FIGJAM'S Epic Adventure: Our Epic Road Trip, Karak, Wadi Mujid, Dead Sea... IN ONE DAY!

23/10/09

2204 (local time)

Today, was a big day! Today, Brian (United States), Rob (Canada), Simon & Rebecca(Aus, Bendigo) got in a car, so we could visit Karak Castle in which the Crusaders used to help them take over Jerusalem, from here we would have a quick lunch and then get moving so we could visit Wadi Mujib and the Dead Sea, I've already been there but the rest of the group hadn’t see the Dead Sea so we found a public beach to visit. When I say public... it was definitely public. Right... from the top!

We got in the car at 8.30am but got out of the back street that our hotel was on at around about 9.00! What took so long was that since Simon and myself parked the car at 7pm that night until 8.30am this morning a bird market, yep a market packed full of birds had opened up and developed around our car and 1 kilometre down the street. Myself and the others in the car wouldn’t have minded on any other day but to get the car out of this market where people are selling birds it was going to take some major crowd movement! So Simo started the car, and edged forward in the first 5 minutes we had moved half the crowds hit about a dozen blokes and nearly turned pigeons into pancakes!

After 20-30 minutes we had made it through the crowds with no fatalities! Although I think we have bruised a 50year old man’s thigh and buttock when we hit him with the bumper of our car!

Right, after the Bird Market I navigated the car to Kerak using my intelligent directions of “ahh mate, I think if ya go straight ere u’ll be right” Not to worry, we found it anyway!

Kerak is a pretty cool crusader castle that helped the crusaders on their battle to taking over Jerusalem from the Arabs. We had a quick bite to eat of dips and Kebabs... We were back in the car before we knew it heading to Wadi Mujib...

Wadi Mujib, this place has got to be my favourite place in all of Jordan. You enter the natural reserve through the entrance and you pay your 8 JD ($14AUD). Wadi Mujib is a nature park that is the lowest nature reserve in the world situated 410 metres below sea level.

Its quite hard to explain what it is like, but it is a valley of fresh quick flowing water that washes into the Dead Sea. Where the river is flows it is through huge canyons it looks amazing... photos will tell the story!

(**NOTE** In last months blog I wrote about the Dead Sea being 80% Salt, this is incorrect, the Dead Sea is 33.7% according to Wiki!)

When we arrived the place stunk of dirty rubbish, and their were Jordanian people everywhere. We had a quick dip in the Dead Sea then we were out dodging the dirty garbage bags and filthy water bottles... oh and I also forgot, trying not to step on all the dirty clothes that the past visitors have left behind!

Right, after trekking up the mountain of rubbish and encountering a massive blowout in my trusty thongs we bathed in the boiling hot water that was flowing out of some drain and made out way 2 kilometres down the road so we could get changed into some proper clothes.

20 minutes later we were back in the car heading “straight” according to my faultless navigational abilities. The plan was to head to the place where Jesus or “THE J Train” as he was referred to by Simon was apparently baptised, so we drove and drove until we came to a sign that said ‘Welcome to Bethany Baptism Site’ we couldn’t see anything because it was 7pm at night and we were in the middle of nowhere, the decision of the car was to turn around and head back home again!

We arrived home at about 7.30pm absolutely knackered!

When we got back, myself and Rob were craving some pasta, so we bought some macaroni, tomato, cucumber, tuna and a bunch of herbs and mixed it all together! It was a good feed for a tiring day. Unfortunately later that night Rob realised that he has lost his wallet, so we spent the rest of the night trying to re-trace steps and ring different restaurants and places to see if anyone had picked it up or found it, but unfortunately to no avail.

What it did make me realise is, that even the most seasoned traveller can make mistakes, so you must always be on your game!

It was a bit of a sleepless night for all of us I think! Never mind, the next day we are heading to Jerash!