Wadi Rum

Leaving Petra we headed south to the desert and a night at Wadi Rum.  We were well back from the western ridge that defined the transition into the Rift Valley so the terrain was back to gentle rolling hills.  We passed areas where irrigation supported farming as well as a bare stretch that supported a large wind farm.  The main north-south road we traveled is an important artery for Jordan, connecting the port of Aqaba to Amman and the rest of the country.  In a country without railways, goods moved by truck and this was evident by the number of heavily laden trucks we passed, struggling to climb even the gentlest of slopes.

We turned off the main road after a few hours of travel and headed further east towards the Wadi Rum reception area to check in.  The wadi is another of Jordon’s protected regions and visitors had to stop and sign in before proceeding to one of the many desert camps that dotted the area.  In addition, we had to transfer from the bus to pickup trucks, capable of four-wheeling across the desert sand.  The drive to our camp was spectacular.  The whole area used to be at the bottom of an ocean and it was obvious.  The desert floor was flat in every direction, broken up by tall, steep craggy cliffs and the occasional sand dune washed up against the rocks.  The landscape looked unworldly, something that the producers of the movie “The Martian” took advantage of;  the Mars scenes were filmed in Wadi Rum.  I could easily imagine I was on the red planet as we traversed the beautifully desolate landscape bathed in shades of tans, oranges and reds.  The wind was blowing fiercely so I turned my scarf into a turban to protect my hair, donned my mask and sunglasses to protect the rest of my face, and proceeded to enjoy the drive from my exposed perch in the back of the jeep unconcerned.

We had no idea what to expect regarding the camp and were pleasantly surprised to find cabins, decorated to look like tents, with attached bathrooms and full electricity.  I think we had gotten an upgrade somewhere because I had been expecting communal bathrooms and no electricity.  (I have to admit, part of me was looking forward to a more basic camping experience, but this was nice, too!). I was amused to see that the filming of The Martian had left a legacy; some of the individual cabins were shaped like the bubble habitat, complete with entrances that looked like airlocks.  The interesting thing about the bubble rooms was that the top was transparent allowing you to literally sleep under the stars.  Our cabin was also decorated like a tent inside and was very comfortable.  We got settled, had a late lunch, then set off for a two hour jeep tour around the wadi.

The jeep tour was like going on a safari but without any animals to view.  Instead we took in the different sites of the desert.  We wove around the different craggy outcroppings of rock and stopped at a large dune near one, getting out to climb to the top for the surrounding view.  Walking up the loose sand was difficult and took a lot of effort, but coming down was easy, kind of like one long standing slide.  We also stopped in several places to view petroglyphs from various centuries.  Wadi Rum was part of the Nabatean major trade route so a lot of traffic has traveled through the area over the millennia.  We also stopped to visit the ruins of the abode of Lawrence of Arabia, who spent quite a lot of time in this area.  It was kind of funny to look out of the very large open plain and see jeeps running around here and there as other tourists visited some of the sites.  The wadi was so big that the jeeps looked like toys racing back and forth.

The camp was fairly full and after dinner everyone gathered on an open deck for tea and star gazing.  The staff, finally getting to break their fast at sunset because of Ramadan, had the music turned up and were in a festive mood.  It was quite pleasant to sit out in the slightly chilly air and look at the brilliant sky, despite the loud music in the background.  In the morning I got up at sunrise and took a walk to enjoy the solitude (no music!)  before breakfast. I enjoyed sitting on top of a large rock and watching the sun slowly slide down the western canyon wall as the sun rose in the sky.  Except for an occasional bird cry, it was serene and still.

After breakfast we were headed out with our next stop being the Dead Sea.  However, part of our journey back to the visitors center where we would meet our bus involved a 45 minute camel ride.  I had an opportunity to ride a camel before so was prepared for the awkward mounting process, but many in the group were surprised as the camel lurched to its feet and I heard quite a few gasps.  It was a totally touristic thing to do but I enjoyed it!