Jordan April 7

First some advice to travellers

Number 1 never get a seat on a plane next to the toilet. You'll never rest.

Number 2 in a Muslim country don't get a hotel near a mosque. Prayers start at 4:30 am, and they use loudspeakers.

So far on this trip I'm zero out of two.

I like Jarash much more than the south. I saw my first wild flowers, poppies, and lovely small flowers in a variety of colours. There are trees and green fields!!

The weather is also more to my liking; nothing but sunshine, but high near 25.

I spent a good part of the day walking the ruins of Jarash. This area has been populated since prehistoric times, but the first written record shows a temple to Zeus from about the second century BC, as a Greek colony. In the first century AD the Romans took over, and ruled for a few centuries. Most of the ruins where from that time period. When Christianity became the state religion Byzantine construction, such as churches began. In the 7th century Muslims ruled, until 749, when a major earthquake destroyed most of the city and it was abandoned. It wasn't until the 19th century that Chechen refugees started to live here.

The site is very impressive, I can't think of another site with as much to see. It is bigger than Ephesus.

It starts at Hadrian's Arch, then continues for 500 m, with a hippodrome on the left. This was for chariot races and other sporting events. It had a capacity for  15 000 spectators. Until this year they had reenactments of a chariot race, but, because of the lack of tourists they were cancelled. After the hippodrome you reach the South gate, the main gate to the city. You enter a huge public square, the Oval Plaza, one of the biggest in the Roman Empire. It is lined by a colonnade of stone columns in two elliptical curves. From there you can go up to the temple of Zeus, and the South Theatre, a large theatre, seating over 6 000. 

I have always associated bagpipes as a purely Scottish tradition, but I was amazed, when I was in Spain, a few years ago, to discover that it is also played in northern Spain. To my greater amazement I saw an Arabian bagpipe player at the South theatre today.

Back to the Oval Plaza, and on to the Cardo, the colonnaded Main Street of ancient Jarash. It's 800 m long, lined, all the way, by huge columns. The road still has the original stones, and you can seen the ruts made by carts and chariots, over the centuries. Under the surface of the road, is a sewage system.

There were shops all along the street, and side streets to important buildings, like the baths, and the large Temple of Artemis. There is also a beautiful Nymphaeum, the main public fountain. 

While I visited the site I came across a great number of school groups. They got quite a kick out of seeing an old foreigner hobbling along, and I must have posed for more than a dozen selfies, with me and the kids. The first ones were a couple of female university students who wanted a picture of me and them. I was flattered. The kids

are also big on shaking hands. I felt like a greeter at Wallmart.

Aside from the numerous students I only saw about a dozen other tourists.

I spent about three hours before I walked back to my hotel. It is right at the entrance, so very convenient.

It's a nice place, but the WiFi is slow.

By the way Rum balloon has a face book page where he posts photos of our trip. Feel free to check it out.