| | A few more days in Jordan allowed us to explore the East Bank of the Jordan River, the forgotten half of the Holy Land. We went down to the Jordan River and the Dead Sea, and up to the top of Mount Nebo which, like Moses, may be the closest we come to the promised land, depending on how the situation in Israel develops.
Mount Nebo was visited by John Paul II in 2000, and is the site of several ancient churches and shrines dedicated to Moses. The view West across the Jordan valley takes in much of the rugged West Bank terrain, and a few towers in Jerusalem are even visible in the distance across the hills. Christians beginning in the 4th century used to make the pilgrimage from Jerusalem to Jerico and across the Jordan to Mount Nebo. We also stopped by Jorden's modern Christian area, Madaba, where several ancient mosiacs adorn churches packed with hundreds of tour bus-tourists from europe. Greek Orthodox schools with kids running left and right add to the bustle.
The most interesting site was Jesus' baptismal site at Bethany. This site was only excavated in the 90's after the peace agreement between Israel and Jordan allowed the clearing of the mine fields there. The River Jordan is the border. Apparently the ancient site of John's baptisms was at the confluence of the Jordan and a spring; excavations revealed an ancient church and a baptismal font at this site. The Jordan River has since changed course so the baptismal site is no longer at the riverbanks. In fact, even in modern day (since Israel took control of sea of Galilee outflows after the 1967 war), the River Jordan has changed as water is siphoned off to Israel's burgeoning population. According to our guide, once, if a man was to cross the river Jordan he was very strong. Now, the dropped water levels mean that such a crossing could be accomplished in a bound by a good long-jumper, making a the drama of a crossing like Yasser Arafat's back in the day no longer notable. The River Jordan is today no more than a meandering creek, and that it delineates such a major international border seems odd. Still the sky in the Jordan Valley is beautiful and the sun breaks through the clouds exactly as biblical paintings portray, leading to amazing views of the very low elevation towns like Jericho. The area of Bethany, in addition to being Jesus' baptismal place, was well known as a wasteland that produced prophetic and religious characters. Bethany was the home of John the Baptist when he wore camel hair and lived off of locusts and honey. It hasn't developed a whole lot since- the land is just percipitous enough to escape desert-hood, but otherwise very dry decolate, and empty. Truly, the stunning scenery makes things like a 40-day fast here seem much more dramatic. Elijah, too, resided here and there is a church commemorating his stomping grounds and ascension on a chariot of fire.
The lack of flow down the Jordan is also dropping the levels of the dead sea, which is lower now than when I visited 5 years ago-repeatedly setting the world record as eart's lowest point. The salinity also increases constantly, meaning each trip is ever marginally more fun to float in the ridiculously salinated water. The salty taste is so terrible that even a small drop to the tongue is a terrible burning- contact with the eyes is essential to aviod. Today the sky was sunny and the usual heat-haze of the area remarkably absent so the hour long cork-float was quite enjoyable. And of course its a great thrill on the way out to have one's ears pop as you drive up to sea level.
Jordanians are historically desert nomads, Bedouins, and Liora and I took the advice of many before us and shelled out for Jordan's biggest adventure tourism site: Wadi Rum. A wadi is an old dried up river, and the huge rock walls are very reminiscent of a Zion National Park- with lots of sand in between peaks and walls. The biggest difference is the presence of resident Bedouins, who we took a jeep safari with and then stayed with overnight. Truly it is spectacular to see the night sky and to breathe the dry desert air. The one downside is the proliferation of tourists, which has made the Bedouins in the area rich, but also lackadaisical and indifferent toward tourism, instead of their usual friendly, welcoming spirit. Tourism has actually exploded in Jordan with new luxury hotels at Petra and oodles of tour buses; this has led to an increase in prices, but more unfortunately has let to a tourist gouging culture that is still easily avoidable but obnoxious to deal with when we confront it. Stories abound, but suffice it to say that my last assessments of a uncorrupted friendly Jordan are a little off. Safe it indeed is, but the tourist tax is now in effect in Jordan. The ironic exception is Amman, which is large enough that tourists don't form the main economic engine here. So the big city is actually cheaper here...fine stuffed-to the gills meze meals for only $2 here! Versus $30 in Petra...
Since the Gaza War has begun, the plan to cross the tense Allenby/ King Hussein bridge through the West bank to Israel has been scrapped and our idea is now to cross to Israel directly in Galilee en route to Jerusalem, thus avoiding the Palestinian areas. Also, this less sensitive crossing will mean less Israeli scrutiny and trouble because of my Syria/Lebanon/Egypt/ Jordan/Afghanistan bearing passport. So in Shah'Allah, we will see 2009 in from the holy city.
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| | Posted 12/30/2008 9:44 AM - 161 Views - 2 eProps - 1 Comment
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