All the time! When I first arrived in Cairo, I had this distinct sensation of being in free fall mode, and it took me at least a month before I got my bearings. It helped a great deal that I made friends easily and got adopted by Yasser and Mohammad, who I refer to as my surrogate brothers. They took such good care of me. And by the time I got to Syria, I felt as if I had been living in the Mideast all my life. There comes this magical moment in travel where you forget where you came from, all your former worries become so trivial and all that matters is being in the moment, for whatever it's worth, good and bad, you're present and aware.