Weekends out of Amman

I found my way to Salt which is a town set in a steep sided narrow valley. Wandering in the back streets taking in the bazaar, ancient Orthodox church and old Ottoman architecture, I was invited into a home handy supplies cave like shop for coffee flavoured with cardamon.

Sunset at the Dead Sea. This was a very different scene to the other times I had swum at the public beach and grand hotel. Rula found a private beach spot just for us. She lamented the times when she use to come; there were hot sulfur springs and waterfalls. The level of the Dead Sea has been falling by about 500cm per year for the past 20 years because there is no supply from the now stagnant Jordan River and because evaporation is so high. In addition water in vast quantities are taken to manufacture potash. It was a gorgeous day and we splashed and floated about for hours. The salt made stalagmite sculptures hanging down from the tops and the build up of salt on the rocks made for a unique scene as we looked up from the thick syrupy waters.