Wadi Rum Vista
Wadi Rum, Jordan
November 5, 2008
Wadi Rum, Jordan
November 5, 2008
Wadi Rum proved to be a highlight of my Jordan sojourn. The landscape is simply stunning and photos barely do it justice. It proved remarkably easy to escape the crowds despite the constant flow of tour buses disgorging day-trippers into battered jeeps for whirlwind tours of the ‘sights’. Ironically, the annoyance was the constant visits by Bedouin camel and jeep drivers hustling relentlessly to sign us up for a tour. We’d apparently circumvented the system by making our own way into Wadi Rum and camping rough behind the small village. Without our own 4-wheel drive the only way to get around Wadi Rum is on foot (which won’t get you far) or in a local Bedouin’s jeep or on his camel. These tours are supposed to be arranged via the well-organized Visitor’s Center at the main entrance where a rotation system ensures that all the local Bedouin tour operators get their fair share of the tourist business. Of course, every system has it’s loopholes and we were camping in the middle of a big one. Inside Rum village we were free to sign up with whoever we wanted to and negotiate our own tour and rates.
The first day was spent taking it easy, rustling up food on an open fire and making a mad dash to break camp under the threat of rain and flash flooding (which never happened). The next day we made it out for a thoroughly enjoyable (although overpriced) all-day drive around Wadi Rum. Our young Bedouin driver – who helpfully suggested ‘Dave’ as an alternative to our massacred pronounciation of his name – turned out to be the perfect host. He soon discovered we weren’t much interested in the dubious Lawrence of Arabia “sights” and instead kept us away from the crowds, kept to himself and just let us enjoy the drive and the fantastic vistas. He also made us a cracking cup of tea and toasted pita sandwiches on an open fire in the desert. An hour sipping sweet chai surrounded by the silent beauty of nature easily dimmed the memory of any prior aggravations and left me with nothing but fond memories of “Rum”.
