Jordan — A trip with mixed experiences
It had already been 2.5 yrs since I met my cousin. He moved to Dubai in the year when I moved to UK. So we decided that we should plan somewhere in between to catch up as I didn’t made any plans of going to India. And here we finalized our trip to the place I heard a lot about — Jordan.
I booked my flight tickets with return flights from London at a very competitive price (booking flight on Thursday with return on Tuesday always gives you a good deal). At the same time we bought what is called a Jordan Pass (multiple passes to select from depending upon your need) that allows you to visit multiple places for a combined price. Everyone would need these passes if you want to visit places such as Petra, Wadi Rum, etc. We reached the Amman city airport on Thursday night at the same time & rented a car from Budget cars for 3 days. As it was already very late, we decided to check-in the hotel & have some booze there only.
The next day (Day 2) we drove our way to the first location in Jordan where many of the Hollywood movies were shot (Martian, Indiana Jones, Star Wars, Lawrence of Arabia to name a few) — Wadi Rum. We booked one of the best stays in Wadi Rum (Luxotel camp images above). It took us a total of around 4 hrs (with one halt) to reach there. We parked our car at their checkpoint from where their jeep took us further through the desert into the camp. As we reached during the day time, we booked a desert safari that would take us at different places. Some of best sights to look around. After returning from the Jeep tour, we refreshed in the hotel & went to have dinner. A variety of options to eat from which was really tasty & delightful.
After staying over a night, we left the next day (Day 3) on to our way to Petra. It took us less than 2 hrs to reach. There’s a car parking available for free & the rest of the distance to all the points need to be cover on foot. Petra has 8 main spots to cover during the entire walking journey that lasts for 4hrs. Once you reach the end, one will have to walk down the same path back to the starting point. Don’t fall for the trap of guides coming in asking you to take you to points from where you can take photographs. The paths are pretty much challenging & risky. Ultimately we walk through each sub locations with some stunning views.
After covering Petra, we moved forward (same Day 3) & reached our hotel in Dead Sea by night. The route along the coast of Dead Sea is beautiful. You can book any of the resorts along the coast that has stunning views to the sea. However, we booked a hotel for an overnight stay which was more into the interiors as this was more cheap than the resorts. The next day (Day 4) we went to the beach to have the floating experience on the Dead Sea. There is a public beach available but we wanted a more private option (with less crowd) & hence access the beach through a beach resort. The resort (Dead Sea Resort in our case) provides you access to the beach with facilities of towel & bath. At the beach, I applied some dead sea mud sand on the body & went into the waters. I was literally floating on the sea & did my butterfly flapping thing while swimming. The body floating with minimal of efforts & quietness of the of the sea was so soothing. My mind was relaxed & i wanted to stay afloat. Its important to have a proper shower after coming out of the sea so that you don’t feel the effects of the saline water afterwards. Near the Dead Sea is the the place where Jesus was baptized (Bethany beyond Jordan). However, we were running short of time, so we quickly wrapped up & left for Amman City which was an hour drive. My cousin was supposed to leave today so we directly went to the Amman Citadel. As we walked there, I was feeling low as he was about to leave & I still had few days left in my itinerary. There’s a nice top view of the city from the citadel. We had our lunch in a cafe in the city centre. The first part of the exciting trip soon came to an end & it was the time to bid farewell to him. He dropped me at my hostel in the city centre & went off to the airport to catch his flight.
I had to spend the rest of the 3 days all by myself. This is something I started to enjoy lately (after having my first solo trip to Serbia) This part of the city is really busy & you can find good shops & restaurants to try out some local food. I checked into my hostel & after settling down with my stuff, went onto the roof to sit & relax. It was there that I met a girl from Germany (i’ll call her Candy) that had been travelling solo across different countries. She invited me for the dinner with another friend of her (she was from Romania & had been lately travelling across many islands in the Asia Pacific, lets call her Vandy). We, three of us, went to a restaurant to try their local dish (called Mansaf). We enjoyed our food & soon went back to our hostel.
The next day (Day 5) we went to see the Roman Theatre. The view from the top was splendid. We sat there for a while and could see as if the whole world is in front of us. Sometimes it feels so good to sit somewhere without saying much and observe the city people easily making their way out through the turns and turmoil of their daily lives. Later in the evening, we three of us again went out for dinner at one of the restaurants. After dinner, we both accompanied Vandy to her place as she was about to leave the next morning before heading back to the hostel. Candy & me went onto the roof as we weren’t feeling sleepy. It was after such a long time that I wanted someone to hear me out and she was there to listen. We talked a lot about our experiences. I felt a connection while talking to her. What I liked about her was the way she was leading her life, going places, spending days there to know more about them. I always wanted to travel around the world & see places. For her, every new place was a new home where you can stay and work & do everything all by yourself. If you have the power to watch a movie alone in a cinema, eat alone in a restaurant or travel alone to any destination of the world, you’re a person who can do anything. I never realized that i would really going to miss this part of my trip so much. I wished the night would have stayed longer but then it was late and we went off to our rooms only to realize that I was left with one more day before it all comes to an end.
The next morning (Day 6) we went to have a nice brunch as we woke up late. We decided to go for a city tour after that to observe the street art. It was a 2 hour walking tour accompanied in a group through different streets (called Underground Amman). We were tired & came back to the hotel to spend some time at the roof before I finally leave. When the vacations come to an end, you feel as if something is missing & you start getting anxious about it. It felt as if I was leaving something behind. I booked my cab for the airport (it took 45 mins from Amman city centre) and the cab driver charged me 17 jod (uber costs 20 jod). I bid farewell to her & promised her to stay in touch. I promised her that we will soon plan something together. I will look forward for the day but till then will cherish the moments that i spent in Jordan that brought me some mixed experiences.