Jordanian Self-Car -, Jordan – Tourist Blog

Trips abroad "Dickarem" have their pros and cons: move around the country, following only your own desire, and not the route developed by the travel agency. But you risk skipping something important, from the category "Mandatory Item Program". Our "Self-roll" in Jordan proved this once again.

Get to Amman, the capital of Jordan, we did not work without adventure. In the kingdom we drove out of Syria, "self-propelled". Five hours at the Jeep to the Jordanian capital were quite tedious. Landscapes outside the window first pleased with her fantasticity: the earth seemed to turn into a giant sandwich, densely smeared by the pajoic caviar, – completely black stones of different sizes and the most bizarre form. But the contemplation of this delicacy soon bored, and we are tricked.

Woke up already dimly. Our jeep stood on the road in the suburb of Amman, taken into the ring of the crowd of people who were yelling and fiercely gesticulated. We got out to the outside, extended our eyes, sfitted limbs and tried to delve into the essence of the problem. Our driver, Jordan Imad, appeared in his seat. He was clearly scared:

– We’ll have to part. These people say I will not miss me, because I’m not local. You need to take another car ..

Well, deed! The country with a population is more than five million, and looked: spheres of influence, grouping, separation on "their" and "strangers".

Another car organized to us instantly and even luggage in her kindly moved. It turned out that the hotel remained fifteen minutes. But I took a new driver with us so much that it would be possible to pass yet half. Such here are overhead local customs!

The morning is wiser than the evening

Jordanian self-car: Israeli shore is guessed in the smoke over the Dead Sea. Sea Melette, but his owners can not agree on his salvation.In the morning, as usual, everything saw not so gloomy. Cute hotel Gardenia emitted hospitality. No more than three stars, but all new, with needles. Guests except us – nor soul. The room is a huge room with a kitchen and a window to the whole wall, followed by an amazing panorama of the Eastern city, where the skyscrapers are adjacent to the mosques and shacks of the poor.

Guide, we cleverly organized themselves while being in Russia, having previously studied with the society of Russian-Jordanian friendship. To our services was Dyan – as it turned out, our compatriot who came to study at the University of Ufa.

Making sure the day before, to contact the local bombing is dangerous to health and considerably for a wallet, we first of the work took up the transport problem. Rolling office around turned out to be many, and their signs were in English. In the first two bored employees pounced on us with a view of hungry dogs. Prices struck immediately. In what other country can be rented Mitsubishi Lancer (let the four-year-old, but in excellent condition) for just $ 17 per day? And for 22, you can already count on Nissan Premiera – too, the truth is not the first youth.

That’s just a hitch with a contract. Suddenly a terrible thing was discovered: each of us hoping another and did not take the driver’s license. I had to make a car on our guide.

In general, the documents were corrected, the money was paid, they hit the hands and went to the road. I didn’t even really looked at the car, what was heavily sorry. Day after two without any exposure from the outside the windshield burst, for which the company then sodled with us – attention! – 50 dollars, almost three days. But probably, the crack on the glass has already been.

Green license plate on our car, as it turned out, possessed in Jordan a truly magical action. Such here are only in cars designed for rent.

– Almost foreigners can rent a car. Alien in this country everywhere green street and honor – explained our guide.

In the wonderful properties of the green number, we have convinced the whole trip. An unthinkable prethel will be discharged on the road, it was possible to violate the rules of movement in the most cynical manner – the road police only defiantly turned away, not wanting to notice anything. Several times reached the fact that Amman traffic cops simply blocked the intersection so that it was more expensive to drive through it.

So we rode with a friend alternately. Both without right. And, what is sin, alcohol alcohol, albeit **************, but the beer bottle sometimes took. Since we have numbers such magic!

Water Live and Dead

Two days later, we suddenly wanted to swim in the legendary dead sea. From Amman to the northern coast of the sea hour and a half ride. If the Jordanian capital is at an altitude of 900 m, then the Dead Sea, the only one of its kind on the planet, is located in the depression. The water level in it is lower than the world’s level of 400 m. It is only worth going out for the city trait, and the spirit captures: the multi-kilometer serpentine is starting. Already in ten minutes, quick ride feel that the ears laid, as if on the plane when landing.

On the shore, at the water itself, it seems that to the opposite shore hand. However, the impression is deceptive: on the side – Israel, the land promised, but 15 km.

The sea though and the healing itself is seriously ill. In recent years, it is rapidly merge with speed almost a whole meter per year. Israel and Jordan are developing projects for its salvation. But the case goes neither Shalko nor Valko. First, the scope is huge – the project is something of akin to our former plans for the transfer of the northern rivers. Secondly, Arab-Israeli conflicts are known to everyone.

From the West and East to the Dead Sea close to the mountains. And in the north and south there are small plain sites, where you can see the naked eye as the water retreated. Some places for hundreds of meters, in some places for kilometers, lifeless salt desert extends. Here it is impossible to engage in agriculture – the land has been conjured, tightly, for many meters deep into.

They say that the salt oversaturated with salts has healing properties and removes sins. However, it is impossible to name it, it will be more correct – "brine".

Jordanian self-car: Amman, the capital of Jordan, grow preferably not up, and stirre. Almost a third of the country’s population lives in the capital.Understanding that after splashing in the "brine", we will probably want to take a shower, tried to put on the beach standing on the shores of the Sofitel hotel, but they were forced to be rerated: there were about $ 40 from a person for such pleasure.

Pleasant way out of difficulty found quite by chance a few kilometers from the hotel. In the cozy and not visible from the road from the hot spring from the rocks, glasses of freshwater rudes. Someone died in the rocky breed recess, and the similarity of the natural pool was formed.
Pouring in the Dead Sea is not comparable: dense salty water pushes you out, like a plug. Lay on my back and swing over the surface like an inflatable mattress, and only your fifth point is slightly immersed in water.

We jumped ashore and ran to our free pool. Just a dozen meters, but during that time with the body there was an amazing metamorphosis – it was all covered with salt crystals. A few steps you are already white as a gypsum statue.

They say, nothing can exist in the water of the Dead Sea. Only recently scientists have discovered some bacteria there. Well, tourists like us sometimes are found.

Democratic kingdom

One thing to watch tales on TV, Other – to participate in them. In Jordan, the feeling of the unreality of what is happening and fabulous beauty accompanies you at every step. Another fairy tale began, only we moved from the place of swimming on a winding road to the south.

Unexpectedly released from the mountains of the sun illuminated the Israeli bank, and he became gold. The spectacle was so unusual and beautiful that we stopped the car. The Jordanian side of the time remained in the twilight blue haze. The classic combination of gold on the blue was so impressive that I wanted to stay here endlessly, translating a look from the shore to the shore.

Suddenly, portraits of two men came out of the haze on the rock. Not to know them was impossible. Hussein and Abdalla II. Father and Son, the former and current kings of Jordan. It turns out that their portraits are fisted only by the streets of cities, but also the local rocks. Giant images were laid out on the slope and facing Israel. Such is the foreign policy propaganda.

The world political elite has gathered for the funeral of King Hussein in 1999. I came even completely unhealthy Boris Yeltsin. Abdulle at that time was 37 years old, and he did not burn with the desire to take the throne. But royal offspring to think about these issues. Therefore, the king Abdalla began and, it seems, now has already entered the taste. In any case, the policy he leads active and distributes the left and right of ranks and ranks. Following the mother of the king and his sister, and the spouse of the wound became a colonel of the Jordanian army.

In general, it is said that the new king is brought up in democratic traditions, focused on the preservation of a secular state in the country and, by the way, looks like something like John Kennedy.
In the footsteps of Indiana Jones

Savy travelers love to argue that the one who was not in the ancient city of Peter, cut down in the rocks, he was not in Jordan. Let us leave this statement on their conscience, because all Jordan is one big museum under the opposite sky. And Peter – perhaps the most famous hall. Do not believe? Not even heard this name? Do not worry. The film "Indiana Jones, or the last crusade" you are already probably watched. It is in the mountains of Petra Indiana and was looking for a sacred grail. True, as it should be, shown in the cinema partially different from reality.

The difference is the first, mercantile: Indiana Jones got into the rocky city due to circumstances and at the same time he did not pay for the entrance of no cent, except, perhaps, abrasion, tumakov and liters of spilled sweat. We had to lay out for the pleasure of wandering around the miracle city of $ 25 per person.

Jordanian self-car: King Abdullah II (right) Generous to ranks not only for his brothers (in the center – Prince Fayasal). Even his spouse he assigned the rank of colonel.The difference is the second, the transport: Indiana traveled to Peter on cars, and sometimes at all on heavy armored vehicles. In fact, on distant approaches to the unique reserve is a deaf barrier. And if you go on foot, it became completely inadvertent, then at your service donkeys for riding or carts in which mules harnessed. True, it is necessary to be careful here, because the local zootaxists are trying with all the truths and untrue trying you into their crew, promising to store at least the edge of the world for "Van Dollar". As a result, passing five hundred meters, you risk not to get rid of them and for hundreds of green. So be alert. Especially since walking through Peter, giving the opportunity to look into every temple, each grotto, climb on every boulder – indelible pleasure.

The difference is third, architectural: Peter and really huge; to get around it, not enough, probably, and weeks. But the size of the rocky temples, in particular the main and the most beautiful, through the gates of which Indiana Jones allegedly penetrates the underground palace in search of a graveyard, not so impressive as shown in the film.

And the last, for to describe the beauty – the case is absolutely *************. It is only necessary to see. Therefore, if you get to Peter, do not be satisfied with the walking on the temples, street canyons and crevices, and be sure to raise half a gun, and then just on the stones as above as possible to see Peter ******** Rate the scale and Beauty of the Red City.
Features of national politics

In the political sense of Jordan, today there are some two lights, and herself confused in ambiguities. Of course, a Muslim country, Jordan after the US attack on Iraq, spoke sharply against aggression. Meanwhile, thousands of American soldiers continue to be on its territory, and the bombers of the Anti-Israhk Coalition with Jordanian airfields repeatedly took the course to Baghdad.

Before the beginning of the war, Jordan was the only country through which the help was not prohibited by UN sanctions. But as soon as the Baghdad regime fell, Jordan immediately adopted a new law on the recording of acts of civil status, which forbade the name "Gudam Hussein" by Jordanian newborns. However, just "gardens" for this ban did not fall.

In general, the foreign policy of Jordan is solid contradictions, compromises and avalanche. And what should you do if in the country, in fact, there are no minerals, and two thirds of the territory – a lifeless desert. Tourism has not yet become for Jordan any significant income item. Yes, there are excellent modern hotels here, including the world’s leading chains; Yes, the country is literally stiggy by unique monuments of history and architecture and has access to the two seas; Yes, here are ready to wear tourists in their hands (for their money, of course). But all the hotels and attractions are practically empty, we saw it at every step. The restless environment in the region as a whole, and then the war in Iraq significantly undermined the interest of tourists to Jordan. And when he recovers, one God knows. Nevertheless, locally and it is a matter of foreigners about political stability and tranquility reigning in the country.

What remains Jordan? Perform the role of buffer between Israel and the Arab world. And receive financial injections from the USA for loyalty and support in certain matters.

True, it does not interfere with the Americans himself to be afraid of her like an ally. Out of own eyes saw the American Embassy in Amman. This is a real fortress, something similar to the Cairo Citadel, and still guarded by armored vehicles.

On the last day before departure, we summarized our amateur trip. In the country, we screwed almost five thousand kilometers in two weeks – chaotic and without any plan. Overcame the difficulties that arise most often on our fault. Seen much, which you will not see from the window of the tourist bus. But they did not see: Roman ruins, the Jordan River, where Jesus Christ took the baptism, from where the Prophet Moses could see the Land promised and where, according to legend, had everd. But, most importantly, do not regret it. Because we have a legitimate reason to visit Jordan again – again for your own.