We begin our overnight excursion to Petra along the Kings' Highway. http://www.atlastours.net/jordan/kings_highway.html,
This highway was the original trade route through Jordan and was also very important during biblical times. As it is a modern highway now we were able to see a small portion of the original road when we got closer to Petra. The scenery was beautiful and we enjoyed our three hour road trip very much. The first stop was Mount Nebo, the mountain where Moses was allowed to see the Holy Land and not allowed to enter it. Nowadays the mountain is a memorial site. Here is the "Church of Moses" built by the first Christians. Ever since the first days of Christianity this mountain has been a holy place and destination for pilgrimage. Like Moses, the view is over Jordan, the Dead Sea and Israel. When the weather is clear you can even see Jerusalem which is about 60 kilometers away. We were able to see the mountains of Israel when we were there. The view was magnificent and there was a feeling of peace and serenity on the mountain, truly an amazing place.
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| Mosaic Floors from the original church |
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| Beduoin Tent |
Madaba the "City of Mosaics" is perched on an archaeological site with more than 4,000 years of history buried beneath it. The quality and quantity of mosaic flooring has made Madaba one of the most prominent cities in the world for mosaics. St. George's Church houses the world famous mosaic floor depicting a large mosaic map of Palestine. Centrally located on this floor is a detailed map of Jerusalem as it was during the sixth century AD.
After leaving Madaba we continued on to Kerak to visit the Crusaders Castle of Kerak. Already capital of the Moab reign, Kerak was chosen by the Crusaders to build their stronghold because it was built over a promontory overlooking 360 degrees the valley, it was mid-way between Jerusalem and Shobak, another Crusader castle. We had lunch at the Kings Castle Restaurant and then proceeded on our self guided tour of the castle. The view was spectacular and exploring the castle was fun with all the passageways and rooms that were used for various activities, food preparation, dining, worship, etc. Now on to Petra so that we can see the sunset over the mountains.
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