Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
W EST ERN JORDAN
W
hile most visitors to Jordan come for the sole purpose of
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seeing the magnificent rock-cut city of Petra, many depart
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with their most treasured experiences being encounters
with the gracious and hospitable locals. Beside these two attractions,
the western part of the country has a great many fascinating archae-
ological sites from prehistoric, Roman, Byzantine and Crusader times.
Only partitioned off from Palestine in
1923 and made fully independent in
1946, the nation of Jordan has a
maturity that belies its youth. That
the kingdom is viewed as an
anchor in the often turbulent sea of
Middle Eastern politics is due, in large
part, to the efforts of the late King
Hussein (1953-99) who worked
solidly to establish and main-
tain peace in the region. The
extreme warmth and friend-
liness of the population is an
exp ression of the stability
Hussein secured for his country. Day-
to-day patterns of life in Jordan are
also shaped by a relaxed and tolerant
interpretation of Islam. Tourists who
have just visited neighbouring Israel
may well appreciate the laissez-faire
nature of the Jordanian people.
Although Jordan has an area of
about 92,000 sq km (36,000 sq miles),
around nine-tenths of this is
desert. Consequently, the
population of approximately
5.5 million is concentrated in
the northwest on a plateau
above the Jordan Valley.
Watered by the Jordan River
and surrounded by mountains,
this little pocket enjoys a lush
greenhouse-like climate and is
entirely devoted to agriculture. But
south of Amman the fertile plains
abruptly end and give way to the vast
stony desert that extends all the way
down to the Red Sea. Largely shunned
by the local populace, this is the region
that visitors come to see. This is where
you find the craggy sandstone land-
scapes out of which Petra was carved.
Further south is Wadi Rum with its great
cinemascope sandy oceans that
provided a dramatic backdrop for the
exploits of Lawrence of Arabia.
Perfectly suited to the Jordanian terrain, the camel, pictured here at Mount Nebo
The Treasury at Petra, arguably the single most spectacular sight in the whole Middle East
