We fly to Amman tonight, and our two giant pink suitcases are nearly packed. By that I mean they are sitting in the middle of the living room floor surrounded by a huge mess of clothes, shoes, and gifts – chocolate bars, sticker books, and tins of mackerel. R and I are heading to Amman for two weeks to visit his family.

I hate flying across the Atlantic, which is something I do regularly because my husband and I are from Jordan and America, respectively, and our families span two continents.