Jordan

After an 11 hour flight, we arrived in Jordan in the afternoon on Tuesday, March 16th.  Once we had our visas and luggage, we boarded the buses and started the journey to Petra.

During the trip to Petra, Brother Wilcox discussed three things with us.

• What meaneth these stones - He told the story of Joshua and the Israelites crossing the river Jordan and how they used 12 stones to build a memorial on the other side of the river so that they would have the opportunity to teach their children what the Lord had done for them.  Brother Wilcox reminded us that when we have obstacles in our lives, God will do for us what he did for them.  With a little faith, we will be able to overcome any obstacle.  He also encouraged us to look for the meaning in stones that we would be seeing over the next couple of weeks and to ask ourselves "what meaneth these stones".
• Look for our ravens - let things come over the next 2 weeks and we would be surprised where/when the special moments happen.  These special moments will be unique to each of us and come in different ways for all of us.  He also encouraged us to be aware of the sounds of these lands - the church bells, the calls to prayer, and the soft prayers at the western wall.
• Remember the Thomas lesson - Brother Wilcox stated that everyone remembers 'doubting' Thomas, not 'devoted' Thomas.  (When Jesus crossed the river Jordan for a respite, he gets a message Lazarus is sick.  Thomas speaks up and is devoted the Savior.)  Why can't the "real" you be the best version?  Look for the devoted (not the doubting) Thomas part in everyone and everything.  Look for the best in the cultures we would be experiencing and come with a disposition to be pleased.

 It took a couple of hours to arrive in Petra,  and it was dark by then, so we couldn't see much of the city.  We checked in to the hotel and went down to dinner.  We had been cautioned not to eat any fresh vegetables or fruit, and not to drink the water, but I still forgot and tried to put fresh tomatoes on my plate.  Luckily, I have good friends and they reminded me that I'm a dork and that I shouldn't eat the tomatoes.

By the time dinner was over we were all exhausted so we called it a night and went to bed.  Unfortunately, I was wide awake the next morning at 2am.  I watched some movies on my Ipod for awhile, trying not to wake up my roommate Tracie.  However, at 4am, the calls to prayer began and I was fascinated.  I got up and opened our balcony door and listened for quite some time.  Tracie was awake by this time so we spent some time talking and studying a little about Jordan and Petra.

After breakfast, we went to the entrance of Petra.  The walk in is enjoyable as it is down a narrow gorge called the Siq.  It is about a mile in and there is much to see along the way.

There were a few in our group who weren't able to walk in, so they took advantage of the horse carriages that were available.

The first glimpse of the Treasury building (the most elaborate ruin in Petra) was amazing.  It can be seen from the Siq and just catching a glimpse of it caused most of us to stop in our tracks. 

After taking many pictures, we continued on and exited the Siq and saw the Treasury in all of its majesty.

We then continued on and saw much more of Petra, including the amphitheatre, the tombs carved into the hillside, and the old temple.  

Smitty and I went exploring the tombs and got some great pictures.  He bargained with a woman that was selling magnets and got a great deal on 2 magnets for us.

I was exploring the old temple ruins and was approached by a young man with a donkey offering me a ride up the mountain to see the monastery, the largest building at Petra.  After bargaining for a bit, I agreed to take the ride.  Riding a donkey up a mountain is quite an experience!  There were times when it was steep and I was afraid I'd fall of the donkey or the mountain.  I had to close my eyes at those times and pray a lot!  I'm glad I did it, though, as the monastery was amazing.  Coming back down the mountain on a donkey was equally terrifying!

After the donkey ride and seeing the monastery, I had to hurry back up the Siq to meet the group at the bus. We left Petra and began to travel back towards Amman so we could cross the border into Israel.

On the way to Amman, Brother Wilcox talked about the biblical history of Petra and the message of the ruins.