Jordan April 3

It was off to Aqaba this morning. I had planned to take the bus, but I had to take a taxi to the bus station, about 2 km uphill. Not with my luggage. Once I got in the cab he convinced me to hire him to go to Aqaba. The cab fare to the bus would be 3JD, the bus 7JD, and then I would have to find my hotel. He offered to take me to my hotel for 20JD. Not a bad deal for a 120 km drive. He even bought me a tea, and a bag of fresh falafels, along the way. 
They like their tea, and everything very sweet. Bakeries have the most delectable displays. One of the desserts is Al-Hooh which consists of layers of phyllo pastry stuffed with nuts or dates. It is then fried in ghee and dipped in sugar syrup. Ghee is clarified butter. You won't find that on any WeightWatchers menu.
Coffee is also interesting. It is Arabic coffee, similar to Turkish coffee, only with an added cardamom flavour. Doesn't taste like coffee, but quite tasty. You get a small cup, and the bottom cm is coffee sludge. Small sips are the way to go.
Aqaba is at the most southerly point of Jordan, at the end of the Red Sea on the Bay of Aqaba. It is the only port in the country, and so has a lot of commercial importance. Even in ancient times it was at a crossroad of the trade routes between Asia, Africa, and Europe.
Today it is also a huge tourist spot, beautiful resorts and beaches. There are coral reefs, and scuba diving is a big attraction. It's where the Jordanians go in the winter, because of the mild weather.
Today the high reached 32, not something I'm used to. I walked for about four hours, and I was beat.
I am off on a boat trip to do some snorkelling tomorrow.
Interesting what you can do in the desert.