What A View

I stopped on the road leading to this Crusader fortress because this view was so awesome.

In the foreground is an eleventh century crusader castle or fortress set up to protect pilgrims on the way to Petra to visit the tomb of Aaron the first high priest of Israel and the brother of Moses.

That tomb is a little white dot at the top of the mountain in the background. It has been and still is a sacred place to Jews, Christians, and Moslem’s.

It is a considerable hike to get up that mountain but it is well worth the trip.

Measured and Potographed

Finding an object on a dig is only the first step. Before it can be removed its location must be charted, it must be measured and photographed. We photographed with both 35 mm and digital cameras.

Notice the centimeter stick and the information board that gives location on the dig site, the date and the indication of where North is. All of this is vital to the dig records and for future scholars.

I love this stuff.

Southern Humor

A group of Alabama friends went deer hunting and paired off in twos for the day.

That night, one of the hunters returned alone, staggering under the weight of an eight-point buck."Where's Henry?" the others asked.

"Henry had a stroke of some kind. He's a couple of miles back up the trail," the successful hunter replied..

"You left Henry laying out there and carried the deer back?" they inquired.

"A tough call," nodded the hunter. "But I figured no one is going to steal Henry!"

Keep Connected Live

I am moving this blog to http://odomgroh.keepconnectedlive.com/ 

Come see me there it is so much like the old JS.

Fresco

In this picture you see what is left of a fresco on an inside wall of a Roman Administration Building. The rather rough wall was covered with thick plaster to even it out and then had wonderful paintings all over it.

This one was being removed for preservation and study. Once uncovered the weather would have destroyed it in short order. I was glad that I was there to see it in place before it was removed.

Petra Road

The Romans built this road in Petra around 107 AD and most of it is still usable today. We could take some hints from the ancient Roman road builders they knew how to build a good road.

This road was once lined with columns and market stalls.
I would love to be ables to see how this looked then.

At the End of the Siq

Our group from the Ashkelon finally reaches the end of the Siq and the entrance to Petra. It had been an awesome walk and our journey was about to become even more awesome.

Here I am in 1999 as I am ready to take those last few steps to reach Petra and fulfill a dream from my youth. I fell in love with Petra on that day.
I went back to dig there two more times and I will share all of that wonder with you.