Wadi Rum - Jewel of the desert, and Aqaba

Wadi Rum, also known as ‘The Valley of the Moon’, is the place where Prince Faisal Bin Hussein and T.E. Lawrence based their headquarters during the Arab Revolt against the Ottomans in World War I; their exploits are intrinsically woven into the history of this amazing area.
We travelled through this region with a local Bedouin in the back of a jeep, which would not meet Australian safety standards, but it provided great views of this borderless region. The tour took about two hours, which was a good length of time, though it is possible to do longer tours and camel rides as well as hiking trips. In warmer times you can sleep in a tent and be entertained by the Bedouins.
The weather and winds have carved the sandstone and granite rocks into imposing, towering skyscrapers, the highest rising to 1,750m above the sandy desert floor.
A vast, silent place, timeless and starkly beautiful, Wadi Rum is one of Jordan's main tourist stops, described by some as being the most stunning desertscape in the world. To drive to, it is 320 km southwest of Amman (4 hours), 120 km south of Petra and 68 km north of Aqaba. So the trip from Amman, to Petra to Wadi Rum to Aqaba is the best order to see things.

In front of these imposing hills are coloured sands of varied and beautiful hues --- the picture does not do them justice.
The Bedouins have made a success of developing eco-adventure tourism, now their main source of income. And there is much to see.

Here is the ship of the desert,
and the mushroom rock.
The twin arches provide an interesting natural feature.
These structures are like stairs ascending to heaven.
Wind and water have carved so many amazing structures within the rocky cliffs,
and nature has excelled herself in the variety of shapes, colours, and textures - it would really inspire any artist.
You turn around a corner and see this imposing structure,
followed by more stairs.
Peoples from different cultures have inhabited Wadi Rum since prehistoric times, including the Nabataeans, leaving their mark in the form of rock engravings, which are not decipherable today.
The Bedouin people that inhabit the area still maintain their semi-nomadic lifestyle in goat-hair tents. They are hospitable and offer a friendly welcome to visitors, often inviting them to sit and enjoy a coffee or even a meal. The young man living in this tent was one such example, as we met him returning to his tent, which was pitched at the base of a steep cliff.
This cave was used by T.E. Lawrence, according to local tradition. Certainly the film Lawrence of Arabia was shot in part in this location. Note the many different coloured rocks,
which, up close, are even more magnificent
and varied.
Too many photos to post in a single blog!
A shot of Muna in her desert "howdah" taken from inside Lawrence's cave. The Bedouin driver took this break to say his prayers. A truly inspiring place for praise and thanksgiving with God's wondrous handiwork everywhere.
One area has hundreds of rock structures such as these below.

A French TV station decided to build this "fort" structure in the middle of Wadi Rum for the ultimate reality TV series - survival in the desert. It involved people being buried in the sand to see how long they took to get out and doing all kinds of other dangerous stunts. It lasted for about 4 seasons, but was abandoned after several contestants died, then the structure was locked up and left as yet another 'passing parade' through this eternal Wadi.To safeguard its unique desert landscape, Wadi Rum was declared a protected area in 1998 and an intensive conservation programme is now underway.
Sand swept up the side of a cliff by the prevailing wind. Very little vegetation can be found here.
We leave Wadi Rum and travel to Aqaba - this is the main road into the city. In every direction, there are mountains rising sharply from the parched desert. It is quite startling when you first sight the waters of the Red Sea.
Our hotel was 15km out of town, and just 4km from the border of Saudi Arabia. This is as close as we will ever get to Mecca!
Most of the area surrounding this important (the one and only!) Jordanian port and tourist resort is windswept, with barren hills all around,
but the morning sun showed just how blue the Red Sea is.
Across the bay lies Israel,
and Egypt (Sinai) a little further south. This cruise ship later docked in Aqaba and the 'day- trippers' left to see Petra. It was amazing to be standing at a spot within such a short distance of 4 countries.
At night we had dinner in town and walked up and down the promenade, returning next morning to see lots of families enjoying the warm weather on the public beach in the centre of town. Across the bay is Eilat in Israel, and the border crossing is very easy and quick for tourists.
A local man grows fresh herbs literally on the beach promenade. It took a lot of will power to keep Muna's hands off them!
Downtown away from the beach resorts and tourist hotels, it is a typical Arab city.
Nuts are popular in Jordan - this shop, called "Ash-Sha'ab" (The People) had 4 outlets in the one street, on the same pavement, and within 200m distance --- all were busy!
It is always good to know the type of meat you are buying - no difficulty here, as both the head and the tail are left on the carcass at the butcher shop.
As we leave Aqaba, we see this amazing intertwine of brown and white rocks that reminds us very much of chocolate halva (halawa) which is very popular with Israelis who are chocolate mad. In Jordan, the more traditional halva with pistachio nuts is preferred - I agree!
We were glad we came to see the bay of Aqaba, and the city with its bustling promenade, but we would not want to spend more than a day or two here --- especially with the best of 5 star hotels "Casa Delshad" (Muna's brother's home) awaiting us in Marj al-Hamam.