Cairo really did a number on my desire to travel. It seemed like every thing was set against us, and despite having a great time, it wore me out and stressed me out. When we got back, I had in my mind decided that if all traveling was going to be like Cairo, that I was done with it. I didn't want to go anywhere else, deal with more foreign languages, feel like a directionally challenged 5 year old, or have to navigate the Jeddah airport unless it was to fly back home. As a result we drug our feet about winter break until we finally had to decide if we were actually going anywhere or if we were going to spend an entire month long break in Saudi.
So we hit the airline sites and hostel booking sites. We gave up on Italy; I didn't want to deal with planning three or four different cities and the travel between them. I was convinced it was going to be too expensive. Then we embraced Athens. I was too tired and stubborn from trying to decide anything to be reasonable, so Steve found us plane tickets and a place to stay. So it was done, and we were going to Athens for 13 days.
Since it takes twelve hundred years to get anything shipped to Saudi Arabia, and bookstores in Jeddah are lacking, we've resorted to making our own travel books using OneNote and my obsessive compulsive organizing habits. I began sorting through the various options of sites, shopping and restaurants we might frequent while in Athens and started to get excited about going.
And now that we're here, I can't imagine not traveling. Athens is amazing in so many ways, but mostly it is a breath of fresh air in regards to traveling. It is beautiful, urine scent free, easy to navigate, and downright impressive with the history that shows up everywhere even in the metro.
Even though it was a struggle to get to where we are, I'm so grateful that we're here, because I can't imagine having Cairo as one of our only experiences with international travel.
*Catch up on our entire Athens adventure by checking Our Travel Page, or our Greece tag.*
No comments:
Post a Comment