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Amman, the capital of Jordan, is a fascinating city of contrasts – a unique blend of old and new, ideally situated on a hilly area between the desert and the fertile Jordan Valley.
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The Temple of Hercules.
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In the commercial heart of the city, ultra-modern buildings, hotels, smart restaurants, art galleries and boutiques rub shoulders comfortably with traditional coffee shops and tiny artisan’s workshops. Everywhere there is evidence of the city’s much older past.
Due to the city’s modern-day prosperity and temperate climate, almost half of Jordan’s population is concentrated in the Amman area. The residential suburbs consist of mainly tree-lined street and avenues flanked by elegant, almost uniformly white houses, in accordance with a municipal law, which states that all buildings must be faced with local stone.
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Many taxis in Amman do not have meters, the fare is usually negotiated between the passenger and the driver upon arrival at the destination. Taxi drivers do not usually have much change on them, so it is a good idea to make sure you have a selection of smaller bills when travelling by taxi. |
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Downtown Amman from the Citadel.
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The downtown area is much older and more traditional with smaller businesses producing and selling everything from fabulous jewellery to everyday household items.
The people of Amman are multi-cultural, multi-denominational, well educated and extremely hospitable. They welcome visitors and take pride in showing them around their fascinating and vibrant city.
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In Graeco-Roman times, Amman was known as Philadelphia, it was named after the Roman emperor Philadelphus. Prior to that it was known as Rabbath-Ammon.
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Amman consists of an old and more traditional part called "City Centre" or "Downtown" (in Arabic 'Balad'), and a modern more vibrant western style "West Amman".
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Amman is one of the oldest continuously occupied cities in the world.
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The Jordan Archeological Museum boasts an excellent collection of antiquities ranging from prehistoric times to the 15th century, including an exhibit of the Dead Sea Scrolls and four Iron Age anthropo-morphic coffins.
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