Wadi Mujib

of WhereDaily.com

Jordan will shock you. There is simply no substitute for watching the fire Petra Treasury at sunset. There are no words to explain the trance imposed by the sight of the pillars of rock salt over the Dead Sea and to imagine Lott rethinking his wife in this very spot. There is no other way than that you are sure you realize that Moses walked accurately. There is no other but the wind whipping against you as you challenge the sands of Wadi Rum with the ghost of TE Lawrence in the back.

It is the Jordan for the adventurous and the curious and the Jordan to the religious and academic. Anyway, the journey leads to the heart of who we are now.

For travelers persistent, if the type hardened young backpackers or all seasoned and pampered, Jordan brings a surprising level of luxury and an efficient tourist infrastructure to do what needs to happen will happen.

Planning an adventure trip to Jordan, the route should have some "must dos." Think Wadi Rum, Dana Preserve, Petra, Red Sea, scuba diving and hiking Dead sea days and, of course, crusader castles, and biblical hot spots all over.

Wadi Rum, for example, is an experience full-blown desert where you sleep in comfort in tarpaulin tents draped wool or under the belt of Orion, drinking cups of coffee in Bedouin-die business, listen to oud walks around a fire and indulge in a feast of goat and spicy BBQ chicken with the pita bread and salad. The bathrooms are tied with shower stalls and the camp, called Captain's Desert Camp (www.captains-jo.com) is miles from anything other than an occasional off-road vehicle or train of camels on a detour the main road running the length of the country. The next day is spent exploring the dunes in 4 x 4 on the trail of "Ourense.

Similarly, Petra takes endurance and provides ample rewards fear. The night tour of Petra is a highlight in life, a truly amazing descent towards 2000 years a thousand glowing candles that illuminated the tiny burial chambers carved into the sandstone along the path. The lost city of Petra is just that, a city that was once the career of the Edomites, a migration from Yemen and Saudi who knew the art of building dams and water savings in the years to Small BC They built their city of Petra and lived their for hundreds of years until they were overrun by the Nabataeans who settled south of Jordan and made their fortune in the tax collection Weighted caravans along the Frankincense Trail in Alexandria. The Treasury is an icon among the most recognized wonders of the ancient world. In the night off, about two miles on the track dark flame lit, the visitor emerges through the narrow Siq to the Treasury broad gallery with music from the flute of a shepherd's lonely echo through Monuments cavernous interiors. A Bedouin serves tea sage, light of the full moon reflected on the capital carved above the columns, around the cliff dwellings and all is quiet except the echo of the flute.

Petra is home to 500 tombs and see them all, or even send them a day takes strength, good shoes, a hat and some bills Jordanian rent a donkey. Hiking the entrance, past the Treasury and hundreds of caves and tombs match the monastery of Deir Al takes a ride even eight hours with a break in the cafeteria at the base and other breaks along the path. Water and donkeys are plentiful.

Preserve Dana is a place to stop between the capital Amman and points south as the trip begins. It's a bit of an eco preserve panoramic views of the Wadi Dana, which can be covered. On the ground to find a resource center for research, a restaurant a.