Amman Citadel and Jerash

(Previous) The first morning in Amman, I started my day with some quick pastries, and headed to the Citadel, arguably the most important site in the city.

The Citadel had been occupied by various civilizations and kingdoms, dated all the way to the Bronze Age. Among which two of them left significant relics here: the (uncompleted) Temple of Hercules from the Romans, and a palace from the Umayyad Caliphate.

Left: The Temple of Hercules; Mid: a cat doing cat thing; right: view from top of the Citadel

left: relics of an Ammonite Palace (an ancient Biblical kingdom in the Jordan River valley).

The Temple of Hercules featured only an arch and several pillars. It appeared to be the relic of a colossal structure, but archeologist believed the temple was never completed.

left: relics of a Byzantine church, which could be told by its typical basilica plan. The relics of its mosaic was covered for protection.

I found the Umayyad palace very intriguing (this is the only one I have visited anyway). The geometric and foliage motifs on its relief seemed to have strong Persian influences.

Not many tourists were seen at the Citadel, partly because Amman wasn’t a huge highlight on typical Jordan itineraries (more like a base to various adjacent highlights), partly because it was exposed the scorching summer desert heat.

Following the fall of the Umayyad Caliphate, the Amman Citadel had been abandoned. The past glory for which monarchs, warriors and priests fought after was covered in layers of desert sand, making ways for sporadic Bedouin herders and seasonal farmers.

The Jordan Archeological Museum was also at the site. Its facade looked underwhelming, not matching the precious exhibitions housed inside. Built in 1951, the interior of the museum also looked visibly old.

right: I honestly couldn’t remember 100% what script this was, but most likely it was Moabite script, another Biblical Kingdom in the region.

Mid: hand and elbow fragment from a colossal statue found near the Temple of Hercules. In fact, it was from the sheer sizes of these fragments that archeologists attributed Hercules, who was known for his physical strength, to this temple.

In the afternoon I headed north to Jerash, one of the most well preserved Greco-Roman cities in the world, notably “the Pompei of the East”.

My Arabic was only good enough to read the “Jerash” sign at the bus station.

This friendly dude sitting next to the driver shared some grapes with me.

right: souvenir stands right outside Jerash

Apparently these were all what I had for lunch. When I looked back at my travel photos, sometimes I wasn’t even sure whether I did eat that little, or just forgot take photos of my meals.

Mid: Arch of Hadrian at Jerash. It featured some atypical architectural elements not seen in typical Roman arches (possibly Nabattean influences). This arch is so important that there’s a Wikipedia article about it.

Following a pamphlet I got at the entrance, I walked around the ancient city, making sure I found every “point of interest” as one would do in Disneyland, trying to imagine the flowing aqueducts, bustling markets, lively theaters and solemn temples, most of which only left columns for visitors to wonder.

left: temple of Zeus; mid: temple of Artemis; right: the forum

The theater (this photo really failed to capture its magnificences here)

left: a cathedral; right: one of the Byzantine churches, featuring mosaic of various animals

left: temple of Artemis; mid: nymphaem; right: entrance of the visitor center

I walked approximately 3 hours in Jerash, which was plenty of time to see most of its highlights. As I tried to catch a cab back to Amman, at least 2 cars stopped to offer me a ride, but with no experience hitchhacking, I still opted for a regular shared taxi. The driver was talking to another passenger in Arabic all the time, at a level way beyond what my one-semester class could offer. After the passenger left, I was invited to the front seat to practice some elementary Arabic with the driver. The friendly exchange of greetings improved my impression of Jordanian taxis by a lot.

In Amman, the night was always young. At the hostel, Intaro and I met with Rashik, a fellow traveler from Bangladesh. We quickly built a team to venture outside Amman together the next day.