Jordan, Middle-East

I was at the Dead Sea shooting the usual drab stuff you shoot at a beach when these gorgeous Jordanian girls approached me and asked if I could shoot them as well. They said they were of Palestinian origin and wanted to get shot with their homeland in the background. From the Jordanian coast you can see the Palestinian cities clearly and for the Palestinian Jordanian seeing the Palestinian city- lights is always an emotional moment. (sanjay austa sanjayausta@gmail.)

I was at the Dead Sea shooting the usual drab stuff you shoot at a beach when these gorgeous Jordanian girls approached me and asked if I could shoot them as well. They said they were of Palestinian origin and wanted to get shot with their homeland in the background. From the Jordanian coast you can see the Palestinian cities clearly and for the Palestinian Jordanian seeing the Palestinian city- lights is always an emotional moment.

(click on photos to go to gallery)

Why would Prince William and Kate Middleton  want to spend their honeymoon in Jordan  of all the places in the world? Like everyone else I  had wondered about it when I read the news. But on a  recent trip to this middle-east country I realised why. Jordan is an oasis of peace in an area where suicide-bombings, repressions, reprisal shellings and  political uprisings are a daily norm. Driven primarily by tourism this desert country has managed to keep away from the  daily bloodshed that embroils all its neighbors.  It is the only middle-eastern country that has successfully brokered peace with Israel even though more than 40 percent of its population are Palestinian refugees. We traveled from the Roman city of Jerash in the north through the Biblical sites at Madaba, Mt Nebo and Bethany -the place where Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist.

Horsemen in Petra. The horses were on hire to walk to around Petra. (sanjay austa sanjayausta@gmail.)

Horsemen in Petra. The horses were on hire to ride around Petra.

For a non-believer the Biblical sites can be the most boring part of the trip. No ancient structures grace these ancient  spots. The churches are  no older than 50 years. Even Moses’s memorial at Mt Nebo was just a slab of not very old stone. He was said to have been buried somewhere on this mountain. However Moses has a big Indian connection if some Christian scholars/ archeologists are to be believed. They claim after his work was done Moses lived and died in Kashmir. (Just like Jesus after his crucification) In fact there is a grave of Moses and Jesus in Kashmir to show for it too. A jewish family has been overlooking these graves since generations. The Vatican of-course does not validate these revelations. But I like this story.

Dead sea was a night’s  halt. If you don’t know how to swim, Dead Sea is very good for your confidence. You float effortlessly. However if you know how to swim the extreme salinity of the water (31 percent) will ensure that you cannot do move much. After which we travelled south to the landscaped mountains of Petra and deserts of Wadi Rum and finally ended the journey at the shores of the Red Sea in Aqaba.

camels and bedouins. (sanjay austa sanjayausta@gmail.)

A bedouin with his camels in Wadi Rum desert.

Petra by night is an otherworldly experience indeed. Its a long walk down the narrow siq or gorge. It was indeed a surreal experience walking in near dark with looming mountains above you in this ancient city . And then suddenly you chance upon this site- thousands of candles illuminating a three-story gateway into the mountain. You are made to sit here and listen to the beduins play some music. This was the treasury of the ancient city of Petra. The Egyptian Pharaoh is said to have hid his treasures here on his pursuit of the Israelites.

Wadi Rum is the archetypical middle-eastern desert with an Arabian Night aura. You have jeep safaris here but of course you can also hire a camel  but the distances are so huge that jeeps fair better.

We terminated our journey at the Red Sea at Aqaba- Jordan’s commercial hub and only sea port.

You will keep bobbing on the surface of the waters at the Dead Sea. The water is very saline so lying on your back is the best way. (sanjay austa sanjayausta@gmail.)

Everyone wants to be photographed floating in the Dead Sea

 

4 Responses to “Jordan, Middle-East”

  1. Manoj Gaikwad says:

    Nice Photos…………….

  2. lakhan sewani says:

    good job..

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