Jordan: Qasr Al-Kharanah
Qasr Al-Kharanah is one of the isolated and abandoned medieval desert castles/fortresses of the eastern Jordanian desert, relatively close to Saudi Arabia. The castle dates to the 8th century, based on a faint dated Islamic inception on the upper level. Actually, more likely this was a caravanserai or a hotel on a trade route – there are 60 rooms inside with a courtyard in the middle. With square shape and roused towers, this is one of the earliest example of Islamic architecture in the region. We had the castle opened just for us by the locally-residing gatekeeper, who also did the entire tour of the premises and let us explore every level and basement.
