Bob and Ann in Egypt and Jordan 2009

We were up early today for our visit to Wadi Rum. Our bus ride took two hours. We stopped a couple of times for photos and coffee. It was sunny and cool but a little hazy. The panoramic photos I took along the way are a little fuzzy. I tried to capture mountains in the Negev desert on the horizon in Israel.

Wadi Rum Transport - Iyad

When we got to Wadi Rum, the six of of plus our guide, Iyad, got into a four-wheeled pickup truck. Iyad sat in the cab while the rest of us sat in the back on padded face-to-face padded benches. Our driver was a Bedouin in traditional dress except for his baseball cap.

Bedouin Tent

Wadi Rum is part of an ancient trade route. It is a vast desert with multi-colored sand and amazing rock formations. We made several stops for photos. One of the stops was at a Bedouin tent where we were served tea and had the opportunity to buy some souvenirs. The vendor was very laid back and give us no pressure to buy.

Another stop was to look at some carvings on the rock cliffs. Apparently, the traders carved their names and hieroglyphics as they passed through the area on the trade route. We also stopped at a Bedouin camp where there was a monument to Lawrence of Arabia with his tiny image carved in a large stone. The final stop was at a camp ground. You can stay at this camp if you want to spend more time to explore Wadi Rum. It had a lot of comfortable looking tents. Hot water is available for two hours in the morning. It's more like a Bedouin hotel.

Our tour took two hours. We were impressed with the different colors of the sand as well as the picturesque rock formations. It is very quiet in the desert – a marked contrast to the noise of the cities with their traffic and amplified calls to prayer.

We boarded our bus and headed back to Petra to have lunch at our hotel and to pick up Beverly who decided not to go on the tour. Then it was a three-hour drive to the airport in Amman.

Ann and I had dinner in the Amman airport - a hamburger with fies for me and soup for her. Our flight left around 7:30 and we landed in Cairo 1 1/2 hours later. We checked into the Iberotel and Casino (Le Passage) for the third time this trip looking forward to to a shower and bed. Unfortunately, there was no hot water. We got to sleep around 11:00.

We understand that this hotel is very convinient to the airport and fits perfectly into the logistics of the trip. It is clean, has a swimming pool, a spa and several restaurants to choose from. However, we have a few negative notes about it: 1. The lobby is over-air-conditioned and very cold. 2. Food in the main restaurant caused Ann some nausia especially when she saw one of the food preparers picking his nose. 3. We were given a smoking room on our first visit. 4. On our third visit, our room hand only one glass, the toilet gurgled constantly and there was no hot water. 5. There is nothing in the neighborhhod to see or visit when there is down time. 6. Wireless internet fees are outragious - $30 per day. 7. Leaving the window open at night to let in fresh air also lets in the misquitos.

Here is a map of where we went today: