Live trip report for Amawaterways Egypt with Jordan pre tour

[F19810]

This is my first attempt at a trip report, I hope that I can finish this.  

 

A little bit about myself, I have been very fortunate to have had the opportunity to travel the world.  Sometimes with family, sometimes with friends and lately solo.  I been on land tours, ocean tours,  one previous river cruise and independent travel.  Like my more recent trips, this is a solo adventure.

 

I arrived in Amman Friday night and went to the Dead Sea to relax before starting the tour.  Since I was doing the Dead Sea on my own, I had to get my own visa for 40jd.  Getting ready for this trip has been more stressful than previous trips with all of the forms and covid testing,  I never really believed that it was going to happen until I got onto the plan!  Getting to the Dead Sea from the airport was an easy 35JD taxi ride.  Spent Saturday  at the spa, floating in the Dead Sea and doing the mud ritual.The air and water temp were both about 85.

 

On Sunday, the hotel arranged a taxi to the St Regis in Amman, another 35JD ride.  I checked in via the app so my room was ready at 11am.  The hotel then got me a taxi to the Jordan Museum.  I found this museum interesting and worth the visit, especially the copper Dead Sea Scrolls and the 6,000-9,000 years old statues. 

[Daisi]

That shot is so beautiful, even upside down, but I flipped it for you.  Hope you enjoy your cruise. 

[Coral]

I can't wait to follow this! Hope it is a great trip!

[F19810]

Today is the first day of the tour, the day that most people arrive.  I met the tour guide and there are 22 people on this tour, later tours will have twice as many.  He thinks the Egypt cruise will have about 40.

i spent the day going to the citadel and Roman theater.  Two places where we will go in a couple of days but I had nothing better to do and they are cheap to enter.

Temps have been great, mid 70’s.  Used taxi and Uber to get around, walking is difficult without street names.  I  would never want to drive around here, if you think New York City is bad, try Amman!  I won’t get into crossing some of the streets.

If anybody plans on doing this trip, I highly recommend going to the Dead Sea the first day to relax and get over jet lag.  I would also suggest spending 1 1/2 hours at the Jordan museum in Amman.  I don’t know why, but I really got into these strange 9000 year old statues.

I had a Mona Lisa experience, everyone thinks that painting is going to be big but when you see the actual painting and realize it is only 8x10, you think- that's it, it’s so small.  That’s what I thought when I saw hercule's hand, that's it?

Tomorrow, the real tour begins.

Judy

 

 
Judy

 

[jamrnc]

Love the updates.  Can't wait to join you on Saturday!

Robin

[jpalbny]

Looks like a great start to your trip! We did this 9 years ago w/ A&K, including Jordan pre-cruise. Looking forward to hearing about your trip.

 

The Dead Sea would probably be a nice place to get over the jet lag, I agree. Maybe next time!

[F19810]

4 hours ago, jamrnc said:

Love the updates.  Can't wait to join you on Saturday!

Robin

I don’t want to say can’t wait for Saturday to meet you because that will mean the Jordan part of my trip will be over 😢.  I will say that it will be nice to meet everyone.

judy

[F19810]

1 hour ago, jpalbny said:

Looks like a great start to your trip! We did this 9 years ago w/ A&K, including Jordan pre-cruise. Looking forward to hearing about your trip.

 

The Dead Sea would probably be a nice place to get over the jet lag, I agree. Maybe next time!

I have read some of your reports, thanks for following mine.

 

[F19810]

21 hours ago, Coral said:

I can't wait to follow this! Hope it is a great trip!

Thanks for following this.

judy

[F19810]

On 10/31/2021 at 8:54 PM, Daisi said:

That shot is so beautiful, even upside down, but I flipped it for you.  Hope you enjoy your cruise. 

Thanks for flipping this shot, I don’t know why it loaded this way.

[Coral]

Great pictures! One of my good friends - she has a friend from school who lives in Amman and teaches over there. They love it.

[Sleep7]

😊Awesome pictures Judy!

Can't wait to follow along on your journey! 👋

[need2travel1]

Loving the pics & updates!  Have fun!!

[F19810]

Today we started touring.  We first went to jerash which is one of the best preserved Roman cities in the Eastern Mediterranean.  We spent about 2 1/2 hours here, the first hour to hour and half with the guide and the rest to wander on our own.  I loved it. It is a lot of walking on in even stones but everyone seemed to be able to handle it.

 

Afterwards, we went to the Lebanese Restaurant for lunch.  We had bowls of humus, baba ganoosh, fatoosh and a spinach salad.  Then they brought out felafels and chicken livers and pita bread.  Then the main course of lamb kabobs and chicken kabobs.  All very good.  The people who ate the liver said that was very good, ill have to take their word for it.  Desert was pudding made with rose water.  This was the only thing that I didn’t like.  I’m not a fan of rose or lavender in my food.

After lunch we went to Aljoun castle.  This involves a lot of steps and one person did not go into it.  The castle was built around 1184 partially to prevent the expansion of the crusaders and to protect the iron mines.  It is empty and not as interesting as jerash.  On a clear day, there are good views from the top of the castle.

Today, temperature was mid 70’s but I was sweating in jerash.  Today was a 10,000 step day and  somehow I climbed 10 flights of stairs.

Judy

 

Edited November 2, 2021 by F19810

[F19810]

I forgot to mention that Amawaterways wanted us to use the Clear app to get a QR code for our covid vaccination.  We need a QR code to get into Egypt without taking a pcr test.  Apparently, the clear QR code expires and we all need to get tested in Petra for $40.  We might have been ok if we waited until closer to leaving for this trip, but who knows.

Judy

[Coral]

I think I want to go on this trip! Definitely a trip of a lifetime!

[Sheal]

Thanks for doing this review.  I was considering an AMA Danube or Rhine cruise in Europe but I feel like I can pull that off as a land trip.  I'm not sure if I have the confidence to do anything in the middle east just yet so a cruise might be a way to see this part of the world.

[F19810]

Today started with some excitement, one couple could’ve find their passports.  We went to the Citadel and while we were there, the tour guide, the tourist police who is traveling with us and the wife went through their suitcase.  We had about an hour there and then we went to the Dead Sea.  Once there, since the couple couldn’t find the passports, the tour guide arranged for a taxi to take them back to Amman and to the American Embassy

We had 1 1/2 hours to do the floating and mud experience.  Definitely more fun with others than by myself.  The tour guide took pictures with one person’s camera and hopefully, I will get mine.  We had lunch at the buffet at the resort (Crown Plaza) which was just ok.  I didn’t go hungry, but not the best either.

Then the 4 hour drive to Petra.  We met the couple who lost their passports at the pit stop and they were very pleased with the way things were handled.

Tonight dinner was included at the hotel (Movenpick).  At dinner, the wife said that they found their original passports.  Three people tore their suitcases apart looking for them and couldn’t find them!

The weather today in Amman was mid 60’s in the am, but the Dead Sea was mid 80s.  Somehow, I managed 10,500 steps and 11 flights of stairs.  No pictures today, hopefully I’ll get some from the Dead Sea tomorrow.

 

Tomorrow is PETRA,Yea!!!!!

[F19810]

Where to begins about today, other than to say WOW.  Petra is amazing, everything that I hoped for.  The only problem is that it was to short, I could have used another hour.  I don’t know if our time was cut short because everyone need to be tested or if it was because the Sun sets early and we had a 2 hour ride to Wadi Rum and then a 2 hour jeep(truck) ride before a beduan dinner.

Petra is amazing from walking through the siq to all of the ruins.  The carvings, canyon walls and the colors of the walls in the tombs is just so interesting.  While most of the group stayed near the treasury, a few of us went to the royal tombs and then to the temple.  We had a choice of taking golf carts from the treasury back to the top or walking.  Most took the carts but yours truly and another couple walked.  And walked.  And walked!  The last 1/4 mile got hard and I was glad to be back at the hotel.  There is a free museum that looked interesting but I only had 10 minutes.  It’s small and should take no more than 30 minutes.  There was an oil lamp that was well preserved and had the signs of the zodiac on it.  They haven’t changed in 2000 years.

After an included lunch, typical Arabia mezze and chicken and lamb-all very good, we went to the desert for a Jeep ride. This is where Lawerence of Arabia and the Martian were filmed.it is an interesting landscape.  It was bumpy but fun and we saw a beautiful sunset.  Then dinner, beduan style, sitting on cushions.  Dinner, like all meals was very good and I am stuffed.

 

one of these days, I’ll figure out why some pictures are upside down or sideways!

Judy

 

[F19810]

I forgot to mention, the temp was mid 70’s but I got very hot walking.  
Steps-21,800

flights-40

 

Also, I knew that there were security with us in Egypt but I didn’t realize that we would also have security traveling with us in Jordan.

Judy

[Coral]

Your Petra pictures are amazing!

[Coral]

Is there any special security on your trip? I have heard Egypt has (or used to have) - guards on tourist buses.

 

Glad the couple found their passports!

[Daisi]

Beautiful photos.  I can't imagine a worse nightmare than losing your passport in a foreign country....good thing for the tour guides who are probably very experienced at looking after such things. 

 

Flipped your pics for you... 🙂

 

[F19810]

18 hours ago, Coral said:

Your Petra pictures are amazing!

Thanks! My pictures can’t capture the real thing.

judy

[F19810]

Today we went to Mt Nebo and then to a mosaic workshop.  Mt Nebo is where Moses saw the promised land but couldn’t go to it.  Today we were like Moses and could see Jericho but could not enter! The mosaics in the church there are incredible.  
We stopped in a mosaic workshop and this is the only place that I felt pressured to buy something.  The mosaics were beautiful but expensive and heavy and i didn’t give in!

We stopped for lunch, more arabic mezze which were good and a chicken dish with thyme which I was less thrilled about, i eat to much chicken at home so try to stay away from it on vacation.

We had a flight that left around 5 on Royal Jordanian and the flight was one hour.  It was very easy to get an Egypt visa at the airport, just needed 25 US dollars, no credit cards.

I didn’t get to my room at the Four Seasons until close to nine and decided To order room service, something that I rarely do but I was to tired to do anything else.  My room is huge, I think larger than my mothers apartment.

Temp was the usual mid 70's 
Step count was 9580.  
Pictures tomorrow when I’m more awake.

Judy

My update didn’t post yesterday, so here it is, a day late.

Edited November 6, 2021 by F19810