#873 Petra, Jordan

Probably on everyone's bucket list, Petra is one of the most amazing sites in the world and really deserves that place on the must-see list. Some would say that it was made famous by Indiana Jones, but it has been a wonder for millenia ever since the Nabataens built it in the centuries before Christ. Whether it is your first glimpse of the Treasury between the narrow slabs of rock (lit up in the morning sun, or in the afternoon shadows), or the hike up to the Monastery high above the valley floor, its grandeur, its seemingly perfect architecture, symmetry and form and its beautiful pink and red hues are only the beginning of the wonder. 

An enormous city complete with large ampitheatre, houses, government buildings, temples, and other structures, it was no doubt also filled with many temporary structures that form puzzle pieces long gone. The wind has softened many a line, fires lit by sheltering Bedouin have colored many a ceiling, and pathways have changed and been worn by many a donkey. It is beautiful architecture in its own right, but its magnificence is in that instead of being built up, it has been carved out of sold rock, and to enter a room that was once sold and to feel the space shows just what a feat of engineering it was. Oh, what a spectacular place it must have been!

The walk up the mountain to the sacrificial platform was fascinating -- something that no doubt many visitors would be happier to ignore. It was also not the natural formations that were so important -- the control of the water supply was what allowed the city to gain its strength. There are Greek, Syrian and Egyptian influences. Like so many other delights, it was hidden and unknown to the western world until 1812 

I dream of visiting its lesser-known cousin Medain Salah just over the border in Saudi Arabia. One day, I will!

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petra

#886 Wadi Rum, Jordan

There are few places in the world that are so much the center of the world, yet so isolated and desolate that very little life exists there. Wadi Rum is such a place. Very close to Aqaba on the Red Sea, it is an area that has been inhabited and traversed for millennia, yet there are almost no settlements and minimal inhabitants. It is a spectacular place, as beautiful a desert as could exists, with unique and beautiful windswept rock arches and towers, rich red and gold sands, and vast vistas of mirages and shimmering heat. The Bedouins have roamed this area for centuries and still call it home. There is nothing more welcoming than a small fire in a Bedouin desert tent, with tea ready for consumption, a soft red woolen cushion and the blissful shade from the scorching sun.

Rock art decorates the ancient walls showing images of a story that has long been forgotten. Lawrence of Arabia was much at home here and his legacy lives on amongst the people. Wadi Rum is a mystical, special place, Wadi representing a valley, and rum definitely not translating to what we know it as!

#935 Citadel, Amman, Jordan

High above Amman's downtown on one of the original seven hills, with spectacular views across the various modern suburbs is Amman's ancient citadel (Jabal al Qal'a), dating from neolithic times, and an important site for all the regions main ethnicities with a Roman Temple of Hercules, an Umayyad Palace, and ruins of many other structures, even a cistern. The site of old Rabboth-Ammon, stone age pottery and other bronze age relics have been found, while other areas date from the 3rd Century, when an earthquake destroyed the settlement. Even now, much of it remains unexcavated.

Aside from the reconstructed palace, the pillars of the temple, and the walls and pillars of other structures, it is also the location of the National Archaeological Museum housing some of the Dead Sea Scrolls, pottery and skull remains, among many other important items.

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jabal_al-Qal'a

http://www.lonelyplanet.com/jordan/amman/sights/fortress/citadel-jebel-qalaa

#982 Jerash (Gerasa), Jordan

If you needed to learn as much as you could about the Romans from visiting just one of their ancient cities, Jerash would be a good pick. Buried under soil for centuries, it is among the largest, best-preserved cities. Originally a neolithic then a Bronze Age settlement, it was a Greek city before becoming part of the Roman province of Arabia, one of the Decapolis. It reached a height of approximately 800,000 inhabitants and began its decline with a Persian invasion in 614, followed by a major earthquake a century later.

What's amazing is the quantity and different types of structures that were in Jerash. You can see the impressive colonnaded Oval Forum above with the main road leading out behind it. Jerash also has a large hippodrome (circular racing track), two large temples to Zeus and Artemis (turned into a fortress during the crusades), and two theatres, which are so intact as to still be quite usable.There is also large archway dedicated to Hadrian, the Corinthium column, two baths, small temples, more than 13 churches, one of which was built above a synogogue, an almost complete circle of city walls,

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The hippodrome.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerash; http://almashriq.hiof.no/jordan/900/930/jerash/jerash.html