Hi all! This will be our last blog post from Israel, since we leave for the airport in Tel Aviv in about an hour. Our own laptop died a few days ago, and internet access has sometimes worked where we are staying, and sometimes not. Since we are all packed, I wanted to get one more posting sent before we head out.
I cannot believe the adventures we've had. Randy reported that we had been to Petra and Wadi Rum in Jordan, but I have to add a few things, especially the mule ride he referred to.
Wadi Rum was absolutely amazing! We saw the mountain named "The Seven Pillars," which inspired T.E. Lawrence's book, "The Seven Pillars of Wisdom." We played in an enormous sand dune, and Susannah wants to be sure you know that she made a sand avalanche while running up the dune, and couldn't stop running when coming down. The scenery is stunning, and the sandstone at sunset is a beautiful red, orange, pink.... In places, the rock appears to be like melted ice cream, leaving patterns that look like large drips, with holes left between the drips. When the breeze blows, it makes an unusual noise through these holes. As we walked by a large cliff with such "drips," I thought I heard a crowd yelling happily in the distance. No, it was the noise from the stones in the wind. What do you know, talking rocks, celebrating!
The sun set upon us at Wadi Rum, and we approached Petra in the dark. And I mean dark! After leaving the main highway between Aqaba and Amman, we turned on to a small winding road through the hills, meandering for about 30 or 40 minutes with no sign of a streetlight or village, or anything. However, every so often, we would see a gentle glow from a Beduin tent, sometimes in the distance, sometimes very close to the road. It seemed poetic, these oases of comforting light in the darkness. Two tents were close enough to the road that I could see into them. The light seemed to come from the softly hissing glow of Coleman lanterns, or something like them. There were brightly colored hangings and weavings inside the otherwise plain looking tents, and cushions spread about. In one tent, I saw two men sitting by a coffee or tea pot, enjoying the end of the day. It looked serene, comfortable, and safe, and I found myself wanting to stop the bus and spend the night in a Beduin tent in the quiet, dark desert. Suddenly the hard life of the Beduin people made sense. I think I now know why they are hesitant to give up their lifestyle for modern abodes. The fresh air, the stillness, the snug coziness of a tent full of good food and cushions would not be easily traded for a concrete cube created in rows by the Jordanian government.
So, Randy has told you about Petra. It is so amazing! Both Randy and I wandered around the site with stupid grins on our faces for about three hours, overwhelmed with the beauty and the mystique of the place. It really is like a setting from "Tales of the Arabian Nights."
Now, Randy wants me to tell you about a certain mule ride that I had. Well, Petra has some amazing ruins tucked way way up in the hills surrounding the main city site. We found that the best way to get Susannah and myself to see these elevated sites was to hire donkeys. It really is a good way to go...for the most part.
On the last morning in Petra, Susannah and I wanted to see "The Monastery," the largest rock facade/building at Petra. It is quite a steep hike, however. Well, there are donkeys for hire everywhere you look in Petra. There was quite a shouting match in Arabic to see whose donkeys would convey us to our destination! We merely stood aside until the Beduin mob sorted it all out. Susannah was to ride a donkey owned by Suleiman, and I was to ride a mule owned by another Beduin (never did get his name).
I had an uncle who was a ferrier (horse shoeing guy). He knew quite a bit about horses, etc. (family reading this know I'm talking about Uncle Lloyd). One day, I commented to him that I thought mules were kind of cute, because they always look like they're up to something. He didn't chuckle. He gave me a long look from under the brim of his battered cowboy hat, and said, "That's because they are." He's right. They are always up to something.
Now, I have not ridden horses a lot, but I have ridden them enough to know that they will often try to size you up by walking close to a big rock to scrape your leg, or by running under a tree branch to knock you off their back. My mule seemed to behave very well. He got me right up the mountain, which was steep and rocky, with the trail brimming a sheer cliff at one point. Mules can be pretty strong, and this one got right to work with his back haunches acting like a four legged rocket burner. I should also mention that all the trails around Petra are peppered with smaller Beduin tents, and Beduin women try to seel jewelry, rocks, etc. from those. Well, it was on the way down that my mule decided, with no warning, to get better acquainted with me. All at once, he bolted for a Beduin tent, and tried to wipe me off his back. He ran right through the tent.
One can have the oddest thoughts at a time like that. I more or less laid straight back on his back, hung on, and watched the support beams of the tent go by. My dominant thought was, "Oh, so they use cedar poles for their tents. That's cool!" I could tell by the type of bark zooming by my face.
Well, the two Beduin women were running and yelling, waving their arms and grabbing Susannah's donkey, and the donkey driver was in a panic. I think they all thought I'd been decapitated. I was fine. Not a scratch on me. So, the driver came up to my mule, and gave him some choice Arabic phrases at top volume, and slapped him. Then he went off to make sure that Susannah's donkey didn't try something similar.
I dismounted, and approached the mule's face. He was looking straight ahead, slightly bored, as if nothing had happened. I couldn't help it. I broke into a smile and said, "I know what you're up to! Nice to meet you, too." I petted his face. I am pretty sure he didn't speak English, but I think he got the message. I had passed his test, and do you know what? That mule obeyed even the slightest command I gave him for the rest of the ride.
Some of the vendors around Petra are real characters. There was one Beduin man that had all sorts of "antiques" at his table and tent. He was very talkative, and made sure that I knew that all the items on the right side were authentic while the items on the left, and he said this in a stage whisper behind his hand, "Were made just last week." Then he gave a classic giggle. I was pretty sure they were all made last week, but he persisted. "No, I excavate the tombs here myself!" He then pulled out a mason's trowel, which is the tool of choice on an archaeological dig. He proudly swiped his trowel in the air like a scimitar. Once again, I started to smile with disbelief, but suddenly he presented a handful of little bones in his other hand, and said, again in a stage whisper, "See, I have finger bones you can buy!"
Well, up to that point, I could almost hear in the back of my mind that music that used to be played a lot on shows like "Gilligan's Island," you know, the goofy oboe in a descending chromatic pattern, "WA, WA, WA..." That instantly changed to something like that Bach Toccata and Fugue in D Minor that always gets played on the organ in horror movies. BONES! My mouth dropped open in shock.
After recovering my composure, I realized they weren't human, but some kind of animal joint bones. What a guy!
Well, I had to buy something from such a showman. So, I bought two replicas of oil lamps for about a dollar and a half. He wanted to sell me coins, too, and I scanned his booth to see what other greenish bronze metal objects he was selling. A couple of baskets of "real bronze coins," and some copper/bronze statuettes, and...some size D flashlight batteries, with a copper top now corroded the old bronze green color. What was he trying to sell those as???!!! I didn't ask, that would have taken another twenty minutes.
Rats, it's time to leave for the airport. I hope to write more after we get home...after we sleep for a few days, do real laundry, etc. etc.
Grace and Peace,
Mary
