The land of Bedouins who look like Jack Sparrow, where you feel like on a different planet. Completely surprised me and exceeded my expectations.
When you’re visiting some places in Jordan, you might wonder “Am I still on Earth?” and you may definitely confuse it with Moon, Mars, and even Neptune while floating with no gravitation in the Dead Sea. One of my favourite countries in the world.
I traveled across the country by a rented car which was very convenient but it’s better to avoid driving a car in the capital Amman. Traffic rules are different than in Europe, or I should say there are less rules, which could be both, more and less stressful. More because you might be surprised sometimes, and less when you are not the best driver and make mistakes 😉 Then you are one of the many cars doing strange things on the road and no one cares about it.
Jordanian landscape is beautiful with the beige sands, rocks, turquoise Dead Sea and it is a great place to take a road trip.
My first stop was Madaba city. On the picture you can see the view from the rooftop, and the catholic church next to the mosque. Jordan in general is a tolerant country that has also taken many refugees over the years. Despite its challenging location (borders with Syria, Irak, Saudi Arabia, Israel and Palestine) has remained neutral. Locals are very friendly, open and talkative in general.
On the desert near Petra there’s a great hotel where you can sleep in a transparent bubble under the stars! Amazing experience, read more about it here – Bubble Luxotel Petra.
The next night after sleeping in a bubble I got even more curious about the unique hotels and booked a night in… the cave! The real Bedouin cave found on booking.com. It was something new and interesting for me, felt like an adventure 🙂 In the area there was a big cave and smaller one – my bedroom. In the main cave I’ve met interesting people, listened to a fascinating stories from the Petra ranger, learned about some Bedouin’s traditions and had a tasty dinner near the bon fire. In the small cave it was totally dark after turning the light off, I couldn’t see anything. It was warm even though nights at the desert are very cold, and I also heard that in the summer caves are not getting warm that much. If you need to use a restroom, find a nice rock 😅
Click right to see the cave:
Petra the ancient city carved in rocks draws tourists from the whole globe. This place is one of a kind, you can stroll around for kilometeres and I think it’s best to buy a ticket for at least two days or one but come very early in the morning. Don’t forget your passport to enter!
In Petra you will meet Bedouin people, including very charming ones ☺️ They look like Jack Sparrow pirate, have very dark eyes underlined with the black eyeliner called kajal made with coal, herbs and olive oil (not kohl, which is a bit different). They often have longer hair, long traditional coats, and wear head scarves. Moreover they can sweet talk to you for hours, and tell you poems, they are really good at this. I think of them as modern days Casanovas 😉 They are not even discouraged by your boyfriend standing right next to you, and I have to admit they cross the line in a very charming way. When I was googling some information, I came across websites created by women feeling heartbroken, used by them, and I couldn’t believe… Well, they are obviously very charismatic and alluring, but not necessarily a husband material 😉
My first reaction was “OMG Jack Sparrow is Bedouin!”
I love arabic cuisine and in Jordan I found the most delicious sage tea. Wild thyme tee is also great.
The fascinating Dead Sea is an unusual place, and actually it is lake (not a sea). It is so salty that it pushes a body on the surface, so you cannot swim but float. Moreover, due to the high salt concentration there’s no life (like fish) in the water, hens its name.
If you want to float in the Dead Sea in Jordan, it’s easiest to go to one of the four hotels in the northern part (at the moment). I don’t know how to do it in any other way because you need a shower after swimming. In addition, in hotels you can take advantage of spa treatments and have a black mud body mask which also has healthy minerals & elements.
If you wonder how it must be on the red planet Mars, go to Wadi Rum desert. I can’t even stress enough how stunning this place is…
In the south part of Jordan, there’s a city Aqaba near the Red Sea which is great for diving and snorkelling. It must be great but I tried something else…
Ajloun Castle in the North part:
The last place I really wanted to visit was Wadi Mujib canyon where you go through the rocks, water and waterfalls. It must be great adventure! When I was visiting, it was unfortunately closed (it is open only in a warm season), so I have no other choice than go back 🙂
Share with us your adventure in the comment.
Malvina Dunder 
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