Arrived on time about 2am, and cleared customs and immigration without any hassles. Got to use our new chipped passports to avoid the immigration queues which was great. 1 minute compared with 1 1/2 hours in Nairobi. With no wheels available in the family, we had to take a taxi home for the first time ever, and arrived a bit after 3.
It was a great and diverse holiday, and certainly better than enduring the Melbourne heat wave that those at home have been having. You don't think of the Middle East as being the safest of destinations but, despite all those pessimistic government travel advisories, we never felt unsafe or unwelcome (well, apart from in the Orthodox Jewish neighborhoods). We explored 5 diverse countries, all wonderful in their own way, and experienced three very different cultures - Christian in Kenya and Ethiopia, Muslim in Egypt and Jordan, and Jewish in Israel.
The scale of these cultures is the really amazing part. Whilst we revel in 200 years of history, the places we visited have some 8000 years of recorded history, and buildings going back 3000 years. We trumpet our modern feats, but we can't build pyramids that still amaze after 3000 years, or churches that are still standing 1000 years later.
It seems that the less developed a country is tourist wise, the more friendly the welcome and the more genuine the personal relationship. I guess that's why Ethiopia was my favourite. The people seemed genuinely touched that you'd come all the way across the world to visit them. They were less fussed about getting tips and good reviews, and more interested in making sure that you enjoyed your stay. You felt treated as a guest rather than a tourist. On the other end of the scale, tourism is just business in Israel, and most people were quite ambivalent about whether you were there or not. Fine if you were, but not fussed if you weren't, except if you were in the tourist business of course. Egypt is in a bad way, and most people haven't worked out what they want their society to be. Those in the tourist industry are bleeding badly, but it's not enough of a force to stop the rest of the country imploding, and having had a tourist industry for eons, it's all about the hustle and the tip. Jordan is in the middle. Not so used to tourists that its become just a business, but they have enough of them that it's no longer a novelty. They are friendly and tolerant, and mercenary Bedouin aside, they really try to make your stay a great one.
Most people wouldn't think of going to Ethiopia, but if you can get into the Ethiopian countryside like Lalibela, I'd strongly recommend it. Jordan gets a steady stream of tourists for a good reason, and with Egypt so uncertain from day to day, it's a great stable and safe alternative to visit. I enjoyed Israel, and it was a special time visiting all of the sites that we'd heard so much about, but I'm not sure we'll be back.
The web's original travel blog