Petra Part Three, etc.

I confess that I felt a bit cheated visiting Petra after a tiring work week. Fully energized is the best state for all the hiking and climbing the place requires. On the flip side, we typically think of weekends as time to rest and refresh rather than tramp through hot, sandy environs. The grandeur of Petra off-set much of the fatigue we incurred navigating the place and Saturday afternoon we found other ways to recharge.

Sunday, Ken and I dressed for exploring once again, with the Monastery as our goal. Entering the gate at 6:30, only one other person walked with us to the Siq. There we saw a few others, but our early start rewarded us with a nearly solitary experience. Of course I took another picture of the Treasury sans a flock of tourists. On the way to the Monastery we also saw the Colonnaded Street and the Roman Temple and Theatre. Carved stone elephant heads decorated the column capitals. We hired donkeys and rode up the 800-plus steps to the Monastery and found only one other tourist there before us.

The Monastery's design resembles the Treasury but surpasses it in scale. It was nearly impossible to stand back far enough to fit it in camera frame. Wandering past the Monastery, we found the End of the World and sat down for a snack. Leaving the Monastery on foot, we bought a silver bracelet from a Bedouin woman with a stall beside the path. She schmoozed us into the unintended purchase by making us a deal as her first sale of the day; in return she asked that we wish her good luck for business.

Our water and energy supply ran out just as we viewed the hotel. There we scrounged a bit of food, changed into our swimsuits and took our sweaty selves to the pool. Deanna joined us for a chat and then it was time to pack. Before departing for Amman, Randy and Deanna took us out for farewell ice cream. They would drive back separately for a bit more sightseeing before flying on to Tel Aviv. We savored their brief visit and only wish we'd had more time to savor ice cream together before dashing back to board the bus. The heat of the day, the hurried departure, the tacit disdain conveyed for the few minutes we were late kind of squashed the end of our Petra visit. But none of these spoiled our pictures or damaged any meaningful relationships.

After a very hot bus ride back, we added one more outing to the weekend. Matt and Kent took us to Gerard's for ice cream. While worn out from our journey, we felt like ourselves chatting and eating fabulous Jordanian ice cream. This time unhurried. The experience struck Ken and me as distinctly humanizing in contrast to much of our day to day work here.