May Peace Prevail on Earth
We “hit the ground running”. I arrived Wednesday evening. Thursday morning we went to Petra and spent 6 hours walking and climbing in the fascinating site. Thursday afternoon we drove to Aqaba. Friday morning, after a fantastic buffet breakfast at the Movenpick hotel, Chrissy and I walked her dig sites and the Ayla dig site followed by a trip through the castle in Aqaba that is closer to the port. Friday afternoon we drove to Karak to walk through the castle, drove through the Wujib and back into Amman before 7:30 p.m. Saturday we took a taxi, bus, and another taxi, waited in long lines and after 5 hours made it to Jerusalem. We walked to and through the old city in the afternoon, encountered the Palm Sunday ritual inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and had a wonderful dinner at a restaurant in Eastern Jerusalem. Sunday Chrissy and I visited the old city again to enter the Temple Mount and enjoy the outsides of the Mount of the Rock, temple and the spectacular views from the heights. Sunday afternoon we took a taxi, bus, taxi and arrived back in Amman in the early evening. Monday Chrissy and I explored the citadel, amphitheatre and Wild Jordan restaurant in Amman. Tuesday the Team Brody guided me through Jarash. Tuesday afternoon Chrissy and I explored the suk in Amman to pick up some sweets for me to bring home. And Wednesday I arrived home late to face a happy, happy dog.
A little more detail:
Tomb in Petra with sand stone deterioration
Byzantine Church Baptismal
The Nabateans constructed it as their capital city around 100 BC. It is an interesting combination of living quarters, temples and tombs. You enter through a narrow “crack” in huge sandstone walls. There are small, large, simple and complex carvings in the stones everywhere. There are also caves used by the Bedouin today as living quarters and for storage. Inside the stone caves is dramatically colder than the outside air. A Byzantine Church was built in 5th century AD. It has some gorgeous mosaics that are in good shape and covered with a teflon tent structure. It also has one of the earliest baptismals that has been excavated. There was a gentleman guarding the site and at 12:30 he took off his shoes, washed his feet and prayed to Mecca.
Earliest Church Structure
Aqaba dates back to 4th century BC. Around 106 AD, the Romans used the town as one of their main trading stations en route to the sea. Aqaba came under Islamic rule in 630 AD. During the 12th century, Crusaders wrested Aqaba from Muslims and built a castle. When Saladin captured Aqaba in 1182 AD, the castle became known as Saladin’s Castle. Lawrence was part of a successful attack of the castle in the early 1900s. The church where Chrissy was digging dates back to 293 AD (I think). It is the earliest recorded church structure. The site of early “Ayla” has been dug and has a wonderful path and signage to guide you through the community. There is a roman arch in the walkway and you can see the small “stores” on the sides of the pathway. It never ceased to amaze me that the original levels for these older structures is a good 10 – 12 feet below the current ground level.
Crusader Castle in Karak
Karak dates back to biblical times. High on a hill top, the city walls and Crusader castle were finished in 1161 AD. Saladin attacked and won the castle after an 8 month long siege. The castle became the capital of the Mameluk kingdom. During this time there were many renovations on the castle. Turkish rule of Karak ended in 1918. I could “hear” the horses and the clank of armor as we walked through the wide castle pathway. It is tremendously cooler inside the walls. And there are many levels and pathways. It is easy to get lost in here. Noah kept looking for knights and was disappointed to declare them all dead. The archways are rounded and pointed showing the Crusader and Arab influences. The wall around the castle and moat are huge. This was a formidable structure to attack. The museum is built on a lowest level with an outside plaza. It is newly carved stone and very lovely. It is a regional museum.
Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem
Jerusalem is an amazing place. The holiest site for Muslims, Jews and Christians. And with Passover and Easter, and Orthodox Palm Sunday all happening it was busy. There were extraordinary variations on clothing and hatware. Cakebox, cone and pillbox black hatware. Long black robes and colorful robes and white linen. Men, women and children in formal religious dress. We were fortunate enough to happen upon the Palm Sunday rituals in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. And a processsion of staff holders that banged there staffs on the floor followed by an incense smoker holder person, followed by singing priests with songbooks and candles. They sang in an upper chapel and then came down to circle the sepulcher structure 3 times. We tried to escape them by exploring the Orthodox Ethiopian chapel, St. Helenas cistern (deep in the bowels under the church), St. Helenas chapel under the church and then a deeper chapel. St. Helena’s chapel had a beautiful floor mosaic. There was a rug rolled up to the side of the chapel. So I think we were lucky to see the mosaic. It is probably covered by the rug most of the time. As you enter the Church there is a stone slab on the floor. It is in a frame and has water (?) surrounding it. Many people were kissing the stone and laying crosses on it or dipping cloth in the fluid. I don’t think Jesus would like this place. During Passover the area around the Western Wall is jammed with people.
Dome of the Rock
So getting up to the Temple Mount was something we didn’t think we would be able to do. The wooden bridge over the Western Wall is heavily guarded, but they did let us through. The Mount of the Rock and Temple can only be entered by Muslims. The views from the Mount and the outside of the structures was well worth seeing. The mosaics are spectacular. We also visited King David’s Tower. It is a palace structure built into the city wall. There are many levels and types of construction and it has been excavated. I enjoyed the bronze views of the city at various times in history the most. (During the First Temple, after the destruction of the Second Temple and current) We thought this was David’s palace and later in time Pilates palace, but someone at ACOR said they thought that Pilate’s palace may be at the south end of the Temple Mount. That would make Via Delarosa (Stations of the Cross) going in the wrong direction. It is understandable that the crucifixion rock, sepulcher and various other important religious places are specific and also understandable that they may not be accurate. To the believers it really doesn’t matter.
Citadel Meeting Hall
Within Amman’s city limits there are two fabulous sites: the Citadel and the Amphitheater. The citadel has a meeting hall with a beautifully reconstructed dome. It is within partially excavated city walls that are formidable. The amphitheater is still used.
The amphitheater in downtown Amman.
The museum there has a fantastic exhibit of clothing. I was so impressed by the beautiful, elaborate cross-stitch work on the clothing in the museum and worn on the Muslim women today. The Bedouin rug weaving is also really beautiful. The looms are ground looms and only of a certain width. So rugs are pieced together. And the tent covers are woven of goat hair which swells and becomes waterproof in the rain.
Oval Plaza in Jerash, Jordan
Jerash was a Bronze Age city and later invaded and annexed by Rome. About 1/3 of the city is in the site that you can visit. The other 2/3rds in under the modern city. There are two Hadrian gates (one is being reconstructed right now). There are roads temples, homes and two amphitheaters. There are daily chariot races (we didn’t see one) and performances in the theaters (we did see one). The mosaics in one of the homes are really beautiful. The wildflowers are in full bloom.
Six feral cats
I beg forgiveness for misspellings and inaccurate dates. This is the best my brain can muster. For my animal lover friends, I was shocked at the number of feral cats everywhere we went. Only one appeared to be neutered. They were in and under every garbage container, in the ruins, in the streets, in the gardens. Even with that, it was a really fabulous trip. And I am missing my Team Brody.
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