Wednesday morning we got up super early to watch the sunrise over the desert. Can you all tell how different this trip is from my normal life? That's what makes it so amazing. I love the change. After a breakfast of fresh pita and hummus, we hopped on camels and trekked around the desert for 30 minutes. "Sophie" (lovingly nicknamed by my camel partner Amanda) was probably the ugliest camel in the lot, which is saying something since all camels are ugly. She also was a bit wild which made things uncomfortable for me from a "male" perspective. Lets just say I won't be bareback camel riding any time soon.
Upon leaving the Bedouin tents, we took the bus to Masada, the ancient fortress that has changed hands from Romans to Jews to Muslims and back again seemingly dozens of times. Masada contains more tremendous views of the countryside, mostly of barren desert but also the Dead Sea deep in the background. This is another one of those areas that you will never see unless you're in the Middle East or maybe somewhere like Greece. We took a funicular, which is one of my favorite words in the English language, down the mountain to the gift shop/restaurant - both of which were unspectacular.
After Masada, we took a short bus ride over to an ancient synagogue that is currently being excavated. The building is almost 1,700 years old and it was incredible to see how similar some of the traditions are that have been passed down. 7 of our trip mates decided to go forward with a Bar/Bat Mitzvah ceremony, some of whom had never gone through with the ceremony when they were at the "normal" age, and wanted to have their first. A few others thought it would be important to be re-Bar/Bat Mitzvahed in the land of Israel. We said a few prayers, each of the participants gave a beautiful speech, and then the Rabbi said some words about the new Bar/Bat Mitzvahs. Rabbi Persoff, a Brit who made aliyah to Israel 40-50 years ago, is incredible. The dude is probably 65 years old and has the energy of a 15 year old. He was literally running around in circles as we were celebrating and dancing after the ceremony. He made the experience so much enjoyable for everyone. We need more Rabbis in the US like Rabbi Persoff. Mazel Tov to all of the new Bar/Bat Mitzvahs - Dan, Daniel, Dave, Gina, Esther, Ross, and Alex.
Once we finished celebrating the Bar Mitzvahs, we hopped on the bus again and went over to the Dead Sea. I have to admit, the Dead Sea was one of the sites that most intrigued me and that I was most looking forward to experiencing. We arrived late in the afternoon, and had about 75 minutes before we needed to hop back on the bus. Going into this trip, I knew:
*People float in the Dead Sea
*If you have cuts anywhere on your body, they will burn
*The beach is very rocky so as to avoid said cuts, footwear is recommended
As such, I made sure I kept my luscious locks long and flowing (4 days since last shave!) and brought along some flip flops. After visiting the Dead Sea, I learned:
*Everyone cakes themselves with mud prior to entering the sea. The mud doesn't smell all that pleasant but when you're the token bald guy on the trip and you can cake that shit all over your head when no one else can, you have to take advantage.
*Floating in the Dead Sea is one of the coolest experiences I've ever been a part of. You seem to be weightless, and can move through the water unlike any normal ocean/sea.
*Trying to "warm yourself" in the water is not a good idea and can be extremely painful. I did NOT learn this by experience but was told secondhand by some other unfortunate soul.
I would say for all the amazing things we did in Israel, the Dead Sea was probably my favorite. I wish I had more time there to chill out with a cooler of beer. Would have made for a tremendous afternoon. O well, I guess I'll need to return some time soon.
Upon leaving the Bedouin tents, we took the bus to Masada, the ancient fortress that has changed hands from Romans to Jews to Muslims and back again seemingly dozens of times. Masada contains more tremendous views of the countryside, mostly of barren desert but also the Dead Sea deep in the background. This is another one of those areas that you will never see unless you're in the Middle East or maybe somewhere like Greece. We took a funicular, which is one of my favorite words in the English language, down the mountain to the gift shop/restaurant - both of which were unspectacular.
After Masada, we took a short bus ride over to an ancient synagogue that is currently being excavated. The building is almost 1,700 years old and it was incredible to see how similar some of the traditions are that have been passed down. 7 of our trip mates decided to go forward with a Bar/Bat Mitzvah ceremony, some of whom had never gone through with the ceremony when they were at the "normal" age, and wanted to have their first. A few others thought it would be important to be re-Bar/Bat Mitzvahed in the land of Israel. We said a few prayers, each of the participants gave a beautiful speech, and then the Rabbi said some words about the new Bar/Bat Mitzvahs. Rabbi Persoff, a Brit who made aliyah to Israel 40-50 years ago, is incredible. The dude is probably 65 years old and has the energy of a 15 year old. He was literally running around in circles as we were celebrating and dancing after the ceremony. He made the experience so much enjoyable for everyone. We need more Rabbis in the US like Rabbi Persoff. Mazel Tov to all of the new Bar/Bat Mitzvahs - Dan, Daniel, Dave, Gina, Esther, Ross, and Alex.
Once we finished celebrating the Bar Mitzvahs, we hopped on the bus again and went over to the Dead Sea. I have to admit, the Dead Sea was one of the sites that most intrigued me and that I was most looking forward to experiencing. We arrived late in the afternoon, and had about 75 minutes before we needed to hop back on the bus. Going into this trip, I knew:
*People float in the Dead Sea
*If you have cuts anywhere on your body, they will burn
*The beach is very rocky so as to avoid said cuts, footwear is recommended
As such, I made sure I kept my luscious locks long and flowing (4 days since last shave!) and brought along some flip flops. After visiting the Dead Sea, I learned:
*Everyone cakes themselves with mud prior to entering the sea. The mud doesn't smell all that pleasant but when you're the token bald guy on the trip and you can cake that shit all over your head when no one else can, you have to take advantage.
*Floating in the Dead Sea is one of the coolest experiences I've ever been a part of. You seem to be weightless, and can move through the water unlike any normal ocean/sea.
*Trying to "warm yourself" in the water is not a good idea and can be extremely painful. I did NOT learn this by experience but was told secondhand by some other unfortunate soul.
I would say for all the amazing things we did in Israel, the Dead Sea was probably my favorite. I wish I had more time there to chill out with a cooler of beer. Would have made for a tremendous afternoon. O well, I guess I'll need to return some time soon.
Kaps
Song of the Day: Of Monsters and Men - Mountain Sound
Song of the Day: Of Monsters and Men - Mountain Sound
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