Nits

Nits

27 December 2012

Regardless of how well these trips transpire, there’s always something to improve, and so far in the case of this trip, two things stand out so far:  Internet access and hotel location.

Even though we are staying in top-notch hotels (such as the Marriott), the internet is not free, costing $7.50 for a single hour.  That’s absurd.  In so many hotels in the US, including budget, access is free at least in public locations if not in your room.  At a minimum I expect the same when overseas, and I am disappointed in the tour operator, Insight, for not negotiating that for us.

Also, yesterday towards the end of our trip, the tour director pointed out that Jordanians pay about $5 per month for voice and data on their cell phones!  That’s bad enough, but then he went on to say we could have purchased SIM cards in Amman for this amount and had unfettered access on our cells.  I have no idea what the roaming charges will be on my phone, but even though I have limited my usage to checking email only once a day, I’m willing to bet it is already many times what the SIM car would have cost.  I feel it is absurd that Insight does not make SIM cards available for purchase from the tour director.  I’d gladly pay them $20 for that $5 card, Insight would make a huge profit, and I would be very happy to have access for several days for less than three hours of connectivity through the hotel.

On point two, the hotels have been very luxurious, but frankly I am disappointed in the locations.  They are far from the town center, too far to walk, and honestly once inside the Amman Marriott, you may as well be in the Akron, Ohio Marriott.  I travel overseas to experience new cultures, and beyond the touring we do throughout the day, it would be awesome to walk around local shops and snack at local food stands in the evening to enhance the experience.  Yes, I could take a taxi, but in addition to the hassle I would not know where to tell the driver to go.

I actually think that the next escorted tour I book will be with a “less luxurious” operator, somebody who uses lower cost hotels, in the hope they may use hotels that are in more central areas.  Saving the money would be a plus, but that would not be my primary reason.

N.B.:  One more thought on Jordan for the moment.  Given all that is going on in Egypt and the intimidation of tourists there, I should point out that Jordan has tourism police everywhere, even at the way out sites such as Shobak Castle.  You could not be safer.

Transition: Jordan to Israel

Transition:  Jordan to Israel

27 December 2012

It’s 4:30 in the morning, and again I find I cannot sleep, this time in anticipation of the journey to Israel.  My main objective in taking this trip was to see Israel, and the inclusion of Jordan was something I did mainly because of Petra.  With that in mind, as we transition between the countries, I should summarize that Jordan actually did have more to offer than I thought it would.  While it probably won’t rank high on my future return list, there were three highpoints:

1. Petra, as expected, was the ultimate highlight, and it far exceeded what I thought it would be.  Discovering that it consisted of so much more than the Treasury building was incredible.  If I were to return to Jordan, it would be with the sole intent of spending multiple days exploring this site.
2. Mount Nebo was the second highlight, and in spite of the hazy weather which precluded the view of the Holy Land it was an experience that defies words.
3. Jerash was a pleasant and unexpected surprise.  I knew nothing of this site before the tour, and to see a very expansive, reasonably well preserved Greco-Roman city was a bonus I had not counted upon.  While I doubt I will ever return to see it again, it will be a memory I will hold for the rest of my life.

So, in my last few hours in Jordan, I feel it was in and of itself an incredible experience, but it is Israel only a few hours away which is the true reason I am here.  This is like the start of my holiday all over again!

Boxing Day

Boxing Day

26 December 2012

We woke up this morning with instructions to check out of the Petra hotel by 9:00 AM.  There was some minor episode with bar charges being posted to the wrong rooms, and without going into detail I’ll simply say it is both amusing and disappointing to see how petty some people can be over a few dollars.  We’ve all spent a fair amount per person in airfare and tour fees, so, to worry about the price of a couple of drinks seems silly to me.  In any case, it was straightened out, but became a running joke among a few of us.

Shobak Fortress, a castle built by the Crusaders, was our first stop of the day.  Unfortunately, this fell back into the “no big deal” category, as it was nothing special, and nowhere near as well reconstructed as so many of th European castles I have toured.

Next was an unexpected event when our bus broke down, requiring a delay while we waited for and were transferred to an alternate, losing a couple of hours in the process.

In spite of the bus problem, we reached Mount Nebo, the point from which God allowed Moses to view the Promised Land, only to tell him he would never set foot on it.  Unfortunately, haze made if impossible for us to see the cities of Bethlehem and Jerusalem, but that really did not distract from the majesty of the moment.

The final two stops of the day consisted of a visit to St George’s in Madaba, a Greek Orthodox church which houses a famous mosaic floor map of the Holy Land, followed by a tour of a mosaic factory (can we say tour guide commissions?).

We arrive at the Marriott hotel in Amman shortly after 8:00 PM, with a very quick dinner then off to bed, in anticipation or the border crossing into Israel tomorrow!!

Petra!!

Christmas Day

25 December 2012

Petra

Petra is awesome!!!

I expected Petra to be one of the trip highlights, but I totally underestimated all it had to offer.  I had initially thought that the famous Treasury building was the only high point it had to offer, and while the Treasury is incredible and is the icon for the site, but to think that is all Petra offers is very wrong.  Petra is over 100 square miles in area, and only a fraction of it has been excavated.  (The actual percentage of excavated area is a topic of debate, but the highest end says 40%, while the lower estimates go into single digits.)  I did climb to the monastery building, a hefty 30 minutes hike up steep steps from the basin, and the view from that perch was breathtaking.  I’ll never climb Mt. Everest, but in some small way looking out over the lands from that high vantage point helped me understand why people do elect to summit Everest.

One thing about Petra that is a bit controversial is the use of horses and donkeys to transport visitors.  Whether you elect to take advantage of it or not, the price of the entry ticket includes a horse ride from the entrance to the start of the Siq, but our guide pleaded with us not to ride the animals as many of them are abused.  There are, additionally, horse drawn carriages which, in theory, are for the elderly and disable only, but in actuality can be had by anybody for enough dinars.  Also, donkeys are available to take one up the steep hike to the monastery or point of sacrifice, but beyond possible animal abuse that is a very dangerous route for the rider as well—seeing a few people clinging to their beasts, it is very obvious that falls would be common.

One thing about being in an Islamic country for Christmas that felt odd was being away from the Christmas spirit.  Last year in Egypt I had that sort of bittersweet feeling, happy to be on holiday but a little sorry that I was missing out on the spirit of the day.  In Petra, I had the same regret, but it was mitigated, if not obliterated, when our guide took us into one of the shops and introduced us firsthand to frankincense and myrrh.  All of us have heard of these fragrant products, but few of us have seen or smelt them.  To do so on Christmas Day itself, in the heart of one of the major trade junctions in the Middle East, was a true joy.

Christmas dinner was pleasant, nothing overly fancy (far short of the cruise ship dinner last year), but it pleasing nonetheless.  I did meet a few of my traveling companions in the bar afterwards, and I bought them a round at the end.  This was an excellent compromise in that I was able to give something which they appreciated, but it was not an overly expensive thing either.