Lost in Jordan
I once believed I would never visit the Middle East alone. My dream of seeing the Seven New Wonders of the World, however, ultimately triumphed over my fear of the region's "war-torn" reputation. Propaganda is a powerful tool, and the more I travel solo, the more my own biases fall away. Getting out, talking to people, and listening to their stories has broadened my perspective in ways I never expected.
Last year, my journey took me to Jordan. For the most part, I felt incredibly safe, with one exception. While having dinner one night with a man from Ireland, the streets suddenly erupted. People were yelling, horns blared, and what sounded like bombs went off every few seconds. I froze, not knowing what to think, until a few moments later we were informed of the cause, Jordan had just won the semi-finals in soccer! It was the first time they had made it to the finals, and the city was celebrating.
The next morning, Ben (the Irish gentleman who let me hitchhike with him) and I headed for Petra. The whole reason for my trip. Ben, having done more research than I had, wanted to hike in through the "backdoor," a route that takes a few hours through the desert. The path would lead us past homes built right into the sandstone. Since I had done no research of my own, I was happy to go along with his plan. According to Google, we just had to follow a trail of stacked rocks to find our way.
At first, I felt a little uneasy, and that feeling grew until I was certain we were headed in the wrong direction. We had walked three hours into the desert, completely off course. By then, I was out of water, and the lunches we had paid for hadn't been made because of the previous night's celebrations. Despite our predicament, our moods were high. We stumbled upon a dead goat Ben nearly threw up and I could not contain my laughter.
I was yodelling into the wind when someone yelled back at me. Following the sound, we came upon a homestead, or rather, a camp in the middle of nowhere. There were dogs, chickens, goats, and a man with several wives. The man, however, was not happy. It turned out that thirty minutes earlier, we had met one of his wives, and Ben had insulted her by refusing her offer of tea. The man was very clear that his wife was upset.
As we looked around the property, we noticed a beat-up truck that looked fifty years old and on its last leg. Seeing it gave us hope that we could get back to our starting point without another grueling hike. Ben asked the man to drive us, and after some reluctance, he named his price. We negotiated it down slightly, but it still cost us about $80 Canadian dollars.
We got in the truck and bumped along, blindly trusting this man who had been arguing with us just moments before. Our driver, who told us he had five wives, soon became stressed again. He kept telling us to "nap," and we had no idea what he meant until he explained, with some frustration, that he wasn't allowed to drive tourists back to the centre. We had to hide under jackets in the back to protect him from tour sellers.
We finally got close enough to sneak out. I gave him my sunglasses to give to the wife we had offended, and we said our goodbyes.
Our new plan was to stop back at the hostel and then head to the main entrance of Petra. With only an hour or two before closing, we hoped to make it in time. This approach felt right there were people, a clear path, and horses. After a short walk, I saw my fourth Wonder of the New World. I truly worked for the view, but I wouldn't change a thing. Jordan is a wonderful country with an incredible history, friendly people, and a consistent feeling of safety.
On a side note, I later spent my birthday camping in the desert in a large tent tent. Ben had already left for the capital, so it was just me and the owner of the camp and his sidekick. He was amazing and gave me a beautiful toque for my birthday. I honestly have nothing bad to say about the entire experience.
Notes for next time:
Get the Jordan Pass.
The food is awesome, but Mansaf is not my thing.
The people are kind.
Spend more days in the desert.
