16. From the Dead Sea to Moonscape Desert Village 1/2/23

Greetings from Bubble Luxotel, outside of Petra, Jordan

We left the Kempinski Ishtar Resort after breakfast and headed onto the road to Petra. GPS said it would take close to 4 hours. Initially the road was fine, and the sun was out. As we drove, we saw amazing geological formations and incredible views of the Dead Sea. We passed small villages and roadside stands that were old and worn, and a lot of agriculture that was living off the water that was supposed to go into the Dead Sea (which is rapidly shrinking in size, as much as 4 feet of depth per year. It is possible that the Dead Sea will disappear in about 100 years.) It was smooth sailing.

About two hours into the drive, as we ascended into the mountains, a thick fog emerged bringing visibility to about 10 feet for long stretches and forcing us to drive about 12 miles an hour. The fog kept getting worse and we contemplated turning around, or even sleeping in the car. There were some other cars on the road and even a very large tourist bus—also going fairly slowly, though perhaps a bit faster than us. The road was pretty curvy and not marked all that well, although for long stretches there was a yellow line on the edge. In some cases, there were guard rails because of the steep drops into the canyons (which we could not see), but not everywhere. 

Picture driving on California Highway 1 without guardrails or road markings in pea soup fog between Mendocino and Bodega Bay.

Just as we descended on the other side of the mountain– about 10 miles from the Petra area, we emerged out of the fog and bright sun emerged. It was incredible. So, we drove the narrow little road to our hotel: Bubble Luxhotel (about 15 minutes from the entry to Petra). The drive took more than 5 hours (at least 3 hours in the fog). But here we are.

We are staying in a three-dome room /three inflated bubbles. To get into the “room” you need to open one door that gets you into an “air-lock;” you need to close that door before opening the actual door into our “home;” if you don’t do that, pressure gets lost and the dome starts to collapse. We have a bedroom (queen bed) in one bubble, a bathroom in the second bubble, and a sitting room with couch in the third room. All three bubbles are connected, creating a foyer of sorts between them; the bubbles are “zipped” together. There is also a private hot tub on our deck, which I don’t think we will use given that the temperature outside is currently (at 6:00) 45 degrees and dropping.

Given the fact that we arrived around 5 pm and the sun sets around 5:40, we decided not to go to Petra immediately. It turns out that there is a Petra “light” show on Monday nights (tonight) at 8:30 pm. Apparently, they light the space with hundreds (thousands?) of candles and you walk in with a guide and walk back out two hours later. We will take a taxi to get there so as not to have to drive any distance in the dark.

So, we decided to go to what is called “Petra by Night.” We had a taxi take us from the Bubble Lux to Petra—about a 15-minute drive in the dark on very winding roads which the driver took as if it was the Indy 500. He was a local and explained a few things about what happened when Petra became a UNESCO Heritage Site; there were about 40 families still living in Petra at the time and the government (or maybe UNESCO) built them each a house and agreed to pay for water and electricity for life for those 40 families. The driver made some reference to the fact that his grandparents and prior generations had lived in the caves in Petra as well, but not at that particular moment and they did not get anything in the way of compensation.

We hiked into Petra to what is known as the “Treasury;” about 3.8 mile round trip… in the dark with the path lit only by candles (sort of like the Candelaria they use in the Southwest)—1,500 candles lighting the 1.9 mile path (in each direction). It was a difficult walk as there are a lot of rocks and unknowns on the path and areas with large smooth stones (perfect for slipping and spraining one’s ankle, which I have done way too many times while traveling). But we made it. It’s an amazing sight, making the nearly four-mile hike on rocky terrain and the impossible and death-defying drive worth it.

The Treasury is the building/structure most photographed in brochures and other materials about Petra. Once at the Treasury, there was a concert of ancient music, but we decided to begin the walk back, since we walked more slowly than most of the other visitors to this event (they were mostly Italians in their 20s and 30s). I couldn’t help think—as I looked at the ancient structure—that the Nabataeans might be turning over in their graves (or tombs) at the site of this structure being lit in bright colors against the Petra night sky. But it was a good chance to visit Petra in a different setting than what we’d see today in daylight.

By way of background Petra was founded more than 2,000 years ago. It had been the trade center—bustling with life and markets that sold goods from India, Arabia, and Egypt, and gardens and houses that showed the wealth and power of this trade center. Actually, the story of Petra begins with these Arab nomads—the Nabataeans—who lived off the land and got income from herding camels, sheep, and other animals. Over time, the Nabataeans, with their sharp commercial skills, became successful traders—moving spices and incense from Arabia to Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea. The Nabataeans were also skilled at collecting and distributing water with rock-cut channels and underground pipes. They also developed ways to collect and store water.

The “sig” (the path you take into Petra and to the Treasury) wasn’t carved by humans; the narrow gorge that leads into Petra is a natural wonder.

We returned to the BubbleLux at about 10:30 pm. It’s been extremely cold, windy, and damp during these past few days in Jordan.

Bubble Luxhotel is really like being on the moon.

We were supposed to stay just one night, but we thought we’d get here by 2:30 and head to Petra for a few hours, returning after sunset. But now, we are thinking of staying a second night to be able to get a full day tomorrow at the site. If we leave tomorrow and head back to the Dead Sea for a night, we’d only have about 5 hours at Petra tomorrow and we know that’s not enough time. Still, if we stay the extra night, it means driving from Petra straight to the Amman Airport to catch our flight to Tel Aviv. We will figure it out tonight. It’s risky to have to drive straight to the airport—in case of any problems on the road. On the other hand, we’re not that interested in a second night at the Dead Sea or in a resort. Ah, the problems of making such decisions.

All the best –

Fern