progol

Petra, beyond the Treasury

Fare, anyone?


Tomb front and travelers


Tomb front


Street of Facades


Theater


Tombs carved into the hill


Royal tombs section


A small shop with tea - good for a rest after a long walk. And still more to come!


Colonnaded street from Roman times


Passing through the Temenos gateway, separating the commercial part of the city from the sacred


Roman Columns


Roman columns


Roman ruins


Restaurant


Time to go back


Royal Tombs


And more tombs

progol

Petra, day 2
We spent a second day at Petra, this time without a guide. We arrived a bit later and it was busier (no surprises here), so as early as one can get to the site, the more likely you’ll find fewer people. We are not get up and go types, so we accept the trade off.

We started the day at the small museum just outside of the entrance to the ancient site, which we enjoyed a lot.

After going through the Siq, we focused on the area opposite and above the Treasury and theater which have the Royal tombs and other elaborate tomb facades. We really enjoyed exploring this area. As we aren’t able to physically manage longer uphills, this allowed us to have a slightly different perspective and get close to the carvings and really experience the site.

After lunch at the site, we took one of the small motorized vehicles back to the information center, where we met our driver, Samir, and did some shopping in town, before returning to the hotel, where we relaxed and hung out in the small hotel lounge and listened to music performed by the staff. A surprising treat!

progol

Petra, 2

Yes, I do!


Museum artifact


Now who wore it better? Me….


Or him?!?


I think this is it!

progol

Petra, 2
The site


The old-fashioned way of travel


Going through the Siq


Going through the Siq


Love the rock colors and formations


Those tombs are remarkable


Overview


Intrepid traveler pauses to reflect


Overlook


View of the tomb


A walk amongst the tombs


Closeup


Overlooking the theater


The Jordanian flag


Tomb facade


Another traveler posing


And that same traveler is walking the walk!

tripplanner001

Gorgeous photos of Petra, progol. Glad you enjoyed it. It's definitely one of the most memorable places I've been fortunate to visit.

schmerl

Great photos.
It is spectacular in person. When we got to the "reveal" it took my breath away. It was an amazing experience.

progol

Thanks so much, tripplanner and schmerl. I appreciate the nice words.

Petra is an incredible sight, and that “reveal” really is heart stopping. It’s such an incredible experience to walk through the shapeshifting Siq and then have brief sightings of bits of the Treasury until emerging into the open - then wow! It’s quite a sight.

Songdoc

Thanks so much for sharing those fabulous pix. It looks INCREDIBLE. I can hardly believe I will be on my way there 6 months from today. You've got me SO excited!!!

progol

Songdoc, you’ll love the trip, I’m sure! Petra is amazing to see and there’s so much more. We went last October/November - I’d love to go back!

progol

A little plug for our hotel, Petra Elite. A well-run small hotel an out a kilometer uphill from the central area, so not an ideal location. We were here because the popular hotels nearer the site of Petra were fully booked. So I was a bit disappointed when we ended up here. But we really liked the staff as they were especially warm and welcoming which made all the difference. Petra is very popular so if you’re booking hotels, do it as soon as you know your dates! I was surprised that 5 months before we were to travel, the hotels I wanted were full.



The view from our hotel


A warm farewell

progol

Little Petra and more Glorious Landscape After Petra, it’s hard to imagine that we could sustain the thrill, but somehow, it didn’t stop.

After leaving our hotel, we made a stop in Little Petra. Yet another fantastic site - much smaller, but very intimate, and it also has some remarkable facades and carved out caves. It’s thought that this was an agricultural center, trading place and resupply post for camel caravans going to Petra.

There were a few slightly aggressive vendors, and I felt bad, but we didn’t get anything. And then there were the men showing M some “ancient” artifacts, which they unwrapped a cloth discreetly to reveal these precious objects! True? Who knows, but we didn’t bite…or buy.

This is a must-see, even after the dramatic experience of Petra. There are few tourists here and a sense of peacefulness really resonates with us.

progol

Little Petra Siq


Coming through the small Siq


Small temple facade


Temple facade








Caves in the rocks






Stairs to one of the caves


Painted House with rare Nabataean frescoes


Painted House with Nabataean frescoes - closeup


Painted House with Nabataean frescoes - closeup


Little Petra

tripplanner001

Seems like Petra has exploded in popularity. Hotels were widely available and cheap when we visited in 2008. We saw perhaps a few dozen people at the site. Would love to go back to Petra and also get a chance to visit Hegra.

progol

The good news is that people are traveling again; the bad news is that people are traveling again! And, at least from my recent experience, October in Jordan and November in Egypt were very definitely high season, so popular tourist sites were busy. And both these countries have become very popular.

You had me running to Google to look up Hegra - that is a remarkable-looking site, too! It would be interesting to visit it with Petra. Maybe do a best-of Nabataean sites!

Songdoc

Thanks so much for the pix and the info.

I will be there in November. The Petra Elite hotel looks wonderful. I booked the Petra Bubble Hotel in January. The views of the mountains--and the uniqueness of staying in a bubble--sold me.

https://petrabubble.com

progol

Hi, Songdoc,
A few thoughts --- we stayed in a bubble hotel camp in Wadi Rum and it was the only real disappointment of our accommodations in Jordan. Of course, we were in a fairly large camp but I found the experience underwhelming -- more like a motel with tents than an intimate experience with nature. The camp we stayed in has probably been around for a while, and the bubbles were not clear at all, so even looking up to the sky had no advantage. And they are mostly curtained leaving only a small opening at the top -- because otherwise we'd all be giving and getting free shows of far more than any of us want! Maybe the camp you are staying in has much newer tents and the experience will be more pleasant, but I just wanted to share my own experience to give you a different perspective.

I'm not pushing Petra Elite because the location is a bit out of town, but if the first choice hotels are booked, this is a good place to be.

yestravel

Be aware it’s a bit far from Petra. Our driver said it’s also weather dependent. But it looks cool.

Songdoc

Progol: Thank you SO much for the heads-up. I checked the TA reviews, expecting to rebook. But the reviews are fabulous. It sounds like a very different experience from your disappointing one. So I'm sticking with the bubble.

progol

[QUOTE=Songdoc;17460077]Progol: Thank you SO much for the heads-up. I checked the TA reviews, expecting to rebook. But the reviews are fabulous. It sounds like a very different experience from your disappointing one. So I'm sticking with the bubble”

Songdoc- I saw the reviews of your place, too, and it does look great, so I’m glad you’re comfortable with your choice.

I checked the few photos I have and there wasn’t any opening to the sky on our bubbles - there is a covering on top with only a small clear area which is curtained off for privacy. The whole experience was silly.



Bubble camp wide view - it’s beautiful beyond the camp


Bubble camp - I couldn’t understand the purpose of these bubbles if you can’t see the stars at night.


A nearby camp


Entertainment area

Songdoc

I'd be ok with that setting even if I couldn't see the stars from inside. It looks gorgeous! I'm sorry you didn't like it.
At the hotel I booked it looks like the sky is definitely visible from inside the bubble--and I love having a private jacuzzi.
I get to see lots of stars where I live on Kauai.
It is not uncommon for me to see the Milky Way during my evening stroll.