Mt Nebo Archives - Escapes From The Little Red Dot

Morning we returned to Mt. Nebo after checking out of the hotel. Our first attraction for the day was Memorial of Moses.

The Memorial was still under massive renovation when we were there. Couldn’t visit in the end.

More mosaic. — More mosaic exhibits underneath a tentage nearby.

Cravings on the pillar. Must be really old.

The Serpentine cross reminded me of the medicine symbol. This one was behind the memorial.

Atop of Mt Nebo with reference to other locations. The view of the “Promised Land” in which Moses saw.

Didn’t spend much time there since there weren’t a lot to see due to the renovation. After admiration of the view, we left for Bethany Beyond the Jordan, a UNESCO site where Jesus was baptised in the Jordan River. It was not a long drive from Mt. Nebo. The closest we could drive was however only to the visitor’s center, and taking guided tour from there.

Audio guide plus paper guide showing the different locations for the information.

Mosaic showing the ascension of Elijah in a chariot of fire, at Elijah hill, covered by the tour.

Golden roof of St. John the Baptist church.

The small river separated Israel and Jordan.

We went on to check in at the Holiday Inn Resort Dead Sea Hotel, one of the more affordable ones along the Dead Sea. We were quite early and they provided a free upgrade for our room to a suite! Lovely surprise. Had our lunch at one of the many eating places available in the resort, beside the pool.

And the bedroom with an amazing dead sea view.

Dead Sea view from the Holiday Inn Resort.

During the tour the baptism site, we met a tourist from Iraq whom said that we should visit the Ma’in hot springs while here. So we took a drive out and as we drove, we saw a Dead Sea Panoramic Complex which we visited for a while. Here we learnt how the Dead Sea was formed and how it was drying up.

Dead Sea Panoramic center. — Dead Sea Panoramic complex.

A historical introduction on how the Dead Sea was formed.

Indeed an amazing panoramic view can be seen.

There after, we drove on to Ma’in hot springs to have a look. There was a huge waterfall and cave that was opened for public. There were also some other springs meant for families and for ladies only. The water from the waterfall was actually quite hot! I had to purchase a pair of shots to get a piece of the action in the waterfall.

Dipping into the hot water for some time.

Temperature guide for the hot spring waters.

Standing there to enjoy the massaging effect of the hot water. — Standing there to enjoy the massaging effect of the cool water.

A small cave where people can sit in and enjoy the sauna.

We didn’t stay long as I was only one in the springs while my wife waited outside. I couldn’t stay too long as well since the water was really hot and the weather was hot too. Drove back to the hotel to enjoy the room for a bit before heading to the private beach of the resort for some Dead Sea experience.

There were some bowls of mud that were already collected from the shore and we could just apply it onto our face and bodies. However, the saltiness of the mud bit into our skin, took some time to get used to this. There was a clean water facility for us to wash down after we were happy with the application.

The other experience was of course to float on the Dead Sea. It was quite amusing to do so although it must take a little bit of balancing. The risk to this was at the water getting into the eye that would make you cry since the saltiness was so much higher than normal sea water.

Bowl of mud available at the beach for use.

Floating on the water watching the sunset.

Got back to the room and clean up before dinner. We settled for dinner at the resort itself, not knowing where else we could get dinner nearby. It was a dining under the stars experience, with the cool breeze coming in.

Then it was the end of a short but amazing experience at the dead sea.

Taking a cab to return to our room in Jordan Tower Hotel, the activities for today would be to visit the various attractions within the city of Amman before moving on to another town. One of the reasons the choice of the accommodation was because of its proximity to these attractions, all within walking distance. But it also meant more noises unfortunately.

From the accommodation, we walked towards the Citadel. From the map it seemed like a straight forward walk but had some slope to climb. Furthermore, we had to make a detour along the road to reach the main entrance to the Citadel. Guide service was available and we engaged him to understand the culture and the history of this grand site.

On the inside of the Citadel monumental gateway.

Panoramic view of Amman city from the Citadel.

The guide was very informative and brought us around the site, introducing the different buildings and their period of significance. We were then left to roam the area and visit the Archaeological museum within the Citadel after he was done.

One of the earliest statue of human civilization, at the Citadel museum.

Our next stop was to visit the Roman Amphitheatre just across the road from the Citadel. Didn’t stay long as it was just like another Amphitheatre elsewhere. We visited the small museum where they were some exhibits but mostly to take cover from the heat.

It was lunch time and we found one (couldn’t remember the name) that served lunch and offered sweet pastries. Returned back to the hotel for check out and to take over our car from the Reliable Rent a Car representative for travel onwards. As it was challenging to drive out of Amman, we were driven to the outskirts by the representative to the outskirt before I took over as driver. Onwards to Madaba, the Mosaic City.

The drive was pretty easy on the highways though there were many manned portable speed traps. I learnt that drivers tend to share the information if there are speed traps ahead and these drivers coming from the opposite lane would usually flash their headlights to give warnings to slow down. Nice!

Our first stop was to check into Mosaic City Hotel. The hotel was pretty new and within walking distance to the town where the attractions were. Parked our car at the carpark next to the hotel and checked in.

With a map in hand, given by the receptionist, we continued on foot to the attractions Madaba had to offer. St. George church was our first stop.

Inside the St. George's church. — Inside the St. George’s church.

Many beautiful mosaic pictures on the wall.

Mosaic map of Madaba on the floor. — Oldest mosaic map of Palestine on the floor.

The town of Madaba was really small and walkable. The next location was the Shrine of Beheading of St. John’s the Baptist.

On the streets of Madaba. A huge mosque in sight.

Shrine of the Beheading of John the Baptist.

Mosaic picture of Baptism of Christ at Bethany beyond the Jordan.

Below the surface was a museum to explore. There was a really old Moabite well that was said to be functional till date.

Picture showing the beheading of St. John.

Then we walked to the end of main attractions area where the sat the Church of Apostles. This was a church that had the biggest mosaic, covering the whole floor of it. There were some footpath for us to walk about as we explore the massive area to look at the mosaic pictures.

Covering the entire floor of the church.

Before walking back to the hotel, we chanced upon a Madaba Archaeological park I and so we went in to look see.

Original wall mosaics. At the Church of the Virgin. — Original wall mosaics.

Still uncovering and protecting the mosaics of the past.

We thought we had enough of mosaics for the day. The next location was to drive to Mt. Nebo not too far from Madaba to catch the sunset.

Panaromic view while waiting for the sunset.

Drove back to Madaba and walked to the a restaurant recommended by the hotel staff, Haret Jdoudna. It was a beautiful place and a popular and crowded one as well.

Nice little town of Madaba left us with an overdose of Mosaic art.

Jordan Day 5 2012 – Memorial of Moses, Bethany beyond the Jordan and the Dead Sea

Jordan Day 4 2012 – Citadel, Madaba and Mt. Nebo