Petra (Jordan)

Petra (Arabic: البترا, Al-Batrāʾ; Ancient Greek: Πέτρα) is a historical and archaeological city in the southern Jordanian governorate of Ma'an that is famous for its rock-cut architecture and water conduit system. Another name for Petra is the Rose City due to the color of the stone out of which it is carved.

Established possibly as early as 312 BC as the capital city of the Arab Nabataeans,[3] it is a symbol of Jordan, as well as Jordan's most-visited tourist attraction.[4] It lies on the slope of Jebel al-Madhbah (identified by some as the biblical Mount Hor[5]) in a basin among the mountains which form the eastern flank of Arabah (Wadi Araba), the large valley running from the Dead Sea to the Gulf of Aqaba. Petra has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1985.

The site remained unknown to the Western world until 1812, when it was introduced by Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt. It was described as "a rose-red city half as old as time" in a Newdigate Prize-winning poem by John William Burgon. UNESCO has described it as "one of the most precious cultural properties of man's cultural heritage".[6] Petra was named amongst the New7Wonders of the World in 2007 and was also chosen by the Smithsonian Magazine as one of the "28 Places to See Before You Die".[7]

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6	7 Another beautiful hotel - not the sort of place you expect in the middle of the desert.	8	9 In Jordan they have "tourist police". A tourist policeman is assigned to each touring group. The man here on the right of the group "Ah-Med" was assigned to us. He was great. Friendly and sociable. This is a great job for them - all they have to do is accompany the touring group and make sure everything goes ok - the main job seems to be chasing people and cars out of the way so the bus has a place to park!	10
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26	27 I'm sure you recognise this from one of the Indiana Jones movies. This whole place is totally incredible. We spent the whole day walking from 9:00am to 6:00pm. The area is huge.	28	29	30
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41	42 This is a short sound clip so you can hear what the donkeys sound like. Give it a go.	43	44	45
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