Every once and a while you meet someone really interesting, recently this happened to me on a trip to the southern part of Jordan.
On the flight from London to Cairo aboard a British Airways plane, I was reading the airlines magazine. There was an interesting article about author Marguerite van Geldermalsen, a nurse from New Zealand, who in 1976 made a trip to Jordan with a girlfriend. Marguerite had spent some time in Britian the previous winter and did not enjoy the damp and the gray, so thinking that the Middle East would be warmer she joined her girlfriend for what would be a life changing experience. How would she know that this decision to get out of the cold weather would begin a love affair with a charismatic souvenir-seller in the ancient city of Petra.
As facinating as the article was, I had no idea that within 2 weeks of reading it, I would meet this amazing woman only a few hundred yards from the cave where she and Mohammad Abdalla Orthman raised their 3 children. In retrospect I really wish I had read Married to a Bedouin before I traveled to Jordan, as I would have had a better understanding of the site and the people.
To enter Petra you have to travel the 2 km down the narrow passageways of the sandstone cliffs called the Siq, then you see, through a sliver of light, the Treasury, probably the most famous of the Petra sights. Through this opening and on the steps of the Treasury is where Mohammad met Marguerite, it’s also the place where our guide told us that he knew Margurite, and that she just might be in Petra on the day of our visit. Nedal would make a phone call to see if she was available. Ok I thought this could be a interesting addition to our visit. A more modern view of this area of Jordan first settled by the Nabataeans in the 6th century BC.
Marguerite was very gracious when we met her. She autographed each book and answered our questions. Someone mentioned to her about the magazine article we had read in British Airways magazine. She said that there had been some travel writers who had visited with her a few months prior, and that she never really got to see many of the articles written about her. Upon hearing her comment I made a mental note to take the complimentary copy of the magazine on our flight home, with the intent of contacting Marguerite and sending her the article.The book was such a fascinating read. Not just the personal story of Margurite and her family, but the way of life of the Bedouin people, the customs and traditions relative to marriages and weddings, social activities, her work in the clinic, friendships, and family relationships. I had the book finished before I got to London. When I got home I e-mailed Marguerite to ask permission to post her photo on this blog, and in a few days came the reply. She has a dry sense of humor and I thank her for her candid response to my e-mails.
Married to a Bedouin by Marguerite van Geldermalsen was first published in 2006. This is a love story pure and simple! What other reason would a perfectly sane, educated, well traveled woman live and raise 3 children in a 2000 year old cave, with no running water or electricity.Today Marguerite lives in Petra, and would welcome travelers to visit her. She will take you on a personal tour of her “cave” and other activities. For more information please contact Marguerite directly at: http://www.marriedtoabedouin.com/
