small water supply. We did not climb up as the people coming down said it was not worth the effort. We did see a large tree which was a unique sight and much needed shade.
Now we went into the village where most of the workers live and a taxi picked us up to return us to the border. We were supposed to get a tour of Aquaba and it lasted about... Oh wait, we just drove through. Fine with us as we were anxious to leave. We walked through the Jordanian customs and to Eretz Israel. Felt so good to be back! The Israeli tour company arranged for a cab to take us to our hotel which was looking really good.
Walked to the schwarma/falafel place for a quick lunch before they closed for Shabbat. Then we took much needed showers and slept. My feet were red from the sand still inside my socks which are also red. At night we drove over to the Tayelet, promenade along the water. All the big tourist hotels are here and one is more overdone than the next.
We strolled and then stopped for a light dinner where we sat on sofas facing the beach. Jeff had a burger and I had a fish stick appetizer which was pretty good fresh fried fish. Jeff made a new best friend. A feral cat with a funny mustache.
We sat a long while enjoying the night air and feeling safe and secure in Israel.
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