Today marks the last day of FSO’s journey to Jordan. We devoted the day to Jordan’s No. 1 tourist attraction, Petra. Most of us recognized Petra from the movie Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. The famous picturesque and elaborate ruin known as Al Khazneh (The Treasury) appeared in the climax of the movie. Petra was also named as one of the New Open World Corporation’s New Seven Wonders of the World.

Although we had a late night the day before, some of us were up for breakfast at 7AM in the King’s Academy cafeteria. We began our journey to Petra 8:30AM. The bus ride took about 3 hours to reach the town of Wadi Musa. Wadi Musa in Arabic means “Valley of Moses.” We stopped twice on the way to the town for snacks and bathroom breaks. This is because we were informed that once we pass the ticketing gate, there is no bathroom in Petra itself. Those of us who did not bring enough bottled waters stocked up at the stops. 10 to 15 minutes prior to arrival, many of us took the opportunity to apply some sunscreen in preparation for a prolonged period of being in the sun. Knowing that the trek is going to require some energy, we stopped by a local buffet restaurant in the area. The guest principal flute player for Amman Symphony Orchestra who was with us for this trip is from Damascus, Syria. She was able to haggle our lunch price from 8 Dinar to 6 Dinar. It was a very nice and filling meal.

After lunch we began our journey to Petra. The trek to Petra begins at Wadi Musa where you must buy a ticket to be admitted. Tickets are stamped the date of admission and transfer of tickets to another person is not allowed. The NMC was very kind to pay for our tickets. As you enter pass the ticketing gate, the first thing that greets you is a very strong horse and donkey waste stench. The trek to the first Petra attraction the Al Khazneh, is a rough walk on mixed gravel roads and cobblestones. Horse and donkey rides are offered for those who wish to skip or unable to do the walk. However, one must haggle for a good price with the keeper as it is certain that it will be overpriced. As we begin the trek, we were wowed by impressive rock formations that surrounded the path.

Eventually we approached the narrow gorge called the Siq (“the shaft”). The Siq is actually a natural geological formation that used to serve as waterway flowing into Wadi Musa. Our walk was frequently punctuated by horse carriages and donkey rides ferrying tourist to the Al Khazneh. As we approach the end of the Siq, a grand and magnificent sight of the Al Khazneh peeked through what can be described as a slit in the canyon. As we walk further, suddenly the Al Khazneh came into full view, revealing its full glory. Maestro Fakhouri had used this imagery in our rehearsal for a section of the second movement of the Dvořák, but at the time we weren’t able to fully visualize this in the music.

The site of the Al Khazneh was swarming with tourists. We joined them in taking many photos of the structure. Littered in the courtyard of the Al Khazneh were various donkey and camel rides. Some of our members experienced their very first camel rides here! At this point, we each went our own way since there were a lot of sights to cover. In fact, many guide books suggested a 3-day stay in the area to fully experience Petra. We were trying to do this in 3 hours! The visit to Petra was a full aerobic workout for us. Many of the sights require significant walking and climbing of what can barely be called stairs.

Donkey keepers were offering rides to the very top of some sights. Littered throughout Petra were various stalls selling souvenirs. We were told to be especially firm in haggling as the price markup is very significant. Many souvenir stall owners were unabashed in pushing their wares as we walked by their booth. The oddest sight was seeing a souvenir stall on the top of many sights in Petra. They must really work the donkeys here.

About 30 to 45 minutes before 4:30pm, we began to make our way back to the ticketing booth since this is where we would be meeting for our bus ride back to the King’s Academy. We were exhausted after exploring only about 10 percent of Petra. The temperature was warm but not unbearable. We were warned that the temperature might climb to 100F but luckily it never got that hot. In fact, it was cool with a blowing breeze. We were glad to get off our feet on the bus after walking for several hours. We arrived at the Academy at 8pm. While waiting for dinner to be brought over from Amman, we took the opportunity to pack for our return trip to North Carolina. Maestro Fouad Fakhouri, Kifah Fakhouri, and Dana Sakkijah brought us dinner at about 9:30PM. After dinner, we hung out for a bit to reminisce about the week that had gone by so quickly. We will depart at 8AM tomorrow for the airport. Hopefully our trip home will be uneventful.

Our members are very grateful for this once in a lifetime opportunity to visit Jordan and share our love for music. The logistics and planning of this trip was no small undertaking. We would like to thank Maestro Fakhouri (FSO) and Kifah Fakhouri (NMC) for making this possible. Furthermore, the organization of this event would not have been possible without the tight coordination of Deanne Renshaw (FSO) and Dana Sakkijha (NMC). Our members are very grateful for their never-ending patience and resolve in overcoming roadblocks encountered during our week-long stay at Jordan.

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"Initial trek just past the ticketing gate"

"The Siq"

"Al Khazneh (The Treasury)"

John Bursey, FSO's violist, "How about five dinar?"

"The Monastery - Petra's largest monument"

"The Al Khazneh changing color depending the time of the day. Compare this to the other picture of the same structure."

"Tracy Wiggins, FSO's timpanist, branches out from the percussion... "