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We swam at Amman Beach “Number One”, a newish compound to the south of the Dead Sea’s megahotel complexes with some chlorinated water swimming pools to cool off in after swimming in the very warmish Dead Sea. Here there were the obligatory range of beauty products available featuring minerals from the Dead Sea. Personally, I am dubious about the health benefits offered by a body of water which operates as an ancient terminating drain, 400 metres below sea level, fed by the Jordan River in which all manner of dissolved solids have accumulated over time as the water evaporates away in the harsh heat.

To afford these guilty pleasures, we stayed at the Sydney Hostel, where the adequate double room was a meagre 15JD a night. Reasonably close to downtown, this sleepy place wasn’t going to win any prizes but it was definitely cleaner and more amenable than the LP-recommended Cliff Hostel, which we checked into and quickly left after the communal showering facilities did not pass the P-test.