Petra-Fried

This is the world's second largest and second highest flag. It is in Aqaba, Jordan, near Eilat, the southern tip of Israel. From Eilat, it is possible to see Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and, on a clear day, an obese Moroccan man in a skimpy bathing suit. The largest and highest flag (height, I assume, refers to height of the flagpole, certainly not elevation) is in Amman, Jordan, the capital. "That's Jordan's thing," the tour guide explained. "Every country has it's thing." Colombia has cocaine, Canada has proximity to America, Jordan has big flags.

This is mom talking to Elias, our excellent tour guide, who is looking at the world's second largest and second highest flag:

This is the amazing first glimpse of the "Treasury" at Petra, just before coming out of the canyon. The Nabatean people carved all of these tombs out of the cliffs. Their own homes were free-standing (and dust by now). But their necropolis lives on.



You'll remember this from the last Indiana Jones flick. Indiana Jones, by the way, is based on Vendyl Jones, a tripped-out archaeologist who supposedly knows where all the good stuff is. Or maybe there's no connection:


Here's a few nice shots of my ass:



And the boys having a smoke, Jordanian style. I was also having a hot drink at the time. It was a chilly day in the desert.

**********************

We went to Petra last Tuesday, hung out in the desert Wednesday, then came back to rainy Jerusalem. We spent Shabbat at the Dan Tel Aviv, on the beach. It was rainy, but we had two great walks on the beach. And three huge meals. You shoulda seen the mound of chopped liver. You really shoulda.

Esta left this morning at 5:30am. I cried. She cried. For the first time, I think I was more sad than her when we parted. Sad, alone, and scared. What to do next? .....The adventure continues. Now that the travelling is over, I'm taking a little vacation. Location undisclosed.