Petra is probably the reason most people including us visit Jordan but we have learnt that there is so much more to Jordan than Petra alone and so much more to Petra than the ubiquitous poster picture of the so-called Treasury building, actually a tomb but thought to contain treasure, though none was ever found. It has been called the lost city, but was only lost to the west and rediscovered in 1812. Bedouin still lived in the ruins of this large abandoned city 2,500 years old destroyed by an enormous earthquake which flattened much of the country in the 8th century AD until the government moved them out in the mid 80s to preserve and develop the site for tourism. Free houses and schools were provided for them but sadly the site is full of young children selling trinkets just as in Jerash where one boy selling reed pipes told me that i should just give him money even if I didnt want a pipe as he collects money. Some of the children in Petra appear to pick pockets, an entry ticket from one of our group presumably to sell on and a small girl tried to grab a fruit bar from my hand.

There is a 4 km walk along a narrow canyon, itself the result of an ancient earthquake opening on to the treasury building, famous from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, although he rode on horse back. Donkeys, horses and horse drawn carriages, as well as camels are available for hire, but there is more time to appreciate it on foot. The path continues between rocky cliffs studded with many tombs, some caves with carved doorways and others more spectacular like the treasury but the soft sandstone often badly eroded but just as impressive as the Treasury which has been clumsily reconstructed presumably so as not to disappoint the tourists for some years to come.

It would take 4 or 5 days to fully explore but in the afternoon we chose to climb the 950 steps up to the so-called Monastery, also just a tomb, a strenous climb in the heat and the more sensible can do the journey on donkey. We were surprised to find a cafe at the top, less impressed that it had no loos and we were just told to go around the back. A group of us girls found a discreet rock and bush and shielded each other in turn and hoped that there were no telephoto lenses pointed in our direction form the viewpoint above. Fortified by tea Martin continued up the steep rocky path to see the view of the whole valley, a couple of us chose a kinder looking path to another view of several hills, apparently one the burial place of Aaron.

It is easy to see why Petra is in lists of the places you have to visit and it doesnt disappoint as some much-hyped places can. It is also known as the rose pink city and the sandstone has swirls and waves of shades of pink and red but also white, grey, yellow and blue, beautiful and subtly different in the light at different times of day. Despite its popularity it was not too crowded to enjoy but I would worry how it would cope with many more tourists, the damage this could cause and the temptation to reconstruct which would ruin its character.

After walking and climbing some 15 km we certainly enjoyed dinner of traditional Jordanian mansaf, slow cooked lamb served over rice on a bed of thin pancake-like bread with a tangy yoghurt and stock sauce, although I didn't eat it with my fingers in the traditional way, rolling up balls of rice with meat and sauce, mainly because it ws so hot, but it was just as delicious eaten with a knife and fork.