Jordan and Palestine (Day 1)

It’s been a bit (more than a year, really) since the last journal entry. Lots have happened since then, foremost of which was the sale of my family home. Alhamdulillah, from the proceeds of the home, the generosity of my mom and siblings, and the willing creditor that is the HDB, I am now the proud owner of a cute little home right across a masjid, the perks of which my mom has been a regular patron of. But the miraculous story of the home shall be the story for another day, for today I feel like continuing the travel diary I started last year.

En-route to Jordan, March 2025.

Our trip to Palestine begun with a stopover in the Hamad International Airport in Doha, courtesy of Qatar Airways. It was my first time in this side of the airport, which brought me right back to Singapore’s Jewel– the same one we departed from just hours before. It warranted a double take, for the similarities were endless. Too alike were the expansive flowing skylights, the green canopy and the nature-but-make-it-lux vibe, that it prompted a curious Google search to see if they were both designed by the same architectural firm.

The short answer: no. The longer, related information I got from that search?

Singapore’ Jewel Changi, her literal architectural crown, as well as other renowned projects such as the Marina Bay Sands, the Art Science Museum, the Sky Habitat, and the Suburna Jurong, were all projects by Moshe Safdie… an (drumroll please) Israeli-Canadian. Not just any Israeli, but a Zionist heavily involved in numerous large projects in Palestine and even in the build of the Merkava tanks, the backbone of the IDF’s military operation.

It was a heavy realisation, that the architectural marvels I’ve appreciated all these while in my home country were from the same mind that used its creative genius towards destruction. Little did I know that the conflicting emotions that began to creep in my heart was just a hint of more mixed bags of emotions to come.

We then boarded a connecting flight to Jordan, arriving sometime after 9pm. No pictures here, just a flurry of events that included jetlagged faces, a much-needed late night supper at a Yemeni restaurant, and the comical confusion of city-dwelling Singaporeans trying to turn on heaters powered by gas tanks in freezing apartments.

On to Day 2…