Petra's lower city, which you access via the narrow gorge of the Siq, is gradually being revived thanks to the efforts of archaeologists. Visitors should imagine a Hellenistic-style settlement with markets, baths, temples and villas. The Nabataeans did not live in the rock-hewn monuments, which were used solely as tombs or places of worship. The streets of Petra were inhabited by a heterogeneous population, augmented by traders arrived from all over the world.