Trivia Time!

So you think you're a seasoned backpacker? Or maybe just an armchair traveler and want to test your skills? Here's a quick and fun quiz, based on my experiences so far:

1. You know you have a flight layover in the U.A.E., which does not give visas to people who have been to Israel.

Fortunately, you were careful. Obviously, you had all your Israeli stamps issed on a separate piece of paper. Moreover, you exited Jordan into the West Bank, from where they do not issue incriminating exit stamps (because they officially hold Palestine to be part of their country, so in their eyes you are not technically leaving Jordan). Finally, you entered at Taba, Egypt, which is also the entry point for Jordanians arriving via ferry.

But you made a mistake. Here is your Egyptian visa. Can you spot the three things that identify you as having been to Israel? [Click on the picture to make it larger]

2. Wait or try another machine?

3. What is proper protocol for using this toilet?

4. This is Egypt's version of a water fountain. They can be found scattered throughout major cities and the countryside, each with one or two cups attached. Everyone drinks from the same cup (and sometimes wipe it clean with their hand afterward). Would you?

5. When traveling, locals frequently offer advice on which areas are dangerous, and which are not. And often, this conflicts with our received wisdom in the US (but locals are ALWAYS right). List the following areas in terms of security for Americans, from most dangerous to most safe:

Rural Syria
Palestinian West Bank
Egypt -- Central Nile Region

Israel -- Orthodox Jewish Areas

6. You're in Delhi, and someone just stole your backpack with your valuables (passport, camera, toilet paper, etc.) in it. What should you do?

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ANSWERS:

1.

Place of issue: Eilat [Israel]

Cost: 65 N.I.S. [New Israeli Shekels]

Entry Stamp: Taba (car stamp) [Jordanians have a ship stamp]

2. Wait. It usually takes about 5 minutes.

3. Unlike the US or Europe, there is no toilet paper, and unlike East Asia, there is not even a basket to put used TP in. This means that users are expected to turn on a separate water pipe (see the small metal tube inside), which provides water. Use your left hand to help scrub away excess...stuff, and then wash off afterward.

Or you could just bring TP like me.

4. God no (see above answer).

5.

Egypt -- Central Nile Region [Need military protection here]

Israel -- Orthodox Jewish Areas
Rural Syria

Palestinian West Bank [Far safer than the Orthodox Jewish sector of Jerusalem]

6. Head right over to the Chor Bazaar ('Thieves' Market') and buy it back.