Madaba, Jordan

Hello to you all, whomever that may be!  Our southern tour from Amman began with a trip to the near by metroplois of Madaba.  Upon arrival we checked out the local hotels to find a place to hole up for the night.  The first hotel on the list was the Madaba Inn Hotel,  a little run down on the exterior but brightly lit inside and when Jeff ran in to check prices the lady told him "seventeen".

"Seventeen!?" said Jeff, looking around the lobby that seemed nice but was difficult to see as it was busy with the comings and goings of a tourist bus loading up.

"yes, seventeen," said the lady.  

Having stayed in a dodgy hotel in Amman for sixteen, Jeff thought this looked promising at the price of seventeen.  A few more hotels checked and we returned to the Madaba Inn Hotel to take the room.  Anelia went in to "make the papers" (a term used by the Boorman clan which means to check in to the hotel)while Jeff unpacked the car.  A different clerk was on duty.  She asked the usual necessary questions when checking in to a hotel that is only charging seventeen.

Anelia:  "Is there hot water"

Desk Clerk: "Yes"

Anelia: "Is ther always hot water"

Desk Clerk: "Yes" (giving a odd look to Anelia)

Anelia: "Internet?" (expecting the answer to be no)

DK:"of course"

Anelia "Wireless?"

DK: "always wireless" (another weird look)

Anelia: "Is breakfast included?"

Dk: "yes"

Anelia: "what is it, the usual bread and cheese?"

DK: "uh, its a buffet" (a really weird look)

Anelia:"and its seventeen"

DK: "yes seventeen"

Anelia returns to the car after viewing the room.  It is unbelievable!  And to think we were paying sixteen in Amman for a pile of feces hotel.  With great excitement we unpacked and lugged in our luggage.  It was at this point that we truly looked around the lobby and realized something was amiss.  The lobby wasn't nice, it was really nice, and after sharing a look we finally saw the posted prices: double bed 70JD.  70 Jordanian Dinars which works out to about 110$ Canadain.  No wonder the weird looks from the desk clerk during the five minute interrogation.  "I don't think this place is seventeen" says Anelia.  This place is a 3 star hotel, far above the cost of seventeen dinar hotel.  It was at this point the desk clerk also realized our error and said "no, no seventy, seventy," with his think Jordanian accent.  We began the slow, embarrassing retreat back to the car when the desk clerk stopped us.  "I will give you the room for 50."  So... we stayed in our second three star hotel of the trip and had a great nights sleep.

Madaba is home to a vast collection of preserved Mosaics dating back to the sixth century A.D.  Many of these byzantine mosaics were massive, covering every room of churches, palaces and other buildings of the wealthy or holy.  Some are in immaculate condition.  One of the most incredible mosaics is found in St. George Church.  The mosaic is a map of the middle east that with great detail pinpoints many holy and important sites of the time with amazing geographical accuracy.  It is estimated that the map was at least six years in the making.  Several mosaics later and all mosaic't out (no clue on spelling that) we left the town of Madaba on through the desert to Karak.