Wadi Rum and Trying to Leave Jordan

Wooo Hoo………..My best friend is coming across the world to visit with us in Turkey in a couple days. I cannot wait! But first, we have a few more days in Jordan, and are heading to the RUM!  Wadi Rum that is,… with Wadi meaning a valley in the desert. Specifically this wadi is the setting for Lawrence of Arabia. In fact we see the place known as Lawrence’s house which is now mostly a pile of rubble, but regardless this area is (again!) one of the most beautiful places on earth.

Wadi Rum offers fantastic landscapes, little-to-no tourists, and interesting adventure activities that only a desert can dish out. We started our journey in a beat-up old Toyota Land Cruiser and buzzed around through the sand visiting incredible rock formations, giant sand dunes, ancient carvings of the Nabatean people, and the remains of old desert residential dwellings. We stop during the day to roll down huge dunes, go for a number of short hikes and climbs. Our favourite stop is to sit down under a huge rock that our driver makes on a small fire he has built, and sip tea while he takes time to cleanse and pray towards Mecca.

Brendan Takes in Wadi Rum at Sunset

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We had spent time in the desert in Jaisalmer, India also, but the desert scene there was much different, more vast, covered in rolling dunes of creamy white sand, compared to this flatter desert of deep red sand that every so often gives birth to multitude of rock formations. The views from climbing up are just ridiculously beautiful..  At one point there was a rater steep climb up to a rock bridge so I was discouraging the boys from going. Brendan was so disappointed, our driver “Audi” hiked up his long throbe, tucking it into his shorts and lead Brendan straight up. Of course, Bren wass thrilled as he defiantly stood high up on the bridge waving to me. I can’t help but laugh.

During the tour, we stopped by the remains of the home of T.E. Lawrence, author, adventurer and inspiration behind the famous film “Lawrence of Arabia”. In fact the entire movie was shot throughout the Wadi Rum desert, very fitting considering it was the same place he called home. For nearly the past 2000 years, Wadi Rum has been inhabited by the Bedouin people, a large group of nomadic tribesmen who now live scattered through the deserts of Jordan and Saudi Arabia. Their nomadic lifestyles consist mainly of raising goats and moving around the desert during different times of year where they can find the scarce food and water necessary to raise their animals. They live in tents woven from goat’s hair, drink lots of insanely sweet tea, and tattoo their wives faces. While some of their customs are certainly very different from ours, their hospitality and welcoming-nature is legendary throughout the Middle East. The basic premise behind their warmth to strangers is really quite simple: today a guest may visit who needs food and shelter, tomorrow they may be visiting another family who in turn will offer them food and shelter. “Give and thou shall receive”. We have arranged to stay in a traditional  Bedouin camp, with tents made of goat-hair, eating traditional arabian food and listening to bedouin music.

We stay only one night although you could easily explore this desert area for days, but we need to get a move on!  I am too excited to hang for long there, as it is only a day until we meet Beth in Turkey. And, Beth is bringing Jesse and new friend Mike whom we are thrilled to meet. 

We are flying from Amman to Istanbul and the plan was perfect, in that we had booked to arrive in Istanbul the day before Beth et gang. So we arrive at the airport a couple hours early for our for our 11am flight. We walk up to check-in and the attendant with furrowed brow looks at us, looks at the screen, looks at the print out, at the screen,…..finally he says, “Hmmm,…Eet hees a right flight, but plane has gone, 3 hours h-ago… 6am, …but I don’t know why?” and he scoots away holding our ticket info(?)

Apparently, they had changed the time of the flight about 3 weeks prior but failed to let us know. (And we neglected to web check in, a newly adopted practice for us.) Anyway, he comes back saying yes, they had changed the flight, but the carrier, Royal Jordanian, would have notified us. We assure him they did not notify us. He says “sorry”, but provides no further explanation or solution. He then informs us that the next flight tomorrow is full with 8 people wait listed. I am ready to cry. All I keep thinking is that Beth is coming to Turkey and we won’ t be there.   Time to talk to the manager. While waiting for the manager to come, I discover that we are not alone in or missed plane saga. There is another couple, also Canadian, also travelling on the flight who also have a one world ticket and weren’t notified of this change. Thank goodnesss! Misery loves company, so we join forces and approch the manager to plead our case. After volleying arguments back and forth fo some time, we are provided tickets on the following days plane, AND free accommodations at a nearby hotel for the evening. Ah, but what of our meeting with Beth? I check our flight times, and see that we are to arrive in Istanbul 5 minutes before their flight! Perfect. She is thinking we have sent her a car to pick them up, but hopefully we can meet surprise them at the airport. Can’t wait to see them!………did I mention that already?