Wadi Rum

Goodbye For Seasons Petra. I doubt you are aware of the irony of your chosen name but it pretty much sums you up. You’re lovely people but you need to understand there’s a big difference between wanting to be something and putting the effort in to achieve it.

Anyway, off to Wadi Rum we go. Apparently this area is also known as The Valley of the Moon. It’s protected and covers 720km2.

Our journey there was fine and we met our first contact, Mohammed, at a petrol station. . He led us to our parking place and then we met Mahmoud who took us to Rum Leader Camp, our home for the night. Then we met Ahmed who gave us a very comprehensive spiel about the camp and trips. It’s a family business it would seem.

Unlike The For Seasons, Rum Leader delivers. For a fraction of the price, we’ve got half board, a very comfortable air conditioned room and a terrace, plus very attractive grounds and seating areas. What’s the mantra? You should know it by now – less is more.

After a very quick drop off of our overnight bags, it was all aboard our jeep for a four hour tour of Wadi Rum.

One of the things about Jordan is you do have to embrace the tourist trail. This is not an undiscovered country, so don’t expect splendid isolation. Everywhere we stopped on our tour, there were many, many other jeeps doing the same thing. However, everyone is good natured and in holiday mood so it doesn’t feel too bad. We all queued up in a civilised manner to have our photos taken on Um Frouth Rock bridge like the good people we are.

Wadi Rum is stunning in an alien kind of way. Dune was filmed here among other blockbusters and you can see why. The rocks are amazing, some of them looking like melting caramel.

After several stops and finishing with watching the sun set, we were delivered back to our hotel and had half an hour to shower etc before dinner at 7pm. It was a proper feast with plenty for everyone. Again, lots of tasty food, no waiting, no promises made that weren’t kept. For Seasons take note.

We were fairly pooped and although we tried valiantly , we made it to just past 9 before Steve and I gave in and went to bed. But not before having a good look at the starry sky. I do love a desert.