Jordan - Part I (02/15/2018 - 02/16/2018)

Jordan was our other planned destination following my work trip in Dubai. 

As one of the cradles of civilisation, an incredible amount of history has taken place on this land, especially for those who follow the Judeo-Christian religions.  

We skipped Amman and went directly from the airport to Mt. Nebo, supposedly the site where Moses passed away once he could see the Promised Land (and in fact, we could see both Jerusalem and Jericho).  There was a church on the top of the hill commemorating the site built in the 4th century, with some of the original Byzantine mosaics intact.

Following the brief visit and weak attempt at enlightenment, we drove through the desert to Kerak, a small town that contained a Crusader castle built in the 1100s that was quite difficult to conquer - surrounded by cliffs or ravines on all four sides and only accessible through a single bridge and tunnel thereafter. 

We then went to the first major highlight of this short trip - Petra - an ancient Nabataean major trading hub carved out of pure stone over 2,500 years ago. It fell from prominence following a devastating earthquake in the 4th century and was gradually 'forgotten' by most over the subsequent centuries. Much has been written about the history of the site, how it was constructed (most likely top-down, believe it or not), and what happened to the Nabataeans following the Roman Empire.  

I'll leave the pictures to speak for themselves.

Mt. Nebo / جبل نيبو and the drive to Kerak / الكرك‎

Kerak /  الكرك‎

Petra / البتراء / Raqmu

Muscat / مسقط‎, Oman (02/10/2018 - 02/12/2018)

We had to be in Dubai for an internal company meeting and took advantage of the opportunity to arrive a little earlier and leave a little later to see the region, as I didn't know when I'd be back next (was planning on leaving the company).

I had always been fascinated by Oman, as an ancient trading point with evidence of such dating more than 8,000 years ago, yet keeping quite a low profile these days, eclipsed by its more active fellow GCC nations. I am also a huge fan of muscat grapes, which some say may have been named after Oman's capital, Muscat.  We were lucky to visit in winter as Oman is an extremely hot and dry country - reaching over 40C in the summertime. 

As we did not have much time, we stayed near the capital and its vicinity.  

If there is one word to describe Muscat, it's clean. Impeccably clean - at least in the main boulevards and squares, as well as near public buildings (if you go into the alleyways you can see and smell some rather unpleasant things).  In the main areas, you could literally see your reflection on the ground around major buildings, and the sidewalks were made of mosaic patterns with not a single chipped tile. 

I later learned that the rather enlightened and progressive Sultan Qaboos is quite keen on cleanliness, and one can incur a fine just for driving around with a dirty car. I was impressed with level of development considering most oil-rich nations kept the fortunes to themselves and their immediate relatives. Universal health, strong public infrastructure, high literacy and freedom of religion were all present in Oman.  The Sultan is also a big fan of classical music and thus Muscat has one of the nicest concert halls I've ever seen.  We were hoping to see the legendary Grand Mosque, but sadly PM Modi was visiting from India and the entire site was off limits.

Going around Muscat, we visited some ancient forts, some in better condition than others (Bahla was in rough shape, but it is Oman's only UNESCO fort), and quite liked the very round features, especially at Nizwa.

The food was ok, a lot of heavy stews with lentils and chickpeas - found ourselves most enjoying this Turkish restaurant on the side of the road between forts.