Jordan must have a very strong taxi drivers lobby, because its public transportation system and private bus routes leave much to be desired. Following Lonely Planet's suggestion, I begrudgingly dug into my wallet (or money belt, as it were) and visited Jordan's northern ruins on an organized tour with two lovely ladies from my hostel. First up was the black stone Roman ruin of Umm Qais, an ancient city that overlooks Jordan's current border with Syria and Israel's Golan Heights. The sun was harsh, the ruins were minimally restored and flocks of rowdy, rude, camera-wielding schoolboys (you can't even imagine what their English vocabulary consists of!!)drove us out of the site within an hour. So, we drove on to the Ajlun Castle, an impressive hilltop fortress with sweeping views of the orcharded countryside. While I'm not a warfare enthusiast by any stretch, I did find the castle's defense system quite intriguing: slits in the thick outer walls for bow-and-arrow sniping, a moat (of course), plus large stone balls and oil-filled iron cauldrons (for those who advanced beyond the first 2 defenses). We then rushed on to Jerash, a well restored city, complete with several temples, column-lined streets, sporting venues (hippodrome, anyone?), and amphitheaters.
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