Hello! This week in Jordan was just as amazing as last or maybe even more. We started it off in the desert of Wadi Rum where we stayed in a Bedouin camp. Our first night there we went on an epic sunset camel ride. My camel was only one year old and had quite a spirit about him.  Later in the evening we rolled down gigantic sand dunes. The sand was so fine it was like powdered sugar.

In the morning we loaded in to a four-by-four and began our unbelievable tour of the entire desert. There were times when we were going so fast I thought we might tip over.  All the rock formations were massive. There was even one that looked like an enormous mushroom (soup anyone?).

Has anyone ever seen Lawrence of Arabia? On our tour we saw where he lived and where they filmed the movie.  After a long day of exploring we sat around the fire and listened to the Bedouins sing and play their drum for us. We had a private concert.  Everest fell in love with the drum and decided it was what he wanted for Christmas.  With the help of our new friends, my parents found an awesome drum so can have our own little drummer boy for Christmas.

After our extraordinary stay in Wadi Rum it was off to Petra, one of the Seven Wonders of the World.  Our first night there we went to Petra at Night.

We walked through the winding sig that was lit up by thousands of candles. As we walked to the end we stood in awe of The Treasury, one of the most significant monuments in Petra. It really takes your breath away. We sat and listened to old stories and traditional music under the moonlight.  We woke up the next morning and were off to Petra again. We wanted to see everything. We started on horseback and then walked through the Siq, which is kind of like a little canyon. Did you know a Siq is created by tectonics not water erosion? We approached The Treasury in daylight and again stood in awe. It was so different during the day.  We then wandered for hours in this historic city filled with treasures, tombs and intricate carvings.  Our final destination was The Monastery.  We climbed hundreds of steps and all I could say when I turned the corner was “Wow.” It really made you feel so insignificant and miniscule compared to its scale. Now a few fun facts… Did you know that only 5% of Petra has been excavated? Did you also know that Petra was once home to over 20,000 inhabitants but no residential buildings have ever been found? Petra is AMAZING! Our last day in Jordan was spent at a castle, in a city, and in a village. Our first stop was Shobak Castle.  Shobak was built in 1115 by the Crusaders. The castle complex was an entire town with a church, a jail, a school and much more. We then went to Amman which is the capital of Jordan and a blend of old and new. While we were there we visited the ancient Roman Theater, The Citadel and the Historical Museum. For dinner we shared one last mezze platter with our kind Jordanian friends and live music at a small local restaurant in a little village. Life doesn’t get any better. We all had tears in our eyes as we concluded this third leg of our world adventure.  It has been the most incredible year and it is sooooo hard to imagine all the amazing people I have met and all the things I’ve done this year.  Now we are off to Michigan to spend the holidays with all of my family.  Merry Merry Christmas!!