You know that moment when someone says, "The Middle East" and you think of a person aimlessly wandering the desert on camel? Well, that happened. What they don't tell you is that camels hurt like hell. Boys, I'm truly sorry...jock cups probably should've been on our packing list. 130 of us rode on camels through Wadi Rum, led by local bedouins who didn't understand our Arabic but knew how to say "picture" and "you're from America?"...think they get tourists often? After trying to get comfortable for a half hour I accepted the fact that camels are not comfortable creatures, and enjoyed the absolutely breathtaking view of the Wadi. I also learned some bedouin language, which consists of a bunch of hissing and strange clicking noises that I'm convinced only they are capable of making, and only camels are capable of understanding.
That night we stayed in a bedouin camp, which was more like a motel in the dirt, than a camp. It was fully equipped with cots, showers, toilets, AND TOILET PAPER! A luxury in Jordan. There was a huge buffet and barbecue, followed by dancing and music all night. Our tour guides [a group of 10 attractive, young Jordanians] taught us the Dabke, a traditional Lebanese circle dance, and thoroughly enjoyed watching us fail. Once the lights went out at the camp, they brought out the arghellah [which btw, 90% of Jordanians smoke, and no, it's not weed...google it] while we enjoyed the stars. The next day we left early for Aqaba, which is basically Jordans version of Hawaii. We were taken out on a super nice boat and spent the day snorkeling, swimming, and tanning [or in my case, remaining white], with a staff that waited on you like you were Queen Rania. Sounds rough, right?
That night we stayed in a bedouin camp, which was more like a motel in the dirt, than a camp. It was fully equipped with cots, showers, toilets, AND TOILET PAPER! A luxury in Jordan. There was a huge buffet and barbecue, followed by dancing and music all night. Our tour guides [a group of 10 attractive, young Jordanians] taught us the Dabke, a traditional Lebanese circle dance, and thoroughly enjoyed watching us fail. Once the lights went out at the camp, they brought out the arghellah [which btw, 90% of Jordanians smoke, and no, it's not weed...google it] while we enjoyed the stars. The next day we left early for Aqaba, which is basically Jordans version of Hawaii. We were taken out on a super nice boat and spent the day snorkeling, swimming, and tanning [or in my case, remaining white], with a staff that waited on you like you were Queen Rania. Sounds rough, right?
Back on the bus, we made our way to Petra. That night we stayed in a hotel [again, toilet paper included], with European-style showers that turned our bathroom into a swimming pool and ate the traditional Jordanian dish called Mensaf. Mensaf is by far the funnest food to eat. It's like Kindergarden art class but you're able to eat your creation. The server showed us how to properly roll the chicken, rice, and sauce into a ball like a true Jordanian. I think we got a little to into this experience, because there were a group of Jordanians gathering around our table both praising, and taking pictures of our "art" [aka Mensaf snowman].
Feeling like Queen Rania was short-lived. The next morning, we walked [keyword: walked] to Petra. In 110 degree heat, the best way I can explain Petra is donkeys, heat, rocks, and more rocks. At this point, we were all so exhausted that I would've rather ate the rocks than walk on them. I'm planning on coming back to Petra when its cooler, and I can actually appreciate what I'm looking at. 7 hours later, a group of 4 of us decided we'd rather not have heat stroke, and walked back to the hotel where we crashed on the lobby couches and talked to the guy working at the front desk, who turns out to be a really interesting guy. We got his email and are having coffee with him when he's in Amman next week [a totally normal, non-creepy, encounter to have with a Jordanian].
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السلام عليكم