The cliffhanger of the previous part resolves like this.
Sasha told us that when he was held back, they started interrogating him even more thoroughly: where did the scar on his arm come from, maybe a bomb was implanted there? (since childhood, mind you). Then they searched him in the most meticulous way, practically groping his balls, noticeably more thoroughly than the usual superficial pat-down after the metal detector frame goes off. Then they completely carried his boots away somewhere, obviously to scan their structure at the atomic level.
When Rybakov was finally released and escorted to the check-in counter, he was asked to put his backpack with warm clothes on the conveyor belt. Without a second thought, he carried out the requested action, thinking they just wanted to weigh the backpack, only to watch the latter ride off into the distance. He made an attempt to grab his property, but the shift supervisor abruptly cut off his attempts. The thing is, taking things out of or putting things into screened baggage is strictly forbidden. Perhaps, had Sasha had the time and desire to stand his ground, he would have managed to prove that a jacket and a fleece do not pose a security threat to the state of Israel and the aircraft of the Ryanair corporation, but the moment was lost. The backpack rode off, and Sasha, being a tough northern Polish dude, waved off the prospect of freezing a little.
Having finally passed through all the circles of hell, we found ourselves in the inner part of the airport, with its cute greetings, wooden signs, and souvenirs from the kibbutzim. And, of course, the traditional 12-euro sandwiches. I didn't have enough local dough even for a bottle of water, but, fortunately, someone had thoughtfully left an empty one on a table so that I could, in my tradition, fill it at a drinking fountain. Fortunately, Israel has those, and the water there is of high quality, plus you can even pour warm water. Now this is a country for the people! Hooray for satisfying basic needs first!
In the queue for the gate we were checked once again, this time the boarding pass and passport, as well as at the gate itself.
About all these bodily movements I can say only one thing: we hold no grudge against Israel. It's unpleasant when your freedoms are restricted, but since 1954, if memory serves, after the invention of all these clever procedures and passenger screening requirements, not a single plane from or to Israel has been blown up, and no one has died from terrorists on board, unless you count the TU-154, which most likely the Ukrainians shot down by mistake over their territory anyway.
Everywhere the balance of freedom and responsibility is important, and for the Israelis it is shifted towards stricter control due to the country's position in the world.
The flight went without incident. Alexander proudly stepped onto native soil in a t-shirt and sweatpants, despite the fact that all around it was sub-zero temperatures and vile snow-slush. He, however, doesn't care at all: the man is tough!
Funny enough, Sasha's misadventures didn't quite end there. Apparently, he is an exceptionally suspicious-looking character, because while we were waiting for our baggage, the Lithuanian border guards pulled him aside again and conducted a check, this time a short one. The bikes, by the way, arrived without a hitch, and even showed up pretty quickly, unlike the bags, which we waited for for almost twenty minutes, and had already decided that they had actually been lost.
My dad met us, and we dropped by Tigras's awesome cepelinai place a kilometer from the airport towards Kaunas, I highly recommend it to everyone. I got home quite late, and the next day I had to return to normal reality, meaning going to the office and sitting at the computer, but for a few more days after arriving I was raving about Jordan, it occupied my thoughts, and I even often dreamt of it.
I confess, I am often overcome by thoughts of whether the blog is worth running, publishing reports, whether my writing style is colorful enough, whether the adventures are interesting, and whether this whole thing isn't just a vanity fair on my part. After all, one can always do something "useful". However, here even the Dalai Lama on Facebook says:
I often ask myself what is the purpose of our lives and I conclude that life's purpose is to be happy. We have no guarantee what will happen in the future, but we live in hope. That's what keeps us going.
As long as my travels and stories about them bring joy to me and those around me, the direction is right. I'm glad that this time the story provoked such a big response and is read from time to time by almost a hundred people. Thanks for the comments and feedback, even if I don't always reply, they inspire me to write more.
The traditional question from readers is this: what did you like the most in Jordan?
The mountains and gorges we encountered along the way are very impressive: Al-Mujib, the road from Dana to Petra. I was delighted by the sunset and the mountains at the end of the route from Wadi Musa to Wadi Rum. The secret passage in the Shobak castle was memorable, I had never been in a place like that before. I am glad that I broke my speed record on the bicycle, now it is 74 km/h. The contrast between the poor villages and Aqaba is striking, the hospitality of the Bedouins brings joy.
Of course, not least of all are the people, friendly, and quite calm for southerners. In Jordan I felt peaceful and safe almost all the time, even in Israel at one point I was more nervous: when I arrived in the evening at the central bus station of Tel Aviv, where it is dirty, noisy and there are a lot of suspicious characters. It's a pity that because of ISIS the flow of tourists to Jordan has dried up: the people of the country don't deserve this. It's stupid that the Jordanian state cannot organize direct low-cost flights from Europe: flying through Israel, as it turned out, is quite troublesome and costly.
What did I take away from this trip?
Mainly what I already knew, and confirmed once again.
Muslims in general aren't that scary, because you have to understand that there are a billion of them, and specific nutjobs among them are maybe a dozen or two million. Of course, it would be better if all religions died out like an atavism, but as long as they exist, one shouldn't inflate the idea that all Muslims are evil and aggressive. As you understand from my story, this is not true at all. We just need to be better at catching the evil ones, and apply laws to them more strictly.
A person is capable of a lot, even if it doesn't seem that way to them; planning rules; getting things done in a company is more fun and reliable, but you should rely primarily on yourself and your skills. The majority of people in any country are benevolent, especially towards cyclists. Travel broadens the mind and tolerance, the understanding that people remain people, with all their flaws and virtues. People are imperfect, therein lies their torment and beauty. Truth and happiness happen in life only in moments, but it's good that they happen, and even better is to create them yourself.
In any case, it's always better to get something going than to sit on your ass: unexpected discoveries and pleasant little things like trucks delivering gas to unearthly melodies await you.
P.S. Ask questions in the comments or on Facebook, I'll try to answer if possible.
P.P.S. Despite all these positive and inspiring reflections, I am not ready to go anywhere yet and I'm not planning any trips or hanging out at festivals in the coming months: I need to figure out what kind of mess has happened with my health. My sleep and temperature are a disaster, and as long as they are what they are, distant trips will have to be limited, and my daily routine tightened.
If you liked my report, don't forget that I have a lot of them! I recommend Iceland, Vietnam, and the USA.