Red Sea Cruise – Petra, Jordan

      After docking at the port of Aqaba, which is located on the northern tip of the Red Sea, we drove inland to discover the necropolis of Petra, a World Heritage Site.  When we arrived at Petra,  Ashraf, our guide, decided that I and another traveler needed to ride in a horse and buggy cart to the restaurant situated 3 miles away.  Even though most of the pathway was paved, there were large areas of uneven pavement which would have been a challenge for me to transverse.
     As our springless buggy jounced down the pathway past pedestrians, I marveled at the natural sandstone formations (parrot, fish and elephant) plus the many intricately carved tomb facades:  the Treasury(most famous), Nubidian silk tomb and Palace Tomb. Our buggy driver said that his Bedouin family used  to live in some of the caves before the government built several Bedouin villages.
     On our way back after lunch, we had a stellar view of the Monastery and Garden Temple carvings situated up high.  Kathy climbed up there as she hiked back to the bus.
      When we returned from our memorable trip, the ship’s staff greeted us with warm washcloths and iced tea.