Petra, the Third.

Monday, January 20th

5:45 am. It's once again time to catch an early bus. So quickly shower, pack some snacks, and off to the bus stop between 2nd and 3rd Circle. We leave on time from there to a brightening gray sky and drizzle.

This time we arrive in Petra without any incidents, just under 4 hours later. The sky cleared up and then clouded over again in between – maybe it won't rain all day as the weather forecast predicted. For our accommodation this time, I contacted Muath, the owner of the falafel stand at Petra Visitor Centre, whom I had met with Hanni last time. He offers his apartment on AirBnB, where we can stay now. He picks us up with his car from the bus stop, takes us to his apartment where we can leave our luggage, and then drives us to Petra's entrance. What a service!

The weather has been holding up so far, and we can even enjoy mostly blue skies, so we decide to see as much of Petra as possible today. We walk the familiar path through Petra's gorge, towards the Treasury and further on, straight to the stairs leading up to the Monastery. It definitely feels better to walk the entire way today without a donkey. Overall, there is much less going on today compared to my previous visits to Petra, probably due to the weather and off-season. Many of the souvenir stands along the way are also closed, so we can climb the stairs with a lot of peace and quiet.

When we arrive at the Monastery, the sky clears up as if on cue, so we can enjoy the attraction up here in the mountains in the sunshine. Hamdulillah! Of course, we also go back to the "Best view of the world" and also to another viewpoint a bit further back that we skipped last time. And the few extra meters were definitely worth it. From here, you can admire the canyon from a different perspective. So our goal for today is fulfilled, and we make our way back again.

On our way back, we are invited for tea at Muath's falafel stand, so we rest a bit in his apartment, where it's very comfortable with the small electric heater in his cozy sitting area. Then we have shawarma for dinner and spontaneously decide to experience Petra by Night tonight.

So we walk past the familiar candle bags, through Petra's gorge, all the way to the Treasury, which is once again brightly illuminated by spotlights. The same show follows: music, singing, contemplative words. And over-sweetened tea distributed by the Bedouins. Afterwards, the Treasury is open again for photography. And today the audience is particularly creative. Someone starts holding one of the candle bags for a picture, and everyone else imitates. Even though some paper bags catch fire, nobody is deterred. You do anything for a pretty photo. We watch the spectacle from a safe distance and then walk back to our apartment.

... where Muath unexpectedly waits for us. We didn't even know that he will also sleep in the apartment tonight. So we sit down with him next to the electric heater in his sitting area, he brings out Jordanian wine and beer, and then discusses hunting with Dad – turns out he is also a hunter himself. I prefer not to go into detail about the hunting methods used here. In any case, it was a very entertaining evening.

... the camels are of course back as well