Monday 18th January - Petra

On hearing the rain on our window we rolled over and went back to sleep.  It had been wet and windy all night, and didn’t look good when we got up.  As we were leaving the hotel we were told that Petra was currently shut due to the rain, which can flash flood down the Siq (and in the past has caused a number of deaths).  We thought we would at least go down and say goodbye to the overland guys we met yesterday before they left, and try to find out whether Petra would open later.

In the short time it took us to drive down to the site entrance, it had stopped raining and the sky had lightened considerably.  To our surprise two more overland vehicles had turned up in the car park, a couple of German Land Rover 110s, on their way to South Africa.  Petra car park really is the place to be.

We had an hour to kill before Petra was due to open, so brewed up in the car park and sat in the Land Rover to keep warm as the temperature had dropped 10°C compared to yesterday.  At 1100 people were being let into the site, so we ventured back down the Siq, walking astride the stream that had formed down the middle.
When the city was inhabited, water channels cut into the Siq walls and a series of dams controlled the flow of water and reduced the chances of flash floods, but today the place is vulnerable.  We had intended to take an alternate route into Petra, down the 88m Nabatean drainage tunnel near the entrance to the Siq and along Wadi Muthlim.  However, this route is off limits in wet weather as the dam deliberately diverts rain water down the Wadi rather than the Siq.  Maybe tomorrow.

One advantage of visiting Petra after rain was that the wet really bought out the colours in the rock.

The sun had actually returned as we reached the Treasury and stayed out for an hour or so, enough time for us to walk down and admire the Royal Tombs.

We then discovered the path at the back of the tombs that goes up Jebel Khubtha and gives an amazing view of the Treasury and decided to go for it, even though rain was threatening.  We obviously didn’t get enough of steps yesterday as there were a fair few to get through, but it was worth it as the Treasury looked even more impressive from 200m above.

By this time there was thunder and lightning and the rain and hail started with a vengeance, and we were advised by a guide we met en-route to hurry down.

We weren’t particularly concerned, but when we emerged at the bottom and started to head in the direction of the Colonnaded Street we were stopped by an official looking individual who told us to wait for a car which would take us out of Petra as “A flash flood is coming down the Siq”.  We were quite interested in seeing the flash flood, however this didn’t seem to be an option and we were forced into the cab of an open-backed old Mercedes truck that eventually appeared (we did quite well to get the cab seats though as the back was crammed with damp, cold looking tourists).  I’m not sure why we couldn’t continue into the further reaches of Petra which are well away from the Siq, but there seemed to be a tourist-clearing exercise in operation and we didn’t have a choice.

It was a picturesque, if slightly hairy, drive out of Petra via a back road, whereupon we were dumped 14km away from the main entrance.  As we’d been told we’d be taken back to the Visitor’s Centre we wandered towards several 4x4s that were parked nearby assuming they would take us the rest of the way, however we were cheerfully told that it would be 5JD per person if we wanted a lift.  It’s good the locals weren’t willing to take advantage of the stranded tourists.  Fortunately we were given a free lift back by a tour party bus that had a few spare seats - never let it be said tour parties don’t have their uses.

We decided to make use of the early return to the hotel to relax and conserve some energy for our last day at Petra tomorrow; the weather should hopefully be better so we’ll be out early to take advantage.

Posted by Anne.