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Saturday, August 24, 2013

Lowest Point on Earth

Yesterday we headed for a day trip to the Dead Sea.  Friday mornings in Amman are the quietest of the entire week with zero traffic.  People tend to stay out very late on Thursday nights and sleep in.  Many stores and shops don't even open until Friday afternoon because of that. Call to prayer is at 12:30, and after that, the city starts to awaken. Needless to say, getting to the Dead Sea was a breeze, pun intended.

It took 40 minutes for us to drive to the sea.  Amman being at 3,000 ft. above sea level, and the Dead Sea at -1,400 ft. made our drive a nice downhill excursion wrapping through many large sandstone hills and "mountains."  You can't just pull off the road and hop in at the Dead Sea, the only way to experience it is through one of the hotels lining the shore.


This is the view from the hotel we stayed at for the day.  You purchase a day pass which is pretty expensive, but food and drinks are also part of the package.  Almost everybody spends their time by the pools rather than on the "beach" of the Dead Sea.  If you can see through the haze, the outline of mountains on the other side is Israel.

The Dead Sea is amazing in the sense that you literally float without trying.   I tried touching the bottom, but couldn't get any farther down than my neck. You lie back and immediately float.  I figure it must be similar to feeling weightlessness in space.

You do have to be careful when entering the Dead Sea.  Any cuts or scrapes, one you know about or don't, get amplified to the millionth degree.  The percent salt water of the ocean is around 3%.  The percent salt water of the Dead Sea is 31%.  Don't get it in your eyes.

Below are a few more pics of the Dead Sea.


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