petra, jordan:

Petra. One of the Seven Wonders of the world, and deservedly so.
We stayed in Wadi Musa, the town just outside of the infamous site for three nights to ensure we could see as much of Petra as possible. Petra is massive. After all, it was a ancient city built and inhabited by the Nabataeans around 6th century BC. So it's pretty old! What is most impressive about Petra, other than its size, is the fact that it is carved out of the existing natural formations. In particular, the Treasury (the most famous image of Petra) and the Monastery are incredible as you take in all of the detail, not to mention the giant scale of the facades.
What we loved was walking through the Siq (like a canyon) at the start - exciting when you get that first glimpse through the rocks on either side. We had so fun exploring and climbing around, trying to imagine Petra back in the day as a bustling city.
Sadly though, it was abandoned around 300-400AD due to a bad earthquake and flooding. You could see most of Petra in a day, but I would recommend two as it is huge like I said before. For example - from the ticket office to the Treasury, which is the start of Petra, is about a 45minute walk if you aren't in a rush. Keep walking to the Monastery (which is well worth it) and you're looking at another two hours.
Petra is amazing and has been a highlight so far. Do add it to your bucket list if you haven't already.

Next: Wadi Rum and then Egypt.

the treasury




our new friend Abdullah and myself - he made that necklace (and a few others) for me

 

very impressed by these hexagonal stone tiles



standing outside the monastery