I fell in LOVE with WADI RUM | Desert and Camp Tour
Welcome to Jordan. If you're joining me for the first time, hi I'm Caroline and I'm spending my time off from teaching exploring Jordan for 13 nights. So far I've experienced a Dead Sea resort sampling its endless food offers, wide selection of pools, got myself mudded up and taken a relaxing float in the Dead Sea itself. I've hiked through Wadi Ghuweir into a stunning desert oasis. I've explored the ancient city of Petra having checked out the view from above, experienced Petra by Night and entered in peace and quiet at 6.00am allowing plenty of time to hike up to the monastery too. Today however we are moving further south to experience a true Wadi Rum adventure.
Good morning and welcome to Wadi Rum. We've made the two hour drive from Petra along to the desert and we've managed to get as far as the visitor's centre. Normally we'd have to buy tickets to get into the protected area that is Wadi Rum, but because we've got the Jordan pass, we can show that here and they'll convert it into tickets at no extra cost for us. Once we're then through the visitors centre, we go straight into the police station next door where we just need to provide them with our ID, let them know where we're staying, how many nights for and the make, model and registration number of our car, because the car that we've rented is the cheapest one going which obviously is not made for going in the desert. So we'll be leaving that in a very safe
car park right next to a tarmac road, because for the next couple of days, we're going to be going around the desert with some guides in their 4x4 jeeps and today they're going to be taking us to different points of interest within the Wadi Rum desert and then tomorrow we'll be going on a hike. First stop has been a matter of about a three or four minute drive out of the main village and it's the Lawrence Spring. So there are some inscriptions on the rock behind me which we're going to go to first because it's on the nice flat bit, but then way up on what looks said to be quite a scrambly rock face, is the actual spring. All sorted out with my head scarf thanks to our amazing guide and our next stop is going to be at the sand dunes.
We've come up this great big sand dune, but then at the top of the sand dune it's super rocky like this, so I'm guessing it's just been the winds - which feels about right because it is quite breezy up here, that have just shifted the desert sands and it's hidden this rock that they've created that sand dune. But what's really cool about this place is that when I look out into that section there I know that that scene between the two clips was in Lawrence Arabia where they've got either like a camel or a horse crossing the desert and then on this side of where I stood, also from Lawrence and radio where they had hundreds and hundreds of tents and I think as well, if I remember correctly from what my guide was saying the transformers film has also been filmed in exactly this location too. It's a jaw-dropping view. I can completely understand why who had wanted to use this place.
We've just finished up at the sand dune and the next stop is going to be Khazali Canyon. This canyon is all kinds of awesome. There are incredibly old inscriptions that have been carved into the rocks and there's pictures of people and feet. You've got animals that are still present in Jordan today like the ibex, but then also animals that used to exist here back when obviously the inscriptions were made but they don't live here anymore - such as the ostrich for example. There's also some Arabic writing and our guide was explaining to us that about 1,200 years ago, the Arabic writing introduced the dots above some of the letters and he was pointing out to us that, these words are still words that exist today in the Arabic language but he was saying now we will put dots above these letters, so we know based on the lack of dots that this must have been inscripted well and truly over a thousand years ago.
It's crazy to think that there's so much history and just these canyons in the middle of the desert and who was here before us and what was their life like back then? When it rains, the canyon has a lot of water gathered around it and that's why at the entrance of it there's three fig trees that have been able to grow. What our guide was also explaining is that there is quite a drastic change in the colour of the sand, so at this point in the Wadi Rum desert it's what's known as the red desert and that's because of the iron that's present in it. But of course where the water is it gets lighter in colour and that's why as you go into the actual canyon itself it becomes lighter. The wadi rum desert is made up of two parts there's the red desert which is what we're currently in today and tomorrow when we drive south towards the Saudi Arabian border, it should become much lighter in colour and they've named it the white desert. Don't stack it! The next stop is 'Rock Arch' and unlike all of the arches in Arches national park which I've been to a few times now, you're actually allowed to walk over this one - it's awesome. Don'tstackit So as part of the tour that we booked for the two days in Wadi Rum, it comes with lunch and dinner on the first day, breakfast lunch and dinner on the second day and then breakfast again on the last day, and we were fully expecting, because we're out in the desert just I don't know for it to be something like a sandwich and a piece of fruit and our guide has pulled up, put out a picnic rug for us, we've been able to take the cushions off of the back seat of the truck that we've been sitting in when we've been traveling around and then, just on the back of the pickup truck, he's prepared all of the vegetables, he's made a fire out of the firewood that's been collected here in the desert and then cooked galaya for us along with a load of the meze as well that we've been enjoying so far in our time here in Jordan. Just sat in the beauty of the desert and it's it's absolutely silent out
here as well obviously the sand just softens and dampens any kind of sounds but just not expected at all to be eating a freshly cooked, hot meal, out in the middle of the desert it's fantastic. All full up after lunch so we've hopped back into the 4x4, we're going to be driving on to another destination. We don't actually know where we're headed to yet so I guess you guys are going to find out at the same time as me. The next stop turned out to be Lawrence's House. Which apparently was built here for the camel caravans that came through and obviously there's a really big expansive view just keeping an eye on everything and anything that was coming through the desert. What's also here is quite an impressive rock that you can climb up onto for that view. And then looking out over there it just
seems like loads and loads of people and when I said loads of people I mean loads of people, have built cairns, but we're a little bit pushed on time we're going to wrap this up here and not be able to count ourselves because we get to get on to the next destination. Next up is the Um Frouth bridge and it's incredibly busy here. We've pulled up and there are so many 4x4's and the amount of people littered on the rock up on the actual bridge itself and also down by... I suppose like the better intent that it sells tea and what have you but it is quite impressive and a lot higher than the last arch that we went to. Much like Lawrence Spring at the very start, it's very easy to scramble up but I'm dreading having to go down right now. But another bonus to having a guide is that our guide's like 'just give me your phone and I'll take a photograph of you guys on top of the arch'! If we didn't have a guide I think we'd just have to get photographs individually but this is great! Next stop is at Um Sabatah sand which is a beautifully red sand dune that is just overlooking another part of the Wadi Rum desert that I'm completely lost at this point. The first three places Lawrence Spring, the sand dune that went
up to cliff rocks and then the canyon that had all of the inscriptions on it - I was like: yeah so we've come from there, we've driven to there, now we've driven to there... and then after that lost completely lost! So I'm really not too sure where we are but this is a completely different view and vantage point to anywhere else that we've been so far today in the Wadi Rum! And of course the brits who come from really really rainy England they come to a desert where it never rains, the surprise price we've brought the rain with us, because it is probably raining right now. Almost on cue that when it's raining we might actually get a little bit stuck in the sand up on this sand dune so I'll guide us it'll be rocking the truck back and forth because if it had just been me out I've been trying to floor it which I'm guessing would probably get us even more stuck but right now he's just letting a little bit of air out of the tires which I think is the correct thing to do but again if I got stuck in the sand I'd have no clue I'd need to call someone for help. My fleece is in my big backpack which is in the main compartment of the truck and I feel like asking to get that out right now isn't priority number one, so I've stolen Andy's jumper just to try and keep warm because with the wind and the rain I'm really starting to get chilly in the desert and right now - I apologize for the rocking and back and forth but it's just because our driver is still trying to get us out of this sand. We've definitely made some progress. We may have had to go running down the sand dune to catch up with him but we are actually free, and we are away, adventuring further into Wadi Rum. That stop was called chicken rock although I have to say I thought it looked a little bit more like a pig with like a snout at the very front.
As part of our guided day tour of going to all of these different places around Wadi Rum, the final stop was going to be a sunset lookout point. I have to confess that I actually saw today's grey skies as an absolute blessing - there is nothing worse than being stuck in the desert when it's pure blue skies and there's no respite whatsoever from the beating sun and it's actually been really quite nice. It was warm enough in that I wasn't kneading until it started raining and it's gotten later in the day, to put on the jumper, but at the same time it's not been too hot that it's been overwhelming. But I was aware the sunset
was going to be the one thing that we would have to sacrifice in order to have that cooler day and then even though we've got rain clouds what it feels like everywhere around us, just where the sun's setting there's like a little gap and so we're getting a beautiful sunset, even though we've also had the beautiful cloud coverage today - it is wonderful. The sun went down behind the mountains... it got darker and darker as it went and then after about four or five minutes, it suddenly just got brighter again and the orange like the orange of this desert is crazy. It is so crazy beautiful, I think I'm actually preferring this to the sunset. Next stop is going to be the desert camp. We've just arrived at the Quiet Village which is the Bedouin camp that we're going to be staying at for the next couple of nights and we've been shown to our tent and this is it. I mean this is
'glamping' even though I don't think that they really use this term in Jordan, but we've got a proper bed which is, aaah, so comfortable especially after a long day like today. This beautifully soft blanket on the top because I know that it can get incredibly, incredibly cold in the winter in the evenings in Wadi Rum we're kind of like on that shoulder season so I wasn't too sure how cold it was going to get. Then the walls have got this really lovely like material to it and they've even got windows that fully open so you can like look out across the desert. One thing that we were a little bit nervous about was with regards to power, because we're here for two nights, we were like, we need to make sure before we left our beautiful four-star hotel back in Petra, we need to charge everything like our phones, our camera batteries, but actually we've turned up and we do have one outlet which is just amazing and then you've got like bedside tables. I've not been down to the toilet and shower block yet but I'm assuming because they've just put some loo roll on our bedside table that chances are there isn't any in there and then you just take that down to be able to use it. There's a few rules up just asking like
it's basic manners really you know if you're not in your tent please make sure that you turn off the light to conserve electricity. You know just be mindful with how long you're showering for because you know - we're in the middle of a desert. When I was looking for accommodations one did show up in my search that had a full-on swimming pool in the desert.
Out of principle I refused to even consider bucking there because it just seemed really wasteful. Got like proper beautiful tiled floors as well it almost feels like a hotel room rather than a tent the only exception to it being is it just obviously doesn't have an en-suite bathroom. As I explained earlier, our meals are included in the package that we've had here at Wadi Rum. So we've come into the main, large tent along with the other guests who are staying here and not only have they cooked a zarb which we all got to go and watch them, brush off all of the earth and then take off the lid and then pull it out and I was really quite surprised just how tall it was. As soon as the main lid came off even when the foil was still covering it you
could just smell how good it was. That's then come inside and they've got lots of meze as well so, I've just kind of helped myself to like a little bit of everything. So there's a few bits and pieces that I don't think I've had yet before so I'm really looking forward to those and then the typical things, some of the stuff that we made at the cooking class yesterday and then the zarb in the middle so I'm quite excited to get dug into especially that hot food. Then one thing that probably is worth noting about this camp is that, it's not like the luxury camps that they have here where you've got the en-suite bathrooms to these like bubble, UFO looking hotels, so you've got to come into a communal bathroom block such as this one... in order to be able to do things like brush your teeth, go to the toilet, use the showers which is fine when they're just as clean as this and when I thought that there wouldn't have been any loo roll in here because of the loo roll in the tent, I guess that's just like tissue to blow your nose and what have you because they've got plenty of loo roll in here so I'll get my teeth brushed as long as no one else comes along I'll give you guys a quick bathroom tour too.
So as you walk into the bathroom, the door on the far right has just got a shower in there, so you may wish to bring a pair of flip-flops or some thing that you could shower in there and then you've got a sink with a mirror - hey and then on the other side you've got another sink with another mirror - hey and then you've got a couple of doors and each one of those just leads into a toilet and it's just typical toilets where you've got a western style toilet, but you've also got the bidet and then you've got the bin for toilet paper off to the side as well. So kind of standard, what you would expect and you think it's another huge camps you don't really need a huge bathroom block. And I think on that note because I'm in here brushing my teeth getting ready for bed, I think I'm gonna call it night and I'll see you guys tomorrow for a hike in the very southern part of Wadi Rum.
2022-03-14 02:55
