From Israel, we made our way to Jordan. Rather than having a single border control, we passed through several checkpoints and soldiers checked underneath the car for bombs. Border control also checked our luggage before we are all allowed to pass through the border. Our first destination in Jordan is Jerash, one of the best preserved ruins of a Greco-Roman city. The area is quite massive and seeing everything can take over 30 minutes. There are A LOT of ruins.
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Hadrian’s arch. Entrance to the city
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The Hippodrome for chariot races
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Ruins of the Temple of Artemis
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Oval forum looking towards the Cardo Maximus
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Oval forum
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Theatre
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Theatre
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The acoustics are designed such that the person standing in the center can project the audio across the entire theatre
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Schwarma
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Maqluba (I think?) – tender chicken and rice with spices cooked in a pot
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Maqluba (I think?) – tender chicken and rice with spices cooked in a pot
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Assortment of desserts
Alexander the Great and his general Perdiccas originally founded the city in 331 BC, and the city was eventually conquered by the Romans in 63 BC. Under the Romans, the city prospered from the vast amount of trade moving through the city, and today, the vast ruins are a testament to that.
The city follows standard Roman city planning concepts such as the “cardo maximus”, the idea that the main street of the city is oriented north-south. This was the economic hub of the city. The ruins still show remains of this road.
Despite the city in ruins, it’s still possible to identify the structures that existed. The city used its wealth to build structures like an arch at the entrance of the city dedicated to Roman Emperor Hadrian, a hippodrome for chariot races, and a Temple of Artemis.