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Jabal al Qal‘ah

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44 travelers at this place:

  • Jonas NoldMiddle East Explorer
    Day1

    Amman

     November 19, 2019 in Jordan ⋅ ☀️ 14 °C

    We were so looking forward to this trip... I got woken up by Julia at 3 A.M. with a sparkling candle in one of my favourite sweet pieces for my birthday. Then we got ready and headed for the airport as the flight leaves at 6. We even got there early and had a small breakfast.
    Then we slept almost through all of the 4 hour flight and arrived quite rested. It took quite long to get through the visa procedure and until the bus started the hour long journey, followed by a short taxi ride and walk. So by the time we arrived at the hostel it was already 2:30 pm. Time to explore the city!
    The main highlight is the citadel hill with caves dating back to 3000 BC and newer structures established during the byzantine and roman era. It's quite a strenous walk up there but the views over the city are amazing... From there it goes down a winding street to the roman amphitheatre which was pretty nice. When we were done there, it already started to get dark. We tried to find a pretty famous spot with umbrellas on the ceiling but it was either closed or we didn't find it. But instead we found some delicious corn ;)
    On a side note it was super cold! In the night the temperature dropped to about 0 degrees! Not what we expected!
    A lucky find was our hostel that is situated right across one of the most famous 'restaurants' in Amman. You can't really call it a restaurant because there's no menu but the locals come here like some tourists. After you sit down you get a tasty tea, a plate of tomatoes, onions and pickles. Usually the mixed platter consists of Hummous, a tahini olive oil sauce, some falafel and pita. Optionally, there is a meat variant available (spiced ground meat), French fries and a bean mash with lemon. Everything we tried was sooo delicious!
    For the remainder of the day, we booked a rental car, planned a bit for the next days and went to a Shisha bar to celebrate my birthday. Unfortunately all the cocktails offered were without alcohol. Despite - or because of - that they were very tasty.    Read more

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  • Sharon and Grant MacauleyAfrica
    Day40

    Jarash and Dead Sea

     November 9, 2019 in Jordan ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    Today we left the hotel at 7am, and it was well worth the early start because when we got to Jarash, the remains of a city built around 200BC, there was nobody else there. The guide was very helpful in teaching us to identify Roman vs Greek parts of the city architecture, and the highlight was the coliseum, which is nearly fully intact. The sound is incredible; even the smallest whisper carries so far. After locally made ice cream, we took two hours to drive to the Dead Sea. It was hot, so we enjoyed the activities there after a great buffet lunch. The salty Dead Sea is so easy to float in, and in fact its a bit hard to right oneself once lying on your back. Sharon, like many of the people there, opted for a mud covering, which dried in 20 minutes, when she washed off in the Sea, and then showered. The pools at the complex were clean and relaxing, as we visited with our group members. The hot sun today tired us out so we had a low key evening.Read more

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  • Jo WiltshireIsrael and Jordan - 2019
    Day22

    Amman - Citadel, Temple of Hercules

     April 26, 2019 in Jordan ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    High on a hill in the centre of Amman is the Roman ruins of the Citadel or Temple of Hercules. The temple was massive and lots of ruins remain.
    You get a 360 view of Amman city up here!
    This is the spot where David arranged death of Uriah so he could marry his wife, Bethsheba. David stayed back in Jerusalem and sent word to his 1st in command, Joab, to make sure Uriah was killed in the battle. A low point in David's life.Read more

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  • Lily's stepsJordan discovery
    Day4

    Jour 3 : Dana, Shobak, Little Petra

     October 15, 2018 in Jordan ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    Après une rude nuit de moustique et de matelas raide on se lève à 7h30 pour prendre le petit dej au "restaurant" et pour un départ en rando à 8h30.
    Au final ça sera 9h30. En attendant on profite des chiens adorables de Wared (le fameux guide). Puis on grimpe dans une voiture qui nous dépose au milieu de nulle part et c'est parti pour 4h de randonnée! Depuis notre retour d'Amérique du Sud nous n'avions pas randonné donc ça fait du bien de renouer avec la nature. Le décor est très joli, au lever ou au coucher du soleil ça doit être encore plus beau! La communication avec Wared est très basique mais il nous prépare un thé au milieu de ce désert aride à base d'une plante cueillie sur le chemin. Expérience bédouine! On croise quelques lézards et quelques oiseaux.

    Puis une voiture nous attend. A bord Ramsir, un cousin de Ahmad. Il nous ramène au village prendre nos affaires.... sauf que la route est en travaux du coup on ne passe qu'à une voiture et le bus en face de nous ne veut pas faire demi tour... Ramsir non plus. 10 minutes plus tard le bus recule suffisamment pour qu'on passe. On charge nos sacs et on quitte Dana.

    Direction Shobak, un autre château du désert. On crapahute partout, on a une belle vue sur la vallée où on grignotte le picnic désastreux de Wared et où on nourrit finalement un bébé chat! L'heure sur place passe très vite.

    Il est maintenant temps de rejoindre Little Petra. On ne sait pas à quoi s'attendre.... dès les premiers mètres on tombe sur une porte taillée dans la roche et on est ébahis... on en oublierait presque de continuer la ballade. Mais on voit les gens revenir du canyon sans un regard vers la porte. Alors on file et on découvre plusieurs façades taillées et creusées dans la pierre tout le long du canyon. On peut entrer partout en libre accès c'est hallucinant de pouvoir toucher toute cette beauté qui a plus de 2000 ans!!! On va jusqu'au bout du canyon admirer la vue sur la vallée qui continue et on se résigne à faire demi tour jusqu'à la voiture.

    Ramsir nous dépose alors à l'hôtel à Wadi Musab (la ville proche du site de Petra). On fait rapidement la connaissance de nos futurs compagnons de voyage: deux couples de français Quentin & Estelle et Virginie & Sylvain. Le dîner est inclus pour nous à l'hôtel. Du coup douche, dîner, dodo.    Read more

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  • Robert AllanJordan and Israel
    Day5

    Amman Citadel

     October 9, 2018 in Jordan ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    After visiting Little Petra, we continue north on the Kings Highway over high mountains, until we reach a vast open plain. Turning east we re-join the multi-lane Desert Highway north to Amman.

    After dropping my bags at the hotel, and saying goodbye to Hassan the driver and Hakan the guide, I take a taxi into the centre of Amman. First up is the Citadel.

    This historic fortress, the Amman Citadel, is located on top of Jabal al-Qal’a, the highest of the seven hills around which the city was built (jabal means ‘mountain’, qal’a ‘castle’).

    The citadel boasts a diverse range of previous inhabitants, including Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, and Romans, as well as Umayyad and Ayyubid dynasties. The first signs of human occupation found by archaeologists date back to the Middle Bronze Age (1650-1550 BC). At that time, the hill top was most likely occupied with either a fortress or an agora (a public space for arts, sports and politics). You can trace the great ancient civilizations through the remnants of a Roman Hercules Temple, a Byzantine church, and a spectacular Umayyad palace, as well as many other ruins and fragments. I also visited the Jordan Archaeological Museum, where many excavated artifacts are preserved, including both every day items such as pottery, and the finer things of life such as jewels and statues.

    From the citadel’s vantage point, situated atop the highest hill in Amman, you can see far out in every direction across the beautiful city. As you look west, the tallest freestanding flag in the world flies proudly in the wind, and at the foot of the hill the amphitheater and downtown Amman buzz with life.    Read more

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  • Robert AllanJordan and Israel
    Day5

    Amman Roman Theatre and Downtown Amman

     October 9, 2018 in Jordan ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    Under Roman rule, Amman was chosen as the glittering capital of the Roman Empire, but the city was then called Philadelphia, after its Ptolemaic ruler, Philadelphus.

    The theatre was built in the period 138-161 CE, which dates back to the reign of Roman emperor Antoninus Pius. The sole centrepiece of the city it was designed to be northerly-oriented, to keep the sun off its spectators, and could seat up to 6,000 people on its steep stairs.

    Like any other Roman Theatre in the world, it was constructed upon the same three building blocks: the cavea, the orchestra and the scaenae frons. The cavea is the seating space that contained the largest number of spectators. The highest rank was known as ‘the gods’; although far from the stage, this section offered a good view, thanks to the lofty position and steepness of the stairs. The orchestra is the area directly in front of the stage, reserved for VIPs to ensure they didn’t miss a split second of the action. The two stories rising from the stage upwards are the saenae fons, and were used as a backstage space.

    The spectators were intentionally separated by status, gender and nationality. The Romans had major control over the social hierarchy, and it was illustrated in all their archaeological works later on. The government of Jordan started restoring the theatre in 1957.

    Downtown Amman is the heart of the city and sits in the middle of the surrounding seven hills, which originally made up this metropolis. There is a fruit and vegetable market, where you will find vendors singing to entice shoppers to their stall.

    Many open shopfronts sell everything from clothing and antiques to gold and smaller trinkets. There are the six main streets – Prince Mohammad, King Talal, Quraysh, Al-Salt, Al-Hashemi and Basman, each have their own speciality when it comes to the goods for sale. King Talal has handmade goods, carpets and fabrics and Al-Hashemi for an assortment of souvenir stalls.

    I visit the extremely popular Habibah Sweets. They make and sell kanafeh, which consists of mild white cheese and shredded wheat surface, which is covered by sugar syrup, delicious!    Read more

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  • JoKingKirah and Jo’s Grand Adventure
    Day9

    Jordan - Day 8 Tour - Free Day

     August 4, 2019 in Jordan ⋅ 🌙 22 °C

    Just arrived at our hotel at 5:50 am. The check in person let us into our room early, what a legend. So tired heading to bed for a bit.

    Ventured out on our own and walked to the Roman Theatre. It was hard to appreciate this as it seems to be a meeting place for the locals rather than an historic site. Museum wasn't that crash hot.

    We found a place to eat, food was good even for Kirah being Vegetarian. On our walk back the place had come alive, markets and street vendors selling everything and all the local people out and about with family and friends.    Read more

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  • Monika StrohmayerJordanien und Israel
    Day5

    Zitadellenhügel Amman

     October 26, 2018 in Jordan ⋅ 🌬 14 °C

    Herkules-Tempel

    161-166 n.Chr.
    Dieser große Tempel war einer der höchsten römischen Gottheiten gewidmet. Wegen der Entdeckung gigantischer Fragmente einer Marmorstatue wurde er Herkules zugeschrieben. Herkules war der Sohn des Zeus und einer sterblichen Frau (Alkmene) und bekannt für seine übernatürliche physische Stärke. Herkules ist auch auf römischen Münzen dargestellt, die in der damals Philadelphia genannten Stadt geprägt wurden.
    Der Tempel stand inmitten eines riesigen, von Säulenhallen umgebenen Temenos (heiliger Bezirk). Er war auf einem extra dafür gebauten Steinpodium positioniert, damit er unten von der Stadt aus gesehen werden konnte. Man nimmt an, dass er über einem früheren Tempel für den ammonitischen Gott Milkom errichtet wurde.    Read more

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  • Monika StrohmayerJordanien und Israel
    Day5

    Zitadellenhügel, Amman

     October 26, 2018 in Jordan ⋅ 🌬 16 °C

    Im Umayyadischen Zeitalter wurde das roemische Baumaterial erneut wiedergenutzt, um einen Palast und ein Verwaltungsgebaeude zu errichten in einem Bereich, der ein zweiter roemischer Tempelbezirk gewesen sein koennte. Es war das Hauptquartier des Gouverneurs der Provinz, der von den Umayyadischen Kalifen in Damaskus ernannt wurde. Die noch bis heute in ihrer vollen Groesse stehende imposante Eingangshalle( obwohl sie kuerzlich mit einer hoelzernen Kuppel restauriert wurde) ist ein gewaltiger Warteraum fuer diejenigen, die den Gouverneur zu sehen wuenschten. Read more

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You might also know this place by the following names:

Jabal al Qal‘ah, Jabal al Qal`ah, جبل القلعة

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