Pool and Dead Sea in the background
Heading of
to go "swimming" in the Dead Sea
this morning. I new it is the lowest point on earth and the salt content of the
water is several times the salt content in any ocean. I had read up on it a bit
the day before and seen the warnings not to shave - I did not really understand
that one given you are supposed to keep your head above water. There were also
warnings about how painful it would be to go into the water if you had any cuts
on your skin - in the morning I did a quick little check just to see what my
hands, feets and legs looked like after travelling for a while. What I saw were
not all that promising there were several cuts and bruises they were not open
anymore but still - looked forward to a possibly painful encounter with the Dead Sea.
Well it was
of to drive down hill towards the Dead Sea -
on the road there was a marker telling you know you pass sea level - but the
drive continued downhill the decent didn't even decrease.
The Dead Sea from Amman Beach
Finally at the Dead
Sea at Amman
Beach the place to go if you dont want to be overcharged in admission fees. There
is still a entrance fee of one Jordanian or something like that but affordable
compared to other places.
I would not
take the change to jump right in the water first a change of close and then a sunscreen.
Apparently you can get fried in a matter of minutes because of a combination of
being so low, the salt in the water and the sun reflecting on the water. Well
prepared of to a swim - I thought.
I started
walking out and fortunately all the old cuts I had on my feets did not cause
any problems at all. I walked further out towards the deeper water - and then I
could not touch the ground anymore.
The Dead Sea from the road - could only take pictures when there is no military checkpoints
But the water only got halfway up my chest
- the salinity of the water kept me so buoyant that about 30 percent of my body
stayed out of the water.
Well my
feet cant touch the ground hence I should try to swim a bit. I mean I do no how
to swim so I should not have any problems swimming in the Dead
Sea. Well wrong again. Swimming is virtually impossible. I try to
get my feets in the water they dont want to comply they want to stay above the
water - ok lets try the arms but no dripping salt into my eyes. It sort of
works I do manage to produce a bit of forward speed - of course a 13 month old
baby would be able to walk faster across a living room floor falling every four
steps but still I do go forward.
I give up
on the swimming and settle with just moving around in odd ways in the water -
but there is a strange feeling approaching.
The Dead Sea the white stuf is salt
All the guide book tells you not to
get the water from the Dead Sea in your eyes,
dont try to drink the water and be careful with open wounds and shaving. But
there is one body opening they seem to have overlooked. The words ring of fire
comes to mind. My frequent emergency visits to the bathroom the night before
probably didn't help the situation at all. I decide it is time to get out of
the water and get a shower to get rid of all the salt.
The rest of
the stay will be spent in the pleasant pool - with nice fresh water.
But I
realize I am out of water. I had stocked up a bit on water from Syrian to get
rid of my last cash but no all of this water is gone. I need to buy my first
bottle of water in Jordan -
at the Dead Sea.
More salt along the cost of the Dead Sea
I go to the shop and he
charge 1 Jordanian. One full Jordanian Dinar about 1.30 US$ I suddenly realize just how expensive Jordan is compared to Syria and I get a bit nervous about
my budget. Going through 2-3 bottles of water a day buying it at these prices
it will get to be a tiny sum of cash in the end. But what can you do expect
paying the man and get the water?
