Heaven On Earth

I have been living in Jordan for 13 years, and I have heard about this spectacular place “Wadi Rum” a million times! But I always thought of it as a spooky desert, that doesn’t have any activities or life in it!

Last year, for the first time I decided, I got to see this place! And from the moment my feet touched the rosy sand till the moment I got in the car to leave, I was  surprised & amazed I have never been there before!! Me and my friends got on the back of the safari Pick up and toured around the place, we wrapped our faces with “Hatta” that’s a kind of a scarf that resembles the Jordanians!  As we went along and while the wind was blowing at us we were overwhelmed by the incredible, huge, magnificent shaped mountains!

                                               Taken by: Dave & Deb  http://goo.gl/T02NIE

We sat on the top of the mountain and watched the sunset, you can’t imagine how spectacular it is! “It sure is heaven on earth”

We took a little tour on the adorable Camels as well, which was kind of unique.  I even learned a funny Egyptian proverb about camels that says: “If you love, love the moon; if you steal, steal a camel”. As lovely as camels can be, a word of advice, ALWAYS bargain with the Bedouins they have the tendency to rip you off sometimes! 

This is a picture of Lawrence of Arabia that you will find there, you can ask the driver to take you to it (British-American film based on the life of  Lawrence, filmed in Wadi Rum.

After we went back to our cozy camp, “Jabal Rum” which by the way is a very clean & safe place to stay. The Bedouins there are so helpful and make you feel so comfortable and welcoming; to Arabs and Foreigners as well. Prepare yourself to drink lots of Arabic tea with basil! It is another Bedouin custom!

Did you know that Hot tea cools you down!  Yup!

We drink our tea hot! Though it seems counter-intuitive to drink a warm beverage when it is 40 degrees Celsius outside, it actually cools you down quite effectively by stimulating the body to sweat more, which cools the body. This has been common knowledge in Arab countries for thousands of years, and it is one of the reasons why we drink warm tea in hot countries often!

It is important to know that you should not refuse tea bluntly from a Bedouin, as this could be considered as something rather rude. It is an integral part of socializing & meetings here and will be offered regularly, unless it’s Ramadan. I love these little things about our culture!!

At night they usually do a kind of show “They dress up a woman & a man in traditional Arabic clothing and make them a ZAFFAIH which is the famous (dance & drum) that they usually do for a couple that are getting married. It is very funny and interesting at the same time, as you get to dance and sing all in a circle with a bonfire in the middle.

Ohhh the best part in this camp is the (Zarb), which is a delicious dish, contains rice, meat and vegetables that is cooked under the sand. You will keep you wanting more! Plus you can look at them while they take it out!!

Another breathtaking moment you don’t want to miss, is waking up at 4-5 a.m. and watching the sunrise! I was the only one who was able to wake up and it was kind of chili so I wrapped myself with a blanket and headed out to the nearest mountain. Well I got Goosebumps from the flawless view, fresh air and silence all around you!  You will definitely feel that you are on another planet.

                               

My last tip for today would be ; if you ever think of visiting Wadi Rum, wear comfortable training clothes and runners as there will be lots of climbing and you will get all dirty from the sand!

                                

Photos credit to me (Rasha Hamdan)