Posted by Paul Groves on March 29, 2017

Watercolor Peacock

Here is my latest watercolor project. I think it came out well, although halfway through I was ready to toss it in the trash. Art!

Posted by Paul Groves on March 29, 2017

Wadi Rum, Jordan



Day 84, Wadi Rum, Jordan

Today was just a short excursion starting with a tour of Aqaba city and a trip to Wadi (valley) Rum also known as The Valley of the Moon (Arabic: ‫وادي القمر‬‎‎). It is a valley cut into the sandstone and granite rock in southern Jordan 60 km (37 mi) to the east of Aqaba; it is the largest Wadi in Jordan. We had a short drive through the Wadi on our way to lunch in a Bedouin tent. Along the way we saw some camels and a rock feature named “The Seven Pillars of Wisdom”. This is the area in which Lawrence of Arabia fought during the Arab Revolt against the Turks during the First World War. Incidentally this is also the name of the book written by Lawrence as an autobiographical account of his participation in the Arab Revolt.

Wadi Rum has been used as the filming site for such movies as The Martian with Matt Damon and even one of the Transformers movies.

Posted by Paul Groves on March 29, 2017

The Lost City of Petra






Day 83 of 111. Petra, Jordan

All I really knew of Petra before today was that it appeared in scenes of Indiana Jones movies. From the visitor’s center, we had to walk down a canyon for about 45 minutes. This canyon is called the Siq. You can choose to use a horse-drawn carriage instead of walking, but our guide, Abdullah, had interesting things to tell us about the Nabateans who established Petra as an important oasis along the trade routes. The Nabateans were very clever about managing and storing water… a vital skill in the desert. They were also skilled at carving buildings out of solid rock. The iconic building, the Treasury, is what you see when you first come out of the Siq. These buildings were actually tombs. The name Treasury came about because later explorers got it into their head that the urn at the top of the building was hiding an ancient treasure (it is not). There are bullet holes that showed how people tried to shoot the urn.

This is a major tourist attraction and so there are opportunities to ride camels, tons of trinkets (or Bedouin scarves) to purchase, and you can even have lunch around the corner from the treasury. There are many other tombs to see and there is an amphitheater built into the rock wall. If you want to climb 800 more steps, there is a monastery (no, thank you).

Abdullah showed us a coin that was found in Petra. It shows an ancient king and queen and is very old. At lunch, we had Coke Light… which look really cool in Arabic. We also visited the Indiana Jones Supermarket on the way back to the bus. This was another amazing visit. I’m glad I am writing down a few of my thoughts because I really want to remember/relive these travels.

Posted by Paul Groves on March 29, 2017

Bedouins in Jordan


Day 83, Wadi Musa, Jordan

About an hour outside of Aqaba, we saw our first Bedouin tent. Bedouins still live a nomadic way of life and are allowed to move anywhere in Jordan and surrounding countries (with permission). Their tents are made of goat hair cloth. The number of peaks in their tent indicate their wealth with three to four peaks being moderate. This usually means they own about 20 – 30 goats/sheep and about five camels. They also communicate with each other or mark their territory by stacking stones.

Posted by Paul Groves on March 27, 2017

Nakhl, Oman





Day 77 of 111. Nakhl, Oman

We visited two popular tourist spots in Oman: the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque and Nakhl Fort.

The first stop was the Mosque in the city of Muscat which was a gift to the City/Country by the Sultan and the only Mosque open for visitors. I can’t tell you in words how beautiful this is with the tall teak wood doors and intricate designs everywhere. The carpet in the main prayer hall was woven in one solid piece. The chandeliers are huge and entirely made of Swarovski crystals! The way they sparkled was breathtaking and the photo simply does not do it justice. We were required to remove our shoes during our tour. As this is an Islamic country, women needed to have their head covered as well as their arms and legs. Both sexes needed to cover any tattoos before they were allowed to enter. The site is not only a place of worship but a religious school and library. Our guide “Al” showed us the proper way of washing before entering for prayers.

Our second stop (about one hour outside of Muscat) was at the Nakhl oasis. This is the location of a fort that was used in the past to guard the trade route that came through the area. One of a rooms was used to store dates from the local trees. They served as food for the garrison but the sap that was generated by the dates while in storage was collected in jars, heated to boiling, and used as a weapon against in attackers.

While on the way to Nakhl we passed by the Sultan’s camel farm. He raises camels for racing. The race track is located just behind his farm. Betting is not allowed on the races as this is an “honor” to win.