Roman Ruins in Jerash, Jordan

Built around 70 AD, the town of what is now Jerash, Jordan, has many of the expected features of a Roman town. Yet it also includes an unusual oval-shaped piazza—still surrounded by a colonnade of 56 Ionic columns.

As we approached the Hippodrome, a man calling himself Maximus drove up in a chariot and invited us for a ride. We rode around for a couple of minutes but I’m going to spare you the agony of those maximus-touristic photos.

More than 500 columns of the main street, Cardo Maximus (‘main artery’) still exist.

I found the wild pink hollyhocks against the white stones and golden grasses to be irresistible.

We came across a goat herder in the hills above the ruins.

These sparkling grasses were food for the goats:

But they were kept out of the wheat:

Thistles bloomed all over the site.