The Dead Sea, Jordan

Our last day in Jordan was spent at the Dead Sea with a few stops along the way…

This is a picture of Don and Muhammad who was our driver while we were in Jordan. He is trained as a nurse but cannot get work so he makes is living driving tourists around the country. He was a lovely young man from which we learned a lot about life in Jordan. He had just parked the car and a man had said something to him. Don asked what he said and Mohammed told him a “ bad word”. Don replied in Canada he would have been given the finger and a few bad words would be spoken. Mohammed was shocked and said if that happened in Jordan and the police saw it you would be fined and put in jail! A little different than our country…

The first stop was the Church of St. George which is famous for a mosaic of the Holy Lands created in the 6th century, though some of it has been destroyed…

The church itself is brightly painted with a depiction of the baptism of Jesus which occurred not far from there…

Jordan is known for its’ history of creating mosaics so we stopped into a workshop to see how they were made…

The designer explained the process and told us the price is not based solely on the size but of the quality of stones that are used. There were some stunning pieces costing thousands of dollars. I bought a very small piece.

Our final stop was at Mt. Nero which is significant because of its role in the Old Testament. The Bible says that Mt. Nebo was where Moses lived out his final days and saw the Promised Land which he would never enter. 

It offers spectacular views over the Jordan River valley…

it is considered a sacred mountain in Jordan where on a clear day you can see the Dead Sea, Bethlehem and even Jerusalem.

On the site there is the Church of Moses which was built  in the 4th Century and still contains remnants of the mosaic floors.

The Brazen Serpent is a sculpture situated atop Mount Nebo. Represented as the Biblical Brazen Serpent from which Moses protected the Israelites, the sculpture has become so popular that  it is now recognized as the symbol of the site itself.

It was a long way down from the top of Mt. Nebo to the Dead Sea which is surrounded by big resorts…

The Dead Sea is a landlocked salt water sea which is bordered by Jordan to the East, the Israeli occupied West Bank to the west and Israel to the Southwest.

It is one of the saltiest bodies of water in the world so that plants and animals cannot live there. It is difficult as well to swim so you float…

The Dead Sea is receding quickly as could be seen by the signs leading down the path from the hotel…

It is also heavily guarded as you can see the West Bank just across the water.

It was nice to end our visit to Jordan with a relaxing evening and sunset over the Dead Sea.

We both really enjoyed the country of Jordan, so much history, such friendly and welcoming people and a very safe country. We would tell anyone who is thinking of visiting to do so as you will be pleasantly surprised.