Day 13 Laurence of Arabia

We packed lunch from a local bakery in Aqaba for the picnic at Wadi Rum - these were freshly made bread with herbs, spinach or meat, hot from a stone oven. The guy charged us 1 Dinar (1.2 USD) for 7 pieces. They were yummy as we later found out.

I had my relief band on and I've taken Day Dramamine so I was fully equipped as we moved day/night packs into the 4X4s. Julee and I rode with our leader Daniel. Our driver Mahdy, was the lead local guide for the group of three vehicles.

Wadi means 'valley' and Rum means 'road'. It was once the ancient passage where the caravans passed thousands of years ago. The local Bedouins lived here in nomadic style under the suppression of the Ottomanians until the Arabic revolt, during which the British officer T.E. Laurence became a hero in the Wadi Rum. As we drove into the desert, the vast landscape overwhelmed us. There were countless massive canyons and ravines. The rock formation ignited so many imaginations. We kept pointing our fingers from one mountain to the next, telling one another that it looked like a cake with chocolate icing melting down, a skeleton, five fingers, an elephant, and etc. We saw a naturally formed stone bridge over two huge rocks and climbed up a sand dune then ran screaming down bare foot. I have not felt so free for a long time. It reminded me how I used to run down the hills in the park behind my childhood house again and again just for fun.

Natural rock bridge
We walked up the sand dune in barefoot. The wind was blowing so hard, sand was everywhere. I had to turn around and stop talking to Alex so that I would not have a mouthful of sand. Sandy was telling us earlier that her mother said 'everyone needs to eat a pack of dirt before he dies'. On this trip, I am sure I've had more than my share of the pack.
Let gravity take its course... Julee took this picture when we ran down screaming, taking our own trail in the sand. One of the strangest feeling was when the sand caved in under my feet. I was fully aware of the warm surface and then the coldness below.

Mahdy decided he would give Julee and me a special treat and take us to see a canyon when we got stuck in mud. The 4X4 would not come out since both front and back tyres were stuck. The futile attempts to start the car only got mud all over Daniel who was pushing the car from behind. Fortunately another Bedouin drove by with his two tourists. He dropped them off and returned to drag us out from the back. Daniel's lost a sandal while pulling the rope between the 4X4 and the truck. When he got his sandal back, it was soaked in mud. It was hilarious seeing him scraping the mud using the rocks on the roadside and his fingers.




Photo 1-Got stuck; 2-Daniel pulling; 3-Daniel losing his sandal; 4-Saving the sandal

Our desert camp tucked in the rocks

Waiting for sunset over the Wadi Rum

We stayed in the desert camp over night and had a Bedouin dinner. The Bedouins dug a hole underground and put three layers of food underground. The first and second layers were reserved for chicken pieces and the lowest layer was for onion and potatoes. We had dips, tomato salad, veggie stew over rice, and ayish (bread). It was a fulfilling meal over camp fire and hot heavy sweet Bedouin tea.

After dinner playing "Kings and Arses" in the party tent

The night was not half as cold as my Moroccan night in the Sahara. I only needed one wool blanket and three layers of clothing. When I woke up in the morning, the rocky mountains around were misty. We had tea, breakfast was the leftover ayish baked in ashes in the ground, jam and cheese spread. Our Bedouin guide picked up each ayish and dusted off the ashes on each side and put it on a iron shelf ready for serving. In normal situation, I would have freaked out since this man just handled my food both sides! ... but I picked up the ayish and ate every bit of it. It was crisp, smoky and delicious.

After breakfast off we went for Petra, our next adventure.