Fred remembers staying at the Dead Sea Hotel as a child. It was right at the mouth of the River Jordan, just a few miles from the main Amman to Jerusalem road. The hotel is long gone now, but it was quite lovely.

Taken about 1957.

The Dead Sea is famous, of course, as the lowest point of dry land on earth, at about 1300 feet below sea level. The used to be a sign on the road to Jerusalem to let you know when you had climbed back up to sea level. Like the Great Salt Lake in the United States, it is very salty, so salty that it is almost impossible to swim underwater.

Sign on the road from Jericho to Jerusalem

We checked into our hotel and decided that we must do the needful and swim in the Dead Sea. So we changed into swim garb and headed out. With the loss of the West Bank to Israel, all of the hotels are in a huge tourist complex on the east bank of the sad and a hit higher up the slopes. The level of the sea has dropped so much that it is actually quite hard to get to the water. We walked for about 20 minutes down to the “beach” which turned out to be rocky and very hard to walk on. But we made it into the water, flopped around a bit, and then emerged. “Been there, done that”!! It is indeed salty, so salty that you cannot sink and it really stings if it gets onto your face! We rinsed off, walked our 20 minutes back to the hotel and Denise enjoyed a swim in the lovely warm pool. Grumbling that “it wasn’t like that in the old days!” Fred went off to enjoy a massage in the spa.

The Marriot Resort at the Dead Sea.

We watched the sun set over the West Bank and the lights of Jerusalem start to show on the ridgeline and headed for dinner. Fred was amazed, Jerusalem simply wasn’t that large back in the day.

Sunset over the West Bank.

We then went to watch the belly dancer perform while we enjoyed Turkish coffee and even stayed for her second show before calling it a night! Fred’s mother could never watch scenes of “belly dancing” in Hollywood films. She was an enthusiastic ballroom dancer and one night, in Beirut, she and a friend, also an excellent dancer were watching a dance performance. When the set ended, the friend asked the dancer to show her some of the moves. The dancer laughed and said, “Oh Madame, for you it is too late; I stared learning when I was five years old.” So although Rita Hayworth and others are indeed lovely,  their Salome initiations look very awkward when you have seen the real thing. It was pleasantly warm and it was fun to people watch. Everyone from tourists in shorts to ladies in abayats – Jordan is a wonderful country.

On to Madaba via the Baptismal Site

 Off again the next morning, we made a last minute decision to go to the Jordan River Baptismal Site, a visit that proved fascinating and far more interesting than Fred had anticipated. Fred was in curmudgeon mode, grumbling that he had already been to the river on a picnic and one of his friends had “baptized” himself by falling in. (His mother had not been pleased.) We drove to a central ticket office/car park where we waited for a bus and guide. The Jordan River is the border between Jordan and Israel and security is very tight and thus the various sites can only be visited in a group.

The first thing that we learned is that many of the sites were re-identified and excavated only after Fred left Jordan in 1960, so, with the prospect of “new” ruins, Fred got all interested. Like all things Biblical, there is controversy about the Baptism. The Gospel of John says that it took place in “Bethany beyond Jordan.” The River Jordan has, of course, moved many times over the years. It is also worth considering that while may people today ascribe special qualities to the River Jordan, to John the Baptist, it would have simply been another, albeit larger, river. Thus there is considerable reason to believe that he would have actually performed the Baptism in the clear waters of the spring at Bethany, rather in the muddy river – what is the point of a spiritual cleansing in dirty water. Whatever the truth, by third century the early Christians accepted Bethany as the site and built many churches there. (The site is on the Madaba Map.) These churches were destroyed or fell into disuse with the Muslim conquest and are only now being unearthed. There is an excellent site on the subject and if you drill down, there are detailed accounts of the history of the site. You must remember, however, that this is a Jordanian government site and there is intense “competition” from the Israelis to attract Christian, especially American, tourists. Read on: http://www.baptismsite.com

After a short wait, our bus arrived and off we went, passing first by the site of Elijah’s ascension, before other sites connected to John the Baptist. As noted on the site linked above, you could spend a long time visiting all the sites in the local area, many of which provide an interesting insight into the nature of early Christians. The Jordan River is much reduced in size since the 1950’s in part due to water being removed from it by Israel. (Israel’s “miracle in the desert” comes with a price, much like our depletion of western aquifers.) The river has always been  muddy and most historians have established by reading travelers’ accounts and through archeological digs that the true baptismal site is probably about 60 meters from the present river, at the site of a spring which used to drain into the river. There are ruins of the various churches which were built over the spring at different times and it is very possible that this clean spring water was used for baptisms, rather than the always muddy Jordan.

This link describes the rediscovery and the purpose of the foundations in the photo:http://www.baptismsite.com/archeological-findings/

Ruins of Byzantine Church constructed over the spring where it is believed that John baptized Jesus. The large objects are the foundation pillars. As was the Byzantine custom, the church often completely enclosed the site.

Church built upon Church built upon Church

Modern Church at the Baptismal site

The Jordan River site on the Israel side has been highly developed for tourists and we watched various visitors immersing themselves in the muddy and unsavory looking water.

We then headed out to Mt. Nebo, where there is an old church called the Moses Shrine, which is reputedly where Moses saw the Promised Land before he died. The church was unfortunately closed but we did see an old mosaic from the church and, of course, a huge selection of schoolgirls! As a historical note, it is worth noting that one cannot see the land “flowing with milk and honey” from Mount Nebo, only the parched Jordan Valley. There has long been agriculture around Jericho, but the rest of the landscape, as you can see, is rather bleak. The fertile lands lie far beyond, between the Mediterranean and the hills were Jerusalem is located. It is possible that Moses stopped here because the people of Jericho blocked passage. Whatever the truth, Mount Nebo has long been a site of pilgrimage, traditionally along the old Roman road from Jerusalem.

Beautiful inscribed column, dedicated to Caesar Antonnius Pius. (Scholars debate his success against the Parthians and the Britons.)

More about Caesar Antonnius: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antoninus_Pius

On to Madaba, where we stopped first at St. George’s Church to see the famous mosaic map of the Holy Land, crafted in AD 560, it is the oldest map of the region and gives many insights into the region, including, as noted, the location of the Baptismal site. Jerusalem is shown, as is the Dead Sea with the fishes swimming away from the salt. There is also a small museum at the Visitor Center which we enjoyed.

Close up of the medieval city of Jerusalem, showing the Cardo down the middle and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in the foreground.

Beautifully made of mosaic. Jerusalem is at the center, with the Dead Sea above. The Jordan River enters from the left, with the fish swimming away from the salty sea. The Baptismal site is just above the river, “Bethany over Jordan.”

The map was on the floor and suffered as the church has been in daily use for a thousand years.

The entire map, annotated.

After a quick lunch, we headed to our hotel which proved to be in a residential neighborhood and quite nice. We took a much needed nap and then headed down to the pool for coffee and a nice chat with the Hotel Manager as the sun set. Dinner was somewhat of a disappointment but we had not noticed any obvious restaurants in walking distance, so decided to stay put. We should have been more adventuresome!

And finally on to another Decapolis city, Jerash. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerash) It can be argued that if you can only visit one Roman site in your lifetime, it should be Jerash. As the city was rarely attacked (most of its life it did not even have walls) and because it was abandoned after an earthquake, there are few other sites in the world where the original layout of a Roman city, with its Cardo and crossing streets is so easy to see. Fred remembers picnics at Jerash as being particularly wonderful.

We arrived in the evening and checked into our hotel. (https://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g293988-d1212305-Reviews-Hadrian_s_Gate_Hotel-Jerash_Jerash_Governorate.html)

The Hadrian’s Gate hotel, literally across the street from the entrance to the ruins.

Fred took a quick photographic tour of the street before we stepped out for Jordanian fast food for dinner.

Hadrian’s Gate, not really a gate, but an arch built to honor the visit of the Emperor Hadrian.

Unidentified ruins still standing in the modern city. Roman? Umayadd?

Fine Dining?

First, a review of the ten cities of the Decapolis:

We started our visit to Jordan in Philadelphia (Amman) and then went to Gadara (Um Qais) and now we are at Gerasa (Jerash). We were up and about early and into the ruins via Hadrian’s Gate by 8.30 AM.

It was delightfully cool and there were no schoolchildren! The ruins are extensive and much has not been excavated. So get your sunhat, water bottle and come along. The ruins look a bit like this:

We entered at Hadrian’s Gate on the left of the map. Note that the arch was well outside of the walls, which were not, in fact, built until late in the life of the city. Our guidebook had warned that a visit needed 3 to 4 hours to do it justice and indeed, we spent about 4 hours there and saw most of it, including the sheep and goats grazing amongst the ruins. We saw the hippodrome (and imagined the chariot races), the Forum, the Agora, the Cardo Maximus or colonnaded main thoroughfare, temples to Zeus and Artemis, the Nymphaeum (public water fountain), multiple theaters and several churches (dating from the Christian times, often using stones from the aforementioned temples in their construction). Each crossroad had its tetrapylon (archway with four entrances) which solved the problem of roads not quite lining up!

Fans of Ben-Hur will be impressed. This is the real thing.

The South Theatre is stunning.

South Theatre, looking towards the Temple of Artemis. Forum to the right with the modern city behind.

The Jordanian Army has a corps of pipers. These retirees perform for the tourists. Fred requested, and got, “As-Salam Al-Malaki Al-Urduni” the old Jordanian national anthem. Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToHFsLvQXdY (You can find anything on the Internet.)

Fallen columns at the Temple of Zeus. They are big!

Beautiful, three dimensional stone carvings. All of the craftsmanship is simply amazing.

Perhaps the most iconic shot of Jerash is the oval Forum.

View from the Temple of Zeus, looking north down the Cardo. The Temple of Artemis is to the left on the slope. Note the vast expanses still to be excavated.

Walking the streets it is easy to imagine life in Jerash in about 150AD.

Denise on Jerash’s Rodeo Drive.

North end of town, showing tetraplyon, columns, and the modern city across the river.

Manhole giving access to the coloca or sewer. The Romans ran sewers under all of the main streets. This manhole cover still has its original iron ring.

Colonnaded street. You have to imagine that the space behind these columns was filled with stores and houses.

Street

Fred photographing under a tetrapylon.

Modern bridge to the new city near the baths and site of the old bridge.

An unexcavated side street, looking towards the Cardo.

The Temple of Artemis is one of the main attractions of Jerash. Artemis was the patron goddess of the city.

Temple of Artemis, square on. The central colonnaded building is only a tiny part of what was a huge temple complex. The Crusaders later used it as a fort.

The Temple of Artemis as it appeared when Fred visited as a child. Notice that none of the surrounding space had been excavated.

Denise at the Temple of Artemis

Tourists at the Temple of Artemis

View out of the catacombs under the Temple of Artemis. Fred LOVES underground passages!

Reconstruction of Roman water driven sawmill. A lot more technology than you would expect.

Worth remembering that Jerash was continuously occupied from Greek times, about 300BC through about 740AD, when an earthquake destroyed much of the historic city. Thus a temple or synagogue became a church, became a mosque, etc. Can be a challenge to know which era you are really looking at. That said, the site is huge and you can really get a sense of the city, even more so than in Um Qais (Gadara) which is tightly wrapped around an acropolis. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerash

By the time we reached the top, near the church of St. Peter and St. Paul, we could look back over the ruins and noting the arrival of bus loads of kids, we decided to call it a day.

Looking over the ruins towards the modern city on the left. Temple of Zeus on the right. Notice all of the unexcavated land.

After morning in the ruins, we returned to the hotel and Fred went out to get a take away lunch. After a lemon mint drink to revive us and a half a sandwich each, we loaded up our luggage from the hotel into our car and headed south to the Dead Sea, saying “Good bye” to the historic sheep of Jerash.

First stop, Umm Quais, in the far north of the country, to visit the Roman ruins of Gadara, part of the Decapolis. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umm_Qais)

The Cardo was the main street of a Roman city.

We hired a guide and from him learned a lot about the theatre (and how to find the perfect spot for a voice to carry) and a group of rectangular ruins along the Roman road, which were clearly shops. Much of the city is constructed of black volcanic stone.

A row of shops in Gadara.

Denise in the tunnel to the stage of a theatre in Gadara.

What else do you do when you get on stage?

Roman stone work.

We also learned that blocks were placed diagonally on the roads so that the chariots were quieter but pedestrian crossings had squared blocks placed for ease of crossing.

There is a complete Roman town to be discovered here with temples, baths and other buildings common to Roman life. In fact, excavations were being undertaken at the far end of the Roman road on two storey shops and homes.

You can see how much is left to excavate.

Note the diagonal paving stones. The diagonal paving made less noise with wagon wheels.

Roman water tunnels ran under the city of Gadara and for hundreds of kilometers, bringing down water from springs and the mountains.

The detail and craftsmanship is amazing; you would think it was modeling clay, not marble.

Note the beautiful work where the stone is cut out completely.

Years ago, in Arequipa, Peru, we thought that it was wonderful when Peruvians and not just foreign tourists visited historic and other sites. Again in Um Qais we were delighted to see how many Jordanians were touring the site.

Roman building elements reused for a church.

And, as always, Denise quickly attracted an entourage.

From the lookout point at Umm Quais, the view was stupendous. We saw Mount Hermon, the Sea of Galilee, the Golan Heights (now Israel), and Syria, in the distance. We even heard the distant sound of artillery fire or bombing, which brought home to us the reality of the conflicts in that part of the Middle East. We enjoyed a lovely lunch at the Rest House, gazing over the Sea of Galilee and down into Israel at the foot of the valley.

Bridge on the Haifa branch of the Hijaz Railway. The rail line was cut by the Israelis during the 1948 fighting. Never rebuilt, it is now cut by the border, the silver fence splitting the picture. Israel is to the left.

Unused Jordanian army bunker facing Israel.

We then headed south to Ajloun Castle, a former Ayyubid Castle, set on a hill with more great views. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ajloun_Castle)

It was never taken by the Crusaders and the full range of fortifications, from moat to murder gaps (not just holes), trebuchet balls, and extra towers can be clearly seen.

Bridge over the Fosse or Moat

Big one.

Arrow Loop

Interior Stairs

Imagine being on the receiving end of these.

As always, a medieval castle has a view.

The castle was later damaged by the Mongols and restored.

Again, we toured with and around busloads of schoolgirls and, as always, Denise made their day! (And they made ours.)

And, after a hard day to touring, a cup of coffee.

Saudi Arabia remains one of the more mysterious countries on earth. A major producer of oil, an important market for US exports, and site of the two holiest sites in Islam, it is vitally important to millions of people. Yet because it does not issue tourist visas it is largely unknown to westerners. We were fascinated by the opportunity to visit.

We began the saga by flying to Jeddah via Frankfurt. Arriving at Jeddah in the evening we knew we were not in Kansas any more or for that matter anywhere else that we had previously visited. Ever. Let’s start with the airport; why does a country that does not issue tourist visas at all have a huge airport (15 square kilometers) with about a dozen terminals? For the Hajj, of course. In 2015 just under 1,400,000 non-Saudis made the Hajj, Umrah, or other pilgrimage. That is a lot of folk; over 80,000 on a single day. (Disney World does over 50,000 a day – you get the scale.)

Once we sorted out which immigration line to get in (the family one as we were neither diplomats nor both males), and passed our retinal and fingerprint scans, and shown our visas, which had been obtained with great difficulty, we were officially admitted and met our friend, Mary to begin our visit. It became clear that this would be an interesting experience as Denise would be wearing an abayat whenever she left Mary’s housing compound, which was reserved for foreigners and so more relaxed. This seemed odd at first but, amazingly, seemed quite normal after a day or so.

Mary is a wonderful tour guide. When we served together in Bolivia she saved Fred’s bacon at a major conference in Santa Cruz and followed up with a visit to the famous Jesuit Missions nearby. She is, not surprisingly, also very, very good at her (impossible) job in Jeddah, and like all good diplomats, knows everybody. And, like all modern Consular officers, she lives on her cell phone, even when taking leave to show guests around.

After breakfast with a Marine colleague who was in Jeddah to inspect the Marine Security Guard Detachment,  we set out on the first day to visit the city of Taif, about two hours from Jeddah. Taif is up in the mountains and is known for its cool and even rainy climate (!) and the cultivation of roses. In fact it was raining when we arrived, which we were not expecting! First we went to the Alkamal Rosewater and Rose Products factory where we saw the process of distilling rosewater from the locally produced rose petals. We were made most welcome, covered with rose petals, and enjoyed Arab hospitality with local coffee. (Starbucks fans be warned, Saudi coffee is not what you expect – it is so lightly roasted that it is closer to a yellow color. Definitely an acquired taste for those of us rasied on Turkish coffee.)

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We tried to invite our host for lunch but he overruled us and we were honored to receive an invitation to lunch with the Alkamal family at their house. We enjoyed a wonderful meal of different fish and shrimp with two kinds of pilaf. Lunch included the complete family including teenagers and college students and Fred was a source of great interest to them. They thought his attempts at Arabic were hilarious. (He declined, however, to let them record him on their iPhones!) Lunch was followed by a traditional honeyed dessert with noodles and coffee, taken on the patio amidst much conversation. After lunch we visited the Festival of Roses before returning to Jeddah.

Juice seller in Turkish costume. They were everywhere when Fred was a child in Amman. This gentleman, in Taif, is updated with plastic gloves and disposable cups.
The little cymbals let you hear him coming.

Rose festival at Taif.

Rose Festival in Taif.

Everyone loves classic cars.

On our second day, we tried to visit the Tayebat Museum in Jeddah. It was unfortunately closed for renovation but we were able to view some of the traditional architecture from the outside.

With the caretaker.

Doorway

Traditionally, you put fresh water in the pot and it filters through into the cut, cooling by evaporation. The cat is optional.

Ladies would walk from one house to another to visit without ever needed to descent to street level.

The wood from the facades came from India and Africa and was a measure of the wealth of Jeddah merchants.

Fountain

Then we went abayat shopping in the Al Shatie market where Denise bought one for everyday use and one more formal one.

These gentleman, all Bangladeshi, run an arbayat shop.

Great fun! This was followed by lunch at Bab El Yemen (Gate of Yemen) where Denise finally got to try the fabled Yemeni fish that Fred had enjoyed both in Djibouti and in Yemen. We also discovered the wonderful lemon and mint drinks, which we enjoyed and found immensely refreshing for the next few days. (Think of a non-alcoholic Mojito.)

Later in the afternoon we went to visit El Balad, the old section of Jeddah, which is an amazing warren of streets and old houses, often in bad repair.

The old city.

Our guide, Samir, is a former local employee of the Consulate General and is now conservator of El Balad was in charge of this. We visited the Beit Shorbatly a most interesting house and museum.

Don’t know if this is simply a recreation or if someone installed a touch dial in a real old phone.

Fred’s father had an old Grundig radio like this one, used it to get the BBC news on shortwave, before sunrise when the reception was better.

WE also visited the Al Shafi Mosque, a 700 year old building with a 1400 year old minaret. Fred and our guide were able to enter and take pictures but Mary and Denise stayed at the door as they were not in the women’s section.

Photo taken towards the minbar or pulpit.

The city street level has risen almost a meter since the Mosque was built.

The minaret is much older than the mosque.

Finally, we visited the Beit Naseef, a house where the first King of Saudi Arabia gave audiences. Now it is in the process of being renovated. We went to the roof, via the staircases made wide and high enough for loaded camels to climb to the upper floor, to watch the sunset and to hear the evening call to prayers from the six or so mosques nearby. We drank tea and after a snack of foule (a bean soup) with bread, we did indeed hear the simultaneous calls to prayer at sunset. It was very moving.

Home of a wealthy Jeddah merchant, previously used by the first king of Saudi Arabia, Abdul Azziz ibn Saud to hold audiences in Jeddah.

Stairs are very shallow and ceiling very high so that laden camels can climb all the way to the top.

Traditional Diwan

Waiting for Sunset

Town comes alive after the sun sets and the temperature drops.

The street zig-zags so that you have to pass the store fronts.

On our third day, we took a drive out of town again trying to find an old Ottoman fort outside Jeddah. This proved difficult so we returned to Jeddah and enjoyed a visit to the Corniche or road along the water, giving us the opportunity to take photos of the floating mosque and the huge fountain nearby, as the sun set.

Indonesian pilgrims enjoying the sunset.

One of the tallest in the world, the base is in the form of a traditional incense burner.

The final highlight of our stay was a boat ride to show us some of the views from the bay. It felt a little odd to wear both an abayat and lifejacket but we enjoyed it!

Then it was our last day and we were off to the airport for our flight to Amman, Jordan on Royal Jordanian Airlines. We had no local money but found that we could buy a snack and a drink using dollars. As a foreigner in the airport Denise felt very conspicuous and, working on the premise of “when in Rome”, wore her headscarf until we boarded our plane.

Conclusions? Any discussion of Saudi Arabia quickly turns contentious, all the more so because it is a large and surprisingly varied country. We’ll just note:

— Wonderfully welcoming people. Arab hospitality is world famous and we had the impression that many people were especially eager to display it in a country that receives few visitors other than pilgrims. We were fortunate enough to be invited into a private home, but we noticed it on the street as well.

— Amazing scenery ranging from the mountains of Taif to the old and modern cities of Jeddah. There is a lot to see. The stereotypical image of Jeddah is that of steaming heat. Sitting on the Red Sea, Jeddah is warm and humid, but so then is Miami. And Jeddah’s old city shows that it has been a major trading center for a thousand years and in that thousand years, the local folk have built to beat the heat and capitalize on the cool sea breezes.

With pictographs, for those who don’t speak Arabic or English.

Harley Davidson dealer in Jeddah. Hamburgers also available.