Ruins and Archaeology

I visited the famous UNESCO World Heritage Site of Petra, Jordan, in October ’07. A daytime visit is a long and hot walk but definitely worth the effort. For me, however, the highlight was the lesser-known night trip to the Siq and Treasury.

Starting at the Petra Visitors Center, you walk down the road through the kilometer-long Siq (a narrow gap between rock faces) to the famous Treasury. The entire route is lit only with lanterns on the ground (actually paper bags each with a candle inside) and moonlight.

My husband, Joe, and I traveled to Machu Picchu in Peru in January ’07.

(Part 4 of 4 on Vietnam & Cambodia)

After my 1½ weeks in Vietnam, an evening arrival in Siem Reap, Cambodia, from Saigon provided me with the opportunity for an overnight respite before touring the remarkable remnants of the ancient Khmer civilization in and around the vicinity of Angkor Wat. I had arrived at one of the surviving great wonders of our world.

by Claus Hirsch, New York, NY

by Steve Venables, CTC

By Ed Kinney, following the Euphrates River in Syria. See the May ’07 article.

I can’t deny I was excited about visiting Machu Picchu. Twenty-five years had passed since my first visit. Then, torrential rains had washed away portions of the train tracks between Cuzco and the archaeological site, canceling our excursion. It took almost a week before train service was restored, and when we finally reached the site we had only a frustratingly few hours there. This time, in August 2006, I wanted enough time — weather gods permitting — to explore thoroughly and to overnight at the site to experience sunset and sunrise.

by Julie Skurdenis

by Ed Kinney

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