Another Update on Jordan…

Port at Aqaba showing right to left Egypt, Israel and Jordan

This is our second day in Aqaba, Jordan before we start our trek down the Red Sea to meet the pirates.  And I felt you might want to know a little more about the country of Jordan.  Jordan is tucked in and surrounded by many of the Middle East countries we all read about – Israel, Egypt, Syria, Saudi Arabia, and Iraq to name a few. It is 85% desert and has a population of 7 million. Aqaba itself has 120,000 residents, living in adobe-type 2-story homes or apartments. About half of those are Bedouins, many of whom still roam those deserts with their camels, goats and sheep. While many of these countries can ascribe their wealth to an abundance of oil, Jordan has no oil.

Large heavy factory equipment destined
for Aman. Hauled on trailers with
12 axels of 4 wheels each!

The Aqaba port control tower with the slope up to the
behind being prepared for resorts and malls.

Despite this, the country is working hard to pull itself up by its bootstraps, so to speak, and one can see signs of prosperity popping up here and there.  We saw the obligatory McDonalds with playground, a Safeway supermarket, and evidence of lots and lots of new construction.  Then, almost as an anomaly, we saw their Friday market, a 2 hour event each Friday along the International Desert Highway, where people paw through piles of clothes heaped in the marketplace, buy the week’s fruits and vegetables, and stock up on both food and other items, including

pre-owned clothes, available that week.

Produce at the Friday souk.

Piles of pre-owned clothes to choose from.

The port of Aqaba is Jordan’s only access to the Red Sea.  So, while it is an excessively busy commercial port, it is also a growing playground for Middle Easterners, with sandy beaches like the Aqaba Marine Park, where you can see snorkelers and swimmers with concessionaires selling all sorts of beach wares.  Some people like to say that this area is a Middle Eastern Miami Beach, with weather very similar to Florida. You can also see lots of new hotels like the Doubletree hotel under construction to take advantage of the beaches.  In fact, King Abdullah and Queen Rania have their Summer Palace on the water here.

Glass bottom boat from the marine park to see nearby reefs.

The King is a friend to the US and has been helpful on keeping a lid on some of the Middle Eastern turmoil.  Right now he has about 20,000 US troops in his country, helping him with training and keeping an eye on the over 1 million Syrian refugees living in his country. As a progressive in many respects, King Abdullah walks a fine line working with both the traditional groups and the groups wanting to modernize the country quickly. 

In schooling, children go to school between 6 and 15, although there are separate schools for boys and girls.  There are 24 universities in Jordan and, as a concession to the Bedouins, Bedouins can go to universities free.

Jordan has been the crossroads since ancient times for caravans crossing the desert east to west because there are multiple fresh water springs available.  The most famous historical site here is Petra, an amazing preserved “village” of sorts, carved out of the prevalent red stone mountains.  The site pulls hundreds of thousands tourists every year to see it, as it is nearly perfectly preserved.  Why so preserved?  Because it was mostly forgotten for centuries.  The Nabataeans built it in the 6^th century BCE and made it into a prosperous city. Then the Romans kicked out the Nabataeans in 106 AD, followed by the Muslims in 630 AD.   Earthquakes of 350 and 531 CE made uninhabitable and there it sat until 1812 when it was rediscovered by a Swiss explorer.

Narrow passage into Petra.

Urn cematery in Petra

Camels passing part of Petra

Modern day Aqaba has old plus new ideas growing.  For instance, it is a tax free zone on items such as alcohol, cigarettes, and electronics.  We were stopped at a couple checkpoints to see, our driver said, if we were carrying any illegal tax-free items.  On the other hand, when we got to Wadi Rum yesterday, we saw herds of camels which are used as we use semi trucks and even race cars, as they hold camel races frequently. The camels provide their Bedouins with more than just transportation.  Often they count their wealth in terms of how many camels they own.  And it often one Bedouin will steal his neighbors camels without punishment. They even drink camel’s milk, attributing their virility to that milk!!   On the other hand, the Bedouins give in to the more modern world as they also have 4 wheel drive trucks to get around in the loose sand of the desert – a contradiction to the camel transportation.

Before coming to this part of the world, I felt like Iraq, Iran, Kuwait, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Oman, Yemen were just words, not places really.  I could not distinguish one from the other, with the exception maybe of Israel, as I have a number of Jewish friends who have told me about Israel.  Now, when I read the news, I will have a better understanding of each individual country and its unique problems, where it fits in the great crossword puzzle of the world.  Worth it?  You tell me!