October 12

Breakfast at the hotel before the 9:30 pick-up for a full day at Petra. By day, it's clear what's so fabulous about Petra and why it's regarded as one of the wonders of the world. While the Treasury (which is actually a tomb) is the focal point, what's fabulous about Petra is the beautiful setting and the vastness of the caves (homes), tombs and religious sites constructed by the Arabic, Nabatean, people in the second century BC. The ruins show, Greek and Egyptian and later Roman influences.

There are many visitors and guides can be heard speaking many different languages. It does not seem overly-crowded (at least until the way back in the afternoon), because of the vastness of the site. Suliman does a good job of guiding and, at not quite 29, is impressively in touch with his clients. He came with cough drops for me this morning and, when he heard it was my birthday, arranged for a small gift with my name and the date on it. He is open about his life (at one point he was studying to be a priest in Israel, then worked in Dubai for a couple of years). He married, Maram, who he'd met in first grade, and won over many suitors. They have a seven month old son, Sanad.

We have lunch outdoors at a pleasant, shaded restaurant. We opt not to climb over 800 steps to a monastery and, at Suliman's advice that it is dangerous, did not take a donkey up. This turns out to be a wise decision, as by the time we've walked back, we are hot and tired from our six mile walk.


We return to the room for a nap and shower, then a quite good buffet dinner at the hotel restaurant. Over dinner, we muse about how we'd rank Petra, as compared to the Great Wall and theTaj. We both put the Great wall first, but disagree on what's second. I would choose Petra; Carol the Taj. What an incredible privilege to be able to rank these. We visit some of the shops in the souk at the hotel, but make no purchases. We return to the room to prepare for an early start and a long day tomorrow.