Does anyone know of any casinos in the Middle East that have poker? I am stuck here for the next three years and was hoping for something beyond the tiny home games I'm finding.
hangout at the airport bars and do some networking. im sure there are some big games if you can find the right crowd and get an invite. try to find contractors working for AFCENT/CENTCOM for a good start.
Egypt has a hand full of casinos with poker games running. In Cairo the casinos take turns running tournaments throughout the week so the regulars move from casino to casino. Unlike US the Middle East starts its days rather late in the afternoon so you will find these tournaments start equally late. With starting times of 11pm for example. They also allow unlimited rebuys making for a wild ride for the first couple of hours of play. I did not find any 1/2 NL game running most of these truly terrible players are well moneyed. As such have no interest in cash games less that 5/10 NL.
Hit up tourist towns. For example, in Egypt, Sharm el Shiekh on the Sinai peninsula is basically a Russian colony, and has tons of gambling and drinking and hookers and all the other stuff you won't find elsewhere in the country. Antalya on Turkey's Turquoise Coast is similar.
You won't find a single casino or poker room in Israel - although the home game poker scene is pretty thriving. I'm guessing Turkey and Egypt (in the tourist areas, inside the hotels) are your only real bets. Alternatively, it might be worth your while to travel to Rhodes and/or Cyprus - definitely casinos to be found there + Northern Cyprus even hosts a WPT event... I know Mike the Grinder Mizrachi attends that one usually