I’m back from my tip to Jordan and Egypt. It was a most impressive trip that didn’t stop amazing me. Wether it was the enormous in rocks carved buildings of Petra or the beautiful fishes of the Red Sea or floating in the Dead Sea. Click here for a full report of this vacation.

These two great watches where on my wrist during this three weeks during trip and they proved to be the perfect choice for such a trip. My beloved IWC 3717 Pilot Chronograph is so easily readable because of the high contrast in the dial and even when i woke up at night i could immediately see the time. This is mainly because of the fact only the markers at 3, 6, 9 and 12 are threated with superluminova. I find it much easier to read the time at night with my sleepy eyes, because it’s immediately clear where the 12 ‘o clock marker is…

My all time vacation daily beater has been replaced by the IWC 3717 for most of the time, however, when taking a plunge the Citizen Automatic Diver was of course on my wrist. As with all my dives it worked perfectly and the bezel makes it possible to keep track of my diving time.

Well, i’m back from New York and almost ready for another vacation. During my trip to the Big Apple i looked for nice watches (of course!!) and i’ve seen plenty. In the Netherlands i’m happy to spot a TAG Heuer or an Omega occassionally, but in New York it’s easy to spot a Rolex Submariner on every corner of the street �

Besides the overwhelming amount of Rolex sports watches i spotted some TAG’s and several Panerai. Especially the PAM88 GMT seemed popular…. at least that’s the one i saw most.

Just before i left i decided to take only one watch with me to New York, as i heard too many horror stories about travelling with an expensive wristwatch and getting through customs. My choice was the IWC 3717 Pilot Chronograph because it wears very comfortable and the readability is excellent.

If you want to see the most incredible vintage watches in New York, than make sure to go the 47th street. This street is packed with diamond and gold dealers, but some of them also deal in watches. And although their preference seems to be mainly in golden watches with lots of diamonds… there are still plenty of very nice vintage Patek’s, Vacheron’s and of course Rolex sports watches!!

But don’t think you’ll make a great deal there. I thought i might trade my 3717 plus cash for a Rolex GMT Master-II or Sea-Dweller… but when they told me what they offered for my IWC i could only laugh… or cry

No way to make a great deal there. But now the 3717 is still on my wrist i don’t mind actually. Now i will get ready to pack for my next vacation, three weeks in Jordan. I won’t be wearing an expensive watch in Jordan as we plan to do a lot of travelling and most likely a lot of diving. So my ‘daily vacation beater’ will be on my wrist for sure… a Citizen Automatic Diver. I’m curious what Jordan watch dealer have to offer

My first automatic watch ever! When looking for a nice and sturdy dive watch i wanted a watch that never needs a battery.

So of course i browsed the internet and searched and read many websites and forums. This being my first automatic watch it felt like an adventure. I had never owned an automatic watch and was not really aware of how it works or how robust it was going to be. The requirements, besides the obvious dive watch design, where obvious:

• never replacing a battery
• it had to be waterproof
• it should be abe to take a beating

Citizen diver's automatic

Citizen diver's automatic

Of all automatic dive watches i found online i liked the Rolex Sea-Dweller the best. Also watches like the Rolex Submariner, Omega Seamaster and several TAG Heuer divewatches really did it for me. But these where all far out of my league. When i bumped into the Citizen diver’s automatic i immediately knew this would make the perfect holiday watch for me and be the first experience with an automatic watch as well.

On the James Bond NATO strap it travelled with me to Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Egypt, Jordan, Marocco and many more places. It has seen some of the most beautiful places on this earth, above and underneath sealevel