You know, when I moved to New York City five years ago, I never expected to encounter a hurricane. “Oh, that’s the stuff of the Gulf [of Mexico] Coast,” I thought, site of such horrific storms as Hurricane Katrina, which devastated New Orleans back in 2005. But if someone had told me that I’d be [...]
“Where you go? Nuweiba?,” the man asked. “No, Taba,” I replied from the back of the jeep that had ferried me from my beachside hotel to the bus station. “Taba, 250 pounds,” he said. I balked. “Okay, 180 pounds.” I balked again. “I go to Nuweiba anyway and I take you there for 50 Egyptian [...]
Cairo traffic is surreal. It seems to be the one place in Egypt where the maniacal drivers that roam the roads of this fine country grind to a screeching halt, as the traffic creeps along at snail’s pace. It was with this knowledge that I, and my band of North American misfits that I had [...]
Rain sure does have a way of putting a damper on your plans, doesn’t it? As a hardened traveler, I’m a pretty firm believer in making the most out of any situation. After all, rain can bring some pretty wild experiences (see: collapsed bridges in Laos…). But this wasn’t just any experience. This was Christmas [...]
“Millions of the faithful gather in Manger Square to celebrate the birth of Christ,” scream the headlines. After all, if there’s one place in the world that you would want to spend Christmas Eve, wouldn’t it be in Bethlehem? No, not Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, I mean the real Bethlehem. You know, the one where Christ is [...]
Hanukkah (or Chanukah, depending on which transliteration you go for) is a pretty exciting time in Israel. The candles, the cheer, the doughnuts… Yes, the doughnuts, a special Hanukkah treat that Israelis are down right obsessed with. See, I went to Israel expecting to find that Israelis ate latkes as a Hanukkah treat like their [...]
I love free plane tickets. They encourage me to spend time in places I wouldn’t make it to so easily otherwise. I don’t love not being able to decide any details about my travel plans though, which was exactly the case with my latest trip to the Middle East. See, I came over with a [...]
What would you do if you were sitting on a plane, the door was closed, the flight attendants had announced to turn off your cell phones and then you hear, “Ummm….we have no pilot?” That is precisely what my fellow passengers on United Airlines flight 779 heard on June 19th, shortly before they were asked [...]
