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Jordan and Syria - The Crossroads of History
Amman
- Madaba - Dead Sea - Wadi Rum - Baidha - Petra - Um ar-Risas - Jerash
- Um Qais - Bosra - Damascus - Aleppo - Halabieh and Zalabieh - Deir
Azur - Palmyra - Damascus About the Program: Length: 17 days Min/max: 6/15 Tour type: deluxe cultural expedition Jordan and
Syria are lands steeped in history and culture. As a crossroads for
early civilizations, traces of their rich heritage are present
everywhere today. The great adventurer Gertrude Bell once described the
rock-carved city of Petra as, "all pink and wonderful, surely the most
beautiful sight I have ever seen..." The
Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, which once captivated ancient travelers,
still offers many attractions to the modern visitor. From the haunting,
primeval starkness of Wadi Rum, to the teeming center of urban Amman.
Visit the archeological splendour that is Petra and the Nabeatean Red
Rose City. Float in the Dead Sea and visit the ancient city of Jerash,
once called 'the Pompeii of the East'. A
journey through Syria is a journey through time. Stroll through
Damascus, the oldest inhabited city in the world, visiting the
impressive Ommayad Mosque. Explore Crusader Castles, and the oasis city
of Palmyra. The ancient city of Aleppo with its souqs, castles and
museums is testimony to the significance of Syria as an important
terminus for the famed Silk Road. This
17-day journey to the cradle of civilization will excite and educate.
Join us as we explore ancient lands and examine their respective place
as modern nations in the Middle East. |
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2011 - 2012 | Contact us for more information. |
COST (Per Person) | Land only (twin): upon request | | Single supplement: upon request | |
Price includes:- Domestic land transportation
- Transfers in each city
- 4 & 5-star hotels in major centers and best available in remote areas
- Meals
- Sightseeing and entrance fees
- Service of English-speaking guides
- Travel manual
Price excludes: - International flights from/to home country
- Entry visas (if necessary)
- Travel insurance (strongly recommended)
- Gratuities to local guides, drivers, porters and hotel staff
- Personal expenses
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DAILY ITINERARY
Day 1 Sat. Arrive Amman/Madaba
Upon arrival at Queen Alia Airport in Amman you will be transferred to Madaba to the hotel. Welcome Dinner. D Madaba Inn Day 2, Sun. Madaba | | Spend
the day exploring Madaba, an archbishopric during the Byzantine era and
home to the world’s largest collection of ancient mosaics. This
bustling Jordanian city, with a population evenly divided between
Muslims and Christians, is also the production centre for two of
Jordan’s most outstanding handicraft industries—mosaics and Bedouin
carpets. Begin your walking tour with a visit to the Madaba Archaeological Park
(a wonderful collection of restored mosaics, a complete church floor
and public hall from Byzantine days, portions of the Roman colonnaded
street and the Madaba School for Mosaic Arts). A block away, you’ll
visit the Burnt Palace, the St. George Church with its famous 6th
Century mosaic map of the Holy Land, A block away, you’ll visit the
Burnt Palace, the St. George Church with its famous 6th Century mosaic
map of the Holy |
Land, the Madaba Museum and the Apostles’ Church with its noted “Queen of the Sea” mosaic floor. In the evening, enjoy a feast of traditional Jordanian mezza and
suwanee at Madaba’s renowned Haret Jdoudna, a restaurant nestled
amongst restored homes built in the early 20th Century. B/L/D Madaba InnDay 3, Mon.Madaba/Mt. Nebo/Wadi Mukhayit/Bethany/Dead Sea Drive a few kilometers from Madaba to Mt. Nebo, the spot from which it
is believed that Moses saw the Promised Land. The panoramic view
includes the Jordan River, Dead Sea, Jericho and the distant spires and
domes of East Jerusalem and Bethlehem. The contemporary Mt. Nebo church
houses the restored mosaics from a succession of pilgrimage churches
that have occupied this venerated spot. Nearby Wadi Mukhayit, another stop on the ancient Christian pilgrimage
routes, contains several church ruins as well as a fine mosaic floor in
the Church of SS Lot and Procopious. Descend to the Jordan River Valley to tour the recently excavated site
of Bethany Across the Jordan. Biblical archaeologists, working from
clues supplied by the Madaba mosaic map, believe this to be the spot
where John the Baptist lived and worked, and where Jesus was baptized
in the waters of the Jordan River. The extensive water channels,
cisterns and baptismal fonts, as well as the impressive size of the
very early (3rd-4th Century) pilgrimage churches on this site,
certainly suggest that this is where the earliest Christian pilgrims
believed the Baptism took place. The walk past "Elijah's well" to the
St. John church on the banks of the Jordan is a pleasure in itself, as
you follow the winding trail through marshes of high reeds and tamarisk
trees. A few kilometers’ drive brings you to the shores of the Dead Sea,
lowest point on the earth’s surface. Try a “swim” in its mineral-rich
therapeutic waters (mineral content of 33%, as compared to the 3%
content of the world’s oceans), or indulge yourself with pampering
wellness treatments at the resort Spa. B/L/D Movenpick Dead Sea Resort Day 4, Tue Dead Sea/Karak/Wadi RumDrive
south along the Dead Sea’s shoreline. At the south end of the inland
sea, ascend 1300 meters to tour the imposing remains of the Karak
Crusader Castle. Continue south to Wadi Rum, the moonscape terrain rightly described by
T E Lawrence as “vast, echoing and God-like.” You’ll have an
afternoon’s jeep safari to enjoy the haunting desert landscapes, unique
rock formations and natural rock bridges, millennia of rock art and
caravan markers and inscriptions, and the brilliant red sand dunes of
this famed desert. In the evening, arrive at our private campsite deep
in the heart of the desert for a Bedouin feast, entertainment by local
Bedouin musicians and an overnight in our “zillion star” camp beneath
the dazzling night sky of the desert. | | B/L/D CampingDay 5,WedWadi Rum/Baidha/Petra Transfer to Petra, legendary capital of the Nabatean trading empire.
After check-in and a chance to refresh yourself, drive to “Little
Petra” in the Baidha wilderness. This spot was once the northern
customs outpost for caravans arriving from Jerusalem, Damascus or Gaza.
The small passageway into the “Siq al Barid” (cold canyon because it
always offers shade) is lined with carved Nabatean facades, and one of
the larger halls still shows traces of the delightful Nabatean
frescoes, which once covered most of the area’s cave-buildings. A short walk takes you around the mountain to Baidha, site of the
world’s earliest agricultural settlement. This Pre-Pottery Neolithic
village is dated to around 7,000 BCE. Return to Wadi Musa, the modern town outside the ancient Petra ruins,
for an evening at the Petra Kitchen. Work alongside local women to
prepare a traditional local meal (soup, hot and cold mezze and salads,
main course), and enjoy a fine dinner. B/L/D Taybet Zamaan Resort Day 6, Thu Petra Enter the World Heritage Site of Petra through the mysterious mile-long
canyon (Siq). The day’s touring will include visits to the Khazneh (of
Indiana Jones fame), the Street of Facades, Theatre, Colonnaded Street,
Museum and ad-Deir, Petra’s largest carved façade. Overnight Petra. B/L/DTaybet Zamaan Resort Day 7 Fri Petra The second day in Petra will begin with a climb along the “secret road”
of al-Madras. You will visit the High Place of Sacrifice, Wadi Farasa,
the Great Temple, Byzantine Church and Royal Tombs. B/L/D Taybet Zamaan Resort |
Day 8 Sat Petra/Um ar-Risas/Amman/Jerash Drive to Jordan’s newest World Heritage Site: Um ar-Risas was an
important waystation along the ancient spice caravan routes, and later
a garrison point for the Roman armies along the Via Trajana. The late
Byzantine St. Stephen church contains what is perhaps Jordan’s finest
mosaic—a complete church floor composed with a dramatic black-basalt
background. The floor contains medallions celebrating all the major
pilgrimage stops between Constantinople and Egypt. The extensive ruins
of Um ar-Risas contain many interesting architectural elements, as well
as the imposing outlines of one of the area’s earliest Stylite towers. In the afternoon you’ll make a visit to Amman, Jordan’s modern capital
as well as the site of the Decapolis city of Philadelphia. Visit the
Citadel and the Jordan National Archaeological Museum. Enjoy dinner at
the Wild Jordan Café in the headquarters of the Royal Society for the
Conservation of Nature, with its splendid view of the Citadel and the
bustling downtown souks of Amman. Drive on to Jerash. B/L/D Olive Branch Hotel Day 9 Sun Jerash/Um Qais/Jerash | In
the morning tour Jerash, one of the world’s best-preserved Roman
provincial cities. The extensive remains are only a small part of what
was once the important Decapolis trading city of Gerasa (the modern
city of Jerash lies atop the remaining ruins of this city), but they
include fine theatres with virtually perfect acoustics, the Temples of
Artemis and Zeus, the magnificent Forum and Cardo which have given the
city the sobriquet “City of Columns,” the ancient souk era where you
can still see the marks of chariot wheels in the city pavements and
guess the types of shops from the remaining artefacts. To complete
your “Roman” experience, go on to the Jerash Hippodrome to attend the
RACE (Roman Army and Chariot Experience) historical re-enactment
program. The show includes a demonstration of Roman Army tactics and
weaponry, gladiator |
contests and an exciting 7-lap chariot race. In the afternoon, drive northward to visit another Roman Decapolis city
outside the modern town of Um Qais. This site, know to history as
Gadara (as in the Biblical story of the Gadarene swine), was built of
black basalt, which gives the ancient ruins a dramatic and brooding
quality. The view from the ancient Temple Square encompasses the Golan
Heights and the Sea of Galilee. B/L/D Olive Branch HotelDay 10 Mon Jerash/Bosra/Damascus Transfer to the border for transit to Syria. You will be met by your
Syrian tour guide at the border crossing. The city of Bosra, on the Houran plain in southern Syria, was first
mentioned in Egyptian hieroglyphs of the 14th Century BC. It much later
became, for a time, the capital of the Nabatean Empire as trade route
shifted away from the more famous capital in Petra and as Nabatean
influence extended northward. The extensive remains at Bosra include
most impressive Roman public buildings and later ruins of Bosra in its
period as a Byzantine archbishopric. Continue to Damascus. B/L/D Damascus Cham Palace Day 11 Tue DamascusFull
day tour of one of the world’s oldest cities. You will visit the
National Museum, Tukieh Sulaimanieh, handicraft souk, Omayyad mosque,
Tomb of Salah ad Din, Azem Palace, Straight Street, Church of Ananias
and St. Paul Window. In the course of this tour, you will have the
chance to visit with a family still living in the heart of the old
city, and to visit a public hammam (Turkish Bath). While you are
in the centre of the old city, you will visit the Mustafa Ali gallery
to see the work of one of the Middle East’s most famous sculptors. At the end of a busy day, take a moment out to enjoy the panoramic view
and sunset from Mt. Kasioun, overlooking the city. |At the end of a busy day, take a moment out to enjoy the panoramic
view and sunset from Mt. Kasioun, overlooking the city. | | B/L/D Damascus Cham PalaceDay 12 Wed Damascus/Krak des Chevaliers/Ebla/Aleppo Drive from Damascus to Aleppo. En route, visit Krak des Chevaliers to
tour one of the most impressive Cruasder Castles still to be seen.
Continue to Ebla to explore the mysterious ruins of a once-mighty
Bronze Age city, which is known to have had trading relations with the
ancient Akkadian and Sumerian empires. B/L/D Diwan hotel |
Day 13 Thu Aleppo/St. Simeon/Aleppo Begin the day with a visit to the Church of St. Simeon, built in honour
of St. Simeon the Stylite who lived 37 years atop a stone tower to get
closer to God. This influential 4th Century mystic attracted pilgrims
from throughout the Byzantine Empire, and the church today is similarly
an important stop on many pilgrimage routes. For the rest of the day, explore the legendary city of Aleppo, with its
magnificent Citadel, the famed covered bazaar, khans, Grand Mosque and
national museum. B/L/D Diwan hotel Day 14 Fri Aleppo/Halabieh and Zalabieh/Deir Azur Visit the twin cities of Halabieh and Zalabieh on the banks of the
Euphrates River. Originally established by Zenobia, Queen of Palmyra,
in the 3rd Century, the cities were later expanded under Byzantine rule. Continue by boat along the Euphrates River, with lunch aboard and
arrive at a private farm where you have the option to take a horseback
excursion. Arrive at Deir Azur for a visit to its splendid
archaeological museum. B/L/D Furat Cham Palace Day 15 Sat Deir Azur/Mari/Dura Europos/Palmyra From about 2900 BC, the state of Mari was an important tin producer and
trading partner of the Mesopotamians and Akkadians. The ruins include a
noteworthy royal palace and temple to Ishtar. The ancient city of Dura Europos, founded in the 4th Century BC as a
Seleucid colony, was successively an important waystation and garrison
point along the trading routes, and occupied at various times by the
Parthians, Palmirians and Romans. Finally abandoned in the 3rd Century
AD, the city ruins were built along a typical Hellenistic plan, with
the remarkable addition of underground mines, which were also the scene
of a battle between the Sassanians and Romans. Drive on to the oasis of
Palmyra, legendary capital of an extensive trading empire. B/L/D Palmyra Cham Palace Co Day 16 Sun Palmyra/Damascus Full day tour in Palmyra, including visits to the Museum, Valley of
Tombs, Bel Temple, Colonnaded Street and Theatre. Return to Damascus
for the night. B/L/D Damascus Cham Palace Day 17 Mon Depart Damascus Depart Damascus today on your flight home. B
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