The first glimpse of Petra. This spectacular ancient city was carved into the standstone walls of a canyon in Jordan's Araba valley by the Nabataeans, who used Petra's location to control trade routes in the region. Today visitors approach the site through the Siq, or Shaft, a narrow gorge that opens dramatically onto the Theatre, Petra's most dramatic ruin.  

The setting sun glows on a tomb carved into the sandstone of Jordan's Petra  

The Gulf of Aqaba, which opens onto the Red Sea and is bordered by Jordan, Egypt, Israel, and Saudi Arabia, has been a hub of international commerce for thousands of years. The Jordanian city of Aqaba is the nation's only seaport and was famously taken from the Ottomans during World War I by Arab forces under the command of T.E. Lawrence, aka Lawrence of Arabia.  

Clusters of houses in Jordan's capital Amman. Amman, which sprawls over 19 hills, is Jordan's largest city and its cultural and commercial center and is one of the oldest continuously occupied cities in the world.  

Arabic headscarves, known as hijab, for sale in a shop in Amman  

The alien landscape of Jordan's Wadi Rum, also known as the Valley of the Moon  

Desert verdure in Jordan's Wadi Rum  

Taking it easy—Jordanian women relaxing by the Gulf of Aqaba  

An ancient amphitheater in Amman  

The black-and-white-striped exterior of Amman's Abu Darweesh Mosque is unique among Middle Eastern mosques.