For our third and final day of Petra, we planned a hike to the monastery. We started very early, just after dawn. This turned out to be a great move, as there were practically no tourists ahead of us.

We were able to once again enjoy the views and take photos of just us, the beautiful nature, and the monuments. The route led through the Al-Siq gorge again, towards the Pharaoh's tomb, but this time we made it quite quickly, without any major stops.

We decided to dedicate this day to visiting the Monastery. Ad-Deir, literally meaning "Monastery" in Arabic, is a massive structure carved into the sandstone rock, located on a vast plateau with picturesque views right at the foot of the mountain.

To reach this majestic structure, you have to climb several hundred steps, which are often just ordinary rocks, slippery and dangerous. You need proper hiking shoes, but we also encountered people wearing flip-flops.

The ascent took about an hour and was just as grueling as the first day's. As we reached the top, a gigantic monastery, much larger than the Pharaoh's treasury carved into the rock, came into view. There were only a handful of people near the monastery itself, which made us very happy.

But that wasn't the only attraction of this place. Not everyone knew about it, and after seeing the monastery, they immediately headed back.

At the very top, there are viewpoints that, while requiring further effort and climbing, more than compensate for the sacrifice.

The breathtaking views were incredible, and the space and tranquility around were almost painful to the ears. I'll never forget it, and I have many photos and videos from this place.

As it turned out, this supposed hike lasted five hours, and we covered another 24 km in the heat. But that was not the end of the journey, because after a quick swim and a snack, we had to drive to Aqaba to make it before sunset, or rather, to catch the sunset we wanted to see over the Red Sea.