For most Westerners when they hear of the middle east the first thing that comes to their mind is terrorism and hot deserts. Of course
this is a concern for some countries, but the middle east is more diverse than people think. In the capital of Iran it's not uncommon to get
snow storms; while in the mountains of Lebanon there are several ski and snowboarding resorts. Saudi Arabia and Oman actually have
some of the lowest murder rates in the world, even less than Japan. While Yemen might be a very poor country UAE is one of the
richest in the world and has all kinds of incredible buildings such as an underwater hotel that is being constructed. My first trip to the
middle east was to the northern part called Caucasia, which can be considered Europe, Central Asia, or Middle East depending on who
you ask. For those who have heard of Caucasia it generally has a bad reputation of being very dangerous area. There are several places
controlled by rebels but I stayed away from all the unstable areas and had no problems. Even though Armenia and Azerbaijan are at
odds with each other, they are both very safe for travelers as long as you stay away from the border areas. The three countries are all
very small. Georgia is about the size of South Carolina, Armenia is smaller than Maryland, and Azerbaijan is about the size of Maine.
It's said that in these three countries there are over 50 languages. This area has resort cities in both the Caspian and the Black sea, some
very challenging mountaineering, and not to mention all the history and natural beauty. My second and most recent trip to the middle
east was to the country Jordan. Jordan is a small Arabic country that is ruled by a King, but is rich is religious history.
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