One of the main attractions of Jordan is Petra. Between 400 B.C. and A.D. 106 Petra was the capital of the Nabataean empire. This thriving city was a center for trade. Its buildings were carved out of the rock faces. How? They had no tools other than stones. But they possibly used ropes to suspend builders from the top of the rock faces. The designs of the buildings are amazingly accurate and symmetrical and include pillars and intricate details.
Before traveling to Petra in Jordan, I had read about Nabataeans living here more than 2,000 years ago. How they carved facades of buildings out of the rocks in which they made their homes. About how Romans eventually conquered them by cutting off their ingenious water supply systems. I had seen pictures of the red rock carvings. I knew that the Siq, the long steep gorge leading to the site, was over a kilometer long.
But indeed nothing prepared me for that first sight of ancient Petra. It truly did take my breath away and left me all choked up.
