LAWRENCE OF ARABIA AND THE STEP SISTER CITIES

             

Monday – 13 April 2015 – Aqaba, Jordan

Aqaba is Jordan's only seaport and many miles from Arabian politics

We sailed overnight up the Gulf of Aqaba between the Sinai and Saudi Arabia. Aqaba (also spelled Aqabah), Jordan is on the eastern side of the head of the Gulf. Eilat (also spelled Eilot), Israel is adjacent.  Aqaba is Jordan’s only access to the sea. A modern container port was built recently just south of downtown on land swapped with Saudi Arabia.

A satellite shot of the head of the Gulf of Aqaba shows the (step) sister resort cities of Eilat on the left and Aqaba on the right. The Israeli-Jordanian border is visible as the diagonal north/south line half way across the Gulf, just east of the irrigated fields on the Israeli side.  There's a "no man's land" on either side of the border. The new container point is visible in the lower right just south of downtown Aqaba

Aqaba is being developed with beach resorts. It's also a duty free shopping zone for Jordanians

Aqaba is not what most people think of an Arabian city. It is a prosperous beach resort town and is in a free trade district. Jordanians come there for the beaches and to do duty free shopping. Saudi Arabia is just south of Aqaba's new port complex, and a sad looking Egyptian resort town and port is directly across the Gulf from the port. Israel's beach resort town, Eilat is adjacent to Aqaba. From the deck of Silver Wind it was easy to see all four countries. I sailed from Aqaba for two of my lecturing gigs in the 1990s, once crossing the border directly from Eilat. I took short cab rides between these two cities to the border with a short walk across no man’s land. Although not widely advertised, Israel is on friendly terms with Jordan. A treaty between the two countries was signed more than 20 years ago. These significant cooperation between the two countries. Israel provides fresh water to mostly desert Jordan.

The border is visible as a fence marking the no man's land. The hills in the background are in Israel to the left of Aqaba's modern port control tower

Many Westerners and Israelis take day excursions from Tel Aviv to the fantastic ruins at Petra via the Eilat border crossing. Israel is building a high speed rail line to Eilat, and Jordan recently completed a truck highway to Amman from the new port. The Jordanian government is building an International Airport on the Aqaba side of the border and has already obtained commitments from a number of European airlines to operate direct flights. Relations with Israel are considered stable enough that Aqaba Airport’s new airport terminal will be directly on the border, and the city of Aqaba hopes to provide Immigration and Customs for Israel as well as for Jordan. The city seems to be on a roll and very far from Jordan’s intractable Syrian refugee problems and teaming capital city of Amman 220 miles north.

The illuminated Israeli flag on the south side of Eilat rivals Aqaba's gonzo flag flying from a 430 foot (130 meter) high flagpole, one of the tallest in the world.

With seemingly all the good relations between the two countries, the only rivalry between Eilat and Aqaba appears to be a duel of oversized flags. Aqaba has a 430 feet (130 meters) high flagpole, the 2^nd or 5^th tallest free standing flagpole in the world depending on which reference you consult. The flagpole flies a 66 x 132 foot (20 by 40 meter) flag commemorating the Arab revolt of 1916 against the Ottoman Empire. To most people it looks a lot like the Jordanian flag. (The Arab Revolt was led by the great-grandfather of Jordan’s King Abdullah.)  Eilat has an even larger illuminated sign on its side of the Gulf depicting the Israeli Flag and is visible day and night from Aqaba.

Luxury beach hotels and condos in Eilat across the Gulf of Aqaba from Aqaba

  

Beach resort Eilat is more built up than Aqaba. We could see a number of modern style hotels. Like Jordan, Israel is trying to develop the southern end of the country and is planning an high speed rail line from Tel Aviv. Of course, both countries are small and have more difficult neighbors. Many condos and high rise luxury hotels were visible on both sides of the stark border. The setting of these two cities is spectacular. 

Wadi Rum lies beyond the impressive mountains northeast of Aqaba

Jordan’s archeological treasure is Petra, a couple of hours’ drive north on the scenic road separate from the truck traffic from the port. After the long day in Safaga the day before, we decided not to see Petra (me for the 2^nd time) on the ship’s 9-hour excursion. Instead we booked a 5-hour tour to Wadi Rum National Park. Both Wadi Rum and Petra have been used in numerous films, most notably Lawrence of Arabia and the Indiana Jones series. I missed a glimpse of Wadi Rum in 1995 as I was anxious to join Song of Flower for my first lecturing gig. Now I had my chance, and Barbara was not interested in another full day bus tour.

Train set used in the filming of "Lawrence of Arabia" is on display on a siding of the narrow gage  main line between Aqaba and Amman. A replica of the operating train was blown up for the film.

A short bus ride on the scenic Kings Highway towards Amman led to the turnoff for the National Park. The truck traffic takes the recently completed parallel Desert Highway north.  We stopped briefly at the Wadi Rum railway station to check out an exhibit of the train used in the classic epic which starred Peter O'Toole. Although blown up in the film, the actual train was very much intact and a nice relic from the narrow gage line still in use for freight. As the new main road is in excellent shape and faster, passenger service was terminated a few years ago. After a brief photo stop at the station, we entered the park and transferred to 4-wheel drive open pickup trucks for the tour of the desert landscape.

The tour of  Wadi Rum National Park was in  4-wheel drive open pickup trucks

The open ride under clear skies was enjoyable after weeks of very hot and dusty air

Our four wheel drive vehicles stopped at a tent camp

Our college educated Bedouin tour guide demonstrated how desert coffee is roasted in a traditional nomad tent oversized for Western tourists

Our guide for the tour was a full blooded Bedouin, albeit a university educated one. He said his grandfather is still a shepherd. The Bedouins give Jordan its unique hospitable culture, but they are no longer nomads. The typical tents visible throughout the desert  are day shelters for the herdsmen. Some are used to house tourist shops. The Bedouins live mostly in government built towns with running water and sanitation. We would see similar Bedouin towns in the adjacent Negev Desert of Israel. The Wadi Rum area has been settled since 8000 BC. 

The Bedouins now live in villages, but they still herd animals. The camels provide rides for tourists

Scenic view in Wadi Rum National Park

Bedouins still maintain small flocks of sheep and goats within the Park. The area has been settled since 8000 BC

Rock drawings provide directional signs for the shepherds in the desert

280 square mile Wadi Rum National park was a worthy destination. The desert seems to contain scenery with features of the deserts of Arizona, Utah, and Nevada. There are huge sand dunes plus extremely avid areas similar to those in the Atacama of Chile, red rock and sand similar to Australia's Red Centre, and wasteland as in the Skeleton Coast of Namibia. And there are camels (albeit for tourist rides) and Bedouins tending flocks of goats or sheep. We stopped a few times to take short hikes and once to sit in a Bedouin style tent that had been enlarged to accommodate large Western tourists. Our guide talked about his family and fed us hot tea and dates. Jordan has no oil and relies on tourism for much of its income. A nearby tent displayed souvenirs including camel fridge magnets.

The tent hotel is at the site of the annual camel races and includes a mosque

There were no hotel guests although the front desk was ready to handle any walk-ins 

We were entertained by a local musician as we waited for our box lunches to arrive.  Hotel Director Gianni (behind Barbara) was beginning to be concerned when the box lunches hadn't shown up

Our refreshment stop was characteristically hokey but fun. It didn't prepare us for the last stop of the tour at a permanent tent hotel.  This facility was constructed to provide housing for the annual camel races held each Autumn. The races are apparently a big deal in Jordan although Muslim culture prohibits both drinking alcohol and betting. There was a tent designated as a mosque, and a modest reception desk ready for any guests who might show up despite the closed restaurant. We enjoyed some more tea and dates and ate from box lunches provided by Silver Wind, the service expedited by our ship’s Hotel Director, Gianni. He had come along on the excursion for fun but felt guilty about his taking a few hours off from his duties. The highlight of the lunch stop was a local musician playing a Jordanian banjo-like instrument and singing American folk songs in Arabic and English. The English sounded like Arabic.

On the way back to Aqaba we passed a bunch of boys on holiday in the National Park. Later in Egypt we were to see only slightly older young men manning large military weapons

The tour was a wonderful relief to the somewhat stressful week dodging pirates and watching unemployed and underemployed Egyptians. We returned to Silver Wind and a steak dinner on the Pool Deck as the lights of Eilat and Aqaba came on. For a while with the help of an excellent red wine, it seemed that the Middle East could be a safe and peaceful place.