Little Petra
Jan 3, 2013 10:21:24 GMT
Post by onlymark on Jan 3, 2013 10:21:24 GMT
Known as Little Petra but in reality is called Al Beidha or Siq al-Barid (not to be confused with the nearby Neolithic village of Beidha) is about 15km north of Petra and well worth a visit after you’ve survived the hustle and bustle, touts and long walks of Petra itself. Besides the fact that at the moment it is free to enter.
The short drive there is through some really scenic errr........... scenery and is easy enough to find once you drive past the Mövenpick Hotel in Wadi Musa. Look out for the Elephant Rock as you pass by.
Little Petra was one of the main commercial areas of Petra, initially built at the same time as the main tombs area, about 100BC by the Nabateans, and was the entry and exit point for the trade routes to the north and north-west. Here the caravans from the Negev, Gaza and Askalon, from Jerusalem and the Phoenician coast would arrive and settle for a while to engage in trade, their camels and donkeys were too large to get through the small canyon entrance and would stay outside near a number of cisterns. The merchants probably stayed in the cool seclusion of the Siq al-Barid, the cold gorge, whose entrance is at the end of a narrowing of the valley.
A short walk from the car park takes you past a few stalls selling the usual stuff, but they are quite benign and hassle free –
Through the small alleyway/canyon/siq that is only a few metres long –
Then some rock formations come in to view –
The short drive there is through some really scenic errr........... scenery and is easy enough to find once you drive past the Mövenpick Hotel in Wadi Musa. Look out for the Elephant Rock as you pass by.
Little Petra was one of the main commercial areas of Petra, initially built at the same time as the main tombs area, about 100BC by the Nabateans, and was the entry and exit point for the trade routes to the north and north-west. Here the caravans from the Negev, Gaza and Askalon, from Jerusalem and the Phoenician coast would arrive and settle for a while to engage in trade, their camels and donkeys were too large to get through the small canyon entrance and would stay outside near a number of cisterns. The merchants probably stayed in the cool seclusion of the Siq al-Barid, the cold gorge, whose entrance is at the end of a narrowing of the valley.
A short walk from the car park takes you past a few stalls selling the usual stuff, but they are quite benign and hassle free –
Through the small alleyway/canyon/siq that is only a few metres long –
Then some rock formations come in to view –