Summer Respite in Amman

The weather in Jordan is, as usual, lovely. My only regret is that I'm here to work, sans Sarah, and not indulging my favourite summer pastime driving together around the deep countryside and marvelling at the many things Jordan presents to delight the curious visitor off the beaten tourist trails.

It's busy: Petra making it to number two spot in the New Seven Wonders of the World list has apparently already had a positive impact on tourism. It's amazing how the Middle East can bounce back: less than two years ago I was here commiserating with friends and staying in an empty Grand Hyatt, its lobby boarded up after the bombings the week before. I had flown in principally because we were supporting an art exhibition, called 'Into The Light', an exhibition by a number of Jordanian artists protesting the bombing. Now the tourists are flocking to the Second Wonder of the World again.

Which is nice for people here - although visiting Petra when you have the place entirely to yourself, as we did during the US invasion of Iraq, is an amazing experience that the teeming hordes will miss...