After Petra, Jerash must be the next most popular tourist destination in Jordan. I visited it on a day trip from Madaba, using my rental car to navigate through the busy and seemingly neverending suburbs of Amman.

It's a bit of a mystery why the former Roman city of Jerash (Gerasa) has been left out of the World Heritage List in the early stages. It surely is one of the most complete remains of a Roman (colonial) city that I have seen. And believe me - I have seen many!

Features that stand out here are the oval Forum, the 800m long and very intact (Pompeii-like) Cardo Maximus, and the lovely intimate North Theatre. Hundreds of pillars adorn the Forum, the streets and the temples . They have been put upright during the restorations I guess, and sometimes even pieced together again. The quality and completeness of the constructions and objects is so high that it is sometimes too good to be true. Especially both theatres have been restored almost completely to perfection - I would not be amazed that ICOMOS had something to say about that.

It's a very fine site to visit for a couple of hours, and it would be a worthy WHS. Entrance costs 8 JD (8,80 EUR). The site receives lots of visitors each day, including tour groups from all over the world.