Middle East - Anthony Ham [319]
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PETRA BY NIGHT
Like a grumbling camel caravan of snorting, coughing, laughing and farting miscreants, 200 people and one jubilantly crying baby make their way down the Siq ‘in silence’. Asked to walk in single file behind the leader, breakaway contingents surge ahead to make sure they enjoy the experience ‘on their own’. And eventually, sitting in ‘reverential awe’ outside the Treasury, the collected company shows their appreciation of Arabic classical music by lighting cigarettes from the paper-bag lanterns, chatting energetically, flashing cameras, and audibly farting some more. Welcome to public entertainment in the Middle East! If you really want the Siq to yourself, come in the winter, go at 2pm in the afternoon or take a virtual tour on the internet.
But silence and solitude is not what Petra by Night is all about. What this highly memorable tour does give you is the opportunity of experiencing one of the most sublime spectacles on earth in the fever of other people’s excitement. As you pass huddles of whispering devotees staring up at the candlelit god blocks, help an elderly participant over a polished lozenge of paving stone, or hear the flute waft along the neck-hairs of fellow celebrants, this is surely much nearer to the original experience of the ancient city of Petra than walking through the icy stone corridor alone.
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Spare ten minutes between courses to nip upstairs to Made in Jordan (Map; 2155700; 10am-10pm) and select some olive oil from this excellent local craft shop.
Drinking
There’s not a lot to do in the evening, other than recover from aching muscles and plan your next day in Petra. Most budget hotels screen Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade nightly until everyone is sick of it.
Cave Bar (Map; 2156266; 8am-midnight; beer JD4.500, cocktail JD7, plus 26% tax & service) You can’t come to Petra and miss the oldest bar in the world. Occupying a 2000-year-old Nabataean rock tomb, this blue-lit Petra hotspot has been known to stay open until 4am on busy summer nights. Sit among the spirits, alcoholic or otherwise, and you’ll soon be getting a flavour of Petra you hadn’t bargained on – the tasty Bedouin menu keeps them at bay. There’s live Bedouin music from 9pm (except Saturday). The bar is next to the entrance to Petra Guest House, behind Petra visitor centre.
If you haven’t seen enough of the old city for one day, consider taking the popular tour, Petra by Night (adult/child under 12 JD12/free), which starts from Petra visitor centre at 8.30pm on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday nights (cancelled when raining), and lasts two hours. It takes you along the Siq (lined with 1500 candles) as far as the Treasury in as much silence as is possible given the crowds.
Getting There & Away
A daily JETT bus connects Amman with Petra, largely designed for those wanting to visit on a day trip. The service leaves at 6.30am from Abdali Bus Station (single/return JD6/11) and drops passengers off at Petra visitor centre in Wadi Musa at 9.30am. The return bus leaves at 4.30pm.
Minibuses generally leave from the bus station in central Wadi Musa (Map). About eleven minibuses travel every day between Amman (Wahadat station) and Wadi Musa (JD5, three-four hours) via the Desert Highway. These buses leave Amman and Wadi Musa when full every hour or so between 6am and 1pm.
Minibuses leave Wadi Musa for Ma’an (JD1, 45 minutes) fairly frequently throughout the day (more often in the morning), stopping briefly at the university, about 10km from Ma’an. From Ma’an there are connections to Amman, Aqaba and (indirectly) Wadi Rum. Minibuses also leave Wadi Musa for Aqaba (JD4, two hours), via Tayyibeh, at about 6.30am, 8.30am and 3pm – ask around the day before to confirm or check through your hotel.
For Wadi Rum (JD4, 1½ hours), there is a daily minibus sometime around 6.30am. It’s a good