october 2008

Jordan was my first trip to the Middle East and one of my first international destinations after college. The city of Petra loomed large in my imagination ever since I flipped through a photo book of the ancient city from my father's bookshelf in grade school. So I flew to Amman with my boyfriend, rented a car, and drove down the desert highway to see the lost city for myself. Needless to say, walking through the Al Siq canyon and approaching the the Rose City was awe- inspiring. I felt like Indiana Jones as he strode into the secret temple in the Last Crusade (which actually used the famous Al Khazneh temple). Jordan is where I fell in love with the desert, and the Dead Sea, because where else can you effortlessly float on your stomach.