Arabian Nights

I leave for Jordan in two days. I am SO excited you have no idea. I'm going to Jordan on this "Sixty Years of Friendship Press Trip" sponsored by the Jordanian embassy here in the U.S. It's kind of like a public relations stint; the embassy wants U.S. journalists writing about Jordan so Americans don't continue to think it's full of Jihadist bombers, etc... There are ten of us going - six are undergrad kids - but the other four are adults so that's good. We are totally getting the royal tour - the itinerary for the trip is amazing! I will share a few highlights from the trip, out of my own personal excitement:

Day 2: 10:00 AM Meeting with Government Spokesperson

11:30 AM Meeting with Editorial Board with Ad Dustour Newspaper

Afternoon Tour of the city of Amman, with a trip to the Citadel and the Archeology Museum, which houses some of the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Dinner will be at Kan Zaman restaurant perched on a hilltop in the outskirts of Amman. Be entertained by talented musicians and singers and enjoy the best “hubbly-bubbly” water pipes in the city! After dinner, visit the artisans at work on the grounds of the restaurant. Painters, silversmith, wood carvers, carpet weavers, sand bottle makers and potters are all there to show off their craft to you.

Day 6: Mount Nebo, Where Moses Saw the Promised Land. Sixty years of excavation on the hilltop of Mount Nebo, where Moses viewed the Promised Land and is said to be buried, revealed a basilica church and one of the most magnificent mosaic floors in the world. From the platform in front of the church, you will have an inspiring, breath-taking view across the Jordan Valley and the Dead Sea to the rooftops of Jerusalem and Bethlehem. You will see what Moses saw and what Pope John Paul II saw most recently: The Promised Land!

Day 7: Petra. This is the day that you will never forget. As you thread your way between the cliff walls that soar to 650 feet on your way through the narrow gorge to the Treasury, you will pass inscriptions in ancient languages and rock-cut chambers carved into the whorls of sandstone. Indiana Jones in “The Last Crusade” charged through this desert gorge to the Treasury in search of the Holy Grail. Jordan abounds in archeological riches, but few sites in the world can rival the Nabataean city of Petra, carved out of these rose-red rock cliffs!

And this is just some of my itinerary. Plus the biggest bonus: they pay for everything (well, minus alcohol - but that's to be expected:). I can't even think about it because I have two more days before I get to go. I should start packing. I will do that now - time to get ready for some Arabian nights...