Jordan, Syria, Palestine, Israel

‘off-limits’ during that time.

So, on this special trip back to visit family in Syria and Jordan, we made plans to see all the places she never had the chance to visit in Israel.  My dad and sis stayed home, having apparently better things to do than travel – and now you see which side of the family my addiction was passed down from!

I spent a record 50 days in Syria on this trip — mostly just hanging out in Damascus, relaxing and enjoying time with the family, drinking ma-werd (a refreshing summertime rose-water drink), smoking argileh, and eating ‘mezzes‘ in our historic courtyard house in the World Heritage-listed Old City.  Lucky for me, my uncle (also Samer!) owned a shipping company, and took me with him on his trips throughout Syria.  I saw so many amazing sights, that I felt Syria could rival Egypt in tourism if given the right marketing team!

Sprawling ancient cities like Palmyra and Apamea were impossibly devoid of tourists; large cities like Aleppo, Homs, Lattakia and Hama had wonderful old towns, mosques and souqs to explore; and sites like the famous Krak Des Chevaliers or the ruins of Ras Shamra had incredible histories to share.  Syria was full of wonders.  And I had no idea!

After all that time in Syria, we spent a week in Amman, and then it was time to branch out!  This would be my first time in Palestine, which had officially become the Palestinian National Authority just a year before, in 1994.  Expectedly, we were greeted by plenty of checkpoints, as well as numerous Palestinian flags proudly flying atop buildings throughout the region.  We visited the historic Biblical cities of Bethlehem and Jericho – but the most memorable experience was when our vehicle broke down on a lonely stretch of road on the way from Jericho to Jerusalem.  We were stranded for hours in scorching 44° C (111° F) mid-day heat, with little water and no traffic to flag down for help!

In Jerusalem, we followed the path of Jesus on the Via Dolorosa, saw the Mount of Olives, and many sights in West Jerusalem that my mom had never seen, such as the Western Wall.  In northern Israel, we circumnavigated the Sea of Galilee, and then saw the sights of Nazareth, Jesus’ hometown, and incidentally the hometown of many of my ancestors!  In bustling Tel-Aviv, we spent some time in the historic Arab neighborhood of Jaffa, where I found out my grandfather was from!

Adding to the excitement of the trip (not in a good way!) — two weeks before arriving in Israel, there was a bus-bombing in Ramat Gan, which left us a little unnerved.  Now, I like excitement while traveling, but this is not what I had in mind!  Everything was fine while we were there — but, just three days after leaving the country, another bus-bombing occurred in a neighborhood of Jerusalem!  Thank God, we made it in and out safely!  But wow, what a window of time we chose, right?

While the trip was a chance for my mom to finally visit many of the Biblical sights she’d always dreamed of seeing, as well as seeing her father’s hometown for the first time, it was also a chance for me to connect with all of my ancestral roots —  from Amman and Damascus, to Nazareth and Jaffa.  Now, I feel my pilgrimage to the ‘homeland’ is finally complete!