Petra-fied by the heat

When your Jordanian guide, who had been quite nonchalant about the hot conditions on the previous day in Jerash, tells you that they're expecting heatwave conditions at Petra, our destination, then you'd better start worrying. When he adds that the minimum distance one needs to walk in order to see this world-famous tourist attraction is about 8km then you'd better be very concerned.

We set off from Petra - Sam the guide, an American couple, two groups of two American women, a Pom who was slipping in a day of R&R during a business trip, a young Maori chap from the Bay of Islands, a tourist policeman who is evidently required by law to accompany us, our guide Sam - and us. We drove for about four hours, this time through desert landscape rather than the very hilly terrain of the previous day. Unlike the previous day, we were mentally prepared for the heat and were carrying plenty of drinking water. Our guide warned us that the walk to the ancient city would be a nice easy downhill stroll but that the trip back up would be rather more challenging.

Leaving the parking area on foot it certainly seemed to be a nice easy downhill stroll, and it got even better when we reached the narrow fissure in the rocks which runs for a distance of a kilometre or more. There was a refreshing breeze in our faces and the path was mostly in the shade. When one actually catches ones first glimpse of the Treasury through the outline of the fissure and then, a couple of minutes later, gets to view that famous facade, it really is something. It's one thing to view it in books or on TV, but being up close to it in real life is something else again.

A couple of our less hardy fellow travellers decided that they'd turn back at that point and hire a donkey carriage to get them back up the hill. More on that later. The rest of the group, us included, decided to press on. Petra is far more than the Treasury, and most people don't realise how vast it is. In fact it covers over 60 square kilometres and some of the walks can take as long as six to eight hours. We weren't that ambitious, but were certainly keen to see as much as possible. We were feeling reasonably OK, so decided to press on. New scenes open up at every turn, which really adds to the excitement of the place.

After walking another kilometre or so, Mary was starting to flag, so decided to rest in a shady spot while Brian pressed on. The ultimate challenge is to visit the Monastery, which is towards the furthest point of the site and at the top of 800 steps. It was another kilometre or so to the base of the steps, and having reached that point Brian decided, wisely on this occasion, that he would turn back rather than tempt fate by climbing those 800 steep steps in all that heat. So began the return journey, Collecting Mary on the way back, the two of us started the return journey. Apart from ones own two feet, there are several choices of transport covering various sections of the walk. You can ride a camel or donkey, or can climb aboard a carriage pulled by a mule or donkey. In amongst all the souvenir sellers there was certainly no shortage of men trying to sell us the various rides, but we were determined to press on unaided.

It was certainly hot by this stage, and we were flagging. After struggling at Jerash, Mary was a lot better at Petra, and kept going with determination, rather like the Energizer Bunny. It was hard going for both of us, and we were stopping with increasing frequency to regain our breath. The last 500m or so was especially tough, uphill and in full sun, but we made it!! Towards the end, we were dragging one foot after the other, willing ourselves to get to the top and wondering whether we'd been altogether too stubborn in refusing those dozens of offers of rides to the top.

No matter which form of animal transport you choose, they're very cunning with the way they price these rides. You can pay upfront for a return trip, which most people choose not to do, since it's easy to amble down the hill and pause to admire the features and ever-changing view as you go. However, once you're at the bottom and want to head back to base, you find that a one-way journey up the hill costs exactly the same as the return trip which you'd decided against previously.

Fortunately, the bus ride to our hotel was fairly short, only ten minutes or so, and unlike the previous night's hotel, the shower actually worked. Once we'd recovered, we decided to go for a bit of a wander around the neighbourhood, but the area wasn't terribly pedestrian-friendly (not that we were up for too much more walking anyway). We then had some dinner before retiring, dog-tired but very happy.Read more