FEBRUARY 21 - BETHANY BEYOND THE JORDAN AND THE DEAD SEA

A review of today's itinerary promised to be a very busy and exciting day.  

With a meeting time of 9:30 a.m.,  we headed to the Obelisk Restaurant near our room for breakfast.  While perusing all the amazing culinary delights available to us, a young man suggested the milk bread pudding which contained almonds and raisins and called "ummali" that was absolutely delicious.  

In the top photo, right in the center (click on the photo to make it larger)  was a unique way to display donuts.  Unfortunately, there were no plain old fashioned donuts that Michael loves. 

This morning, we visited Bethany Beyond the Jordan, known as the place of Jesus's Baptism by his cousin, John the Baptist.  "This UNESCO World Heritage Site features Roman and Byzantine remains and is a place of pilgrimage for many."

On the road, we learned that more than 40% of the Jordanian people had been vaccinated and 20% received a booster.  Although a peace treaty was reached in 1994 between Israel and Jordan, it is still easier for Israelis to cross into Jordan;  if they bring cars, Jordan provides them with Jordanian car registration for safety.  However, it is still more difficult for Jordanians to cross into Israel;  their visa applications will ask, "Why do you want to come to Israel?" 

 

Commemoration of Pope John Paul II visit to Jordan in 2000

 

Place of Jesus's Baptism by John the Baptist

Sign installed by King Hussein Bin Talal

 

 

 

 

 

St. John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church where I took the opportunity to buy a few candles to light for my loved ones 

 

The River Jordan

 

The River Jordan - Jordanian Side .....Across the Way is Israel  

What has to be remembered always in this area of the world is that discoveries are being made every day.  Buildings/sculptures/temples/churches are constantly being discovered, many within the last few decades.  What we learned is that many of these buildings, etc., have been built on top of previous buildings.

 

You can see people in Israel on the other side of the Jordan River.  While on the Jordanian side, we saw a woman dipping her feet into the water as a symbolic gesture of Baptism.  There are group (or even singular) Baptisms that can be performed with an actual clergyman if prior arrangements are made.  People will also bring little bottles and fill them up with water from the Jordan River. 

And, a day could not go by without a visit to a nearby shopping area for Dead Sea products.  Let me start out by sharing one of my little foibles.  I am an absolute pushover when it comes to products being sold by Middle Eastern men.  Yes, yes, Michael is well aware of this little weakness of mine and I told him before we left on our trip to be sure I don't accept any little packets of hand cream from tall, handsome Middle Eastern men.  He and I vividly remember a time when we were in Hawaii when I accepted such a little sample from a handsome Israeli man and ended up with a small shopping bag filled with creams, oils and scrubs that sat on my counter for years!  Because of my very lax, or should I say absolutely no, nighttime regimen for my skin, most of the products remained unused until it was agreed they would simply disappear from the counter (and eventually given to Goodwill).  Anyway, on this trip, I was absolutely determined not to fall victim again!  

Next stop:  a shopping outlet that sold Levant Dead Sea products.  I said to myself, "Be strong, you can do this!" Well, the moment we entered the store, a handsome young man approached and was determined to show me the shelves and walls of various products available that were made from the elements found at the Dead Sea.  I did fine, relatively speaking.  I didn't buy a dozen various products to be shipped back to Washington.  Instead, I was very comfortable buying a small jar of coffee based sea salt scrub and a vanilla cream.  He tried his best to sell me face products - mud, etc. - but was absolutely horrified when I told him my non-existent skin regimen and that the products would not be used.  (Actually, I still have an unused package of mud from the Dead Sea that I purchased in 2016 on our world cruise while in Petra.) 

 

We returned to the Kempinski Hotel in time for an afternoon of leisure and "to take a dip in the buoyant, mineral rich Dead Sea waters.  Ever since the days of Herod the Great, people have flocked to the Dead Sea in search of curative secrets."  The Dead Sea is 150 meters deep (492 feet).  We put on our bathing suits, called for a golf cart, and were taken down to the beach.  

Several people were already there covered in mud, floating in the water or simply sitting on the beach enjoying the weather that wasn't too hot or too cold.  Two young men, obviously employed by the hotel, came over to us, showed us to our beach chaise lounges, gave us towels and told us what we could expect from this experience.   

We were instructed to go in the water for ten minutes and float, come out of the water when mud from the area would be put on our bodies, wait about 15 minutes for it to dry, then return to the water for another ten minutes to remove the mud, come back out where a sea scrub would be applied to our bodies and then rinse off in the outdoor shower nearby.  (Knowing I couldn't drown in the Dead Sea and figuring I wouldn't have any allergic reaction to mud that I've encountered just by being alive, no "waiver of liability" was requested nor did I feel the need to turn down this once-in-a-lifetime experience because of some clear and present danger, i.e., attempting to ride a camel.)  

Michael was a good sport and was going to go along with the program.  Because of the incredible salt content, we purchased some goggles for him to protect his eyes the day before.  And, yes, you cannot sink in the Dead Sea. However, for him, the water was too cold and got out after about five minutes.  He's a skinny guy and thought it was too cold.  I, on the other hand, have a bit more insulation and didn't find the water cold at all.  I went through the whole procedure, and, as a good friend of mine assured me, my skin felt absolutely incredible after it all!  

Just about every one knows how much I absolutely hate the beach, but, I must say, that it was a glorious experience lying there, my skin feeling like a baby's, with the Dead Sea in front of us, and relaxing in the not-too-bright or too-hot sun. For me, this was truly one of the highlights of the trip. 

 

Yesterday, we had decided to return to the Ashur Restaurant because we loved the restaurant, food, ambience and, especially, the people.  While getting ready for dinner, we took time to enjoy another incredible sunset .... our last in Jordan.

 

We arrived at the restaurant promptly at 7 p.m., having taken a golf cart this time.  We were, once again, welcomed by Dimitri and I was again provided a blanket although the evening wasn't as chilly as the night before.  Saleh again was our server.  

Dimitri

 

Saleh

Let me go back twenty-four hours.  I love scents.  I have over twenty colognes and perfumes I regularly wear and never hesitate to ask someone in a store, restaurant, cruise ship or on the street what scent they're wearing if it's intriguing to me.  The night before, I asked Saleh if I could ask him a personal question.  He said, "Of course." I said, "What scent are you wearing?" It was lovely but he, unfortunately, didn't know its name.  He said his wife had bought it for him for Christmas.  (He showed us pictures of his lovely wife to whom he had been married about 4 years and with whom he had a 3 year old and a 1 year old who were all absolutely gorgeous.)  He said he would look at the bottle and let me know the next day when we returned for dinner.  Today, as dinner was coming to an end, I asked him for the name of the scent, and he said he had sent a photo of it to Dimitri's phone.  A little while later, when Dimitri approached our table, I asked him the name of the scent.  He seemed a bit in a hurry and said he'll give it to me later and walked off.  I thought nothing of it.  Well, within a few minutes, both he and Saleh came walking towards us carrying a Kempinski shopping bag and placed it on the table.  

I had no idea what was going on and looked inside.  I was absolutely shocked when I pulled out a beautiful box which contained the wonderful cologne I admired so much the night before.  

 

 

 

 

I was speechless!  Tears came to my eyes because I couldn't believe the incredible kindness these two men had extended to me.  I learned that Dimitri asked Saleh to buy a bottle for me that day but that the store was closed;  instead, Saleh gave me his bottle and Kempinski was going to buy him a new bottle.  

 

After an unbelievably beautiful evening, we had to say good-bye to Dimitri and Saleh and were returned to our room with a driver and golf cart.  We were meeting Zak and Mohammad tomorrow at 8 a.m. for our crossing to Israel at the Allenby Bridge.  

 

It was an extraordinary day  --  our last in Jordan  --  another remarkable and memorable adventure.