Across the Brooklyn Bridge

Whenever I travel, I do my best to pack in a way that I don't have to check my bag at the airport. This helps avoid having to stand in line waiting for my luggage to be unloaded once I arrive at my destination.

At Ben Gurion airport in Tel Aviv, I stand in line watching security inspecting everyone's bags along with mine. I watch as they visually examine everyone's packaged sweets, chocolates and other gifts that people are bringing back to the States most likely as tokens of their trip. I watch as they repack people's belongings back into their suitcases before moving on to the next person.

I also watch as Israeli security take my box of Ali Baba Chocolate Wafers, a gift purchased in Ramallah, run it through a couple of x-ray machines, conduct an explosives test on the box and then place it in a large white box with the words "SECURITY" imprinted all over it. It is then sealed with tape marked 'security' and then put it on the conveyor belt to be checked in.

At JFK airport, I see a group of young excited Jewish teens also just returning from Israel excitedly saying their goodbyes to each other and exclaiming what a wonderful time they had as I had to stand there with my carry-on luggage in hand waiting for the box of chocolates that Israeli security had deemed too dangerous for me to carry on board to be unloaded from the plane.

As fate would have it, it was one of the last items unloaded off the El Al flight I had taken back home.

Posted by Alif on Monday, October 18, 2004 at 10:03 AM | Permalink