#aqaba red sea

[wonderstravelandtourism]

Aqaba, Jordan: A Perfect Blend of Beach Bliss and Adventure

Nestled on the shores of the captivating Red Sea Aqaba, Jordan, beckons families and adventurers alike for an unforgettable escape.  As of 2023, Aqaba continues to be a top tourist destination, lauded for its dazzling beaches, vibrant coral reefs, and warm hospitality.

Immerse Yourself in Aquatic Adventures

Aqaba's pristine coastline boasts vast stretches of white sand, ideal for soaking up the sun. The city's true magic lies beneath the waves. Renowned for its exceptional diving sites, Aqaba offers encounters with historical shipwrecks, submerged tanks, and the enthralling Japanese Garden, teeming with an abundance of marine life.  With consistently warm, shallow waters, Aqaba is also a haven for snorkelers, inviting exploration of the Red Sea's diverse coral reefs and colorful fish.

Embrace Thrilling Watersports

For those seeking an adrenaline rush, Aqaba offers a thrilling array of water sports.  Test your skills with kite surfing, a sport that has grown significantly in popularity in Aqaba.  Carve through the waves with wakeboarding or water skiing, or embark on a glass-bottom boat tour for a mesmerizing glimpse into the underwater world.

Beyond the Beach: Unveiling Aqaba's Hidden Gems

While Aqaba's beaches and water activities are undeniably captivating, the city unveils a treasure trove of experiences beyond the coastline.  Venture into the desert for an exhilarating quad bike adventure across Aqaba's ever-changing sand dunes. Delve into the city's rich history at the Aqaba Castle and Archaeological Museum, or visit the Aqaba Bird Observatory, a haven for birdwatchers. Savor the essence of Aqaba by indulging in traditional Jordanian cuisine, including the famed Sayadieh fish. Explore the city's vibrant street market, brimming with local handicrafts and delectable food options.

Plan Your Dream Aqaba Escape with Wonders Travel and Tourism

Ready to craft your unforgettable Aqaba adventure? Let Wonders Travel and Tourism be your guide.  Our expert travel planners possess an intimate knowledge of Aqaba and its hidden gems.  Check the latest weather forecast for Aqaba Jordan to ensure you pack perfectly for your trip.  Contact Wonders Travel and Tourism today to start planning your dream Aqaba escape!

[rabbitcruiser]

World War I: Arabian troops led by T. E. Lawrence (“Lawrence of Arabia”) and Auda ibu Tayi captured Aqaba from the Ottoman Empire during the Arab Revolt on July 6, 1917.  

[sitting-on-me-bum]

Marine scientists have discovered corals in the Gulf of Aqaba in the northern Red Sea can survive temperature increases of even 7C (12.6F). ‘This is the only coral reef ecosystem that has a chance to withstand the 2-3C of extra heat that we’ll now unavoidably have by the end of the century,’ said Anders Meibom, of Lausanne University’s Institute of Earth Sciences. Scientists are now studying how this discovery could help other coral reefs.

Photograph: Charles Stirling/Alamy

[johnlatter]

What if the Israeli military boot was on the other foot? 1/2

What if it was Hamas who had the manpower and resources to invade Israel instead of it being the other way around?

Being murdered and dying as a result of military action (bombing, combat, etc.) are different. 

If Hamas had the upper military hand, then as the accompanying AI artwork suggests, the Red Sea at the Israeli port of Eilat (Gulf of Aqaba) might live up to its name by being full of murdered and mutilated Jews, the surrounding water coloured by their blood. 

The reason for making such a dramatic image is to highlight the fact that the  atrocities Hamas indulged in on the 7th of October, 2023 are a function of an acquired and deliberately corrupted psychological history and not of natural inheritance. 

They have become unnatural hybrid human beings who are now effectively "Human In Shape Only" (HISO), a product of the Palestine culture in the Gaza Strip.

How did this internal change occur?

The fact that both human beings and horses can have their spirit broken (the archeotrauma, alt. archaeotrauma) is a first indication of when this wound appeared in the evolutionary timeline. Consequently, this specific psychological trauma has always been a factor in human societies and has been, and still is, often mistaken for a god. Break a child, subject it to years of relentless and repetitive religious indoctrination that generates layers of repression, and the resultant compounded wound can be corrupted into an internal god of violence with a halo of righteousness that is capable of any type of atrocity.

At the time of writing, it is Hamas' sexual violence (video) that is very much in the news, behaviour of a type that can be found within the artificial structures of human societies but does not exist in the Natural World.

Also see Evolution and Psychology Research.

NB "What if the boot was on the other foot?" is also written, "What if the shoe was on the other foot?"

[jontycrane]

The Red Sea and the Dead Sea

Jordan’s two seas couldn’t be more different. One is full of life and ships with the country’s only port, the other is almost completely devoid of life and the only boats belong to the military. Also only one of them is actually a sea… Jordan’s gateway to the Red Sea is the town of Aqaba, a popular holiday spot for access to the sea, and it has a reputation as a buzzy place. I stopped there for…

[itcamefromnyc]

Crazy experience today crossing the border into Jordan. We arranged for a car service to take us to the border, where we would meet a second car service to take us to Aqaba Jordan. First, our car service ghosted us last night so we had no idea if they were coming to pick us up at 8am. At 8:05 we heard from them that they would be there soon, traffic. We were relieved that we wouldn’t have to figure out the bus. Then getting into the car the driver told us a bomb had gone off at the bus station that morning. Dang, we almost went there!

We drove to the Israeli border crossing in the cab. Cleared the first gate. Then we get dropped at a terminal where we had to wait forever to pay the exit fee, because they demanded cash (no credit, so everyone had to make change) and they also would exchange currency which added 5-10 minutes to every transaction. Then we exit the terminal only to find that we need to board a shuttle to go through a complex series of gates to get to the Jordan side. The driver collected the passports and parked, told us to wait and went into another terminal, this time in Jordan. He came back and told us to head into the terminal where we met our driver who had snatched our passports and had our visa completed. Left hotel at 8:10. Entered border process at 9:30. Out Jordan side of the border at 11:15. Onward to Aqaba! (Nice scenic ride along the Dead Sea down to the Red Sea).

All in all, it was an 8am-4pm excursion where we were rewarded with this view from the room. Most excellent.

[zvaigzdelasas]

Israel's Eilat Port sees 85% drop in activity amid Red Sea Houthi attacks - Reuters

Eilat, which primarily handles car imports and potash exports coming from the Dead Sea, pales in size compared to Israel's Mediterranean ports in Haifa and Ashdod which handle most of the country's trade. But Eilat, which sits adjacent to Jordan's only coastal access point at Aqaba, offers Israel a gateway to the East without the need to navigate the Suez Canal.[...]

Without Bab al-Mandab "you close the main shipping artery to Eilat Port. And therefore we lost 85% of total activity", CEO Gideon Golber told Reuters.[...]

"We still have a small number of ships for exporting potash, but I believe that with a destination in the Far East they will no longer travel in that direction. So that will also go down," Golber said.

"Unfortunately, if it continues we will reach a situation of zero ships in Eilat Port."[...]

"If [...] the coalition countries and Israel lag in finding a solution for the Houthis, unfortunately we will likely have to furlough workers," he said, adding that a small number would be required to service any ships that do arrive.

21 Dec 23

[herpsandbirds]

Phronima, family Phronomidae, order Amphipoda, Gulf of Aqaba, north Red Sea

This is a genus of small deep sea hyperiid amphipod crustaceans.

Phronima rear their young, and sometimes live in, the empty "tunics" of tunicates (sea squirts), which they kill and eat.

They are also known as "pram bugs" and "barrel shrimp".

photograph by Gil Koplovitz

[workersolidarity]

🇮🇶⚔️🇮🇱 🚨

ISLAMIC RESISTANCE IN IRAQ PUBLISHES FOOTAGE FROM DRONE LAUNCHES TOWARDS ISRAELI OCCUPIED PALESTINE

📹 Scenes published by the Islamic Resistance in Iraq during operations on Saturday, April 6th, 2024, launching drones towards the Israeli occupied Umm Rashrash (Eilat) airport in southern tip of the occupied Palestinian territories, on the Gulf of Aqaba in the Red Sea.

#source

@WorkerSolidarityNews

[archiv4l]

I haven't rly seen a lot of ppl on here talk about the Ben Gurion Canal project + its relevance to what's going on in Palestine/Israel rn so I wrote something up abt it

The Ben Gurion Canal project is a proposed canal through occupied Palestine, named after Israel's first Prime Minister. It would connect the Red Sea (the Gulf of Aqaba, more specifically) to the Mediterranean Sea. Currently, the only canal connecting the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea is the Suez Canal. 

Without the Suez Canal, trade ships would have to circle around the entirety of Africa, which is expensive and inefficient. The proposed Ben Gurion Canal would rival the Suez Canal that runs through Egypt. As of the financial year June 30, 2023, Egypt grossed over 9 billion dollars USD annually from the Suez Canal alone.

Historically, the canal was supposed to be accessible to all nations however after the Nakba (mass displacement and massacre of Palestinians in 1948) the Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser shut down the canal and shortly thereafter strategically nationalized the canal so the UK, US, France, etc. no longer held shares and profited off the commissary companies that were running Suez Canal operations. Although the canal is currently accessible due to a Peace Treaty (Camp David 1978), the Suez Canal has long been a source of tension.

The proposed Ben Gurion Canal project currently runs north of Gaza, however the current proposal requires a detour that could be made significantly more efficient if Israel gains control over the Gaza Strip, specifically the northern portion. Do you think it's a coincidence that the Israeli regime is bombing the northern Gaza strip more heavily than the south? I don't, and it's precisely why I think talking about this proposed canal is important - it puts into context the strategic measures Israel is implementing to carry out this genocide.

The Ben Gurion Canal project has many advantages over the Suez Canal - because of its rocky terrain, it can be built larger and deeper than the Suez Canal and would require significantly less maintenance. The larger size of the Ben Gurion canal would also mean that the US could deploy larger modern warships, which is currently impossible as the Suez Canal is too narrow. The Ben Gurion Canal would be projected to gross around 6 billion USD annually, which is significant from both a financial + regional control standpoint.

So ya, while the canal is not the only reason for the current war, thousands of Palestinian lives are being martyred so the West can gain military and financial control in the Middle East + build this canal as efficiently as possible.

[agentfascinateur]

All this...for the planned "Ben Gurion Canal":

Gaza is currently being bombed to oblivion by the deranged Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu who wants to deliver The Ben Gurion Canal Project. Yes, Tel Aviv already has a name for the canal which was first proposed back in the Sixties. It would connect the Gulf of Aqaba on the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea, and would even be named after the first prime minister of Israel.

To be built on the blood sacrifice of Palestinian children...

[rabbitcruiser]

Benches/Chairs (No. 91)

Aqaba, Jordan (five pics)

GTS Celebrity Constellation (five pics)

[ultrajaphunter]

A plan to join the Red Sea with Mediterranean — an alternative to the Suez Canal

Many decades ago, the Americans proposed to use nuclear weapons to blast a waterway through the Negev Desert. But the plan never progressed. This is why it did not — and why there is some talk about the ‘Ben Gurion Canal’ again as Israel pushes to destroy Hamas in Gaza It has been speculated that one of the reasons behind Israel’s desire to  eliminate Hamas from the Gaza Strip and completely control the Palestinian enclave  is to give itself the chance to better explore a dramatic economic opportunity that has been talked about for several decades, but for which peace and political stability in the region is an essential prerequisite. The idea is to cut a canal through the Israeli-controlled Negev Desert from the tip of the Gulf of Aqaba — the eastern arm of the Red Sea that juts into Israel’s southern tip and south-western Jordan — to the Eastern Mediterranean coast, thus creating an alternative to the Egyptian-controlled Suez Canal that starts from the western arm of the Red Sea and passes to the southeastern Mediterranean through the Northern Sinai peninsula.

[tilbageidanmark]

Movies I watched this week (#173):

3 by young Chinese prodigy Gu Xiaogang:

🍿 Even though Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains is his first (and only) feature so far, it feels so mature, as if an old master put it out after a long and successful career.

It's an slow epic saga (2.5 long hours) of a large family struggling during four seasons through life's ups and down in this provincial city. It's a metaphor for a classic scroll painting from the 14 century, and apparently only the first chapter in an upcoming trilogy. A tremendous, slow-moving achievement told in magnificent style, and half a dozen transcendental set pieces. 10/10 - Best experience of the week!

I was steeped in that Chinese mentality and culture, that of practicality, resourcefulness, tradition and hope, for nearly a decade, and I miss it. 💯 score on Rotten Tomatoes.

🍿 The Sail of Cinema (2020), a beautiful mood piece which can be used as a perfect introduction to his work. Bonus points for use of 'Moonlight Sonata'. 10/10.

🍿 As Spring Comes Along (2024), a short art poem about a couple who hasn't seen each other for a long time.

🍿

Menashe (2017) is one of the few films in Yiddish that I've seen (Not too many of them, eh?). A24 indie production from 2017 about a Hasidic widower, struggling to keep his 10-year-old son with him, within the restrictive ultra-orthodox Jewish community in Brooklyn.

I dislike all religions equally (Well, some more than others...) but this is an uncritically and authentic beautiful piece of film making. Especially since the 'hero' is an unlikely ordinary man and he's not going to change. 8/10.

🍿

The Red Sea Makes Me Wanna Cry, my first film from Jordan. An enigmatic, nearly wordless story of a young woman who travels to the desolate outskirts of Aqaba in search of Ismail who had disappeared without explanation. 6/10.

🍿

10 more selections from the US National Film Registry, all seen for the first time:

🍿 Newark Athlete is the earliest film in the collection; a 12 second silent short from 1891, produced at The Edison Studio.

[ Also, The "Phonautograms" recordings by Edouard-Leon Stott de Martinville, the earliest known sound recording from 1853!]

🍿 The Corbett-Fitzsimmons Fight, a 1897 documentary of a championship prizefight boxing match, which took place in Nevada. At over 100 minutes, it was the world's first (and longest) feature film. But only 19 minutes survived today.

🍿 The classic The Great Train Robbery (1903), my first film by Edwin S. Porter, director of over 250 silent films. A "sensationalized Headliner", which included a separate close-up shot of the outlaw leader shooting directly at the camera. My r/todayilearned post: After retiring from the movies, the actor who played the lead robber, (Photo Above) became a milkman. 9/10.

🍿 First viewing of Gone with the wind was not what I expected! I knew it was a bloated confederacy 'Lost Cause' fanfiction and a revisionist myth-making, glorifying slavery and the fantasy of the antebellum South. But I also thought it was the 'greatest love story of all time', and that was harder to get. Scarlett O'Hara grew to become a strong woman with fierce survival skills, but she was so flawed; Vain, selfish, conniving and unscrupulous. Her lover and third husband, Clark Gable, was no hero either. Their tragic on-again off-again love story was a 4 hour long soap opera. The gorgeous cinematography and massive production were breath-taking though. 4/10.

🍿 All the King's Men, a fictionalized and badly-dramatized story about the corruption of power. A veiled story about populist Louisiana governor Huey Long, how he rose from humble ideological beginnings to become a power-hungry despot. 4/10.

My first film by Robert Rossen, who was blacklisted for being a communist sympathizer, but who later "named" 57 of his friends to Joseph McCarthy's HUAC. I need to watch 'The Hustler'!

🍿 "There are plenty of warm rolls in the bakery; stop pressing your nose against the window!"

Pillow Talk, a frothy romantic comedy with Rock Hudson and Doris Day. A charming story about two neighbors who have to share a party-line, a phone technology that is now all but forgotten. Like Ted Gioia, I love Doris Day's jazz singing, so in spite of the out-dated genre politics, I found this light-hearted movie lovely and enjoyable.

🍿 Saul Bass was world-famous for his astounding graphic designs and inventive title sequences. But he also directed a few films, one of which, Why Man Creates, won the 1968 Oscar for Short Documentary. It's a whimsical plaything, with Bass's geometrical genius and good-nature foolery on display. Strong whiff of Terry Gilliam wildness and style. George Lucas was an un-credited second unit cameramen on the film. 🍿 Quasi at the Quackadero, a home-made 'Yellow submarine' inspired psychedelic short, about 2 ducks and a robot at an amusement park. Made by a 'Sesame Street' animator, it's like Max Fleischer on acid. M'eh. [*Female Director*].

🍿 Before Stonewell, an informative 1994 documentary about how gay people existed before the Stonewall riots. Fascinating, even if you knew much of it. Oppression, hatred, uprising. [*Female Director*].

🍿 Scratch and Crow was a symbolic, non-narrative word-less art-short by an indie artist, Helen Hill, who was murdered at 36 in New Orleans. [*Female Director*].

🍿

4 Documentaries:

🍿 City of Gold, my first atmospheric documentary by Canadian Colin Low. A pleasant nostalgic trip back to the small Yukon town of Dawson City, which for one summer in 1895 was the center of the Klondike Gold Rush. Its slow panning style, overlapped with soothing narration, inspired Ken Burns to develop his famous 'Ken Burns Effect'. Winner of the 1957 Cannes Festival, and nominated for an Oscar. 9/10.

🍿 A day in Tokyo was created in 1968 by the Japan National Tourism Organization to promote tourism in the rebuilt city. It captured the time, 23 years after it's destruction, when it was ready to take its place as the primer metropolis of the world. It tells of its history from the Edo period until then, (but it doesn't mention the war).

🍿 "He articulated what the rest of us wanted to say, but couldn't say..."

When Martin Scorsese kicks the bucket, sometime in the near future, his obituaries will lead with 'Taxi Driver' and 'Raging Bull'. But besides his 27 features, his World Cinema Project, acting in commercials, producing, etc, he also directed 17 documentaries, including 5 excellent music docs, all about "our" sounds and times, and "our" heroes.

No direction home: Bob Dylan (2005) is centered on a lengthy interview Scorsese did with the 'bard' about his early years, leading up to his 1966 bike accident. Re-Watch ♻️. Here's my 2003 "Grow-a-brain" Bob Dylan link-blog.

🍿 Related: Joan Baez: I am a noise is her recent biography, embarking on her career-ending tour at 79, while reflecting back to a full life of peaks and traumas. I loved her music deeply all my life (her, as well as her beautiful sister Mimi!), and she always meant so much to me.

And of course, I will always remember the time on June 11, 1984, when I met her walking down the street, and she kissed me on the mouth... [*Female Director*].

🍿

"Would you like to come in for a cup of tea - or perhaps something stronger?..."

Return to Glennascaul (1951) is a spooky Irish ghost story, framed and narrated by Orson Welles, as he picks up a stranded motorist on a dark and (not) stormy night on his way to Dublin...

🍿

Re-watch: Laurel and Hardy classic The Music Box, (1932). These two numbskulls never learn. 9/10. ♻️

🍿

2 by Argentinian Mario Soffici:

🍿 Italian-born Soffici directed some of the highest rated Argentinian films of the classic era.

His Rosaura at 10 O'Clock (1958) is a strange crime drama with a story that changes so much, that it's hard to know what is true and what fiction. It takes place at a boarding house, where a shy painter starts getting perfumed love letters, and the nosy owner who meddles in his affairs. It turn out to be nearly like 'Rashomon', where everybody has their own story. There's one violent scene where a pimp beats up a woman brutally and unexpectedly.

🍿 For many decades, Prisoners of the Land (1939) was considered as the "Greatest Argentinian movie". It's a tragic revenge story about peasants fighting a cruel plantation owner in the jungles of 1915, a drunk doctor and his beautiful daughter. Very John Huston and South American Herzog-like in sweaty, feudal nightmares of whip lashing and booze.

🍿

Another film from Argentina, Viruta, is a high-production home movie made by a woman named Otilia Shifres. Her grandparents emigrated to Buenos Aires from Grodno, a small town in Poland, at the turn of the 20th century. In the film she searches for and constructs a family tree of the relatives that were left behind, going all the way to 1770. It's impressively slick for an amateur feature-length project.

The only reason I came across this personal documentary is because my own father, Eli, (who died in 2016 in Israel at the age of 90) is one of the relatives whom she discovers, and my two sisters even make an appearance in the film (at 56:00) telling her about our side of the family! [*Female Director*].

🍿

"Why don't you study a blank piece of paper for a while, and improve your mind?..."

Ready, willing and able (1937), a second-rate Broadway-style song-and dance musical, trying to emulate the finesse of better talents (like Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers). But this un-charismatic movie is the one which introduced the Johnny Mercer song 'Too Marvelous for Words', and it ended with The fantastic Typewriter Dance, an over-the-top Busby Berkeley style number.

🍿

Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa (2013), my first film with the cringey wanker character of Alan Partridge. It opens with the Philip Glass Koyaanisqatsi theme, which was nice, but the pompous, misogynistic radio host asshole didn't resonate with me. 3/10.

🍿

Throw-back to the Adora Art project:  

Adora as Bob Dylan and with Suze Rotolo.

Adora with my sister, Dafna.

🍿  

(My complete movie list is here)

[lookategypttrips]

The Ultimate Guide to Luxury Beach Destinations in the Middle East

The Middle East offers some of the world's most luxurious beach destinations, combining stunning natural beauty with first-class service and accommodations. From the tranquil waters of the UAE's coastline to the historic shores of Jordan's Aqaba, there's no shortage of premium options. Among these, Sharm el Sheikh in Egypt stands out as a pinnacle of luxury beach holidays.

Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt: A Sanctuary of Luxury

Nestled at the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula, Sharm el Sheikh is a destination synonymous with luxury. Known for its sheltered sandy beaches, clear waters, and vibrant coral reefs, it offers a perfect blend of relaxation and adventure. The area is renowned for its world-class resorts, spas, and golf courses, where service and elegance meet the serenity of the Red Sea. Those seeking a truly opulent experience can find detailed recommendations and exclusive offers at Luxury holidays Sharm el Sheikh Egypt.

Dubai, UAE: Opulence on Every Shore

Dubai is well-known for its architectural wonders and extravagant lifestyle. Its beaches, such as JBR and Kite Beach, offer luxurious beach club facilities where visitors can sunbathe, swim, and even ski on artificial waves. The city’s coastal hotels are among the most lavish in the world, providing guests with unmatched views, private beaches, and sumptuous dining options.

Aqaba, Jordan: Historical Luxury

Aqaba offers a unique blend of history and luxury. This Jordanian city not only provides access to the beautiful Red Sea but also serves as a gateway to the ancient city of Petra. Luxury resorts in Aqaba cater to those who appreciate both modern comforts and the allure of ancient civilizations, offering guided tours, diving excursions, and exclusive waterfront relaxation.

Muscat, Oman: Tranquil and Traditional

Muscat, with its dramatic mountain backdrop and clear blue waters, offers a more tranquil approach to luxury. The city's resorts emphasize traditional Omani hospitality and feature architectural elements that reflect the region’s cultural heritage. Muscat is ideal for those who want to unwind in a setting that feels secluded and steeped in tradition.

Travelers seeking luxury beach holidays in the Middle East have several enticing options, but Sharm el Sheikh remains a jewel in the region’s crown. Its blend of natural beauty, high-end accommodations, and commitment to service makes it an ideal destination for those looking to indulge in a luxury beach holiday.

[lonestarflight]

"View of the Columbia's aft section while over the Mediterranean Sea.

This southerly looking view photographed from the orbiting Space Shuttle Columbia shows a small portion of the vehichle's aft section. The 50-ft Canadian built remote manipulator system (RMS) is in a resting posture (lower right corner) stretched out along the 60-ft. long cargo bay. Many of the components of the OSS-1 payload package are in the bottom center. The Mediterranean Sea is at right foreground. Parts of the Sinai peninsula, Israel, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Palestine, Syria, and Lebanon can be located in the photo. The Red Sea, Gulf of Aqaba, Suez Canal are near the photo's horizon."

Date: March 22-30, 1982

NASA ID: S82-28920