Getting our bearings
I’d been longing to go back to an Arab country and, although my first idea was Egypt, in the end I settled on Jordan. I wasn’t going to see the pyramids, but on the other hand I was going to visit the magnificent city of Petra.
I joined the group in Madaba, very close to Amman, the capital of Jordan. We arrived in Jordan quite late and the first stage started very early, so it all happened very fast. We put the bikes together and started pedalling, setting off from the hotel’s front door. The first part of the stage was boring, a lot of road with nothing of interest, until we reached Mount Nebo. From the top of this mountain, Moses saw the Promised Land. The view was lovely, though I suppose for a believer the sight would have a special meaning.
The rest of the stage wasn’t very interesting, but the best was yet to come. At the end of the stage we were going to visit the ruins of the fortress of Mukawer. A short trek took us up to the top of these ruins. The fortress of Mukawer was built in the first century BC. Herod the Great built a palace inside it, and it was finally destroyed in AD 70. And best of all, the view of the Dead Sea from the top.
The night was going to be even better. A Bedouin family was going to take us into their home and offer us the very best. They literally showered us with hospitality. First, a good conversation, which we used to raise sensitive subjects such as polygamy. We didn’t want to be impertinent, but you have to make the most of moments like these to talk about interesting things. After the conversation, they treated us to a magnificent Bedouin coffee. It’s made in a very similar way to Turkish coffee, despite their insistence that it had nothing to do with it. With lots of cardamom, mind you. The coffee ceremony is very interesting, too. Turning down a Bedouin coffee is almost an insult and, however many problems there are between two families, accepting an invitation to coffee means that all the problems have been settled. It’s like the peace pipe in the westerns of our childhood.
After the coffee, a fantastic dinner in the open air. Two huge trays of rice and chicken prepared in different ways and with lots of spices. And best of all, no cutlery: you eat with your hands. This welcome to Jordan had been spectacular, a real treat that would set us up for the fantastic experience of travelling through Jordan. Spending the night under the starry sky was the icing on the cake of this first day.