The overnight flight from S.E. Asia to the Middle East with kids couldn't be described without using 'awful' and 'hell' a few times. A big scream-fest that made us question whether holding the palm of a hand over a kid's crying mouth is any better than spanking and locking in the bathroom. It got better soon after though. We were whisked away to a hotel and treated to a breakfast of hummus, feta, and olives. Falafel and baklava weren't too far behind and this is a huge step up after the kingdom of lawnmower meat on rice.
We decided to shake the 4 hour jet-lag off in Amman for a couple days (drugged the kids after they were wide awake at 2AM the first morning). The first thoughts we have are freezing ones. Trading our usual 35¶ø humid weather for rainy 7¶ø was hard enough for us and down right shocking for our tropical babies. Aya got so cold walking around that her pee restraint muscles stopped working.
There were other big changes too. No motorbikes, no food-carts, no dogs (upgrade for sure)