Our Final Day: Amman and Jerash

Ed Climbs the Citadel's Heights

Today's tour took us to the Citadel of the city of Amaan, the site of ancient Philadelphia of the Decapolis. In the Old Testament, the site was known as Rabboth Amon, capital of the Amonites. Here we viewed the great Temple of Hercules from the Roman period. Its huge columns still dominate the skyline of the new city. Below the hill sits the old Roman theare which once seated over 7,000.

Hadrian's Arch, Jerash

We took some time to tour the national archaeological museum, soon to be replaced by a massive new building. The small homey displays coverd every time frame from the Stone Age through the Turkish occupation. We enjoyed the plastered Neolithic skulls, the finely shaped Iron Age Figurines, Roman lamps and vessels, and even gold coins of the various early Islamic periods.

A few steps across the Citadel and we entered the Palace of the ancient Islamic rulers with its finely wrought pilisters and carved capitals. A nearby cistern held over 17 acre feet of water for the residents of the ancient settlement.

Our bus ride north was sidetracked by a terribly truck accident which closed the main road, forcing us off onto a smaller local road that wound through the hills. We soon arrived at Jerash, a gem of a Roman city. Here the colonnaded streets graced paved roads leading to and from the distant cities of Pella, Damascus, Philadelphia, and beyond. A huge theatre with bodacious acoustics allowed us to voice our words to the "crowd" seated high above us with perfect clarity. Here, too, a bagpiper and drummer in the traditional dress of the British Army which once assisted the Hashemites serenaded us (if you can call what bagpipes do, serenading!).

We walked up to the temple of Aphrodite with its towering capitals and past a large Byzantine church. Down at the Nymphaeum we could picture the nymphs who once graced the remains of this monumental facade. We strolled back along the Cardo Maximus (Main Street) to the small souvenir shops, picked up a few final purchases to rid our pockets of stray dinars, and headed back to Amman and our hotel.

Dinner is now over, the final packing is coming to a close. We will board the bus to the airport at 11pm, and we will all (without this blogger) be flying off to Frankfurt then home to Dallas.

It has been a trip of up and down hill, high temperatures, and cold Red Sea water. We have climbed the heights of Mount Pisgah, been baptized in the Jordan River, sung hymns in Bethlehem, found treasures and pottery sherds in an ancient Israelite fortress, and ridden camels, horses, buses, and boats. From the Sea of Galilee to the Red Sea and Transjordan we have experienced more than we ever imagined.

With new friends and new memories and new gifts for loved ones back home, we are about to end our journey. The telling of tales, however, has just begun.


Shout out from Carolyn Ward: I am saving a place for you. Moma/Carolyn/Granny