Whenever I am going on vacation to a place I try to read a few books about its history first. It gets me psychologically situated for what I’m going to experience and I also find that people appreciate it and are even touched to find that you know a bit about their history.

Reading deepens your enjoyment of life. I don’t know if I’d enjoy travel so much if I wasn’t aware of all the layers of history beneath a place that I was visiting. I’m planning to travel through a few countries in southern Europe later this year and am reading books in anticipation.

Big fan of this approach. 

After leaving Coinbase in 2019, I spent 8 months traveling. Logged off from Twitter for a good chunk of it. Ended up reading a bunch of books.

First time in Middle East — Jordan, Egypt, Israel — and I really enjoyed these two books while there:

https://www.amazon.com/Arabs-History-Eugene-Rogan-ebook/dp/B007TV0PJE

https://www.amazon.com/Crusades-Through-Arab-Eyes-Essentials-ebook/dp/B008SBXGCW

https://danromero.org/2019-booklist.html

It's amazing that you took time to travel and immerse yourself in different cultures, especially with such rich histories in the Middle East! As a mum of four, I can only imagine how precious that kind of uninterrupted time must have been 😅😂

Although my hands are often full, I find inspiration in hearing about experiences like yours.. 
it's a reminder to carve out moments for exploration and growth, even if it’s in smaller ways. Your book recommendations are now on my list for when I get those rare quiet moments ♥️👏🏽