Jordan: The King's Highway from Amman to Petra

9/27/2023 - The Citadel and Roman Theater 

Today is the first full day in Amman, Jordan, and it is a beauty. The sunrise at breakfast was just the beginning of what should be a fantastic trip.

Amman, an ancient city besieged and captured by King David, Egyptian King Ptolemy, the Byzantine Empire, and Christian Crusaders, is an amazing blend of ancient Greek, Roman, Byzantine, and Islamic ruins - almost all of which can be found at the Citadel.

Le Royal Hotel

Muslim Mosque

Rabbath Ammon, the emerging settlement 

during the Ammonite Period. 

The Ammonites lived in the kingdom during the Iron Age. The Citadel dates back as far as the Bronze Age. 

The Temple of Hercules.

Knuckle Sandwich

I had just seen this kind of sculpture when another foreigner 

asked me where it was while I was taking photos of the Temple.

I initially thought he was drunk, but I was so interested in finding it,

 I made it my mission, and we were delighted when we did.

Byzantine Church Ruins

The Roman Theater.

Heading to the Museum

 Water Fairy (above and below).

MarbleHead

Sun God Helios

Daedalus

Basalt Head of Woman

Basalt Torso of a Child

Gravestone in the shape Torso of a child.

Child Burial

At lunch, we were treated to our first typical Jordanian fare at Hashem Restaurant, on Al-Amir Mohammed St. in downtown Amman, one of the Tourist Jordan Guide's Most Famous Restaurants list for its falafel and 50-year existence. This fast food restaurant is always very busy so visitors should be prepared to queue. And it was even more alive today because it was a holiday celebrating Prophet Mohammad's birthday. The typical meal here includes falafel, hummus, and several other traditional dips, salads, and pastes.

John, Hisham, and Diane

just received an enormous stack of bread (one for each of us). 

Note that the table is covered in Saran wrap (not wiped down first); 

each person had a plastic spoon, 

and each table had a box of tissues instead of napkins.

Each gigantic tray holds stacks of one item, in this case, the 

famous falafel, which I couldn't get enough of.

Remember the Saran wrap? 

I had never seen such a thing but talk about efficiency.

The Royal Automobile Museum, with a rare collection of more than 70 vehicles and one of Amman's most popular attractions, was established in 2003 under the guidance of King Abdullah II in honor of his late father, King Hussein bin Ali, ruler from 1956 to 1999.

Buick Roadmaster 1949 Convertible Coupe.

Mercedes-Benz 280 SE 3.5 - 1970.

Packard Twelve, Dual-Cowl Phaeton 1938

Later, we explored various neighborhoods and stopped to join Hisham in learning to play the Jordanian lottery. (We only had 2 of the 6 winning numbers).

Jordan: The King's Highway from Amman to Petra

9/26/2023 - Arrive in Amman

I had an uneventful drive to Tampa, content to maintain the speed limit thanks to the trucks ahead of me in the slow lane, letting them bear the fury and digital salutes from commuters in a hurry.

Thirteen hours in the air. Delicious lunch of Kung Pao Chicken and noodles at Pei Wei in Tampa Airport, followed by a delightful and enjoyable reunion and dinner at Burgers Grilled Right with former high school classmate Marianne Halpin Stana, who was kind enough to rescue me from a six-hour layover at Dulles Airport.

My delightful seatmates were a married couple from Kurdistan who now reside in Colorado, each from a family of 10 siblings. 

All flights arrived and departed on time. But best of all, Jordanian Moa from OAT deftly whisked us through many visas, customs, TSA checks, baggage claims, and our assigned drivers in record time.