Petra

After these 2 enjoyable days in Wadi Rum, we travelled to Petra. Petra is half-built, half-carved into the rock, and is surrounded by mountains riddled with passages and gorges. It is one of the world's most famous archaeological sites. Situated between the Red Sea and the Dead Sea and inhabited since prehistoric times, the rock-cut capital city of the Nabateans, became during Hellenistic and Roman times a major caravan centre for the incense of Arabia, the silks of China and the spices of India, a crossroads between Arabia, Egypt and Syria-Phoenicia. An ingenious water management system allowed extensive settlement of an essentially arid area. It's just amazing to see how they lived and still live in the caves and which beautiful buildings they built 2000 years ago. Really impressive. During our visit in Petra we met some nice Bedouins, who are working with the tourists and rent donkeys.  Seating on the stairs of a old building of Petra I met Jashar and his donkey "Nicetomeetyou". We didn't want to rent any donkey or camel, so he just invited us for tea up on the hill. After tea we all get friends and had good discussions about living in the cave,  what his family does, and about life in Jordan. They took us around and made again tea for everyone.  In the end we all ride a donkey and enjoyed our time with the climbing up hills, sunset over Petra and riding back to the village of the Bedouins. We had tea with their family and friends. Next day we met our new friends again and spend the day together discovering Petra with donkeys. As Stefanie did not feel well on this day, and Jonathan was exhausted because of the hiking, I went alone (note: I didn't hike at all, I was just riding the donkey the whole day =) )with them to their families and had traditional beduin dinner. Really just an incredible experience in Petra as we could see that historical place in such an amazing way.

Sharing is caring - the Bedouins are really living this sentence. Tea is their life drug - with sugar, a lot of sugar. Never met so unbelivebel friendly and hosting people towards strangers.