Karak

Our MCC Directors, Daryl and Cindy, have a Jordanian friend who lives in a village just outside of Karak.  We joined Daryl and Cindy, along with their son and his friend, to spend time with this family yesterday. The six of us were the recipients of incredible Jordanian hospitality.  We got a grand tour of the house and met all of the extended family living close by.  Later in the day, we ate a huge dinner of a traditional fish and rice dish at their home.  It was amazing.

The main site to see in Karak is a crusader castle that served as a pivotal defense for Jerusalem.  Some of the castle's history has been depicted in the Hollywood movie Kingdom of Heaven.  It is most famous for having been sieged by Saladin (Salah ad-din) twice during the Crusades.

The castle is now partially taken over by modern city.  During it's heyday, the castle could have housed up to 10,000 people.

This view from the castle is looking west toward Jerusalem. On a clear day, you would be able to see the Dead Sea and the West Bank on the horizon.

Here are some other pictures I took around the castle.

I've realized that I really need to start making sure I show up in some of these pictures. This was the best we could do yesterday, but it proves that I was there too!

Ryan befriended two of the young boys we spent the day with, Aboud and Maamun.  He raced them up this endlessly long flight of stairs!

Ryan and Maamun in front of the statue of Saladin.

After our tour of the castle and delicious dinner, we took a walk around the village of Zuhum.  Ryan did some more running.

I am very grateful that we got to spend the day with a Jordanian family. There really is no better way to experience the culture and life of a country. It's such a gift to us as visitors. It seems likely that we'll be able to visit this family again if we wind up spending the next month in Jordan. Next time we'll be visiting hot springs!