On the recommendation of my friend and ace travel agent in Manhattan, we finished the 7-hour trek through Petra, inhaled a big bowl of pasta and cocktails post-trek, and jumped into a cab for the 4-hour drive to Ma'in Evason Spa. A five-minute drive to the Dead Sea and set in a dramatic oasis 260 meters below sea level, I will find a way to return to these ancient thermal mineral springs, especially since there are so many ancient and biblical sites to see that we missed: Jerash - one of the most important and best-preserved ancient Roman cities in the Near East (that the Brits found too troublesome to haul back to the British Museum); Madaba - a city teeming with Byzantine mosaics; Mt. Nebo - with sweeping views of the Promised Land as described by Moses; and Karak - the site of a spectacular Crusader fort. Amongst all this are a few Jordanian vineyards and I was pleasantly surprised by the St. George cabernet.
Here are some snaps of the property and the surrounds, the first from the breakfast room:
A view of the spa down the hill from the hotel with the Dead Sea in the background.
The main feature at the spa - a gorgeous and restorative hot spring.
After a day of lounging and treatments at the hot spring, we went to dinner at a panoramic restaurant overlooking the Dead Sea and Palestine.
The lights of Palestine at dusk beckon...so close but not enough time to cross.
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