LOST CITY OF PETRA, JORDAN - andresalvador's Photos- powered by SmugMug

andre' salvador
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Petra (from "petra", rock in Greek; Arabic: Al-Butrā) is an archaeological site in Jordan, lying in a basin among the mountains which form the eastern flank of Arabah (Wadi Araba), the large valley running from the Dead Sea to the Gulf of Aqaba. It is famous for having many stone structures carved into the rock. The long-hidden site was revealed to the Western world by the Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt in 1812. It was famously described as "a rose-red city half as old as time" in a Newdigate prize-winning sonnet by John William Burgon. Petra, remained accessible only to Europeans, accompanied by local guides and with armed escorts, until after World War I. Rekem is an ancient name for Petra and appears in Dead Sea scrolls.

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andresalvador > When visiting Petra, the bus stops at the point where there is a Tourist Center and bus parkings. From there you either rent a horse buggy as shown above for the approximately 6 kilometer distance to the Lost City of Petra.

andresalvador > This was taken while I was riding the horse buggy. There is only one way to go to Petra, and that is to go through the Sig, a fissure on the mountain rocks. There are lights strung through the fissure so you can see because very little sunlight actually makes it to the ground.

andresalvador > This was taken prior to the Sig or the mountain pass.

andresalvador > If you do not want to take a horse buggy you may rent a camel for a more leisurely pace in going through the mountain pass.

andresalvador > There are plenty of camels around for rent.

andresalvador > If you do not want to ride a horse buggy or ride a camel you may just walk the approximately 6 kilometers to Petra. The road is dusty and rocky. Bear in mind also that once in Petra you will be walking all over the ruins and hiking up the hills if you want to see some ruins of temples carved out of the top of the hills.

andresalvador > The Sig is a narrow pass. The width varies from 6 feet to about 12 feet. You see nothing but pinkish limestone rock walls. The light coming from the top makes beautiful photo opportunities as the light plays on the sandstone layers.

andresalvador > I took a horse buggy going into the ruins of Petra and walked my way back to our bus.

andresalvador > The ancient City of Petra lies in the canyon carved out by the so called "River of Moses" which gave the modern village of Wadi Musa it's name. Petr is a the Greek translation of Sela (which means "rock" in Hebrew), the name by which the city is called in the bible.

When visiting Petra, the bus stops at the point where there is a Tourist Center and bus parkings. From there you either rent a horse buggy as shown above for the approximately 6 kilometer distance to the Lost City of Petra.