As a follow up to my September 8 post ‘Pavarotti to be remembered at Petra by Elton John, Bono, Celine Dion, Joe Cocker and Sting‘ – and as a once aspiring opera singer myself – it is thrilling to see that the two surviving members of the musical trio simply known as “the Three Tenors” celebrating the late maestro’s ambition to perform at one of the World’s Seven New Wonders.

As this event continues to gain in excitement and momentum, the list of singers now also includes opera stars Roberto Alagna, Angela Gheorghiu and Andrea Bocelli, all conducted by Maestro Eugene Kohn according to the Epoch Times.

The Hashemite Kingdom of late, becoming a popular backdrop to the “big singing” as just this past summer, Placido Domingo, Julia Migenes, and jazz singer Diana Krall were the highlight acts at this year’s Jordan Festival.

A number of noted non-singing celebrities will also be among the exclusive guest list of 500, including Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, the billionaire ruler of Dubai who is married to Princess Haya – daughter of the late Hussein bin Talal, King of Jordan (may his name be blessed).

As Reuters reports:

The tribute is the brainchild of Nicoletta Mantovani, Pavarotti’s widow and HRH Princess Haya, a fellow UN Messenger of Peace and daughter of Jordan’s late King Hussein. “A concert in Petra was a dream once shared by the late King Hussein of Jordan and Luciano,” said Mantovani. “I am so grateful to Her Royal Highness Princess Haya, for making it possible to turn this dream into a reality.”

The proceeds of the concert will support joint projects in Afghanistan by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the UN World Food Programme (WFP).  A local charity supporting disabled children in Petra will also benefit from the concert. More information about the UNHCR-WFP Pavarotti Tribute Project can be found on their ReliefWeb page that includes contacts information.

Also, as reported on blogJordan last month, websites providing tour packages can also be found at:

• thepavarottitribute.com
• eventsbyappointment.com

Below is a list of some other blogs writing about this exciting event.

• Gheorghiu Tribute In Petra, Jordan: Luciano Who?
• Cynthia Lawrence Headlines Pavarotti Tribute
• Concerto a Petra (English translation)

Finally, here’s a few articles enumerating my own experiences in the ‘Rose Red City:’

• The Petra Treasury Indiana Jones didn’t show you
• Best Online Photo Gallery of Petra Ever!
• Petra: 10 miles + 2 mountains of world wonder

Oh what this bass-baritone wouldn’t give to be there (again)!

Food channel cook and author Michael Smith gets a taste of Jordan’s desert hospitality during this first episode of Chef at Large, Season VI, on the cable Food Channel. With the help of the Petra Kitchen – a cooking school/restaurant in Petra – Smith enjoys the creation and consumption of mansaf, a meal traditionally made for guests … one of whom will be Prince Mired Al Hussein of Jordan.

This according to an online article in TheStar.com which also informs us that:

Later, Smith and the prince travel by camel through the desert to Wadi Rum where a Bedouin tribe welcomes them with a meal of goat cooked in a barrel under the sand.

This is not the first time The Petra Kitchen has been featured on a cable network, as the Travel Channel also featured this fun respite last year as described in this online synopsis that includes both some video – and more importantly recipes – for how to make some of the yummy Arabic cuisine one learns to make there, hands on:

This month on TRAVEL 2007 we visit the PETRA KITCHEN, which gives visitors a great opportunity to learn more about Jordanian food. It’s a very hands on approach – you eat what you’ve prepared. Wendy Botham, the owner, was kind enough to pass on some of the most popular recipes to us …

Some of those recipes include (note, links open a new window):

• Shourbat Freekeh – Green Wheat Soup
• Fatoush – Cucumber and Tomato Salad
• Salatat Khyar – Cucumber and Yoghurt Salad
• Magloubet – Upside-Down

Here are what some other blogs are saying about the Petra Kitchen:

• Jordan Jubilee – the Petra Kitchen is now open.
• Great idea, but poor execution – TravelAdvisor
• Egypt Magic – how I could barely stop laughing …
• Off The Beaten Path: Petra Kitchen  – VirtualTourist

When I went, I was incredibly tired and footsore from a day climbing all over Petra – so I didn’t get as “hands on” as other members in the group. That said, I wasn’t so fatigued that I didn’t enjoy the soup, mezza, salad, and Levant – nor the furnishings and the tableware which all crafted in Jordan and produced by the Iraq al Amir Women’s Cooperative (via the Queen Noor Al Hussein Foundation) and the aprons and table linens all hand-embroidered by the Jordan River Foundation (a Queen Rania Al-Abdullah initiative).

The regular price of JD 30/person includes the cuisine course, meal and all non-alcoholic beverages as well as take-home recipes for all dishes prepared that evening. For more information or to book your evening at The Petra Kitchen, contact:

• The Petra Kitchen
  P O Box 40
  Petra, Jordan
  tel/fax +962-3-215-7900
  email: kitchen@petramoon.com

Jihad, Shmahad – Southern Jordan, Petra

Let me preface this by saying: Petra is too amazing to be understood in digital picture format. It’s older than anything in the United States (300 BC). As for a little background you might understand: Do you remember Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade? The one with Sean Connery? Remember when Indiana is riding his horse through the valley at the end to find the temple with the Holy Grail in it? That’s Petra.

Wade Jewkes, Deseret News: Petra — Ancient Nabateans built a place of wonder in the wilderness

… everyone who visits here is left breathless by the stunning, architectural beauty. And the breathless part can be taken almost literally when one considers the hike in is about two miles to the main bowl area and from there it requires a steep climb covering 950 steps to reach the famed Monastery monument — that is if the wear and tear on your body can withstand the rigors required from this masochistic behavior. But it is worth it.

Trans-Ferir – Professor da Universidade do Porto – PETRA (Jordan)

A little farther from the Treasury, at the foot of the mountain called en-Nejr is a massive theatre, so placed as to bring the greatest number of tombs within view; and at the point where the valley opens out into the plain the site of the city is revealed with striking effect. Indeed, the amphitheatre has actually been cut into the hillside and into several of the tombs during its construction, rectangular gaps in the seating are still visible. Almost enclosing it on three sides are rose-coloured mountain walls, divided into groups by deep fissures, and lined with tombs cut from the rock in the form of towers

Lee Abbamonte – The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan

I wish I was more poetic, to be able to aptly describe what the opening walk in Petra is like, but I will try my best. Entering the city, you first see various different sculptures along the road that winds into a mountain. As you enter the Siq, it seems like you are walking aimlessly for a very long time. After about 20 minutes or so you see an opening in the narrow slit in the Siq.

As you approach the ending the narrow gash gets wider and more and more light shows itself and the temperature starts to get hotter as your heart starts to beat heavier. Finally as you are about to exit the pass you are blinded by the rush of light and as you clear your eyes and continue walking out the tunnel you are greeted by the single most amazing site ever concocted by mankind. Right there in front of you is the Treasury, Petra’s most famous and magnificent structure.

And the adventure continues…. on to Jordan and Israe! – Petra, Jordan

Well things didn’t work out as planned and I did not spend my birthday at the pyramids!  I thought Petra would be nice, one wonder of the world for another, but I was disappointed.  I got there at 10am and quickly went to the sight … The second day I had a much better time and started to like Petra a lot more.  It is amazing to see the same sight twice because the light changes completely during the day and it looks very different.

Hiking Petra – The Monastery

By this point we were quite ill again, but I decided it would be a good idea to continue hiking up the 800+ steps carved into the sandstone which lead to the monastery. I really enjoyed this part of the hike, in part because of the view at the end, but in part because we met several families that lived in a neighboring village with whom we exchanged greetings and who were kind and welcoming. I was fascinated that the trails leading among these wonders of the world were their daily paths.

Southern Exposure offers these three photo journal posts:

• Southern Exposure: Petra
• Southern Exposure: Aqaba
• Southern Exposure: Wadi Rum

Of course, there’s my post from November of 2007 – The Petra Treasury Indiana Jones didn’t show you

Two days ago I was standing alone on the steps of the Treasury at Petra. The images still awe me, more so this 2nd visit than the 1st.  Below is a brief description along with 3 YouTube videos explaining why …

Hey, I know what some of you are thinking … but trust me … while there’s alot of “touristy stuff” going on there … none of it detracts from finding your own grail in the glory of Petra.

“You want a horse? You wont make it five feet” – This was the advice of a young man who is part of the “horse mafia” that operates here in Petra.  If you go into Petra as a group you have to pay an additional 7 JOD on top of the large sum of cash you already dished out.  This money goes directly to the horse mafia in order to keep them off your tail and to allow you to ride a horse if you wish.

The above quote coming from a recent Travel Post that along with describing the once-in-a-lifetime thrill that is visiting Petra, some of the not-so-thrilling aspects of the local tourist enterprises.

In my first visit to Petra, I noted the same – where a number of soot covered boys would come right up next to me and holding strands of cheap bracelets and necklaces in my face would shout out sales pitches into my ear – often including empty flattery about the U.S.A. – which they correctly (and probably easily) guessed as my country of origin.

But that was benign and almost cute. What wasn’t was the horses running up and down the Siq – an awe-inspiring spectacle of geology almost 0.825 mile (1.3 km) long, 600 foot (182 m) story high. It is through this rose-red gorge one walks through before arriving at the Treasury – with an awe inspiring view similar to that seen in the film Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) that I captured and posted to YouTube my second visit … but I digress …

It is also through this cavern that I and others have almost gotten run over by … as another blogger describes: “Untrained horses with untrained kids racing the horses down a rocky trail …”

And it is this safety issue, along with a health issue one confronts while climbing the long set to steps up to the Monastery … avoiding the odorous ‘presents’ left by mules some tourists take to the top … and then are taken at the top by the ‘donkey mafia‘ when they discover the negotiated 2JD price for riding up is taxed with a surprise 10JD to be let off the animal!

Hopefully, the recently announced plans at Petra to regulate services & enhance visitor experience will remedy such incidents as they tend to distract somewhat from the experience … though I have my doubts if there is any truth to this snippet from another Petra blogger also commenting on the infamous horse mafia:

At Petra the horse mafia rule the roost. They’re so cunning that they hold the King to ransom and force him to include the price of their terrible horse ride into the entry price to Petra. And when the King tried to change things, they threatened to blow up Petra with dynamite… long story.

Still, with increased travel to the historic site up over the half million mark this year alone, something is going to have to change before a fatal accident and/or a health issue ruins it for everyone.

BUT please, don’t let these descriptions of the horse mafia, the donkey mafia, the bands of junk jewelry hawkers and other minor distractions deter you from visiting Petra. They are annoyances at best, usually quickly forgotten moments after experiencing fantastic and incredible sites such as:

• The Siq
• The Treasury
• Street of Facades
• The Amphitheater
• Royal Tombs
• High Place of Sacrifice
• Colonnaded Streets
• Winged Lions & Qasr al-Bint Temples
• The Monastery
• The Petra Museum

Trust me, as time passes and one looks over the photos of Petra, you don’t think too much about them crazy kids racing them rickety carriages up-n-down the SIQ.

Also known as Al-Dayr or El-Deir, and located at 30°20’14.14″N 35°25’48.99″E, this largest of façades at Petra was considered an extremely important site of pilgrimage built in the mid-1st century by the cult of Obodas I – converted into a Byzantine temple some 400 years later.

Below is a composite video of clips shot while climbing the winding 754.6f (230m) path, and while at the Monastery at Petra.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iB_BElRxy4A&autoplay=0 400 325]

For more information, links, etc. on Al Dayr (or El Deir) , don’t forget to visit our Wiki page on this and many other exciting topics!

Growing up in the Washington, D.C. suburbs back in a day when field trips downtown were common, I’m somewhat used to seeing large stones stacked-up into even larger structures. Yet, I’d venture to guess that even those who live and work in such buildings on a daily basis are not fully prepared for the impact of viewing a monuments as detailed the Lincoln Memorial – entirely carved by hand out of a cliff wall.

Which is why I make such a big whoopdie-do about that the thrill one feels when they first set their eyes on the Treasury at Petra, after a mile walk in a four story high canyon known as the Siq in the following YouTube video:

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Exsry8wXhss&autoplay=0 425 350]

Granted, Mr. Spielberg does a much better job conveying the ‘wow’ one feels when first in front of ‘Al Khazneh’ (الخزنة), as it is known in Arabic. But at least this writer is a bit more forthcoming on the structure’s inner sanctum, versus the elaborate indoor set invented for Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989); even if I get caught up in the moment and refer to it as the Monastery (bad Dean, bad!-):

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7gpG4z7WuMw&autoplay=0 425 350]

And as if the prior two videos didn’t convey the scale enough, I’ve included a third which catalogs some of the detail while standing in the opening early enough in the morning that only one or two other early rising visitors are in the shot – conveniently offering a sense of scale to this magnificent structure:

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Yd8RLlLYlo&autoplay=0 425 350]

As mentioned in a prior post, I’m going to be writing in more detail about this and other sites, but I figured I’d at least wet your whistle with these three snippets from an almost 2 gig collection of short videos I shoot while at the real Petra … whose reality I find much more intriguing than any magic Hollywood can cook-up …

… even for someone who’s been there and done that once before.

Remember: you can never visit Petra soon enough, nor often enough!

• got up early enough to get to the Treasury before the crowd and vendors;
• made it up to the high place of sacrifice while Aaron’s tomb was catching and reflecting the morning light;
• met some wonderful people along the way;
• made it up to the Monastery on foot;
• found a local who was impoverished to the point of selling rocks in 2004 now running a trinkets table, and doing much better/
• made some good deals on stuff for the wife & kid (see above and elsewhere);
• had enough batteries and memory cards too capture it all;
• got fantastic pictures of the Treasury and Monastery, with and without tourists in the view;
• did it all in about a 10 hour period, with 4 bottles of water and only 1 blister;
• found ZuZu – the wonderful camel I rode back in ’04;
• gigabytes of photos and video to be posted over the next couple weeks; and
• had energy to climb up to one of the tombs that was closed in ’04, but ran out of daylight.

I think the best way to approach this for now is to provide you some of the images now, with some short descriptions now, and spend the next couple of weeks describing each place in Petra in their own post – probably aided with some korny but kool YouTube. It is the only way to do this new 7th World Wonder justice.

That said, if you have a though, question, or are just curious – comment here and/or use the contact form to ask me a question. I’ll be glad to answer any question you have.

• 
  
   Triclinium/Obilisque Tomb the first of many tombs.
• 
  
   Bab as-Siq, something big and special just bofore the Siq.
• 
  
   View of Treasury from the end of the Siq.
• 
  
   The Treasury at Petra
• 
  
   1 of 2 Obilisques at the High Place of Sacrifice
• 
  
   Colonades at Petra – built by the Romans, viewed by centuries of civilizations.
• 
  
   Ultimate stair climb - the one mile uphill climb to the Monastery
• 
  
   The Petra Monastery and Me, or the big reward at the end of the 1 mile climb.

Of course now the trick is figuring out how to stitch together the dozens of 3 minute clips I have into a cohesive video or three.

Until then, enjoy now what I enjoyed yesterday – keeping in mind that at one point, it did lead me to an Elijah moment (and NO I’m not talking about bringing down fire on my foes either!-)

Now if you don’t mind, I have to buy a second suite case to bring back all the spices I purchased earlier in the day.

Tonight pictures if I have any energy left, but for now, a map to take a gander at what I’m looking at:

[gmap map:5]

For those who want to explore more of Petra, Jordan online – the blogJordan WIKI Petra pages should get the job done.

Now pardon me while I study the satellite images as well.