| July - Jordan & Tunisia Website pictures or Google photos Travel buddy kumi and I went to Jordan and Tunisia. The day we arrived in Jordan, the temperature was much cooler than in California. So the joke was "We're visiting Jordan and Tunisia to escape the heat in California." That actually turned out to be true. Most of the time, temps were either lower or the same as temps in California.Despite a few delays, we arrived relatively on time in Amman Jordan. Customs and immigration were relatively quick. As usual, we had a driver waiting to pick us up. Approximately 40 minutes later, we were at the Kempinski Hotel Amman. Although the hotel appeared to be more business oriented, I would definitely stay there again. Our room was very nice; A lot of amenities; Friendly and helpful staff; Beautiful hotel. Day 2 - After a great breakfast at the hotel restaurant, we went to meet our driver. (We reserved a driver the previous night.) We planned to visit several places:
Day 3 - Checkout. We only spent 2 nights in Amman. (Probably should have spent one more.) After another great breakfast, checkout, then off to the airport. We flew from Amman to Aqaba but, we think it would have been better and cheaper to hire a driver to take us to Aqaba. We arrived in Aqaba. Driver waiting. Another 15 minute drive from the airport to Kempinski Hotel Aqaba. Another beautiful hotel. Great location. Great sea view from our room. After check in, we crashed for quite a while. We got up later to have dinner at the beach. Day 4 - After a late breakfast, it was pretty much a mellow day. We planned our excursions for the next 2-3 days. We got a little more familiar with the hotel. I got a massage. Dinner. Bed. Day 5 - Early breakfast. (Less people) Lazy morning. Evening excursion to Wadi Rum.
Day 6 - Early Breakfast. Excursion to Petra.
Day 7 - Mellow day. The original plan was to go scuba diving. But the late night Wadi Rum excursion followed by the morning Petra excursion was tough. We were beat. I did do a sauna followed by a hot stone massage. I think room service may have happened. Day 8 - Mellow day. Early breakfast. I did walk around the hotel to get a few pictures. Afternoon siesta. We had dinner later at the beach restaurant. Day 9 - Checkout. Off to Tunisia. Arrived in Tunis-Carthage airport. Driver waiting with a tablet with my name spelled incorrectly. About a 30 minute drive to The Residence Tunis. We arrived a bit early, so our room wasn't ready. So we hung out in Le Salon lounge for a while. A short while later, they took us to our room. We unpacked a little bit, then went to Zembra, the pool restaurant, for lunch. We ate way too much. When we returned to our room, food coma set in. By the time dinner came around, I wasn't that hungry, but kumi was so we went. I was fine with an appetizer. Day 10 - Planning day. Breakfast. Plan for excursion. Eat some more. Sleep. Eat. Sleep. Day 11 - Excursion. We visited old Carthage, the Medina, and a few other places. We even did a little shopping. Day 12 - Mellow day. Breakfast. Walk around the resort. Hit the beach and the gift shop. We also spent time in the Thalasso spa and pool. Dinner in the evening. Day 13 - Travel day - Breakfast. Checkout. Off to the airport. I exchanged the Tunisian dinars I had to US dollars in the airport. Then we jumped on the plane. Our flight was late taking off, which caused us to arrive in Frankfurt just as a thunderstorm was about to hit. As we were pulling up to the gate, the storm hit and all ground operations were stopped. People couldn't deplane. Luggage was not loaded or unloaded. We sat on the plane until the storm passed, which was about 20-30 minutes. I wasn't too worried about making our connecting flight because when ground operations stopped, it was for the entire airport. We boarded our flight and returned without issue... Well, except for our luggage, which was still sitting in Frankfurt. We filled out the necessary forms and our luggage was delivered in 2 days. Things of note about this trip:
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