Everything tagged israel
In September of 2005, David and I had a rendezvous in Zurich and flew to Israel for a week. This was probably David's 8th trip there, but it was my first. What was I expecting? I don't really know. Pushy people on crowded streets, perhaps; hot, arid weather; and so many armed guards as to make one constantly nervous. Boy, was I wrong.
WAAAH! I don't want to leave! Luckily, we had to get up at 2 am to catch a taxi to the airport, so I was too sleepy to get emotional about it. If you've ever thought about going to Israel, then GO! Don't put it off. These pictures are nothing compared to experiencing it firsthand. Now is a good time to go because there aren't a huge amount of tourists.
My second full day in Israel, I was on my own for the day again, so I signed up for another tour. This one was to Masada and the Dead Sea. There were seven tourists on this trip.
On our first day in Israel, we rented a car at the airport and drove to the Ein Gedi Kibbutz on the Dead Sea.
On our first full day, I took a tour to the Sea of Galilee to see spots that are famous in the New Testament. Our tour guide was Solomon Golan and there were two other guests on the tour. Our first stop was to Nazareth, where we visited the Church of the Annunciation. This is the spot where the angel Gabriel told Mary what she was going to give birth to Jesus. Unfortunately, the original church that was built there is long gone. You learn quickly in Israel that almost everything was destroyed by either the Romans, the Syrians, the Turks, or the Crusaders.
In September of 2009, David was scheduled to speak in two conferences: one in Tel Aviv and one in Berlin. He asked me if I wanted to join him and I responded with jumping up and down shouting "ISRAEL ISRAEL ISRAEL!".
David and I met in Zurich and flew together to Tel Aviv. He had flown from Australia and I had flown from New York City. Needless to say, there was some jet lag - especially on David's part. The first few days, we were staying in Tel Aviv for a conference. When we got to the hotel, they didn't have a room for us, even though David was an invited guest speaker. The hotel across the street didn't have a room either. After about 2 hours of a cab ride and some mild shouting, we got a room at the Crown Plaza. It was significantly better than the hotel at the conference.
I had the fortune of going to [w:Caesarea] two days in a row. The first visit was with David and our friend, Idit. She had decided to take us there to see some new films and exhibits that had been installed there and for lunch. She had been married at Caesarea, so it holds a special place in her heart.
Our final stop on our day tour is a locale at the very northern tip of Israel: the [w:Rosh HaNikra grottoes]. You take a small tram down the side of a cliff to get to the grottoes. The cliffs are a beautiful white chalk and the Mediterranean feeds into the grottoes, making for great tourist photos.
Jerusalem is more than just the land of religious epiphanies. It is also full of the most cut-throat market owners I've ever seen. The shop keepers will do anything to get you in their store. You are constantly hounded as you walk down the streets of Jerusalem. They will even stand in front of you as your walking so that you can't pass quickly. We knew enough to ignore them, but they had some sneaky tactics. Several times we would ignore them and keep walking, and they would shout "excuse me!" after us as if to say, "how could you be so rude as to ignore me!"