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Old 7 Feb 20, 04:38 PM  
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Gunna
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Mobile Jordan & Petra - 2nd February - Aljoun Castle & Jerash

For all we’d had a long travel day yesterday I was still awake at around 4:00am which would of been 2:00am at home. I dozed then listened to the early morning call to prayer from the nearby minaret, dozed some more and we set about getting ready for the day and headed down to breakfast about 7:00am There was a good choice and I was really happy to see a fried halloumi like cheese and cheesy flatbread too so decided to have both!



After breakfast we then collected our cameras and things we needed from the room and headed down to meet Khaled who was waiting for us as planned. We settled into his car ( which was more of an 8 seater minibus so plenty of room to spread out) and set off for Aljoun castle first. We had originally looked to visit some ruins at Umm Qais and Khaled explained yesterday how far the drive was and also it was similar to Jerash but smaller so we decided to give ourselves more time in our other stops instead. On route we got talking with Khaled about all sorts and found lots out about each other, his family, Jordan and Jordanian life and we told him about the UK too. Great to find out more about each other and also Jordan too. He was asking if I liked coffee and as I did made a stop at a small place so he could get me some traditional Jordan caffeine. We headed in and the guys where making this in small brass pots in hot sand. They added sugar if you wanted it and it was served piping hot without milk.



This really was a much needed caffeine fix and set me up well for the day. Kirsty passed on it as she knew it would be too strong for her. It was really good but very strong. We continued our drive and I said to Khaled I was so glad I wasn’t driving just from the speed and rules of the road ( or lack of them in some cases ) but he navigated them with ease and we soon arrived up at Ajloun castle, an old 12th century Muslim Castle. Khaled bought our tickets and let us head off to explore. One thing great about our trip was there where no time limits, when you’re on a bus trip it’s usually assigned how long you get and then you need to be on the bus but not with Khaled , he let us head off and just be back when we where done. He had a chill and we walked up the hill and headed inside.




We climbed up to the top and where rewarded with some fantastic views across the surrounding countryside. The distance from places in Israel, Palestine and Syria was surprisingly short and if you so wished could reached within an hour or two. Before we went to Jordan we’d had our jabs and debated whether to have the course of Rabies, the nurse at our GP surgery advised us just to stay away from local animals but as we headed back to the car the local cats started following us and some were very cute, it was hard not to stroke them.



Could of taken the little one home! Khaled checked if we needed lunch but as we were okay we set off for Jerash and decided to have this later. On route he showed us where you could buy fresh chickens which were kept in cages and then slaughtered as you bought them. We’ve been thinking about reducing the meat we eat and think this helped. We talked some more and after some traffic jams near Ajloun soon arrived in Jerash which houses one of the best preserved Greco-Roman cities in the world. We had a guide here and when Khaled had bought our tickets he introduced us to Mustafa and we set off with him for the next couple of hours.




This place was amazing. We’ve both been to Rome and the Colosseum is stunning however, for me, this place was so much more impressive than what was left of the Roman forum there, it was huge and there is still a lot being discovered. There was a hippodrome from chariot racing and the huge forum surrounded by columns and this was just near the start. Mustafa told us so much about the history as well as himself and gave us another insight into living in Jordan, he was another really interesting guy. We made our way round to the Temple of Artemis, patron goddess of the city.



We finished up at the temple of Zeus and Roman theatre. In the theatre we stood on one spot and you could hear your voice echoing back loud and clear, take one step either side and nothing, it was so impressive. We also met some bagpipers here and when they played it sounded amazing in the theatre.



It was then time to leave Mustafa and we said our goodbyes and he left us to explore and wander on our own before we headed back to meet up with Khaled. Jerash was so impressive, I was totally blown away by it. From seeing street drainage, man-hole covers to fountains, just amazing.



We where quite hungry now so Khaled took us to a local place and on entering took us to where they were making the bread on hot stones getting us some to try whilst waiting on the food which soon came and there was lots of it.



By the time our lamb and koftas came I was stuffed on starters alone but managed to find some room. The salads where so good and it’s was some of the best hummus I’ve ever had. We finished with tea then settled up before Khaled picked up some bread for home and we set off back to Amman.

We got stuck in some traffic as we hit rush hour but passed the time chatting to each other and was back at the hotel for about 5pm. We arranged our meet for the morning and said goodbye to Khaled until then. We decided to have a chill in the room and headed out for a coffee later. We wandered down to a Starbucks for one which wasn’t far but just had drinks and a cake as we where still full from our late lunch. Back in the room we were soon asleep. Our first full day in Jordan and we already loved the place.
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Old 7 Feb 20, 08:18 PM  
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Sparksy72
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What a wonderful day with some amazing photos. Your late lunch looks completely delicious! What a fantastic day.
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Old 7 Feb 20, 08:52 PM  
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Melbatb
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A fabulous day! What wonderful sights! And lunch looked amazing!
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2016 Quebec - Kuala Lumpar - New York City 2017 Dubai - Eurocamps France - Ontario and Quebec - So-Cal 2018 Montreal - Bangkok - New England 2019 Argentina - Quebec City - Hong Kong - 2020 Switzerland 2022 Arizona - Costa Med Cruise - Oslo 2023 Hong Kong - Gothenburg
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Old 8 Feb 20, 01:08 AM  
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Tinkermom
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I’ve been waiting for day two! How wonderful, thank you for such a lovely report.
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Old 8 Feb 20, 07:54 AM  
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Gunna
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Originally Posted by Sparksy72 View Post
What a wonderful day with some amazing photos. Your late lunch looks completely delicious! What a fantastic day.
The food in Jordan was really good, the fresh bread and hummus was amazing. Lots of delicious olive oil, Khaled told us his grandfather drank a glass a day and is alive and well at 105!

Originally Posted by Melbatb View Post
A fabulous day! What wonderful sights! And lunch looked amazing!
The sights were amazing and we soon realised that Jordan has so much to offer, sure we will be back to explore some more and eat more of their great food.

Originally Posted by Tinkermom View Post
I’ve been waiting for day two! How wonderful, thank you for such a lovely report.
Glad you’re enjoying the report, really was such an amazing country, I’ll try to get another day posted soon.
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Edited at 07:55 AM.
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Old 15 Feb 20, 09:01 AM  
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CrispyA
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Wow, fantastic pictures - looks like a fascinating place and your lunch looked pretty good too!
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Old 15 Feb 20, 02:00 PM  
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Gunna
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Originally Posted by CrispyA View Post
Wow, fantastic pictures - looks like a fascinating place and your lunch looked pretty good too!
The food in Jordan was really good, the best hummus I’ve ever had.
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