Today we said goodbye to Amman and headed towards Petra. But on the way, we visited Mt. Nebo, where Moses is believed to be buried. From Mt. Nebo, you can see across the Jordan river to Jericho and Jerusalem. Mt Nebo’s visitor center, where Moses is honored, is built on top a church. The church was first constructed in the second half of the 4th century to commemorate the place of Moses’ death. The church is first mentioned in an account of a pilgrimage made by a lady Aetheria in AD 394. Six tombs have been found hollowed from the natural rock beneath the mosaic-covered floor of the church. The mosaic floors are pristine.

Next, we visited a mosaic workshop which is part of the Queen Noor Foundation, which endeavors to train Jordanian women a traditional craft, giving them a way to make money for themselves. If you remember, American-born Queen Noor was the wife to King Hussein of Jordan. She was Queen of Jordan from their marriage on June 15, 1978, until Hussein’s death on February 7, 1999. She is now considered the Queen Mother and lives in Washington, DC. This workshop currently employs 64 artists and we got to see their wok and learn about the program.

Finally, we travelled down to the Dead Sea for an infamous “float”. This was our second time in the Dead Sea and it still remains a quirky unique experience. The water level has been dropping 2 – 3ft per year for several decades due to increased temperatures and evaporation, and over industrialization. If nothing is done, the sea will be gone in 50 years so there is a plan to pump water from the Red Sea to the Dead Sea. Operations are to begin soon in a multi-country agreement to save the Dead Sea.

The resort where we entered from was built when the water level was much higher, so it was quite a hike down to the shores. But once there, we wadded out and flopped on our backs. The Dead Sea is the lowest place on earth and the water is so salty that you immediately become buoyant, so much so that you liken it to weightlessness.

Afterwards, we had a 4-hour drive across very barren land to Wadi Musa, the town that exists to support the tourism industry and Petra. We got checked into our next hotel, the Petra Movenpick. Along the way we saw several Bedouin encampments. These are nomadic peoples who choose this historical way of living.

Tomorrow: Petra Ancient City, Wadi Rum