Jordan Attractions
Take a study trip through the Kingdom of Jordan, located in the Middle East! Go on a round trip to explore the ancient sights of Jordan such as the Citadel, the souq of Amman; the ancient city from the Roman times Gerasa with the triumphal arch in honor of the emperor Hadrian, the Georgskirche, etc.; the Roman amphitheater, the city and mosaic museum of Madaba, the fantastic rock city Petra with the treasure house, the Roman theater, the tombs of the King’s Wall, the former city center or the rock tomb Ed-Deir, several fortresses of old crusaders, the desert valley Wadi Rum, and much more Get to know the Kingdom of Jordan on a group tour!
Wadi Rum
According to topschoolsintheusa, Wadi Rum is a spectacular desert valley (wadi in Arabic) in southern Jordan. It is also known as the “Valley of the Moon” and has already been added to the UNESCO World Heritage List. This area of Jordan is quite isolated and largely inhospitable to sedentary life. The only permanent residents are several thousand Bedouin nomads and villagers. There is no real infrastructure, so the area remains completely untouched. Aside from the Bedouin goat hair tents, the only structures are a few concrete houses and the fort is the headquarters of the desert patrol corps.
a special photo spot in Jordan
Wadi Rum is not so much a sandy desert as it is a mountain desert. Very good photos can be taken from the area north of the Turkish railway line parallel to the road from the Aqaba highway to Wadi Rum. The best time to visit Wadi Rum is when it is a little cloudy so that vacationers can experience the beautiful play of light and shadow in the desert. TE Lawrence (of Arabia) spent considerable time here during the British-inspired Arab revolt against the Ottoman Empire during World War I (1914-1918). Fans of the 1962 film Lawrence of Arabia will be familiar with the landscape, which is not so much sand dunes but a mass of soaring cliffs and mountains of sandstone and granite.
Activities
The real attraction of Wadi Rum is the desert itself, which is best visited by 4×4 on foot or by camel. Some tourists only spend a few hours in the wadi, but it is definitely worth spending the night in Bedouin camps in the desert and taking a guided tour. Hiking is possible, especially in the colder off-season. Climbing is another popular activity and a number of the guides are also trained climbers.
Landscapes and animals worth seeing
Visitors to Wadi Rum tend to see very few animals as most desert animals are nocturnal to avoid the sun during the day. Many of the larger animals like snakes and reptiles are now reduced to very low numbers. However, if you take the time to look around carefully, you will likely see a number of interesting birds and insects, such as the variegated desert lark, the black and white black wheatear, and the white crowned black wheatear, whose name reveals its distinctive color pattern.
Um er-rasas
Um er-Rasas archaeological site (Kastron Mefa’a)
The ruins of Um er-Rasas leave visitors in awe. Already mentioned in the Bible, Romans as well as Byzantine Christians left their traces here. A tower that has neither stairs nor an entrance, a Roman military camp and floor mosaics of unique beauty have rightly earned the ancient city the title of UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2004.
Location of the excavation site
The ruins of the archaeological site are in the Jordanian desert, the distance to the capital Amman is around 70 kilometers, and Madaba is 30 kilometers. Um er-Rasas was once a magnificent walled settlement. Here, visitors enter a place whose history dates back to the 3rd century AD.
Sights in Um er-Rasas
The ruins of the military camp from Roman times impress with dimensions of 150 by 150 meters, once its outer walls were reinforced with towers. A visit to the Stylite Tower is just as fascinating. It has neither an entrance nor a staircase and was considered a retreat for strictly ascetic columnar saints. The overall complex also includes an open settlement, which, with its residential complexes, churches, floor mosaics and a winery, provides insights into bygone times. Travelers can hardly imagine that, despite the vastness of the complex, only a small part has been excavated so far. What beauty has been buried under the desert sand to this day?
The cultural highlight of the region: the Stephanus Church
The church of St. Stephen dates from the year 718 AD. It was once built as a three-aisled basilica with a floor area of 13.5 by 24 meters, the floor of which was completely covered with mosaics. The visually stunning mosaic floor is very well preserved to this day and shows, in addition to city views from Jordan, Palestine and Egypt, the everyday life of the residents of Um er-Rasa. A protective roof spans these valuable witnesses of history and includes three other churches and adjacent buildings. Visitors to Um er-Rasas can learn a lot about Roman, Byzantine and early Islamic culture, especially as part of a study trip.
