January 18, 2026

Petra, Jordan

The day starts with an 08:30 for breakfast. Sami comes and joins us for breakfast at the hotel. The breakfast is very nice, lots of choices and an omelette station. The cappuccino was even fairly good. The brioche was fresh, and the “homemade” apricot jam was very good.

Just as it had gone 09:00, we were off to Petra. The main entrance and museum is just across the street from our hotel. Petra, originally known to its inhabitants as Raqmu (Nabataean Aramaic) is an ancient city and archaeological site here in southern Jordan. Famous for its rock-cut architecture and water conduit systems. Probably more so due to the Indiana Jones Movie – Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade – than anything else. Which really isn’t fair since only one structure, the Treasury, appears in the movie.

Petra is also called the "Rose City" because of the color of the sandstone from which it is carved. The city is one of the New 7 Wonders of the World and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The ancient city of Petra is massive. It covers approximately 264 square kilometers (102 square miles). Most visitors only spend a few hours and accordingly only see a fraction of it.

Even if you took the time to see it all you wouldn’t because estimates suggest only about 15% has been uncovered and explored. Much of the city was destroyed by earthquakes and floods. Visitors typically walk several miles through the Siq canyon, from the main entrance to the site just to reach the main sight the Treasury (Khazneh al Firaum). That is the building which appears in the Indiana Jones movie.

Now the walk is mostly down hill from the visitor’s center. It starts out rather unimpressively but starts to grow on you fairly quickly. One of the first things you see on the way down are the so-called Djinn Blocks. These four large free-standing monuments carved from single blocks of sandstone, apparently hold significant cultural importance in Nabataean history. Of course, no one knows their exact role, which is an ongoing subject of research and debate. Two monuments have an interior burial chamber; a third has a grave on its top. Recent studies and excavations suggest that these may possibly be the earliest group of monumental tombs at Petra, likely dating from the 2nd century B.C.

The name 'djinn' is an Arabic term referring to wicked spirits, though there is no link between the name and the Nabataean sculptures. These monuments are also referred to as 'god blocks' because Nabataean gods were represented as stone blocks.

Next on the walk down to the Treasury are the Obelisk Tomb and Bab el-Siq Triclinium. These are the first two “homes” or tombs which you see that are cut out of the rock face. These two structures are built one on top of the other, but you need to remember that things here are built from the top down as they are cut into the rock face.

The upper monument, known as the ""Obelisk Tomb,"" features four elongated pyramids, or obelisks, symbolizing Nefesh. These obelisks are Nabataean symbols representing the deceased. There is a central niche behind the façade holding a worn sculpture of a cloaked male figure, representing the tomb's patriarch, overseeing five burial niches cut into the floor.

Nefesh is not a god in the Nabataean culture, it is what the anionic funerary marker representing the soul, presence or memory of a deceased person is called. Nefesh are often described as a "house for the soul" or a memorial marker for the deceased. They were used to represent the deceased in funerary rituals, often in conjunction with family meals held in nearby triclinia (dining rooms). They are usually obelisk-shaped or conical standing stones. Many feature a stylized crown, blossom, or pinecone on top. They can be seen on the outside of tombs and are often found inside, as well. They appear all along the Siq as we continue our walk. As we walk on we see betyls or standing stones, these are not nefesh but represent the presence of a deity, such as Dushara.

Interesting Fact, Nefesh or Nephesh is a versatile Hebrew term often translated as "soul," but more broadly means "life," "living being," "breath," or "vital essence," referring to the whole physical person, not just a spiritual part, encompassing blood, flesh, and the capacity to live and feel. It also refers to ancient Semitic funerary monuments. While nefesh is often translated as soul, it is distinctly different than the modern Greek concept of soul. A person is nefesh, not just has one. This is seen in Genesis where humans and animals are both called nefesh. One of the key points is that nefesh points to the fundamental, embodied life force that connects humans and animals.

Sami will point out later on the tour that the Bedouins living in these caves often buried their dead within the same cave they lived in. The dead were often buried in the floor of the cave or even in small niches in the walls. People thus honored their ancestors and kept the idea of family as everyone, living or dead. Sounds dreadful to us perhaps. But their belief was apparently that strong. We see that in the design of the tombs.

Below the tomb, a gabled façade indicates the location of a triclinium, a dining hall where funerary banquets were held in honor of gods or ancestors. Across from the triclinium, an ancient inscription in Nabataean and Greek commemorates a burial monument erected by 'Abdmanku, son of Akayus, son of Shullay, for himself and for his children and their heirs during the time of Maliku (AD 40–70). This reflects Petra's cosmopolitan nature, influenced by Hellenic culture.

So, who were the Nabataeans? Sam thinks there are many posibilities as to who they were. One thought is that they were originally nomadic Arabs from the Arabian Peninsula, they settled in southern Jordan and the Naqab desert. The position of Petra in the ancient world allowed them to leverage their desert knowledge to control vital trade routes. The became wealthy merchants expanding their kingdom to include modern-day Syria, Saudi Arabia and Israel.

Their location was pivotal in connecting Eastern markets (China and India) with the Mediterranean markets. They traded a variety of goods like frankincense, myrrh, spices, gold and silk. This wealth allowed them to build their rock-carved capital, Petra, which had advanced hydraulic systems (troughs, clay pipes, dams and cisterns) for collecting and managing water in this arid region. They blended their culture with the influences of the people they traded with, with the other Arabs, Greeks, Egyptians and Romans. These influences can be seen in their art and architecture. They even developed a distinct Aramaic-derived script.

As we continue on our way we see the remains of the ancient water trough and clay pipes running along the roadway which brought water from the dams into the main part of the city. Sami points out that we are not necessarily walking on the road level which existed thousands of years ago, but that in some places we are several meters above the road level. This is because of earthquakes and floods which have taken place over the last several thousand years have covered the road and buildings here with detritus.

We enter the rift where the Treasury building is, and the first thing you notice is that it isn’t anything like it appears in the movie. In the movie the sig ends and there are exits to the right a left. That is not the truth, but when Hans Hollywood ever stick to the truth? As you exit the rift containing the Siq you are immediately confronted with the Treasury building.

In Arabic the “treasury” is called Al-Khazneh. It is also known as Khaznat el-Far’oun or the treasury of the pharaoh. It is probably the most well preserved tombs cut into the rock face, now it appears as the most elaborate, but once it was probably just the standard. Al-Khazneh was built as a mausoleum and crypt, it is not the treasury of the Nabatean Kingdom. It appears to have been built during the reign of Aretas IV Philopatris. Immediately in front of and technically below the beautiful carved building are a series of tombs or burial chambers. Sami says the recent archaeological digs have found at least eleven bodies buried here, but that there were probably more which have been washed away by the various floods.

In the movie there is an exit to the left. In reality the canyon stops to the left not far from Al-Khazneh. There may have been another building carved into the rock or perhaps even a dam there, but whatever it has been destroyed by floods or earthquakes. On the right side of Al-Khazneh there is another dead end with a number of caves carved into the rock, and a staircase leading upward. The staircase probably goes up to more caves and platforms which overlook the rift containing Al-Khazneh.

Also to the right is Façades Street, or so it is called on the map. We walk in this direction as this is the real entrance into the town of old Petra. Along the walls are many caves carved out of the rock face. Some more elaborate than others. May of which have been damaged by weather and earthquakes. Al-Khazneh is in a very protected area with little wind and exposure to rain. Among the caves identified as markets there is a large theater of Greco-Roman design, which is believed to have been built during the reign of Aretas IV (9 BC – 40 AD) (Yes, the same guy that built Al-Khazneh). The theater is still an active archeological site.

What is a Greco-Roman theater design? Well, Generally, the Greeks built on a hillside or into the hills side, and the Romans built on flat ground usually in a city center. Think of the colosseum in Roma: it is free standing. This is a generalization, because you have instances where the Romans have used the hillside, such as Fiesole outside of Firenze.

A second difference is the shape of the orchestra. In the Greek design the orchestra is a full circle, while the Romans tended to use a semi-circle. The traditional Greek design would not include places for the audience to sit, while in the Roman design the orchestra often would contain seats for VIPs. Here, it is difficult to know if there was seating in the orchestra but probably not.

One of the last differences is the stage setting. The Greek design used a simple skene. Meaning one setting could represent multiple different scenes. The Romans tended to build elaborate, tall permanent buildings (scaenae frons) which where then decorated. These might be two or even three stories tall.

The Roman theater was fully enclosed, and in some cases could have a full roof or just awnings. The Greek design was usually open to the sky. So this is theatre is a mix of Roman, it had a large scaenae frons, based on the ruins which remain, but was a semi-circle Greek design built into the hillside or in this particular case carved out of the hill side.

The truth is most of Petra is an active archeological site and the money from the tourism funds most of the work going on here. As we exit Façade Street, we can see a number of elaborately decorated caves carved into the side of the mountain. Sami thinks one of them was the royal house which was later converted into the Roman hall of justice and administration. As we exit, we find ourselves in a large wadi or valley.

We stay off the main road and take a side road which goes up into the hill on one side above the wadi floor. We can look down and see a monumental colonnaded street. Clearly there were a lot of buildings which at one time graced both sides of the wadi which are now in ruins. On the south-side of the street was a nymphaeum (a shrine consecrated to water nymphs, often with a fountain) and a series of monumental spaces, which were once identified as markets. The so-called Lower Market has recently been excavated and shown to be a garden-pool complex. This stood adjacent to so-called Great Temple of Petra. Within the cella, or inner sanctuary room, of the Great Temple, a series of stone seats were discovered; this may suggest that the structure was not a temple, but an audience hall at least for part of its history. Clearly Al-Khazneh is not the only structure in Petra and maybe not even the most important, just the best known.

We hike down and around the Great Temple of Petra and end up at the Crowne Plaza Basin Restaurant located near the foot of the trail to the Monastery (Ad Deir) and the High Place of Sacrifice. Here we are presented with a lunch buffet with some international dishes as well as local Jordanian dishes. We don’t really care about the air conditioning today, it is something less than 10°C (50°F), but it is nice to have a seat and rest.

After lunch we take the golf cart back to Al-Khazneh, then another golf cart back to the visitor’s center opposite the hotel. We could have walked it but Mary and V were cold, and it was up a gradual grade all the way. Besides we are old, ok two of us are.

We got back to the hotel about 15:00. Just in time for a nap and rest before our 19:30 dinner reservation. Dinner was downstairs in Al Iwan Restaurant. The Al Iwan is an elegant dining room just off the main lobby of the hotel. They serve a mixture of local Jordanian and Mediterranean cuisine. Apparently, it has been voted the best restaurant in Jordan by Grumpy Gourmet Magazine.

We each chose an appetizer. Mary had the pumpkin soup. The soup was good, but not very flavorful. V ordered scallops. We decided they were "fake scallops." Made from cheaper, milder white fish or cartilaginous fish like stingray or skate, which are minced, mixed with binders, and cut into uniform, perfectly round shapes to mimic real scallops. Real scallops are irregularly shaped, have distinct lengthwise fibers, and a delicate, sweet, briny flavor, while fakes are solid, rubbery, often thicker on one side, and taste more like plain fish. These definitely did not have the lengthwise fibers and tasted more like plain fish. I ordered a shrimp ravioli dish. The ravioli was well presented but there was no shrimp taste, more like a meat ravioli in a mild cream sauce.

For the main course Mary had veal and polenta. She reported that it was excellent. I chose the rack of lamb with mashed potatoes. Both were very well prepared and excellent in flavor. V got the grilled jumbo prawns and lobster. The jumbo prawns and lobster were really good, just that they were still in their shells, making eating somewhat sloppy.

It was however 21:00 by the time they finished serving dinner. I guess an hour and a half is about the right amount of time, but 21:00 is my bedtime. I left the two of them in the restaurant discussing whether they were going to have dessert. Turns out they skipped dessert, but I was long gone by the time Mary got back to the room.

Buonanotte e ciao

Enrico e Maria