Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
EASTERN HIGHLIGHTS
Chase the ghost of Lawrence through
Qasr al-Azraq
(
Click here
)
, the former
headquarters of this enigmatic British officer
Hunker down in the bird-hide at
Azraq Wetland Reserve
(
Click here
)
and
watch the drama of a waterhole unfold
Meet one of Jordan's ethnic minorities, the Chechens, at
Azraq Lodge
(
Click
Admire the risqué frescoes in the bathhouse of
Qusayr Amra
(
Click here
)
, a
Unesco World Heritage site
Wander the maze-like corridors of
Qasr Kharana
(
Click here
)
, a mighty fortress
in a lonesome desert
Spot the endangered Arabian oryx on night safari at
Shaumari Wildlife Reserve
(
Click here
)
, a vital ecotourism venture
Clamber through the brooding basalt ruins of
Umm al-Jimal
(
Click here
)
, an an-
cient town of shimmering black stone
Use your off-road driving skills to reach
Burqu
(
Click here
), an unlikely lake in
the wilderness
History
A string of ruined pavilions, caravanserais (merchants' inns), hunting lodges and forts -
known collectively (if erroneously) as the 'desert castles' - peppers the deserts of eastern
Jordan, and is one of the country's most surreal attractions. Dating back to the Umayyads
(AD 661-750) in the earliest years of Islam, the desert castles were once richly decorated
with mosaics, frescoes, marble, plaster and painted stucco, providing oases of pleasure in
the harsh and inhospitable desert. Here, the elite could pursue their pastimes of hawking,
hunting and horseracing during the day, while evenings were spent in wild festivities with
wine, poetry and song.
The early Arab rulers were still Bedouin at heart, and their love of the desert may have
led them to build these pleasure palaces, which once teemed with orchards and wild game.
Or they may have come to avoid epidemics in the big cities, or to maintain links with, and
power over, the Bedouin - the bedrock of their support in the conquered lands. The desert
