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National Geographic : 1964 Dec
Contents
reduce imports of other foods, and develop all-important hydroelectric power. In the past four years, we have built an oil refinery, cement plant, battery factories, anl a tannery. We produce and export tobacco, cigarettes, and even detergents. Fortunately we have a very large supply of high-quality phosphates, and we expect to be producing potash from the saline waters of the Dead Sea within two years. We have been spending considerable sums on mineral exploration remember that King Solomon worked copper mines near Aqcaba 3,000 years ago. We have been investing in people, too. I am proud of the fact that school attendance among our youngsters has climbed steadily. Educated youth and a dedicated people guar antee the achievement of the better life we see for ourselves and N. the attainment of our objectives: serving this Arab nation, andl set ting a good example in every respect to the Arab people in general. ()Our visitors-the number of tourists has risen 25 percent per year since 1958--tell me that they fin(t us a friendly, orderly pleo ple. Certainly we are i)leased( to have them and(to share with them our historical treasure house of the world's great religions, of which \ve are the plrou(l custodians. Under nearly ever acre of ground, almost anywhere in Jordan, lie treasures of the last. About one hour's drive from Amman stands the old city of Jarash, possibly founded by Alexander the Great or one of his generals, and later an important Roman outpost. Archeologists have unearthed perhaps the best-preserved Roman town in the East, with a columned street half a mile long (pages 806-7). East of Amman, across the flat, flint-strewn desert, rise the ruins of ancient Arab palaces. There are nine principal ones. Most of them belong to the ()Oayyad Period (A.I). 661-750), built as pleasure palaces and desert hunting lodges by the caliphs. There are many other notable ruins in Jordan: The immense Hisham palace near Jericho, built by a great ()mayyad ruler of the early eighth century, with one of the finest floor mosaics in the world. Jericho itself, where excavations reveal evidence of the city's repeated destruction, and walls and a tower of an older city-the oldest organized community in the world, making Jordan the cradle of civilization. Incredible Petra (pages 812-13), a city carved from solid rock by the Nabateans, who lived on protectiono" given caravans trading with the lands of Sheba. Bedouin Life a Proud heritage Until recently few besides wandering Bed ouin gazed on such ruins as Petra, or such spectacular scenery as the Wadi Ramm, 5( miles to the south (patges 80)0-801). Now, from .\qaba, it is an easy car-and-jeep ride to the Desert Police post at Ramm. There visitors may picnic Western style or share a prear ranged mansaf, the traditional Bedouin feast. Although the Bedouin life of roaming is fast disappearing, many of the tribal customs of the desert will, I hope, always survive. Cer tainly the last to go, if it ever does, will be the hospitality of the desert Arab. The Bedouin to me is the proudest, sincer est of human beings. I always like to spend a few hours with the tribesmen in their camps whenever I can; I feel at home there, and I know that I am participating in a kind of life that may soon be gone forever. The combination of our ancient responsi bility as keepers of the holy and historic places and our desire to move with the times is chal lenging. Knowing my Jordanian family as I do, I have no doubt of our ability to carry out both tasks. :: : : New luxury hotel .AlIrcdon stands in the ancient city of \Ammlan, Jordan's booming capital. Here \\ after is precious, and the flashing jets feeding the swimming pool delight Arab eyes and ears. Pitch ing his tent beyond the far wall, an ingenious Bedlouin uses the pool's runoff to irrigate rows of \egetales. Colored gravel forms patterns on the roofs of cabanas and refreshment stand. 789
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