Three day trip through Jordan
Dead Sea, Karak, Petra, Wadi Rum – that was the itinerary I planned for my father, Bettina and me. We rented a car – a Chevrolet with loads of scratches all over – and left Amman on Thursday morning.
Mount Nebo
After a one-hour-drive we reached Mount Nebo. An old church was built at the site where the prophet Moses allegedly looked at the Holy Land before he died. On clear days you can see Mount Olive at Jerusalem, 46 kilometers away.
Dead Sea
From Mount Nebo we continued our trip to the Dead Sea. We took a bath, which basically means lying on the water as if it was an air mattrass – ordinary swimming is just impossible at this lowest point of earth. It was a quiet day, the only noise we heard was some house music coming from the other, Israeli side of the sea.
After about two hours we escaped the place when hords of German and English tourists invaded the beach – an image funny to look at, 50 or so of them lying there on the water, happily curing their skin diseases.
Karak Castle
In the afternoon we arrived at Karak Castle, an ancienct crusader castle which was eventually successfully besieged by Saladin’s troups. Located on a mountain, with high walls and a view over the whole area, Karak castle was controlling the trade routes from Damascus to Mecca and Egypt. Saladin didn’t besiege the castle directly, instead he cut off the castle’s water and troup supply and waited for eight months, till the christians had to choose between surrender or dying of thirst.
I guess Saladin wasn’t treating them nicely, after what the crusaders had done to some of his soldiers. My father told me that the ruthless lord of the castle, Renaud de Chatillon, threw his enemy prisoners from the castle’s walls. The prisoners didn’t lose conscience while falling down onto the rocks at the bottom of the 30 meter high walls because they were forced to wear wooden helmets which prevented them from seeing anything
to be continued …
View from Mount Nebo towards the Dead Sea
Saddam loves Saddam (on a Mercedes parked in front of Karak Castle)
Wall of Karak Castle, where some of Saladin’s soldiers dashed to pieces on the rocks below
i believe that there is a difference between Christians and Crusaders..
do you have any reference to Salahdin’s story, how did he treated al-karak citizens?.. or it was just sort of thoughts?
nice short review.. waiting for the rest..
That Salahdin treated the crusaders rather badly my father told me. He read it in his travel guide.
ok, the travel guide.