Petra, 19 April

We arrived in Aqaba Jordan on 19 April and the weather continued to be fantastic.  Temperatures started out on the low 20s and climbed to a very comfortable high 20s by midday.   Petra is a an ancient city in Southern Jordan carved into solid rock by and dating back to 300BC. The archeological site is amazing and there were hundreds of tourists there.

Walking into the archeological site

Shortly after starting out on the walk is the Obelisk Tomb

Obelisk Tomb

 Entrance to the ancient city, the As Siq, is along a 1,200 metre long deep and narrow gorge with cliffs of about 80 metres.

Along the length of the As Siq is an aqueduct that brought water into the city.

Aqueduct

An unusual rock formation looks like a large fish

At the end of the As Siq is a bustling open area and the first sight you see is the amazing Al Khazneh or Treasury, carved out of the rock.

The Treasury

Hundreds of people swarmed around the area as well as persistent hawkers and  Camel Drivers trying to sell camel rides.

All along the street are tombs carved into the rock.

The Theatre was built in the 1^st Century AD and is carved into solid rock, except towards the front on either side where part of it is freestanding. It was initially built to seat 3,000 people and later expanded to 7,000.

Theatre

Elevated and on one side of the mountain are the Royal Tombs: Urn, Corinthian and Palace Tombs

Urn Tomb

Corinthian and Palace Tombs

For more photos of Petra, click here to see them in a new window.