Jordan

After Cappadocia I was sure that I couldn't have left Turkey on a better note. Also, I was running out of time. I had a plane from Cairo to Athens on the tenth of March, and needed to see the rest of the Fertile Crescent. So I headed out. I got into Aleppo and planned on staying there just one last night, but when I called the Matises and they said that the branch was getting together to say goodbye to Shea that night. And of course I got on the next bus. The party was great. The next day I took the taxi from Shem to Beyrouth for the last time to visit E.B. and Smuggler. On the way there I stopped off at a small village and attended an engagement party for my friend Sally's uncle. It was an interesting experience. The bride had recently had a death in the family so when we went over there it was a very solemn affair. I was instructed many times on proper etiquette. When we got back to the groom’s house it was dancing and partying all night.
I got to Beirut the next morning and got together with E.B. and Kristin. I had a great time, said goodbye, and before I left I was able to get a couple dozen crispy cream doughnuts for my good friends in Damascus who had gone without American things for so long. They were a pretty big hit all around. It was nice to deliver them to everyone and be able to say goodbye. That Damascus branch was amazing. That night Shea, Emilie, Scott and I went to a wonderful Yemenite restaurant in a hip part of Damascus. The next morning I headed to Jordan.
Jordan. Well let’s just say that I had warnings about Jordan and I should have listened. Those who go here, heed my words: go to Petra and get out. See the Dead Sea on the Israeli side, go to Wadi Rum if you have a lot of time, but don’t stay too long there. It is a boring, expensive place surrounded by cheap, exciting countries. It is not that it is the worst place in the world, it is just that everything around it is better, and your time is better spent elsewhere.
Anyway, when I got there I decided to rent a car. I wanted it for two days, but I had to get it for three because all the stores are closed for Muhammad’s Birthday. So I got one for three days, I rented it at about $35/day, which was good because I was also able to sleep in the car. And I love a two for one deal. Plus, I was able to pick up a bunch of Arabic hitchhikers on the way. So that is a bonus right there.
Petra really is amazing, you would just turn a corner and see an amazing building carved right out of the rock. The second day I was there, there were flash floods and we were shipped out of the canyon. I got in my car and headed to Wadi Rum. The roads were covered with fog, accompanied by downpours, but I got to Wadi Rum alright, toured it that morning, made a stop at the Dead Sea, and I got out. It was beautiful, and it was great to have my own car.