Married to a Bedouin, Petra

Marguerite van Geldermalsen, author of the book “Married to a Bedouin” happened to be in Petra the day I was touring, selling jewelry and her book at a souvenir stand near the amphitheatre. I rode a camel over to her kiosk and interviewed her as a part of Equitrekking’s Jordan episode.

In 1978 Marguerite was traveling through Petra, when she met and fell in love with Bedouin Mohammad Abdallah. Marguerite was a 22-year-old New Zealander. She married and lived with Mohammad Abdallah for 25 years in a 2,000-year-old cave, birthing three children and learning Arabic. I have started reading her book. The book gives you an insider’s outsiders a perspective on Bedouin life in Petra, which was not easy, but certainly held simple joys and a real sense of community. Talking to Marguerite and hearing about her life in Petra, I was reminded of the Navajo who I rode with in Canyon de Chelly in Arizona. The Navajo who lived in Canyon de Chelly, herding sheep and farming, seemed to parallel the Bedouin in some ways. The Bedouin no longer live in caves in Petra and Marguerite’s husband passed in 2002. Speaking with her and starting her book, I’m certainly learning more about Bedouin culture and life in Jordan. Still the most I'm learning is by riding with the Bedouin throughout the country.

Petra, Jordan

Today, we ventured out early to explore Petra by camel and foot. We stayed literally right across the street from the entrance at the Movenpick Hotel, so we could just walk over and through the entrance gates in the morning- very convenient and a big breakfast buffet. We also left early, so that we could see the façade of the Treasury when the light hits it in the morning.

Petra is an amazing ancient city. Walking through the siq, the mile long long corridor that leads to the Treasury, I saw shrines and rock carvings, and passed along the water channel carved into the rocks. Of course, it is truly wonderful, when you come to the end of the siq and see, framed by the rock walls surrounding you, a piece of the Treasury. As I mounted a camel by the Treasury, our camera crew got permission to climb up high on a rock ledge to get the famous angle of the Treasury, a shot from Indiana Jones.

Riding a camel is not easy. Filming riding a camel is even harder. My guide Ibrahim told me about the local legends of hidden treasures inside the Treasury as Greg, our photographer, filmed from atop a third camel. We then led our camels further into Petra towards the ampitheatre.

There is a lot to see in Petra. Too much for one day. We rode our camels towards a small shop where Marguerite van Geldermalsen, author of the book “Married to a Bedouin” happened to be selling her wares today. I was lucky to be able to meet and interview her…

Jordan Video Clips

I'm in Jordan riding Arabian horses in the Wadi Rum desert with Bedouins, visiting Petra, snorkeling in Aqaba, interviewing HRH Princess Alia at the Royal Stables and more.

Here are links to a few short video clips from Jordan. More to come later.

Video of me flying in the horse drawn chariot today in the Roman city of Jerash in Jordan. It's the NASCAR of 2000 years ago.

Video of beautiful white Arabian horse at Jordan's Royal Stables.

Equitrekking's Behind the scenes video of filming horse riding in Little Petra for Equitrekking's Jordan episodes. Amazing place to ride!

Next stop Jordan

Our crew is busy getting ready to travel to Jordan for a two-week film shoot. I just took a break from my research. We'll film two episodes that include horseback riding in the Wadi Rum Desert, Bedouin culture, visiting Petra, a feature on Arabian horses at the Royal Stables, the Dead Sea and more. I am so excited. Immediately after, we'll travel back to Cappadocia, Turkey to film a second episode that includes Cappadocia, Istanbul and Turkey's Mediterranean Coast. Stay turned for some exotic blog postings from the desert in the coming weeks!