Travel Talk

4×4 Jeep Trip in Wadi Rum, Jordan

July 16, 2011August 9, 2018 by SHABL

Greetings,

Today was a wonderful day, woke up in Petra and leisurely made our way to Wadi Rum, Jordan. Wadi Rum is also know as the moon valley and the valley of the Great Arab Revolt, besides stunning scenery it also hosts the home of T.E Lawrence, it’s in ruins now but one with a relatively vivid imagination can picture it in its former glory. We made our way to Captain’s Camp and shortly after went on a 4×4 jeep trip into the endless and vast Wadi Rum…

The drive from Petra to Wadi Rum is very scenic and peaceful, a pleasant experience as depicted in the photo above. It’s not a long trek and only about 70km. We had lunch at the Rum Restaurant before heading to the camp, it was delicious. There is a large project going on to move the water from this area to Amman. Jordan is the 4th poorest country in the world in terms of water, as you drive from Amman, you’ll see the pipeline that is beginning to take form.

Something interesting is that this whole area was once a sea. Makes you realize how little we actually know about our planet. Scuba diving will let you go to about 60M in depth maximum, we’re busy exploring the solar system when in reality, we’ve only experienced a fraction of what is housed on planet earth. Also reminds us how old the planet is and how short our visit is, we must make the most of it.

The camp is picturesque and lined with tents, after an hour or so of rest we set out on the 4×4 expedition and saw some 2000 year old engravings that indicated the caravan route. Afterwards we headed to T.E Lawrence’s house, you forget how vast this place is until you see another truck and it puts the entire area into scale, massive is a true understatement.

The highlight of the 4×4 trip for me was visiting a natural bridge between two massive rocks. At the base their was a small Bedouin settlement with some of the most gregarious gentleman I’ve met anywhere. We drank countless cups of tea over endless laughs. My Arabic is getting better and is essentially at basic conversational, this is cool as I’m from Ottawa and Arabic is the third most spoken language. Afterwards we drove to a special spot to capture the sunset.

Right now there is traditional music playing with men dancing in a line and the place is quite packed, supposedly in high season the entire place is full. I’d like to be more verbose but the generator here is only on for two hours so one must use time efficiently.

Met a most fascinating lady who is from Halifax, Nova Scotia. She’s lived in Tasmania for years and for the last while has been living with the Bedouins in the desert, she is writing a book on her experiences. We have gotten along quite well and she has invited me to go on a sunrise camel ride tomorrow at 6am. In an hour or so we’ll be having a traditional Bedouin feast of which the proper name eludes me.

Tomorrow we’re going on another 4×4 trip before heading to Aqaba for a boat ride and snorkeling, later we’ll retire in the Dead Sea where the remainder of my trip will take place. Despite being on the road for nearly two years now, nothing has prepared me for this trip to Jordan. I can’t believe that a country that seldom gets talked about on the tourist circuit has so much to offer.

Although I slept in one of the best beds I’ve seen in two years last night, barely slept a wink. If you’re caffeine sensitive, drinking a Turkish coffee as a night cap is a most erroneous endeavor, just take my word for it. Loving this camp and wishing one had more time in this country.