The amphitheater at Petra, Jordan.
Mrs. E, the family and I just returned from a whirlwind trip to Israel and Jordan. Why call it a whirlwind? I still consider two weeks barely enough time to start to know a place without rushing about. Especially if that place is as historically and politically layered as Israel or Palestine.
But, with friends at the Embassy getting ready to return stateside and dogs waiting for our return, two weeks was what we could swing, and so it was wheels up from DCA, connect through Toronto and on our way to Tel Aviv.
What made this trip even more different from the way I traveled in the past was my decision to take nothing but carry-on luggage. In my case, a PDW S.H.A.D.O. 24l backpack and a Mystery Ranch 21l Urban Assault Pack. Travelling light. Contrast that mental image with the photo below. I am a creature of extremes.
2 t-shirts, 4 (Mack Weldon Vesper, and J Crew mesh) polo shirts, two pairs of lightweight trousers (Dockers tech fabric and Asos poly-tech “seersucker”), one pair of Ghurka shorts, one pair of slip-on sneakers, a pair of summer Blundstone’s, 5 pairs of underwear, 4 pairs of socks, one hat, one linen cardigan, one safari jacket and a scarf. Aside from the chargers, books, Traveler’s Notebook, Lifeprint printer, Lenovo lens, meds and mints, that was the extent of my kit.
I’ll be… errr… unpacking more about the trip, my takeaways about travel and whatever else springs to mind in the next few posts. Stay tuned. And special thanks to Steve of the IDF, and the Parisian private contractor at the a-Za’ayem checkpoint. Thanks for the rescue. (Told you it was an adventure….)
