A dead sea, into the desert and a challenging border

Staying with Shera at her apartment in Jaffa was so nice, especially returning from a few days away in Haifa and our mammoth adventures on buses in the rain. Walking in to a comfortable apartment where we could just relax and just be was such a gift and great to have a friend to spend time with.

When Shera could take a few days away from work, we hired a car and set off on an adventure; a crazy plan to fit in way too much in way too short a time as we would soon find out.

We headed South away from Tel Aviv and turned East towards The Dead Sea. Soon the buildings gave way to less furtile land and then we were driving in pale coloured desert. It was barren but beautiful as these places often are, with vast flat areas giving way to high ridges and imposing rocky outcrops that look quite like mini mountain ranges and on the side of the pretty well paved road that cuts through this amazing place, occasionally you sea blue painted numbers indicating the height relative to sea level.

The Dead Sea is -430m (below sea level). From the 500m marker, very quickly over just a few km, you pass standard sea level and continue descending to -100m, -200m and so on. It really gives you a sense of where the water would have been if it wasn't cut off by land. And as you descend you're given glimpses of the stunning turquoise waters in the distance below.

The Dead sea is now basically a really big salty lake cut off from the ocean by land that rises around it. It's what was left behind after the sea levels dropped milennia ago, very much like an evaporating puddle left after flood waters recede. It's the big salty shrinking puddle of the Middle East.

We were visiting the Dead Sea on our way South, so this was just a quick stop for the experience of dipping our toes in and feeling the experience of floating. I didn't go in, but Gaz stripped off and ran in with the excitement of a middle aged man behaving like a 12 year old! While Shera and I took in the beautiful colour of the water and the Jordanian mountain backdrop, Gaz did the obligatory float while videoing the moment on his phone for posterity. But whilst he loved the floatiness he did NOT like the saltiness. It's 34.8% salt

and getting it in your eyes is not an experience you want. The salt crystals really sting your eyes and Gaz had to wash his eyes with bottled drinking water to alleviate the pain. He also learned one other thing from his salty dip - there are showers on the beach for good reason. Gaz decided in his wisdom to dry off naturally rather than shower, so we wandered back to the car while he dried off in the sun. He changed shorts and we got on the road again South. We stopped about 1.5hrs later for lunch and Gaz looked like he had seen a ghost; his hair, face and neck were covered in white crusty salt where the salt water had dried out. Showering might have been a good idea after all.

Our next stop was the most southern Israeli town of Eilat that sits on the coast of the Red Sea and serves as a border town to both Jordan and Egypt. Our objective was to get across the border into Jordan and make our way to the town of Petra 2 hrs north, where a complimentary luxury stay in a Mariott awaited us (courtesy of Shera's Mariott points! Thank you Shera xx).

After our lunch in the desert, we checked the rest of our route, and it became clear the main road from where we were to where we needed to be, had been closed due to flash flooding the previous couple of days, meaning we had to go back the way we had come and then take another road south. Instead of being 2 hours from the border with Jordan, we were actually nearly 4 hrs away. The border closed at 8pm, and we were going to have to go fast if we were to make it across before they closed. Our mood changed and it was now all about getting south and getting over the border. If we didn't, we'd have to find somewhere in Eilat to stay overnight. So we got positive and Gaz put the pedal to the metal.

We arrived at the border crossing at 7.30pm. Gaz had done a stirling job of getting us here fast and in one piece. We parked the hire car in the dusty wasteland that served as a free carpark next to the border post, and headed through. Shera was asked immediately if she had a guide with her, to which she replied 'no'. The Israeli border control then advised that Jordan had a requirement for all Israeli citizens; they must have a guide to chaperone them or at the very least take responsibility for them while in Jordan.

As UK citizens Gaz and I didn't need this, but Shera did. Shera wanted to try, so we proceeded to pay our exit fees, and Jordan visa fees, then cross no-mans-land to the Jordan border to see if we could get across without a guide. Unfortunately we ultimately ended up debating with the border guards for a good 30 mins and they weren't budging. They were sticking to the rules and they wanted to end their shift and go home. They tried to get Gaz and I to continue through and leave Shera, but of course that wasn't going to happen. So, defeated, we reluctantly walked back through all the checkpoints to the Israeli side, got in our car and headed to Eilat for the night.

What had been so particularly frustrating about this experience was that I had researched and researched what was

needed for the border crossing. I always spend a long time on the logistics and weigh up options. I make sure I'm prepared so things like this don't happen. But, all my research was from my perspective as a UK citizen travelling through a border in a foreign land. I had not researched what the situation would be for an Israeli citizen crossing that

border. And Shera maybe didn't check, or assumed or simply didn't see anything about the guide being needed. Anyway, having talked to a number of people on the Jordanian side while we were stuck in limbo, Shera now had the number for a guy who would come to the border and escort us through and take responsibility for her whilst in jordan.

So at 8.30am the next morning, we approached the border gates again with some trepidation. We smiled at the same guards, and paid our exit fees again. We crossed no mans land and were thankfully met by the guide who took our passports and got us processed very quickly, we paid our entry fees and he then led us into Jordan and arranged for a car to take us the 2 hours north to Petra. His services of course were not free, and the car was more expensive (c.£75) than if we'd taken a taxi to Aqaba (c.£10) the nearest town, and then taken a taxi north to Petra (c.£35), but nevertheless with 3 of us, it was affordable.

Our driver Saddam was a lovely friendly and kind man. He gave us bottles of cold water because the temperature was already getting hot despite the early morning, and we stopped for coffee along the route. When we were getting close to Petra, Saddam also took us to the Second best view in the world, which happens to be next door to a store promoting the The No.1 best view in the world. Who are we to argue?

We checked into the Marriot (air conditioning, beautiful surroundings, cold drinks available at reception) it was akin to bliss, and then we headed out to see the ancient rose city of Petra, considered one of the new 7 wonders of the world and a UNESCO world heritage site. This was the reason we were in Jordan. This was the reason we had traveled so far and battled the border crossing. I was more excited about seeing this place than a kid at Christmas, and what a sight it was.