Our intrepid group covered in mud from the dea sea

So our Jordanian adventures have taken us to Karak (an ancient fortress), the Dead Sea, Mt. Nebo, Madaba and finally Amman. We leave this afternoon for Damascus in Syria, and our intrepid group of 11 has been reduced to a group of 4. We pick up a new traveller in Damascus. It was hard to say goodbye to everyone, we had a fantastic group, but our adventure continues as we travel north.

After a very long and winding bus ride we made it to the Dead Sea, the lowest place on earth. Along the highway there are some huge and gorgeus hotels and resorts. We went to the Dead Sea Resort and Spa, and spent the afternoon swimming and relaxing. One of our fellow travellers had read in his guide book that you couldn't burn near the dead sea due to the high salt content in the air. Even though it seems pretty easy to see the scientific flaws in that one, we somehow decided to test it. We didn't stay in the direct sun for too long, but we did get a little pink.
The sea was great to swim in. It is a really strange feeling to float so easily, you couldn't drown if you tried. The sea tastes disgusting, and it even feels thicker, almost like a sludge. One poor tourist got some in her eyes and was in a lot of pain! We managed to keep most of the sea off our faces. Then of course we had to do the "mud thing" and cover ourselves in the dark mud. It is supposed to be great for your skin, but it really stings! (I washed it off pretty quickly in fresh water showers).
That same afternoon we headed to Mt. Nebo. Mt. Nebo was gorgeus, but unfortunately you couldn't really see the "promised land" as the sky was hazy from the heat.
We spent the night in Madaba and were able to tour some of the amazing ancient mosiacs and shops before heading to Amman.
Amman is a huge city, and it seems that everything is made of white stone so the sun glares of everything. We did tour the citadel and the Roman Colloseum before heading back to our hotel and getting ready for the goodbye dinner for the rest of the group.
Dani straightened my hair, which was really strange. It was fun though, but it made me look totally different.

So now it is just 4 of us heading on a public bus to Damascus. We have really enjoyed Jordan and will miss all our travel friends!

Laura and Shawn floating in the dead sea. Due to evaporation the sea has a very high salt content so you float. See, no hand/ feet paddling!

View from the top of Mt. Nebo, where Moses looked out at the "promised land".

Temple of Hercules at the Citadel in Amman Jordan

Laura with straight hair. It was straightened for the first time sucessfuly by Dani, a girl on our tour group. It lasted about 5 hours.