What I love about company field trips, apart from it being an all-expense-paid trip, is the cheerful "good morning" and lighthearted conversations that veer away from work problems.
That morning, we were all bustling with excitement over the sumptuous omelet for breakfast inside Kempinski Hotel in Amman. All I could remember was, that was one of the best omelets I have had. We had a long day planned ahead and perhaps the omelet excitement had also something to do with Petra as part of our itinerary.
Just in case you missed the previous post on how the trip to Jordan all started, click to read more: The Ancient City of Jerash in Jordan
There was laughter on the long table shared with colleagues and a joke or two about who would be covered with mud and pushed into the Dead Sea to float first.
We gathered at the hotel lobby an hour later and happily boarded the bus en route to the Lost City of Petra.
The Rose Red City of Petra
In the middle of a desert canyon and mountains lies the long lost city of Petra. 3 hours drive away from Amman. It is the historic and archaeological city of the Nabatean Kingdom known to be nomadic Arabs in Southern Jordan that thrived between 400 B.C. and A.D. 106.
According to National Geographic, it was only in the 1800s when it was discovered through a European traveler who disguised himself to be a Bedouin. It was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985 and was named one of the new 7 wonders of the world in 2007.
Wadi Musa and Petra
Many writers have already featured Petra in Pinmapple. I like the post, Writing But Not Writing About Petra by @livinguktaiwan because of her authentic storytelling, where she experienced both versions of Petra before and after a flash flood.
There's Short Bedouin Lesson by @doskinas that would be interesting to experience and Exploring Jordan Architecturally by @pitboy offering a treasure trove of history and information. These along with many others will be a great resource in planning your trip.
The Siq
I came to Petra without expectations. I briefly saw a photo of the Treasury in an encyclopedia when I was a child but failed to read through it. For someone who had no idea what I was about to experience, my mouth gaped open when I entered the narrow passage of The Siq.
I was walking and talking animatedly with two female colleagues from the parking area. We were all immediately silenced with awe as soon as this dramatic entrance to the gorge greeted us.
The Treasury
The Treasury or Al- Khazneh is carved into the sandstone cliff. I was amazed by its intricate craftsmanship.
Inside the Treasury
This archaeological city will exhaust your camera space. I took many photographs here and choosing what to post was such a challenge. Please bear with me if I have uploaded so many.
Great Temple Petra
Royal Tombs
See how small we were compared to the magnitude of this ancient city.
Can you hear the hymn of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade? I couldn't help hearing that in my head while exploring this place.
What to Wear
It is hot especially during the summer months of June to September. Wear lightweight fabric like cotton or linen.
Hats and sunglasses. Lots of sun protection. The air is often dry, so a moisturizer is helpful.
Be modest. Revealing shoulders, legs, and cleavage is frowned upon. To avoid awkward and unwanted reactions, do wear capri pants. You can wear tank tops but I highly recommend bringing scarves or pashmina shawls to cover your arms when needed with warm clothes and cardigans for cold evenings.
There would be lots of desert walking along sandy paths. Do wear comfy walking shoes and sandals. Since I am from the Philippines, I was born with flip-flops 😂 so I could walk comfortably with flip-flops here as well, something that my french family would find hard to believe. 😂
My Takeaway
The Rose Red City of Petra was the highlight of our company incentive trip to Jordan. It wasn't just because of its title, being one of the 7 wonders of the world. It was the experience of journeying through massive rocks that catapulted me back to the History of Architecture class in college.
The influence of Mesopotamian, Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Architecture carved on the rocks was astonishing.
The memory that stood out in Petra was when a heavy colleague rode a donkey during our descent on the steep rocky slopes. The look of fear on my colleague's face and the screaming donkey who continuously struggled and complained about the weight on its back along the way.
I along with the rest of my bosses and co-workers decided to walk and hike the rugged paths. It was a 3-hour hike under scorching heat, as we found temporary relief under the shade of huge mounds of ancient sculpted rocks.
Thank you for reading. If you haven't read the first part of the Jordan trip, check out The Ancient City of Jerash in Jordan
The rest of the Jordan series would be a trip to the Dead Sea, Madaba, Jordan River and other sites. To be continued...
References:
Inspired by my original post
Petra Wikipedia
National Geographic Petra Jordan
wow Such an amazing view and the shots are stunning.
all the structures are beautiful the most amazing thing is that they are made in mountain.
thanks a lot for sharing your experience here.
Hi @bhattg, thank you so much for your wonderful comment and I am glad you liked it. It's fascinating how they carved the entire city in stone.
Ya our past generation are full of amazing skills 😀
The lost city of Petra is a world-class destination sought after by die-hard travelers everywhere! While others only dream of going there, it’s certainly a tremendous blessing for your former company to shoulder an all-expense paid trip for you to fully enjoy its wonders. This is a travel milestone that would permanently remain in your heart forever! As always, fantastic post Arni! 😊
We were lucky and so grateful with the generosity of the management heading the company at that time who rewarded its employees with such an experience. It would definitely be a great memory I will remember for years to come and would wish for many travelers wanting to visit it to also be blessed with the opportunity to see it for real.
Finally! I waited for this! I didn't know that the city is massive. I thought The Treasury was the only sight that's carved in sandstone. I learned something new today.
Haha, thank you, it took quite a while, finally completed it. What I love about blogging is, it feels like time-traveling too. We get to re-live experiences while browsing through photos and writing about them again.
Yes! That's what made me blog in the first place. I get to relive the memories while drafting my posts.
My aunt visited Jordan one year ago and most of these places are very familiar to me since she was spamming me with lots of pictures from there, lol. It was making me hella jealous that I wasn't there with she! :D
Hello @gabrielatravels, I can imagine you hiking through the gorge and having an awesome time. Haha, your aunt was also overwhelmed with the beauty and kept taking pictures. Thank you for dropping by and leaving a comment, I highly appreciate it. 😃
Hiya, @ybanezkim26 here, just swinging by to let you know that this post made it into our Top 3 in Daily Travel Digest #1047.
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Thank you so much Kim and Pinmapple for the feature. Awesome, I am so happy to see you as a curator! 😍 Congrats!
Another great post and a lovely reminder of Petra shown through your eyes. I really need to get my act together and write about it.
Thank you so much, Pauline. I am looking forward to reading more of your Petra post. 😊
Wow exelente publicacion, las fotografias son exelente igual que los paisajes, gracias por ompartir.
Thank you so much for dropping by and for your kind words 😀
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So many amazing shots of this incredible place. Wow. Unfortunately, Petra is also known as a site of severe animal abuse as those poor donkeys often have to carry way too heavy (inconsiderate) tourists, just as you mentioned... :(