This is one of those fumble around in the passenger seat and take a snapshot through the windshield while driving photos. Let's see here, we have kid in back of truck, man galloping down highway on horse, and weird elephant shaped rock on the horizon.  A veritable 3 ring circus of fascination.



The Wadi Rum, in the far south of Jordan. This is a logical last stop in my perigrinations. At first sight of this huge, stunning desert landscape I felt like I had left all history behind, and entered into a purely mineral landscape. The Wadi Rum, depite is harsh grandeur, has been inhabited, visited and crossed by humans since pre-history. Currently Bedouin inhabit the area, with their distinctive black wool tents dotting the landscape here and there.

T.E. Lawrence "of Arabia" was one of the most famous denizens of the Rum. He holed up here during the Arab Revolt in 1917-18.

I hired a landcruiser for the day. The driver was an eager young fellow who wanted to talk movies and told me of his dream to move to Las Vegas. We set out across the sands in the lovely, creaking, squeaking old fj40. He let me drive it for a bit and in the deep sands you had to have a gentle yet firm touch on the steering wheel or the sandy ruts would grab the tires and spin the wheel to one side or the other with arm-breaking force.



Lawrence's Spring.



Tea in the desert. We passed a Bedouin tent and they beckoned us over. With a disarming lack of any sort of ulterior motive, we were invited to tea. Simple desert hospitality sprouting from the still very real fact that the traveller you host today may help you tomorrow.



While enjoying our tea we watched this camel take a variety of objects out of the back of the truck, until a boy got sick of it and huffed a handful of stones at it.