A few years ago I went on a trip to Egypt and a few of us went on to Jordan to visit Petra. The first thing we were told when we entered both countries was the consequences you would face if you were caught trying to sneak antiquities out of either country (serious prison time).
We were also advised (very politely) on how to dress. When we left Petra to head back to Amman to fly back to Cairo we were advised to dress a little more conservatively because Amman is extremely conservative. Well there were two young girls with us and nobody was going to dictate to them how to dress and so they of course wore skimpy sun dresses that almost cost them dearly.
I know when I saw them that morning all I could think of was - well this will be an interesting day.
When we got to the airport they were both hauled aside and security went through everything they had with them. An item was picked out that looked like it could be an antiquity (but I don't think that it really was because I remember seeing the girl buy it in a regular shop). The girls were accused of trying to sneak antiquity out of Jordan (which can land you in a Jordanian prison). They made the girl's lives total hell and we didn't know if they would be allowed to leave the country. Another guy with us was an American lawyer and he stepped over to see if he could help the girls and our tour company representative was trying to help the girls. It took a while and I imagine the girls were really sweating before they were finally allowed through so that they could catch the flight. Personally I don't think that the Security guys really thought that they were trying to smuggle antiquities but were offended by how the girls were dressed. I think that the incident could have been totally avoided had the girls shown any comon sense. I had no sympathy what so ever for the girls because the chose to be stupid.
I would love to see the Greens face legal charges.
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