22nd May 2010

Up early and had a two hour drive cross the Jordan Border. We went to the ladies toilet and found a lady living in there. She had a bed, jars of pickles, a TV and a hot water service. After clearing immigration we drove to Amman via the impressive archaeological site of Jerash. Jerash is one of the impressive and best-preserved provincial Roman cities in the Middle East. The inhabitants were quite cultured and quite well off, resulting in lavish architectural designs principally in the 'oriental baroque style'. Other interesting features include chariot tracks etched into the pavement and the famous moving columns (you can put your finger into one of the lower joints and actually feel them swaying.

Amman is the capital of Jordan - bustling, big and largely unplanned. Supposedly designed as a series of circles it is virtually impossible to find your way around from the maps or to recognise anything remotely resembling circularity. Amman boasts all the healthy eating options of home - Big Macs, Pizza Hut, Subway and KFC. There was a good Safeway supermarket, which, rather surprisingly for a Muslim country, actually has bacon for sale and lots of other western goods. We stayed at a comfortable hotel in the centre of town.

In Amman we met new passengers joining us for the last 3 weeks through Jordan and Egypt and said farewell to Adam.