Dearest Rachel –
I’ve mentioned before how someday, I’d like to get so accustomed to traveling that it could be done practically on a whim. I’ve joked about how calling Kerry (my travel agent) up out of the blue and telling her to “book me something before I change my mind,” but it still has to be done with at least a month’s notice, if not quite a bit more. Well, we’re down to the last few weeks before we’re scheduled to take off for Israel for my fourth (and Daniel’s second) time, and I’m realizing that there may be such a thing as being too casual about the process. This, even as I see myself as not yet blasé enough to be able to take it all in the stride I wish I could.
We’d been called up to meet at the Des Plaines campus yesterday mid-afternoon – a bit too late in the day to go straight from getting dinner en route from our branch of the church, but not late enough to get comfortable at home between dinner and the meeting time. We actually tested that latter concept, and as a result, we wound up arriving to the meeting a few minutes late. And while we were able to slip in from the back of the auditorium without disturbing the others, it was still mildly embarrassing to do so, not unlike arriving late to class back in the day.
To be fair, that’s not something we ever actually experienced (that I can recall), and even if we had, the concern would be more from the possibility of missing some topic that we would need to know for the exam than the awkwardness of making our way to a seat while the lecture or discussion was in progress. Having done this before, this is where the cavalier attitude kicked in – as well as the realization that I probably should ditch that attitude within the next few weeks.
In my defense, things like knowing what to pack and how to behave at certain sites don’t change from visit to visit; the weather at this time of year (or its spring counterpart in February and March) is fairly consistent. The only real adjustment is between the depths of the Dead Sea (and the Galilee) and the heights of Jerusalem; several thousand feet of altitude make a difference in terms of temperature. But that’s information that we already know, and won’t change from year to year; we’ve got this down pat. The same goes for dress code issues – although ironically, while Daniel and I are always covered up in long pants and sleeves, we actually could get away with shorts and, in many places, even tank tops. It’s you women that have to deal with being concealed here and there, as you recall. I could comment on some people’s fear of temptation, but eh… when in the Levant…
But these are all things that we knew about already, so we didn’t have to concern ourselves with worrying about something new. Indeed, we were surprised and pleased to note that we’ll be led around by Yael, the same guide as we had back in 2022. I realize you never met her, but at least this gives Daniel a bit more continuity from one trip to the next.
However, there are changes that need to be dealt with, and while we did arrive in time to gather most of them in, it was enough to provoke concern about whatever else we might have missed in the few minutes where we were still on our way, dealing with this or that red light.
The first issue had to do with the fact that our group is as big as it is, compared to previous trips. Now, you’ll remember that our first sojourn was done in conjunction with several local Christian radio stations (although the host who was spearheading the trip had to bow out, as did my folks, due to the timing of Dad’s knee replacement. At least they got their chance in 2018), so the idea of taking multiple buses as part of a larger group isn’t foreign to you, if you’ll pardon the expression. But for a group coming just out of our church, this is a big deal, logistically speaking.
Not only are there going to be at least two buses (and we’ve been advised to pick a bus and stick with it for the duration of the trip, so that those shepherding us around can better keep track of us – which also makes this resemble a classroom situation, if you think about it), but we’re spread out over two separate flights to get there. Moreover, since we all want to arrive in Tel Aviv at roughly the same time, this happens to require us to take two separate carriers, as well; it looks like Daniel and I will be getting there by way of Austrian Airways, rather than by an American carrier, believe it or not (although it seems that the other group will be flying via Delta). Of course, that isn’t anything to get excited about; a two hour layover is just enough time to get to our connecting flight without having to run pell-mell through the airport like we did that one time in CDG. It’s not as if there’s even time to grab a Vienna sausage or wiener schnitzel, especially at the hour of the morning we’d be there. I’d have to check about the return flight, but I think it’s basically the same situation.
Near the end of the briefing, a few questions came up about the ETA, which seemed like an odd question to me; we’ll arrive when we arrive, and we’ll go from there. Turns out, that wasn’t what was being discussed – and this is a new wrinkle. After receiving an explanation about the Electronic Travel Authorization, I found myself wondering if I hadn’t already taken care of this, and just forgot about it. As far as I can tell, however, I think I’m getting this confused with some similar registration Daniel and I had to do for our last trip to the U.K.; the price is the same, so I could remember a payment on my credit card in this amount (more or less), but it’s not this one. So the two of us need to take care of this, as well, and we can’t get too casual about it.
I should mention that I actually said we might be getting too casual about travel procedures at the time, and Daniel got concerned that we’d need to pack more formal attire for the trip. I don’t know if he was serious (I can imagine him getting trepidatious about having to wear even so much as a collared shirt – although he was willing to wear one to cousin Clyde’s memorial ‘service’ a couple weeks ago), or if he was making a dad joke about the expression, but I reassured him about dress codes as if he meant it in earnest. Still, this is something we need to take care of, and it’s kind of why I’m telling you about it, so as to keep us accountable about this task.
With that having been said, then, honey, I’d appreciate it if you’d keep an eye on us, and wish us luck, as we’re going to need it.
Letters to Rachel 