A Room with a View

It isn’t that our stay here at the resort on the Red Sea is like I imagined it would be. It isn’t at all. I thought that I would be snorkeling, hanging at the beach for a while, then rinsing off in the pool perhaps. I also never thought that I would be in a suite with an incredible balcony! Yet here we are. The sea (which is a gorgeous shade of blue and not red at all) is too rough and a little too cold. But I did get some pool time in, and you just  can’t beat the view from this balcony. We have been acutely aware on this trip that we aren’t as young as we used to be, and both of us having been sick the two weeks before we left has affected our stamina. So, we are glad that we built in this relaxing break, and in the long run it doesn’t matter at all if I never snorkel the Red Sea.

 Sunday 10/14/18 Citadel Azur, Sahl Hashish Rd Hurghada 

What Did I Get Us into This Time?

The best news is— I have my iPad back! Thanks entirely to Hazem Khalaf, our awesome guide from last week when we first arrived in Cairo. We returned to Cairo last night to catch our flight to Amman early this morning. As instructed by the other Cairo hotel where I left the iPad, as soon as we checked in to the hotel at the airport, I tried to call to arrange a delivery. Since I had no luck being understood, the desk clerk took over and tried to help. He couldn’t reach anyone who knew anything about it. And that’s when I got a message from Hazem wishing us well and telling us if we ever needed anything from Egypt... I messaged him right back and told him what was happening. He got on the phone, located the iPad, and told us how to retrieve it because the other hotel would not release it to him without written consent from me.

And that’s how we took a very scary and wild ride through Cairo at night, stopped at a McDonalds on a busy shopping street in Giza, and got our dinner at 10 pm. And that’s the good news!

 Monday.  10/15/18. Le Meridian Cairo Airport

The Bad News and the Good News

For the last couple of days, Brian has had a mild case of what is known, in other parts of the world, as “Montezuma’s Revenge”. Last night it took a real turn for the worse- to the point that he wasn’t sure if he should stay in Cairo and go to a hospital and then come straight home. Ultimately, we decided to come on to Jordan and see a doctor here. And what a good decision that turned out to be. Our driver knew exactly where to take us—the Jordan Hospital and Medical Center, and we were truly impressed. First, we immediately spoke to a triage nurse with excellent English and within a few minutes Brian was taken back to a bed in the ER. Our driver told me that in Jordan, anyone coming into the ER must be seen within 30 minutes. Not only are they speedy, they are thorough. We thought that we could just get a prescription or a shot, but nope. They did a blood test, a sonogram, and they took a stool sample. All ok so they pumped fluids into him via an IV and gave him a couple of prescriptions and we are getting back on schedule. Before they ran the tests, I had to pay the bill, but when we were checking out I got called back to the accounting window. I thought that I needed to pay a bit more, but they were refunding me! That’s never happened before. He is tired and after a drive around town, we opted to check into the hotel and rest this afternoon. It looks like we will be able to proceed as scheduled by tomorrow, so the bad news turns out to be ok after all.

Tuesday 10/16/18. Amman International Hotel

Brief Update from Amman

Since Brian still isn’t 100% and I can’t shake my cough, we opted to cancel our overnight trip to Petra and instead to lounge around Amman for the next couple of days. We think that Brian is improving since his appetite is coming back, and I’m not in need of medical care, but neither of us have any business heading out into the country for what we understand is a rigorous outing. By day after tomorrow we hope to be able to resume our schedule and head on to Israel. 

Wednesday morning 10/17/18. Amman International Hotel

Amman Again

Maybe the worst is over! Brian is feeling great and we are going on to Israel.  Here are a couple of pics from our hotel window. Although this makes Amman look primitive it’s a very modern, clean, and beautiful city.

Thursday 10/18/18 

 

Last day in Jordan

Of course, we can’t stay cooped up in the hotel the whole time we are in Jordan. Our hotel is at the top of a steep hill. Down below is the Jordan University- a huge complex. Yesterday we walked down the hill to have lunch, and then had to choose between KFC, Burger King, McDonalds, Pizza Hut and Papa Johns. After a quick burger we made a stop at the Donut Factory which is really Dunkin Donuts. And then we trudged back up the hill. As I was slowly struggling to make it up the hill a man (maybe a University student) passed us, saw how hard the climb was for me, and turned around. He came back to us just to offer a ride to help me out. We have experienced kindness and hospitality throughout this whole trip. We are constantly being asked where we are from and the response to our answer is always “You are welcome” and “we are glad you came”.

 Today we got a taxi to take us downtown to a shopping area. The driver couldn’t speak English and of course our Arabic consists of three words/phrases. But due to the miracle of Google Translate, Brian was able to converse with the driver and we ended up exactly where we wanted to go.

 While we were walking around, a lady bumped into me and started shouting. At first, I thought she was shouting at me, but it wasn’t me at all. It was another lady, and it quickly escalated to where the first one physically tried to attack the second one. I’m trying to dance out of the way, when the first one snatched up a belt from a street vendor’s table and started flailing away at the other one. All around were a lot of men and a few other women who just watched and laughed.

 After we got out of the way of the fight and did our shopping, we were ready to flag another cab to take us to a restaurant that I had picked out. We had just pulled out our phone, so we could show the driver when a man crossed the street to ask us if we needed a cab. We told him yes and showed him where we wanted to go. He took us across the street to his car, which wasn’t a regular taxi. We looked at each other, and then got in. I was thinking that the guy wasn’t all that big and that between the two of us, we could take him.

 As it turned out, he is a tour guide, trying to earn some money. And he is a former pro soccer player, so we probably wouldn’t have been able to take him if we had needed to. His English was good, and we really enjoyed talking to him. He didn’t actually know where the restaurant was, but Brian sat in the front and navigated with his phone. We had a great ride and saw some more if the city. When we got to the restaurant, which was an American Pub, and very hard to find, he gave us his name (Maher) and phone number. We called him when we finished, and he picked us up, took us around some different areas, and dropped us off at the hotel.

 We noticed that every time we have been in a taxi (once in Cairo and twice here in Jordan) they have stopped to get petrol. Maher told us that most of the men who pump the gas are Egyptian. In fact, he said that there are over 1/2 million illegal Egyptians here doing menial labor. Here the price of the ride is negotiated before you get in the car. We knew we weren’t being cheated because the charge was the same from both drivers.

The food was excellent at the Pub and we enjoyed talking to a fellow named Amir from Sacramento. He came to Jordan to claim an inheritance and works at the pub for something to do.

So, we didn’t get to Petra, but we did find out what a wonderful and interesting city Amman is, and we are both glad we got to come here. 

Thursday 10/18/18 from the Amman International Hotel

Crossing the Jordan River

Allenby Bridge aka King Hussein Bridge - was nothing like we thought it would be. We expected it to be like crossing the Rio at Matamoros or Nuevo Laredo.

 We left our hotel at 7:30 and arrived at the border station at 8:30. Our guide took our bags to the building where you pay your exit tax and get your paperwork authorizing you to leave Jordan. Passports are left with the Jordanian official and when they are through with you, you get on a big bus and your bags are stowed in the luggage compartment.  You wait on the bus till it’s full. A fellow collects your money for the shuttle tickets. For the two of us and four bags, it cost 17JD. Then a policeman comes on the bus with a stack of all the passports and gives each on back to its owner.

 Once the bus is full, it pulls out and you think the bridge is going to be right there. It’s not. You drive about 5 miles and through two checkpoints. At one of them,  a police officer got on the bus, looked at every single passport and collected the receipt showing that the taxes had been paid. And finally, we get to the bridge. It was so short and so unimpressive that you are over it before you know it. We never got to see the Jordan River.

 You go through another checkpoint and arrive at the Israeli reception center, where bags and people are screened, passports checked, etc. We 

finally get through to the outside and meet our driver. It was 11:30 am. As we headed toward Jerusalem, we noticed how the color of the desert had changed from dark in Egypt, lighter in Jordan, and nearly white in Palestine.  

 And yes, we came in through Palestine, near the city of Jericho. Some pictures that will be coming are some of the many Bedouin camps we passed. And those didn’t look like they do in the movies. 

 Friday afternoon 10/19/18 in Jerusalem

Serendipity in Jerusalem

What a shock! We arrived in Israel to discover that both our tour guide and driver are Christian Palestinians.

 The driver, Hanna (or you can call me John), who looks like Jason Statham, is Greek Orthodox and lives in the Jewish Quarter in the old city. Although he is a Palestinian, because he lives in Jerusalem, he had a choice of getting a Jordanian or an Israeli passport, or just a Palestinian ID. He chose the Israeli passport because, he said, “The other two aren’t worth anything.”

Our guide, Hiam, is a Lutheran and a former social worker. She lives in Beit Jala, a large Palestinian city next to Bethlehem and just a few miles from Jerusalem. Eighty percent of the citizens of Beit Jala are Christian. Because she is a Palestinian, she cannot drive her car outside of Palestine. She must have permission to enter Israel, go through a checkpoint, and travel by bus to come to work in Jerusalem, nine kilometers away. This process takes at least an hour each way. She has no passport because she is stateless and receives none of the governmental services that we take for granted. And, she has no choice. She would not be allowed to move into Jerusalem even if she could afford it or wanted to.

 Because we didn’t come to Israel on any kind of religious pilgrimage the first thing we did was tell her that we had no interest seeing any churches, King David’s Tomb, the room where the last supper was supposed to take place, etc. We wanted to see the wailing wall, Yad Vashem, and visit the souk in old Jerusalem. We told her that we are more interested in current events and more recent history than we are in ancient or biblical history. That’s when she asked us if we were interested in seeing Bethlehem and what life in a Palestinian city is like.

 What an amazing and unexpected opportunity! To start the tour, we went up to the Mount of Olives for a panoramic view of old Jerusalem. We next went to wailing wall. We couldn’t go to the souk because today is Friday, the Muslim Holy Day. So, we headed to the Holocaust Museum at Yad Vashem. But, wouldn’t you know it, they had already closed the History Museum because it’s Friday and the start of the Jewish Sabbath this evening. So, we headed out to Bethlehem and on the way, as we went through Beit Jala, we passed right by Hiam’s home and her church. We invited both to lunch and Hiam took us to eat at a lovely restaurant and hookah bar. This is a restaurant where the natives eat, not tourists. We enjoyed a real Palestinian meal, with shared dishes and lots of interesting conversation.

 After lunch we saw the wall that Israel has erected around the city. Every city in Palestine has a wall around it. And the Palestinian territory has shrunk so much that none of it connects. To go to any other Palestinian territory, they must go through Israel and that means they must get permission. We visited a museum, a monastery, and a refugee camp and saw the Israeli settlements. Every bit was heartbreaking and eyeopening. This is a very complex problem, with no easy or obvious solutions and with plenty of things on each side causing heartache, anger, frustration, and grief.

  I’ve spent most of my life aware of Israeli history and have always been ia big supporter and admirer of Israel. I’ve also always had preconceived and very negative opinions about the Palestinians and the surrounding fellow Arab countries. I asked them why the other Arab nations didn’t provide help and was told that Saudi Arabia had no interest in helping Palestine because of their ties to the USA. I have no idea whether that’s the real reason, but it’s also clear that Egypt and Jordan at least, can’t afford to do all that need to be done.

 There were a few things about the wall that will stick with me forever. First, the graffiti that covers it is overwhelmingly non-violent and even showed a lot of humor. Even the background music at the museum, which is right beside the wall, was the Beatles singing, “All I am saying is give peace a chance”. Another thing that struck me immediately was wondering how Jews, whose people were walled up in ghettos, could do that to anyone else. Surely there must be a better way to a peaceful coexistence. And the third thing that hit me, was how repulsive the wall is and yet that’s what some Americans want to build on our southern border. There must be a better way.

As disturbing as what we saw and learned is, we are most incredibly lucky to have had this one experience.

 Friday 10/19/18 from the St. George Hotel in Jerusalem. 

Masada and the Dead  Sea

 We started the day with a drive through the Judean desert, along the banks of the Dead Sea. The area was surprisingly beautiful, but lonely.  As you drive along the desert, you see before you a very recognizable rock formation-Masada. This National Park was the site of the last stand of the first Jewish rebellion. When it became apparent that the Romans were going to breach the walls, 920 Jews committed suicide.  Remaining in Masada today are the ruins of King Herod’s palace. 

 After we left Masada, we went to a private beach on the banks of the Dead Sea. This facility had shops selling products made from the water and the mud from the Dead Sea. There were snack bars, where we got a hotdog, and changing facilities so you could go in the water.    I went to the trouble of changing into a bathing suit with the thought that I would go for a dip. We started toward the water, and discovered that it was a very, very, very long way down a steep staircase - just to get to the water’s edge. It only took one glance for me to realize that there was no way I would ever get down and back up those stairs.  I also realized that I didn’t mind at all not getting to float in the Dead Sea. 

 Saturday. 10/20/18.  Jerusalem 

The Sea of Galilee

Our final full day in Israel has been spent around the Sea of Galilee, perhaps the loveliest part of Israel.

  We had an appointment for a private tour of Kibbutz Ein Gev where we had a terrific chance to chat with our guide who had been born and raised on this beautiful kibbutz. He was 2 months old when Israel became a nation and was immediately attacked by the surrounding Arab nations. Because this kibbutz lies on the eastern side of the Sea of Galilee and is exactly at the foot of the Golan Heights, the Syrians bombs were trying to destroy the kibbutz. The children were evacuated across the Sea to Tiberius. In 1967, the kibbutz again came under attack, but because of that war, Israel took possession of the Golan Heights bringing security to the region.

We learned the history of this kibbutz, how it functions, and how it has evolved from a total communal society to privatization and capitalism. Their economy is based on a huge dairy industry, banana and date plantations, and a lakeside tourist resort. While we were talking, he freely complained about how the Israeli government hated the kibbutz system and did everything they could to make it hard for the kibbutz. This was particularly interesting because our Palestinian guide was also visiting a kibbutz for the first time and was very surprised to  hear that there are Israelis who don’t like the government for much the same reason the Palestinians don’t.  They still have a communal dining room at the kibbutz, but instead of eating for free, they now pay for their meals. The tour culminated with our joining the kibbutzim for lunch in the dining hall, something that I never thought I would get to do. While we were eating, our guide talked more about his family. We asked if his wife also grew up there. She didn’t and when we asked how they met, he replied, “Through the biggest matchmaker in Israel- the Army. 

After leaving the kibbutz we made a quick stop at a facility where people come from all over to be baptized in the Jordan River, where it flows out of the Sea of Galilee.

 We are spending our last night at a hotel in Tiberius. Shortly after going to bed we heard a lot of noise from outside. It was a fireworks exhibition, but it was easy to imagine that it was still back in the time when bombs were coming in from across the nearby borders.

 Sunday. 10/21/18 The Leonardo da Vinci Hotel Tiberius Israel

Tomorrow, tomorrow, we’ll be home tomorrow - it’s only a day away

The funny thing about a country as small as Israel- rush hour is happening from 8 - 1on every freeway. Some going to Haifa, some to Tel Aviv, others to Jerusalem and we just want to get to the airport. And that’s when it got very interesting.

As we first turned into the airport, we went through a checkpoint- like the entrance to DFW. Only this wasn’t to get a parking ticket. Our driver held out what I think was his driver’s license. The girl kept it and directed him over to a side area for a special security check. This area was filled with  police carrying big automatic weapons. Both our driver and our guide had to produce their papers and answer a bunch of questions. Then we had to turn over our passports. We were asked how long we had been in Israel, where had we gone. And then he said, in a negative tone, “you hired these people?” I wanted to get a picture of the whole process, but I’m certain I would no longer have this phone if I had. I was able to quickly snap one picture when our luggage was being checked.

 We were ultimately cleared to proceed, but the process was so dehumanizing to our guide. She told us that sometimes she isn’t allowed in and must wait for the driver to come back and get her. Palestinians need special permission to fly out of Tel Aviv and often that permission doesn’t come until the last minute. Because of that they cannot buy the tickets in advance because sometimes the permission isn’t granted. When she went to Germany, she had to fly out of Amman, Jordan. Even then she had to get Israeli permission to cross Israeli territory enroute from Bethlehem to Amman. These restrictions only came about after the Oslo Peace Accord. Prior to that they could move around Israel freely.

Once inside the terminal it was easy to figure out how to get around. We had to clear security initially in front of the ticket counter. This involved passport and ticket check, and then a series of questions about how long we were in Jordan, why were we there, where did we stay, who did we meet, who gave us anything, etc. The only thing left was the big security screening, and passport control.

While we were in line waiting for the Turkish Airline counter to open the man in line behind us struck up a conversation with Brian, but Brian couldn’t understand a word the man was saying. Brian smiled and said, “English?”, to which the man said, “I am speaking English.” Once they got past that he shared that he was a Psychotherapist and joked about how odd that the job title has the word psycho in it. Turns out he was born in Algeria but is Jewish. As Algeria is not a good place to be Jewish, his mother got him a fake passport when he was 16 and he was able to leave the country. His mother has still never been able to get out. He settled in Oslo and was returning home after a visit to Tel Aviv.

We are tucked in a hotel room in Istanbul, and eagerly awaiting tomorrow’s return home.

 Monday 10/22/18. Blue Regency Hotel Istanbul

Final Thoughts

At long last we are on the last leg of this adventure— and very happy to have reached this day. We’ve done some of the things we were going to do, done some things we never thought of doing, and feel lucky that we got to finish the trip.

 As to the question posed at the beginning of this blog (and having importance in all decisions pertaining to this trip), “IS IT SAFE?”, the answer is yes, absolutely. At every airport we went through multiple security screens - at least 2 and often 3. In addition, each country we visited had heavily armed police everywhere. We were undoubtedly safer there than we are at home. Of course, those very same security screenings are what we absolutely hate. For example, today we went through 3 complete screenings in Istanbul, another one in London, and again in Philadelphia. And we never left the secure area after the first screening.

 We met some very memorable folks who freely let us into their world and shared their hopes, dreams, and even troubles with us. We learned that Trump is universally despised. They are baffled about why and how he got elected and they have never met any Americans that are Trump supporters. But they still like and enjoy Americans and don’t hold us responsible for our government. In fact, not liking our respective governments, seems to be something that strangers from different cultures and countries share and gives us a common bond.

 And that brings us to the question- did we have a fun or a good vacation? Our best answer has to be “sometimes”. We didn’t enjoy it as much as we thought we would overall. Both of us had been sick before we left home, so we were run down and tired. Instead of our family’s “GO, SEE, DO” approach to travel, we found ourselves, doing the “GO-rest, SEE -rest, DO-and rest some more”.

 Having said that, it is worth focusing on the things that we really liked and that made this trip special:

 

1. Thomas Tang at Odynovo Travel in China did an absolutely incredible job planning, scheduling, coordinating, and putting together a trip that reflected where we wanted to go, and what we wanted to do. And he has been right there with us— always available, always responsive, always caring. Thomas, we couldn’t have done this without you.

 2. Hazem Khalaf, our incredible guide and new friend in Cairo. It’s hard to tell which we liked more, his guide skills, our conversations, or that he stayed in touch and came to my rescue, so I could retrieve my lost iPad. If not for Hazem I would have to buy a new one. We started as strangers and became friends and family.

3.  The Nile Cruise- the cabin was nice, the food good, staff friendly, the massages were divine, it was relaxing. This changed our minds about river cruises for future travel.

 4. The Jordan Hospital and Medical Center, and our driver Zaid in Amman. You never want to be sick enough when traveling to need medical care, but if it does happen, you want someone like Zaid taking care of you. He knew right where we needed to go, stayed with us assisting and translating through the whole experience, then found a Burger King and got us fed. We won’t forget.

 5.  Hiam Abu Dayyeh and Hanna Ghattas, our guide and driver throughout the Israel portion of the trip. He is an exceptional driver- skilled and knowledgeable. And Hiam! She is a beautiful and loving woman who introduced us to a whole new world and in the process became our friend. May God Bless her, her family, and her people and may better times come for them soon.

 6. Ein Gev kibbutz- visiting there, talking to a life- long kibbutznik, eating in their dining hall and learning about their world was truly a dream come true.

 

So, this brings this blog to an end. Because I have no idea who has been following it, I would appreciate it if you would let me know either by you name in the comments section or a message or note to me, and feel free to make suggestions.

 

Tuesday.  10/23/18.  Philadelphia Airport— almost home