We have been off line for awhile out of travel fatigue and an accumulation of not so perfect events. For nearly 2 weeks Tim and I have discussed how we desperately need to tell you about crossing over from Jordan into Israel or going to Jericho or crossing into Palestine to get over to Bethlehem. We need to write these stories. They are necessary parts to this big puzzle. However the rawness of those adventures, though incredible, are also still too fresh. I think I speak for both of us when I say that we had no way of knowing how visceral the political tensions would be and how we would react to them. Time is always a healer and not that these experiences broke us down per se, but we both feel it is important to give perspective to these sensitive topics.
To clarify with out trying to write the whole story that I hope we will eventfully do, crossing between borders in this region is something of living history in the oldest and most emotionally charged area of the world. We didn't cross together. They sent Anne and I separately with all of our luggage. It took 3 hours, 6 different security lines and hundreds of people. It was scary and frustrating and exhausting. Anne was a warrior. She put on an emotional armor and charged through. I saw before my eyes what happens when kids have to deal with more than they should. When maturity comes in the moment of necessity. I could not have been more proud, and I needed her.
We didn't know where Tim was or when we would see him but he did finally show his face for a split second after 2.5 hours. Then he was gone. I was so relieved just to see him, through the sweat and the thousands of flies. I kid you not, you would think we had leprosy, the flies were horrific.
There is so much more to say. We are safe. We are extremely grateful for our freedom. We hope and pray that the future of this region will see peace. Our hearts go out to all that are working towards that goal.
We had the privilege to meet a member of Banksy's crew in Palestine who helped create the amazing work Banksy has done on The Wall in Bethlehem. Info on Banksy
We are now in Ankara Turkey. It's cold and rainy here, we are loving it! But yesterday could have been a new rendition of Alexander's Terrible Horrible No good Very Bad Day. This time not for International Relations reasons but for the sheer fact that sometimes travel sucks. Kuwait is "always sunny" except on days you want to fly to Turkey. We were fogged in for 5 hours. Our 7am flight was delayed and then cancelled. We were put in a different flight going to a different airport in Istanbul at noon. At that point we had missed our connecting flight and had no idea where our bags were being sent.
Upon arrival we waited in three lines and got boarding passes for a 3pm flight. The ticket agents had no idea what happened. After standing in line for almost 20 minutes a manager came out and asked questions and said " you are all in the wrong airport" Yes sir, we all were sent here to make your day bad. Not that all 100 of us haven't been inconvenienced....
By the time we made it to Ankara we were not surprised that our bags were lost. We were not surprised that traffic was horrible or that the roads became tunnels taking us on detours lasting all too long. These things were bound to happen. We were not surprised that Anne was angry and frustrated because we were too. But the icing on the cake was that the guy who sold us out Turkish SIM cards scammed us. We had no phones, no internet.
So, today after getting our bags this afternoon and getting our phones fixed we feel better. But the honeymoon is over.
To clarify with out trying to write the whole story that I hope we will eventfully do, crossing between borders in this region is something of living history in the oldest and most emotionally charged area of the world. We didn't cross together. They sent Anne and I separately with all of our luggage. It took 3 hours, 6 different security lines and hundreds of people. It was scary and frustrating and exhausting. Anne was a warrior. She put on an emotional armor and charged through. I saw before my eyes what happens when kids have to deal with more than they should. When maturity comes in the moment of necessity. I could not have been more proud, and I needed her.
We didn't know where Tim was or when we would see him but he did finally show his face for a split second after 2.5 hours. Then he was gone. I was so relieved just to see him, through the sweat and the thousands of flies. I kid you not, you would think we had leprosy, the flies were horrific.
There is so much more to say. We are safe. We are extremely grateful for our freedom. We hope and pray that the future of this region will see peace. Our hearts go out to all that are working towards that goal.
We had the privilege to meet a member of Banksy's crew in Palestine who helped create the amazing work Banksy has done on The Wall in Bethlehem. Info on Banksy
We are now in Ankara Turkey. It's cold and rainy here, we are loving it! But yesterday could have been a new rendition of Alexander's Terrible Horrible No good Very Bad Day. This time not for International Relations reasons but for the sheer fact that sometimes travel sucks. Kuwait is "always sunny" except on days you want to fly to Turkey. We were fogged in for 5 hours. Our 7am flight was delayed and then cancelled. We were put in a different flight going to a different airport in Istanbul at noon. At that point we had missed our connecting flight and had no idea where our bags were being sent.
Upon arrival we waited in three lines and got boarding passes for a 3pm flight. The ticket agents had no idea what happened. After standing in line for almost 20 minutes a manager came out and asked questions and said " you are all in the wrong airport" Yes sir, we all were sent here to make your day bad. Not that all 100 of us haven't been inconvenienced....
By the time we made it to Ankara we were not surprised that our bags were lost. We were not surprised that traffic was horrible or that the roads became tunnels taking us on detours lasting all too long. These things were bound to happen. We were not surprised that Anne was angry and frustrated because we were too. But the icing on the cake was that the guy who sold us out Turkish SIM cards scammed us. We had no phones, no internet.
So, today after getting our bags this afternoon and getting our phones fixed we feel better. But the honeymoon is over.
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