We took a four day fieldtrip to Jordan last week. One of the stops was Mt. Nebo where Moses looked out over the land just before Joshua took over as prophet. On a really clear day you can see the Mount of Olives from here. (Mt. of Olives is in Jerusalem.)
Machaerus is one of Herod the Great's palaces. Historians think this is the place John the Baptist was beheaded. If you look on the left side, you can see our buses. To get to the palace, you have to hike up a steep hill.
The next day we went to Petra. Details in separate entry.
Believe it or not, it does snow in Jordan. This is along side the road from Petra.
This is the city of Amman, as seen from an old British citadel. Note the Roman theater near the center.
This Jordanian flag is enormous. I forgot to write down the dimensions, but the flagpole is 416 feet tall if that helps you guess.
Jerash is one of the best preserved Roman towns in the world. This arch was commissioned by Hadrian, the same guy who built the dividing wall between England and Scotland.
This elliptical square plaza leads to the main cardo (a road that goes North/South). The road's stones are uneven due to earthquakes. Ancient Romans installed the stones at 45 degree angles from the direction of traffic, making it less bumpy for carts and chariots.
Here we have a bunch of shiny cars for King Hussein's collection. The red ones in the foreground are Ferraris. Did you know the former king of Jordan was a racer?
Here is the Amman theater I mentioned earlier. It's the biggest one in all of Jordan. Our guide said that in addition to plays, the Romans would also watch wild animals fight here. A ring of fire would prevent the animals from getting into the seats.
The last thing we did in Jordan was visit the Jordan River, which is the current eastern border between Israel and Jordan. This is a possible site for where Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist. Not to clear this time of year.
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