I don’t think anyone in the world can forget the first time they walked through the Siq to find Petra‘s famous Treasury.  The mystique of the parting canyon giving way to a beautifully rock-hewn structure is simply unmatched anywhere in the world.  Add to the fact that you’ve been walking quite a ways to get there already and the anticipation only adds to the allure.

I wanted to do my best to capture that feeling and on our way out, with the light hitting the treasury just right, I took a good 20 minutes and took the picture of each and every horse and carriage that came by.  In this one I also caught a tourist standing there, marveling at the structure.  I’m not sure if that makes it feel more or less authentic but I can’t help to see him with that carriage racing by and feel what he’s feeling at that exact moment.

IF YOU GO:  Stay at the hotel, sleep in, relax.  The best tip we got is this one….go around lunchtime.  You’ll still find it crowded but if you continue to the Monastery at the far end of Petra then you’ll find few people to share the site with.  As you walk back, go leisurely, and enjoy the place mostly to ourselves.  By the time we got back to the Treasury there were only a handful of people around, all the tours had left already.  If you go on a night where they’re doing Petra at night, on your way out you’ll get to experience Petra at night (which we were told was not worth the steep price) for free.  We went back the next day on our two-day pass and suggest you do the same.
You can find last minute deals on packages to Petra that go through neighboring Israel or Egypt if you want to make a big tour of it.

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