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Petra - Jordan

Petra was the capital city of the Nabataean kingdom from around the 6th century BC.  The Nabataeans were masters of water and build an elaborate systems for capturing the rain water through channels and cisterns. The Romans defeated the Nabateans in 106 CE and Petra became part of the Roman province of Arabia. It was an important center for trade and commerce and after Saladin’s conquest of the Middle East in 1189, Petra was abandoned and lost to history.  In 1812, Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig, disguised as an Arab rediscovered the “Lost City”,  The city was not lost, it was home to the Bedouins.  When the site became a UNESCO site in 1972, the Bedouins were forced to evacuate the site and relocate to the village created for them. Many of the people lived in the caves and rock hewn caves for generations and still camp out in the site today.  One of the conditions of the relocation was granting the Bedouins exclusive concession rights.  






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Location: Jordan

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