Explore Jordan

Wadi Rum is the name given to a valley cut into the sandstone and hard rock in southwest Jordan.__________(46) The name Rum most likely comes from an Aramaic word meaning "high" or "elevated". The area around Wadi Rum is now also one of Jordan's most important tourist destinations, and attracts an increasing number of foreign tourists, particularly trekkers (越野者) ,but also for camel safaris ( 旅行 ) or simply day-trippers from Aqaba or Petra. In contrast, there are almost no local or Arab tourists, through Disi attracts young people from Amman at the weekends.

Popular activities in the desert environment include camping under the stars, riding Arab horses, and rock-climbing amongst the massive rock formations. Jebal Rum (Jebal means"mountain" ) is 1,574 meters above sea level. __________ (47).

But Jordan is not simply a desert environment--it also contains the area which is the lowest point to the face of the Earth--the incredible Dead Sea, popular with tourists for swimming. __________ (48) Once the waters reach the Dead Sea, they are landlocked and have nowhere to go, so they evaporate, leaving behind a dense,, rich cocktail ( 混合的 ) of salts and minerals that supply industry, agriculture and medicine with some of its finest products.

Once again, tourists benefit and can participate in water spa treatments and water therapies.

The Dead Sea is located in the Syro-African Rift, a 4,000-mile fault line in the Earth's crust. The lowest point of dry land on Earth is the shoreline of the Dead Sea at 1,300 feet below sea level. Because the lake is at the lowest point, this means that water does not drain from it. __________(49) Figures for the Dead Sea's salinity ( 盐度 ) today range from 25% to35%.

But the greatest tourist attraction is the incredible city of Petra.__________(50) It is a vast,unique city, carved into the sheer rock face by the Nabataeans, an industrious Arab people who settled here more than 2,000 years ago, turning it into an important junction for the silk, spice and other trade routes that linked China India and southern Arabia with Egypt, Syria, Greece and Rome.

Today, visitors can marvel at the architecture and explore life as it was thousands of years ago.

A. It is the second highest peak in Jordan, rising directly above the Rum valley opposite Jebal Umlshrin.

B. This vast stretch of water receives a number of incoming rivers, including the River Jordan.

C. This area has been used as a background setting in a number of films.

D. It is the largest wadi (river bed) in Jordan.

E. Every day seven million tons of water evaporate from the lake, but the minerals remain,causing the salt content to increase.

F. It is without doubt Jordan's most valuable treasure.