Jordan: Wadi Rum

We left Aqaba and drove about 45 minutes north to our camp in Wadi Rum, SunCity camp. This camp is really in the middle of the desert and it consists of maybe 20 "tents" that are really little wooden structures. The winds can really get going in the desert so I think if they were actual canvas tents they likely wouldn't last very long. In fact, the winds were very strong during the afternoon and evening that we were there, which made for an interesting ride in the open back of a pickup truck.

So, the main event in Wadi Rum was a guided tour of the desert in the previously mentioned pickup truck. This is followed by a nice dinner in the camp, where there is a really nice atmosphere with fires going and the waiters dancing and everybody enjoying themselves and the good food.

Here are a few pictures of the camp and the views surrounding it:



Below is Martin with our guide in Wadi Rum, Ali. Ali's English wasn't that spectacular but he was a fun guide. He let Martin drive the old Jeep and he took lots of pictures of the two of us.



The first place Ali took us to was the location where they filmed The Martian:



Then we went to a tent in the middle of the desert with an older Bedouin man inside who gave us tea and sang us a song using his one-stringed handmade guitar-like instrument called a Rababah. We bought some head wrappings from him; below you can see him wrapping Martin's head. Those scarves really saved us from the blowing sand during the rest of the tour!



We continued to drive around the desert and stop in scenic areas and take pictures:



Ali was a huge fan of jumping photos. Martin was pretty good at them, while I was not. The one I looked halfway decent in, Martin didn't jump fully. Ali also tried to get us to jump while facing each other and clap hands - you can see how well that went.



We eventually ended up climbing on top of some really large rocks to watch the sunset (after a Bedouin man with a group of camels passed by). It was windy with lots of blowing sand but watching the sunset in the desert was really neat and totally worth all the sand I got in my hair that day.



Here's a video of the sunset with the winds:

This video gives you a bit of a panoramic view:

After we returned to camp, it was just about time for dinner. They cooked the main course underground - chicken, lamb, potatoes, rice, and carrots. Here they are about to dig it all up from under the mound of sand:



And our overflowing plates (more hummus!!):



This one waiter was really talented at dancing with a platter of mugs of tea balanced on top of his head. He provided entertainment for quite awhile - I took a video of it but am not sure if it will work or not, so the first picture below is just a picture and the second is hopefully a video.

We awoke the next morning to some fresh, warm focaccia with herbs sprinkled on top of it for breakfast and it was perfect. Funny how it's the camp with the fewest frills and the lowest level of comfort that has the best food and atmosphere. Then we were off to our next destination. The camp owner wanted us to go on a camel ride in the early morning, which would have been neat because we've never ridden camels before, but we were on a schedule and had to leave early to get to Petra! So, maybe next time.