Hooray for Petra

And the winner is.... Petra!

On 07/07/07, the results of a global balloting voted Petra, the ancient Nabatean ruins in Jordan, as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.

Petra?

Immortalized in popular culture by the English Orientalist painter David Roberts and more recently Indiana Jones (The Last Crusade), it's certainly an interesting archeological site and tourist attraction, a must-stop for visitors to the Middle East. One of the coolest things about it is the approach: you wander along a deep crevice cut in the limestone, on camel or horseback if you like, until the breathtaking sight of the Pharaoh's Treasury suddenly emerges in a bright opening at the end. The Treasury, which has adorned many a postcard from Jordan, is the striking pink facade with Corinthian-like columns that was carved out of the side of a cliff.

Jordanian schoolgirls in El Siq, the famous pathway into Petra

Yet, this beats out others among the 21 finalists, including the Giza Pyramids of Egypt, the Acropolis in Greece and France's iconic Eiffel Tower, considered by many architects to be the most beautiful man-made structure of the industrial era? Petra didn't make the list of the original Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, yet the Pyramids did. Egypt's incredibly rich pharaonic civilization contrasts with the Nabateans, who thrived by "protecting" the caravans passing east and west. The inhabitants of Petra didn't leave many artifacts or much written text explaining who they were. The settlement went completely bust during Roman times, apparently because an earthquake destroyed its unique water-carrying system. It was hardly heard of again until 1912, when the Swiss explorer John Burckhardt rediscovered the place and wrote a book about it. Historians are still arguing over when and why the Treasury, Petra's premier attraction, was built. When I first visited Petra in 1983, it wasn't much of a tourist site. You had to take a rickety 7 a.m. Jett bus from Amman, ride five hours or so south on a two-lane road and stay at the dodgy Rest House at the entrance. A 160-page book on Jordan given to me at the time by the Ministry of Information devoted all of four paragraphs to Petra's wonders. Bedouin were still living in Petra's tombs.

Souvenir stand outside the Pharaoh's Treasury, Petra

Over the years, huge efforts transformed Petra into a substantial tourist business and great tourist experience. Petra won the prize because King Abdullah II's government in a partnership with the country's business community seized the opportunity provided by the gimmicky New Seven Wonders contest to go out and sell Petra and Jordan. A blizzard of billboards, TV spots and phone text messages urged citizens to vote online or by text message, and 2 million people, equivalent to a third of the population, did. Jordanians created web sites, held marches, ran a motorcycle race and even sponsored a Miss Petra beauty pageant. Tourists arriving at the airport were asked to cast a vote for Petra. Foreign media responded with coverage of Jordan's efforts. In short, Jordanians had a good time with it, and generated a lot of national pride and international attention. In contrast, the Egyptians sneered at the contest from the start and refused to cooperate with it. After that, to avoid embarrassment all around, the contest promoters gave the Pyramids "special status as an honorary candidate" considering that it was the only remaining original Wonder still in existence. Fearing a slight if the Pyramids didn't win, or perhaps not wanting to promote the concept of voting, the Egyptians missed a chance to enjoy touting their heritage.

So congrats to Jordan, for putting Petra on the map, and for having some fun in the process.

--By Scott MacLeod/Cairo