You almost think the aircraft is going to land in the middle of a desert?till it finally touches down on the runway, making the excitement for a dramatic landing fade away instantly. The six-hour journey was eventful though, thanks (but-no-thanks) to the extremely rude air hostess on board. And of course Audrey Hepburn who made it all so bearable with her comic antics in How to Steal a Million. Really, Royal Jordanian?s in-flight entertainment was the best part of the journey ? it spoils you for choice. Spoilt enough to wish the plane got delayed by precisely 123 minutes?the time it?d take you to marvel at Meryl Streep?s passion for food in Julie and Julia. That?s not to be though. ?Save it for the return journey,? you tell yourself, walking into Queen Alia international airport, noticing parts of it under renovation.
But what really strikes the unaware Indian mind is the liberal air of the country. And of course, the infrastructure, which is surprisingly better than India?s almost anywhere in the world. Pun intended?after all how many Indians travel to Chad for leisure? And comparison to Singapore and Malaysia is unwarranted indeed. That apart there is nothing amiss?Jordan has a way of making Indians feel at home. Most recognise your nationality and openly express their love for India. ?I love India? I love Priyanka Chopra?.You know Mithun, Shashi Kapoor?.Amitabh Bachchan, Nutan?.? you?d hear a lot of these when you walk down the streets of Jordan. ?We grow up watching Bollywood movies,? our guide once explained. But none of that prepared us for what was to come after the open jeep safari across the maze of monolithic rocks at Wadi Rum. As we sat down in one of the camps, sipping the Arabic tea, a artist came and sat next to us with his ood (a guitar like instrument), strumming a tune that sounded familiar but was difficult to place. ?Tere mann ki Jamuna aur mere mann ki Jamuna ka?bol Radha bol sangam?,? he impromptu broke into the Raj Kapoor song.
Maybe, that is what makes the ?Jordan experience? special. There?s just so much that takes you by surprise?right from Amman?s incredible history told best by the Citadel, the Byzantine mosaic map at Madaba (made with two million pieces of coloured stones, it depicts Jerusalem and other holy sites as far away as Nile Delta), Mount Nebo where Moses is buried, floating in the Dead Sea while feeling its therapeutic blackmud itching your skin, feeling immersed in history at the provincial Roman town of Jerash, rose-red mountains of Petra…..
The food only adds to the experience. Most of the preparations are healthy?garnished with plenty of olive oil. Majority of the produce is grown locally and, if needed, some imported. It is a subject close to their heart. You know that when you see Jordanians seriously debate about the quality of olive being imported while barbequing lamb chops on a charcoal grill by the highway. It?s an activity Jordanians love to indulge in on Thursday evenings (last day of the week for them). They just park their cars by the hiway? spread their mats and play music, smoke water pipes … deep into the night, the highway is abuzz with activity.
There are serious concerns too. One, water. An arid country, more than 70% of the kingdom receives less than 100 mm rainfall annually. Besides the demand, the per capita share right now is 145 litres a day, is increasing due to population, industrial and tourism growth. And two, the lack of oil and gas reserves in the country.
But what one finds really interesting is the seemingly porous boundaries that the country has?people from Egypt cross the Red Sea and come to Jordan to shop and go back! Israel is just a stone?s throw away from Bethany, where Jesus Christ was baptised and Dead Sea is flanked by Jerusalem on its west. Anyone who has seen the Wagah Border might find the physical proximity slightly difficult to believe. It?s at that precise moment that you understand what St Augustine meant when he said ?The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page.?
Thy Kingdom come
14%. No less. That?s what Jordan?s tourism industry contributes to its GDP. Tourism is not only the country?s largest private sector employer, but also its second highest producer of foreign exchange. The future only looks better. The Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities has ample reasons to believe that it will easily double the tourism economy by 2010 ? increasing its tourism revenues to JD 1.3 billion and creating more than 51,000 new jobs in the process.
Two years after Petra was voted as one of the world?s seven wonders, the Dead Sea has qualified to the list of 14 finalists for the world?s seven natural wonders. And the rocky desert landscape of Wadi Rum is bidding to be listed on UNESCO?s list of Natural World Heritage Sites. Royal Jordanian has added two new routes to its network this year and has also increased the frequency of daily flights to many of its regional destinations. Another factor that plays big on the tourist?s minds is the low crime rate. The latest Global Competitiveness Report, ranks Jordan 9th and 14th out of 131 in terms of prevention of organised crime and in the reliability of police services.
2009 seems to have been particularly good for the hospitality industry in Jordan. Six Senses in Madaba opened earlier this year and has been maintaining an average occupancy level of 70%. ?The response has been encouraging enough for the chain to decide opening another property in Petra in two years time,? says Fred Selvi, Executive Assistant Manager of the property. Or take the instance of Holiday Inn, Intercontinental?s first property in Dead Sea which opened just two months back. Built at a cost of JD 58 million, the 202-room property is already posting a 60% occupancy level. ?Frankly, we didn?t expect to touch 60%,? says Omar Ibrahim, Front-office Manager of the property, gleefully. One reason could be the presence of just two four-star and three five-star properties in the Dead Sea region, one of the country?s tourist hot spots. Petra, on the other hand, has 61 hotels, including 11 four-star and five-star properties. But the steady flow of tourists is fuelling the demand further. For instance, Beit Zaman, a five-star property built at a cost of JD 10 million enjoys 100% occupancy levels during the peak season (October to December) and an average of 60% otherwise. ?We still need more hotels. The rooms aren?t enough.? Says Ziad Fouta, Resident Manager of the property.
Innovations are part of the expansion drive. Kempinski will open its first property in Aqaba this week, with the region?s first night club and possibly also the first sushi bar to cater to the tourists. Its infrastructure in place, Jordan Tourism Board is also trying to tap new markets, including India and China. Visa applications are now closed within a week and for groups of over five people, visa is available on arrival. The destination is also being promoted for film shootings. ?However, we want to position Jordan as a niche and not as a mass destination because we also have to take the environmental impact of tourism into consideration,? says Anwar Atalla, Director of Marketing, Jordan Tourism Board. Petra National Trust, for instance, is trying keep a tab on the number of tourists who can visit Petra on a single day because the sandstone geology of Petra makes it an extremely fragile site.