We’re leaving today for Petra. I’m traveling with a girl named Amanda from my Birthright trip. We were going to go with an Israeli friend, but it’s apparently considered dangerous for Israelis to enter Jordan right now, so she’s staying home.

Amanda and I are taking a bus from Tel Aviv to Eilat then hopefully crossing Eilat to Aqaba and staying the night, before going to Petra in the morning. Amanda will probably spend just the day in Petra and head back to Israel that night, but I figure I’ll stay Friday as well, and then fly out to Cairo from Aqaba.

lights aren’t super cheap, but the other option is either a taxi from Aqaba to the border, then a bus from Eilat to Taba, then another bus from Taba to Cairo (the last bus is 8-12 hours) or a ferry Aqaba to Egypt then another bus that doesn’t run on a fixed schedule and also takes about ~8 hours to Cairo. Flying also seems safer, and I avoid the hassle of trying to get an Egyptian visa which I can’t get at the border and can’t get Friday or Saturday because I want to spend more time in Petra and because it will be shabbat.

Here’s to jumping in feet first and seeing what happens!