Det Døde Hav

At 9 am we were ready to head north to the Dead Sea. It is located about 240 km north of Aqaba and 408 meters below sea level. The sea or lake is 65 km long. Parts of the border between Israel and Jordan run right through the Dead Sea. We drove along the Dead Sea Highway, which provided beautiful views of Israel's many mountains and the last stretch, we had the best view of the Dead Sea. The Dead Sea is the world's lowest lake with a salinity that fluctuates around 31.5% - or nine times as much as the Mediterranean's 3.5%. Due to the high salt content, there is no life in the water. According to the weather forecast, it was supposed to be 21 degrees at the Dead Sea today, but the closer we got, the hotter it got. We had told ourselves that no matter how cold it was, we were going to float in the salty water. We had no problem keeping that promise. It was 26 degrees, so it was a pleasure to jump into the sea. There is a Muslim holiday this week, so prices have gone up. Again, you can choose to use the public beach or the fine resorts, which are perfectly located on the edge of the Dead Sea. We chose Mövenpick again. Here it feels safer to park the car, and you don't have to be the only ones wearing "swimwear" :o) Entrees cost 40 dinars per person, of which you can eat for 20 dinars. Mövenpick is a huge resort. There is a free juice bar upstairs in the reception. Several pools to choose from. The infinity pool is adults only - so the silence is fabulous. Jump into the Dead Sea, then cover your body in mud, let it dry for 15 minutes, then jump back into the salty water. Finally, you rinse clean under the shower. It's delicious. The skin is completely soft afterwards :o) Remember to avoid getting the salty water in your mouth and eyes - you'll regret it immediately. It's also not a good idea to shave the day before swimming in the Dead Sea :o) Due to the high prices, at the end of the day we drove to the capital, Amman, which is about 30 km away. We didn't get there during daylight hours, so tackling the inventive Arabian driving was even more of a challenge.