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Africa
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Feeling Petra-fied

It's a tough life for four-legged luggers in
Petra. Rick Wallace opts not to add to the load

April 1, 2005

DON'T ride the donkeys, dude – they'll buck you off. So
warns a grimacing American backpacker at Jordan's spectacular
historical site, Petra.

A Jordanian Bedouin tribesman take in
the spectacular views across one of the valleys in the
ancient city of Petra / John Wilson

Leaving him clutching a swollen arm, I resolve to explore
this huge archaeological wonder on foot, despite the
sweltering summer heat. An enterprising Bedouin in the
traditional kafiya headdress ushers us to one side in earnest
agreement with the American.

"The donkey, he is crazy. It's much better you take a
horse. The horse give you a nice, smooth ride," he says while
pointing hopefully in the direction of his stables.

Having not had much of an affinity with horses, I decline
his first offer of a few Jordanian dinars and his later offer
of half that.

I make about 70 such refusals during the day as I am
assailed by Bedouins – the tent-dwelling desert people found
in much of the Middle East – on a variety of four-legged
conveyances ranging from handsome Arabian horses to camels and
the donkeys.

Each of them takes my refusal without rancour, often
stopping for a chat even though it is obvious there is no hope
of a sale.

Petra is hidden away safely at the end of a narrow, 1.2km
desert ravine called the Siq.

Practically invisible from most surrounding hilltops, it
proved easy to defend against those few attackers who managed
to find one of the handful of ways into the city.

Consequently, Petra's stunning multi-tiered temples, tombs
and monasteries, carved into sandstone cliffs, were lost to
the world for more than eight centuries.

After following the Siq's twists and turns for about 20
minutes, you come to a sight that will stun even the most
world-weary traveller: the 40m high, two-tiered Treasury,
carved into one of the rock walls that surround the clearing
that the Siq empties into. Though partly Hellenic in style,
this and most of the other carved buildings in Petra were
actually built by the Nabateans, a formerly nomadic Arab tribe
that settled in the city about 300BC.

As a trading people, they eagerly absorbed knowledge from
the Greeks and other civilisations in the region, creating a
hybrid architectural style.

Standing in the clearing among resting camels and locals
peddling silver jewellery, you can see what appear to be
footholds used by the ingenious stonemasons who carved this
treasure into the rock face.

FROM here, the path takes you past a series of monuments
described as tombs (interesting, but not as well preserved or
spectacular as the Treasury) and to a colonnaded street, a
legacy of the ancient Romans who took control of the city
about 100AD.

Paths lead up to a series of monuments and historic sites
on the way to the centre of the old city.

Guides and donkey touts await with tales of arduous climbs
best attempted on one of their beasts of burden rather than on
foot.

In reality, most paths can be climbed easily enough,
provided you are reasonably fit and remember to drink plenty
of water.

Having only one day to explore (you could easily spend
three or four here), I am unwilling to be sidetracked and
forge on for the Monastery, which is Petra's other amazing
sight.

Leaving behind the ramshackle and pricey restaurants in the
centre of the site, the path to the Monastery climbs sharply.

CLOSE to the top you pass deep ravines with near-vertical
rock walls hundreds of metres high.

Like the Treasury, the Monastery makes a stunningly abrupt
appearance around the final bend of the twisting path. The
afternoon sun gives the rock a golden hue.

This elaborately carved masterpiece is almost 50m wide and
has an 8m central doorway that dwarfs anyone entering it. The
sure-footed can scale the adjacent 40m rock face and climb on
to the roof of the marvellously carved facade.

Climbing the slope opposite the Monastery takes you to a
high hilltop with great views over the mountains and desert
towards Israel. This must be one of the better places in the
world to watch the sun set.

I say "must be" because I leave about 6pm, told erroneously
by staff way back at the entrance that the front gates close
at 7.30pm. In fact, you can stay past sunset, though it is
forbidden to stay the night, and many people with multiple-day
passes hike up to this spot late in the day to catch the sun's
descent.

Returning prematurely to the exit, I pass several Bedouin
families, some of whom still sleep in the many caves around
the site. They are boiling pots of chai tea, or Bedouin whisky
as one smiling local calls it after inviting me to share a
cup.

The heat having gone out of the day, both animals and
humans seem re-energised by the dusk, and teenagers race past
boisterously on donkeys, flailing the animals with whips and
shouting at each other in Arabic.

TRAVELLER'S CHECKS

Petra prices: It costs $40 (20 dinars) for one
day's entry; $50 for two and $60 for three, with a fourth day
thrown in free. The passes are not 24-hour, so if you buy one
at midday, don't expect to be given the morning of the next
day to look around. A double room at a cheap hotels will cost
$40 a night; $100-$160 will secure upmarket lodgings.

Flight costs: Flight Centre has return fares to
Amman with Royal Jordanian/Thai from $1614 and Qantas/Kuwait
from $1725.

In the know: Provided you respect customs and dress
conservatively, you will be greeted with friendly Jordanian
hospitality that puts a return visit on many people's agenda.

Herald
Sun

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