Jordan

When the first Europeans came to the east bank of the Jordan River, they were pleasantly amazed by what they saw. The landscapes of bizarre beauty: mountains, canyons, valleys with lush greenery, forests and lakes - all this was so different from their previous ideas about the land called the Middle East. Countless Byzantine churches, fantastic Greek palaces and mosaics, palaces of the Ommeyad era opened to the inquisitive gaze… Even though many of these have definitely fallen into disrepair now, even gray ruins cannot hide their former splendor.

To this day, on the tops of some hills, you can see the remains of fortified castles of the Crusader era and beautiful Arab fortresses - vivid evidence of the struggle between Christians and Muslims. Such, for example, is the castle of El Karak, built on the battlement of a cliff and representing a maze of galleries, secret passages, towers … The structure of the time of the Crusades is well preserved. His past is dark. It was once ruled by the infamous knight Renaud de Chatillon, who pirated all along the Red Sea coast. This "seasoned man" ruined many lives, but he himself did not escape a terrible fate. He was taken in full and beheaded by the great Arab commander Salah al-Din.
But more often, acquaintance with Jordan begins with its capital, Amman. At first, you don't even believe that the Jordanian Desert is nearby. You are surprised at the purity and brightness of everything: water, air, smells… And this eternally pale yellow sun, something like an overcooked egg yolk - it makes the White City seem even whiter. And also from burnt limestone, from which, in fact, most of the buildings were built.
However, Amman does not look faceless at all. You begin to understand this especially clearly even when visiting historical sites: from the Greco-Roman civilization there remained a delightful amphitheater in the very center of the old quarter, from the Christians a Citadel adjacent to the pompous Governor's Palace (VIII century). The eastern markets quarter leaves an indelible impression.
Life is always bustling here. It is a kind of museum of Jordanian life, customs and folklore. Finally, it's just nice to wander around here, plunging headlong into the daily chores and worries of an ordinary Jordanian.

Well, how can you deny yourself and not try the street cooking of mansaf – boiled mutton in sour milk? Maybe someone will cringe from such a dish, but it's just right for me. I'm used to such experiments. Moreover, this stew, sprinkled with toasted pine nuts and served with rice, looks very appetizing.

When you try Jordanian sweets, you invariably come to the conclusion: what is called "oriental sweets" in other Arab countries, "it's all "wrong". Unless Syria and Lebanon can compete with Jordan. The most popular treats are pistachios (buckwheat), cheese (kanafa) or in the form of cookies sprinkled with sim-sim, that is, sesame seeds. Mountains of sweets beckon invitingly to anyone who comes here, to the Bough, even if he is completely indifferent to them in ordinary life. Sometimes it seems that the spicy smell penetrates even through the glass windows.
But still, an adult gets tired of sweets quickly. He, an adult, wants something kind of exotic. I didn't have time to think and – here it is! Something incomprehensible, something that looks like a cactus. It is not for sale in Russia. Apparently, this somewhat strange one - either a fruit or a vegetable - is being eaten. It quickly turns out that in front of me is indeed a cactus fruit. It is cleaned of «bristles» (thorns – almost like a real one), resulting in a juicy yellowish flesh that tastes like a melon. They eat right with the bones. The main thing is not to touch the thorns that sting your fingers, and not to overeat to excess, otherwise you will not have an upset stomach for long.

Jordan's most popular attraction is the unique rock city of Petra, hidden for centuries among the desolate hills of the Jordanian Desert. Maybe it is he who represents one of the greatest mysteries of the entire ancient world.
Surprisingly, Europeans did not know about its existence until the beginning of the XIX century, until in 1812 the Swiss explorer Jean-Louis Burckhardt made a daring raid on places where no Christian had set foot for a long time. In order to travel unnoticed, Burckhardt had to disguise himself as an Arab. What he saw and described later brought worldwide fame not only to himself, but also to the Sik Gorge, where, in fact, the legendary Petra hid in the rocks. The facades of this ghost town, lost in the sands, have served as the setting for many films, the most famous of which is undoubtedly "Indiana Jones". This is where Professor Jones arrives in search of the holy Grail. The city is huge, mysterious and beautiful.
Modern tourists get to Petra in much the same way as its ancient inhabitants once got there.; Nabataea: The only land route runs through a narrow rocky gorge. When you find yourself in this quiet, remote valley, at first you see nothing but overhanging cliffs. Everything around seems dark and gloomy, but as soon as you pass the last turn, a magnificent view suddenly opens up in front of you: as if the most grandiose building of Petra Hasneh grows out of the ground.
There are many legends about him. Firstly, it is unclear who built this building. Nomadic Bedouins? Unlikely. The elegant Greek style of the columns is visible. But if they were Greeks, then why did they come here? And then where did they go? There are no answers yet…
Another mystery is how Hasneh was used. The word itself means "treasure". That, at least, was the opinion of the Bedouins, who believed that untold riches were hidden in the urn. They fired their guns at it with enviable tenacity, trying to break it up and get to the treasures in this way. But neither the Bedouins nor anyone else managed to do this.
Some researchers believe that Hasneh was nothing more than someone's tomb. For example, King Aretas III (86-62 BC), under whom the Nabataeans rose to the peak of power and glory, expanding their possessions to Damascus. In general, riddles, riddles, riddles…

The pink-red city itself, which is only 190 kilometers away from Amman, is a mixture of Persian, Assyrian, Greek and Roman styles. Practically nothing is known about the Nabataeans (it is believed that they built Petra after all, carved it like a sculpture out of sheer cliffs). And why did Petra appear in such a strange place? Why would nomadic pastoralists suddenly switch to a sedentary lifestyle, founding a city where caravans of travelers from all over Asia later met
Most likely, it did not arise by chance. Petra was located next to the most important trade routes of the ancient world: one passed through the valley connecting the Dead Sea with the Gulf of Aqaba in the Red Sea, the other later became part of the famous Great Silk Road, which stretched from China to the Mediterranean.
The Nabataeans, apparently, quickly realized all the advantages that control over these not very friendly desert places promised them. At first, they probably just ganged up, robbing the wanderers recklessly. But then they realized that trade caravans could go another way: that's why they were already "officially" taxed.; the residents of Petra offered themselves as guides through the surrounding sands and mountains. The city of Petra itself is an ideal place for caravans to stop: it was possible to thoroughly replenish fresh water supplies here.

When you walk through the now silent city, you get a twofold feeling. On the one hand, you can vividly imagine how residential buildings, retail shops and other raw brick buildings once stood here - now, alas, turned into ruins. Life was in full swing, and the air, thick with heat, was saturated with the noise and hubbub of thousands of human voices. Voices filled, literally enveloped the market, where people were haggling, selling and buying various goods, exchanging news. But on the other hand, Petra is a kind of grave city. There are still about four thousand of them here. And sometimes it's hard to believe that real people walked through its streets. The graves were cut into the rocks around the city, and therefore remained intact, despite the fact that for centuries they experienced the desert heat and cold, were blown by winds and covered with sand.
In appearance, these last shelters of human destinies are very different from each other: some are just niches in the rock, others are decorated, some even flaunt a magnificent classic design. Who was buried in them? Again, there is no answer.