Day 3 - Amman to Petra

We checked out of the hotel in Amman, left at 9.30 and headed south.

First stop of the day was at Mount Nebo where, according to the Old Testament, Moses is said to have seen the Promised Land shortly before he died. It is also the most likely burial site of Moses which is believed to be where the Memorial Church of Moses is situated today.

From the viewing area we could see across the Jordan River to "The Promised Land" but what is now the Occupied West Bank region of Israel. We could also just about see the northern part of the Dead Sea where the River Jordan flows into it.

The Memorial Church of Moses was a small monastery built in the 4th century and reconstructed 100 years later into a church. It has recently been further reconstructed with funding from the Vatican and Jordan Government and much of the outside looks quite modern. There are many Byzantine mosaic remains on the floor and walls. Pope John Paul II visited in 2000 and planted an olive tree as a symbol of peace.

Memorial Church of Moses - back view

Memorial Church of Moses - front

Brazen Serpent Statue - in the bible Moses is said to

have lifted a serpent to save others

View of the "Promised Land",

now the Occupied West Bank

View south towards the Dead Sea

One of the Moses Springs - in a cave below the tree

Mosiacs inside the church

Small service ongoing during our visit

Stained Glass Windows in Church

Near to Mount Nebo we stopped at a Mosiac Workshop which is a project founded by Queen Noor, wife of King Hussain and mother of the current King, Abdullah II. Students study the art of mosiac making for several years before either leaving to set up their own businesses, joining an archaeological team at one of the ancient sites in the country or remaining with the project and creating intricate mosaics for sale. The project is sponsored by DHL who provide free packaging and shipping anywhere in the world.

After we drove the short distance to the town of Madaba to visit the Greek Orthodox Church of St George. This church contains the original floor mosaic from the 6th century of a map of the Holy Land. The church was being renovated so really the map was the only thing of interest.

Reproduction of the map on an information board

Greek Orthodox Church of St George

Original 6th century mosiac map of the holy land.

(Left side)

Full mosiac map with right side extending beyond the pillar

Inside the church

We stayed in Madaba for lunch before continuing the 3 hour drive to Petra.

Street in Madaba with Grand Mosque Minorets

behind the shops

Murals on walls in the town

Clothes salesman on the kerb at approach

to a busy roundabout

Just outside Madaba the countryside was absolutely littered with waste plastic. Even places quite a way from the town had a lot of discarded plastic bottles and bags caught up in the scrubland. Shortly before arriving the landscape turned from a reddish brown to white and we realised it was snowing!! We were at quite a high altitude (1400 m). Our tour guide told us that tourists visiting in the winter a few years ago were trapped in their Petra Hotels for 3 days because of very heavy snow.

Snow at entrance to house

Snow across the barren wasteland

Snow on the hill.

We arrived at our hotel but only had about 20 minutes to get changed before going out for dinner. This time we prepared our own food at Petra Kitchen. This is a restaurant where customers are put in groups of 8 and under the guidance of one of the chefs, prepare the various salads, vegetables, main course and pastries for the meal. The tables are then cleared and laid up ready for us to eat. It was quite a novelty and we did get given the recipes for each of the different food item that we made.