Under the stars of Jordan

26 kwi Under the stars of Jordan

I was looking forward to my trip to Jordan. Firstly, I wanted to see the hidden city of Petra. Secondly, I wanted to live my desert adventure, just like the famous Laurence of Arabia. But the truth is, sleeping under the stars in the Bedouin camp just exceeded my expectations. That was an unforgettable experience.

So, here I am, heading to my Middle East adventure. When I arrived to Wadi Musa (the region named the Valley of Moses), which is the place to enter Petra, I saw the most stunning and magical sunset. We stopped on the road to witness it and take some nice photos. It was amazing!

My husband keep on assuring me that we are staying at a five star hotel, Movenpick, famous for its Arabian decorations. 

To my surprise, we checked in in a slightly different type of hotel, which actually happen to be a Bedouin camp: ‘The Seven Wonders Bedouin Camp’. Oh, my word! This was wild! At first I was shocked, but then seeing the accommodation we had, I calmed down. Certainly this camp was much fancier than I thought. It had all facilities like hot water and electricity, provided of course at certain hours. We also had a king size bed and three warm blankets. At the camp we were surrounded by small mountains which were illuminated with small lamps at night. The setting gave a very romantic ambiance.

In the evening we were invited to the tent to have some Bedouin tea. We met there other travellers and some Bedouins serving tea by the fire place. (See below the recipe for a good Jordanian tea).

The dinner was rather simple, but tasty. It was interesting the way they prepared it. They cooked the meal in the hole in the ground. The menu consisted of rice with chicken, salad some fruit and local cake.  

We stayed there two nights. It was stunning to sleep under the stars! The second night I woke up at four o’clock in the morning and I witnessed so many stars in the sky I had never seen in my entire life!

The Middle East does not stop to surprise me in so many ways. This time the highlight of my trip was sleeping under the stars in traditional Jordanian luxury.

HOW TO PREPARE A GOOD JORDANIAN TEA

The preparation techniques for the most delicious cup of tea are brewed as follows:

1. Always use loose leaf tea.
2. Pour the water into the tea kettle and add the sugar. (This is a key step! Letting the sugar boil with the water and tea leaves makes all the difference)
3. Add the loose tea leaves on top of the water. The leaves will remain floating on top. Do not stir.
4. Place the kettle over fire and allow the tea to boil and brew to a dark amber color.
5. If brewing over a camp fire, lift the cover off the tea kettle for a few minutes as it boils to obtain a delicious smoked flavour.  You must try it!
6. For additional flavours, add a fresh mint or thyme into your glass and pour the tea over it. Do not boil the herbs with tea as some may become bitter with boiling.
7. Sit into a comfortable sofa and enjoy the tea with good company!

Vocabulary

to be looking forward to – to anticipate something with pleasure (wyczekiwać)

desert – a region so arid because of little rainfall that it supports only sparse and widely spaced vegetation or no vegetation at all (pustynia)

exceed – surpass (przekroczyć)

expectations – the act or state of looking forward or anticipating (oczekiwania)

assuring – make sure (zapewniać)

fancy – luxurious (luksusowy)

facilities – something designed, built, installed, etc., to serve a specific function affording a convenience or service (budynek, udogodnienia)

blanket – a large, rectangular piece of soft fabric, often with bound edges, used especially for warmth as a bed covering (koc)

illuminate – supply or brighten with lights (oświetlić)

ambiance – the mood, character, quality, tone, atmosphere, etc., particularly of an environment or milieu (atmosfera, nastrój)

highlight – memorable (główna atrakcja)

brew – to make or prepare (a beverage, as tea) by mixing, steeping, soaking, or boiling a solid in water  (zaparzyć)

leaf – one of the expanded, usually green organs borne by the stem of a plant (liść)

kettle – a metal container in which to boil liquids, cook foods, etc.; pot (czajnik)

stir – to move one’s hand or an implement continuously or repeatedly through (a liquid or other substance) in order to cool, mix, agitate, dissolve, etc., any or all of the component parts (mieszać)

bitter – having a harsh, disagreeably acrid taste, like that of aspirin, quinine, wormwood, or aloes (gorzki)

thyme – any of numerous plants belonging to the genus Thymus, of the mint family, including the common garden herb T. vulgaris, a low subshrub having narrow, aromatic leaves used for seasoning (tymianek)