The Jordan Diaries 2005: October 30 Day 4.1 In the Footsteps of Moses

Early start to the day (early for us, that is) as we had to be down for breakfast, packed up and ready by 8 am to meet the impeccably professional and predictably punctual Sufian.

   Retraced some of the steps of yesterday, back past Bethany-beyond-the-Jordan on the left, through the fields of fruit trees, vegetable crops and banana plantations and then suddenly a sharp right-hand turn had us headed inland towards the east with the steep foothills directly in front of us, and beyond them, the Jebels. The day was hazy and the view a little obscured, but it grew ever more amazing, the higher we rose.

View back over the foothills and jebels from top of Mt Nebo

                                      

Simply can’t imagine how the Bedouin survive out in these seemingly inhospitable jebels – its quite cold now during these autumn days, especially with the wind-chill factor, so the nightly temperature must be freezing. The ground looks hard and rocky, pale cream & ochre coloured and reminiscent of gibber plains on these steep-sided hills and ravines that are dotted with only the occasional low spindly bush and very dry looking grass clumps.

   Commented to Sufian on how such sparse vegetation was surely insufficient to sustain animal herds without some sort of supplemental feed, and he was quick to assure us that the animals had all the fodder they needed in the fields right there and were not given anything extra … and then, after a small thoughtful pause, he added that the lamb meat from here wasn’t all that palatable... mmm....  and in fact, he mused further, it is not popular to buy in the souks.  *Indeed! Tough and stringy with a hint of acacia leaf perhaps??

   The road up the mountainside was an exceptionally steep and very narrow, winding climb. Even though there appeared to be a yellow dividing line down the middle indicating it actually was meant as a dual carriageway, it was in reality little more than single lane.

   On the way up, we encountered from time to time, garishly colourful Bedouin sheep trucks, sporting decorative fringing across the top of the windscreen and brightly painted with busy floral patterns and intricate geometrics, down both sides and across the timber slats on the back. They were loaded right to the top rail, full of an assortment of hardware and produce sacks (grain for fodder perhaps?) and occasionally a load of hapless sheep, squashed in like giant hairy balls of black & cream wool with startled eyes visible through the spaces in the timber slats, peering fearfully out at the world … cant be much of a life as a sheep in these parts. 

  Sufian seemed to have no qualms about ‘zooming’ by every vehicle in our path, to pass uphill on this very narrow road, round blind corners with an unfenced ravine just centimetres from the tyres, and all at little better than tortoise speed .. more than once, he had his pedal-foot pressed hard to the metal and the poor Samsung struggled to make it past each truck with the last 5kph it was able to muster… 'breath-taking' suddenly didn’t just apply to the view!