The Holy Land: Israel and Palestine
The border crossing was quite smooth. A 15 minute cab ride on the Jordan side, a mini interrogation by the Israeli officers, and then another 15 minute cab ride to the bus stop in Eilat where I made it just in time onto the 8am bus to Jerusalem. The first thing I noticed in Israel was the large amount of 18-20 year olds on my bus dressed in their green army uniforms and all carrying their automatic rifles (assuming unloaded) with them at all times. Israelis are required to serve 2 years in the army, I assume all of these kids were in training but the sight of of the machine guns was not very comforting. It was a 5 hour ride up to Jerusalem and we had good views of the Dead Sea along the way.
Jerusalem was way different than I expected. A very beautiful city with lots of green space. There is a city ordinance in which all buildings are required to be built with Jerusalem stone which adds to its beauty. Israel is totally westernized, which I welcomed warmly after 2+ months in third world or muslim countries. I could finally go for a run without getting stared and yelled at - the simple joys in life. I did a walking tour through the Old City the following morning and learned a lot about the city, its history, and the religions. We walked the path that Jesus walked when he carried the cross to his crucifixion, saw the place where he was nailed to the cross, and his tomb in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Dome of the Rock is the famous mosque which is the holiest spot for Jews and top three for Christians and Muslims. Jews are not allowed in this area so they face its West Wall and pray there since that is the closest they can get. I also saw the Garden of the Tombs, the Virgin Mary's tomb, the Garden of Gethsemane where Jesus was betrayed, and went up to the Mount of Olives for a good viewpoint over the city. You could spend several days in Jerusalem seeing famous holy sights but I tire easily with area that have mad tourist crowds.
The food there was delicious as well. The Mahane Yehuda Market has all sorts of treats like baclava and halal. The hummus and bread is also really good and plentiful. The following day I went on a tour over to Bethlehem in Palestine and saw the Church and birth place of Jesus. It was interesting to learn about the border crossing rules there as well. Except with special permission for work, Israelis are not allowed over to the Palestine side and vice versa for Palestinians. There is actually a sign at the border before going into Palestine which warns anybody holding an Israeli passport that their life will be in danger if they enter. Aside from that warning and the massive wall at the border, the West Bank seemed to be a very safe and normal place. The Gaza Strip is the dangerous part of Palestine because it is ruled by the terrorist organization Hamas, but that is on the opposite side of Israel.
The next day I got up at 2:30am to do a sunrise tour at Masada, the last village standing during the Roman invasion. It's up on a "mountain" overlooking the Dead Sea. Unfortunately it was cloudy that morning so we didn't get much of a sunrise but still had good views. The next stop on the tour was Ein Gedi which is a National Park where there are natural springs and waterfalls in the middle of the desert. And our final stop was at the Dead Sea where the water is so highly concentrated with salt that you literally float with no effort. The Sea is said to have medicinal properties and the mud and water are really good for your skin.
That afternoon I took an hour bus ride to Tel-Aviv. This city felt almost like I was in the US. Lots of shopping and great restaurants, very good parks and the best beach front area in a city that I have ever seen. After doing a long run along the beach front the following morning, I walked down to Old Jaffa city and had lunch on the water front.
Overall Israel was a great break from the third world countries and there's plenty more sites I need to do which warrants a return trip at some point. My only beef with the county is it's lack of use of English on signs and the airport security is the most absurd I've ever experienced. It took a full two hours to check my bag and get through security and it wasn't because of the length of the line. They interrogated me and every other person for 10-15 min asking ridiculous questions like if I knew Doug's parents names since I said I had traveled with him to Indonesia.
Jerusalem was way different than I expected. A very beautiful city with lots of green space. There is a city ordinance in which all buildings are required to be built with Jerusalem stone which adds to its beauty. Israel is totally westernized, which I welcomed warmly after 2+ months in third world or muslim countries. I could finally go for a run without getting stared and yelled at - the simple joys in life. I did a walking tour through the Old City the following morning and learned a lot about the city, its history, and the religions. We walked the path that Jesus walked when he carried the cross to his crucifixion, saw the place where he was nailed to the cross, and his tomb in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Dome of the Rock is the famous mosque which is the holiest spot for Jews and top three for Christians and Muslims. Jews are not allowed in this area so they face its West Wall and pray there since that is the closest they can get. I also saw the Garden of the Tombs, the Virgin Mary's tomb, the Garden of Gethsemane where Jesus was betrayed, and went up to the Mount of Olives for a good viewpoint over the city. You could spend several days in Jerusalem seeing famous holy sights but I tire easily with area that have mad tourist crowds.
Church of the Holy Sepulchre
The spot Jesus was nailed to the cross
One of the spots Jesus stopped to take a rest while carrying the cross
View of Dome of the Rock from a roof top
One of the entrances into the Old City of Jerusalem
Garden of Gethsemane
View of the Old City of Jerusalem from the top of the Mount of Olives
Mount of Olives - Famous Jewish Cemetery on the right
Room where the Last Supper was held
The food there was delicious as well. The Mahane Yehuda Market has all sorts of treats like baclava and halal. The hummus and bread is also really good and plentiful. The following day I went on a tour over to Bethlehem in Palestine and saw the Church and birth place of Jesus. It was interesting to learn about the border crossing rules there as well. Except with special permission for work, Israelis are not allowed over to the Palestine side and vice versa for Palestinians. There is actually a sign at the border before going into Palestine which warns anybody holding an Israeli passport that their life will be in danger if they enter. Aside from that warning and the massive wall at the border, the West Bank seemed to be a very safe and normal place. The Gaza Strip is the dangerous part of Palestine because it is ruled by the terrorist organization Hamas, but that is on the opposite side of Israel.
The next day I got up at 2:30am to do a sunrise tour at Masada, the last village standing during the Roman invasion. It's up on a "mountain" overlooking the Dead Sea. Unfortunately it was cloudy that morning so we didn't get much of a sunrise but still had good views. The next stop on the tour was Ein Gedi which is a National Park where there are natural springs and waterfalls in the middle of the desert. And our final stop was at the Dead Sea where the water is so highly concentrated with salt that you literally float with no effort. The Sea is said to have medicinal properties and the mud and water are really good for your skin.
Floating in the Dead Sea
Ein Gedi
Masada
That afternoon I took an hour bus ride to Tel-Aviv. This city felt almost like I was in the US. Lots of shopping and great restaurants, very good parks and the best beach front area in a city that I have ever seen. After doing a long run along the beach front the following morning, I walked down to Old Jaffa city and had lunch on the water front.
Overall Israel was a great break from the third world countries and there's plenty more sites I need to do which warrants a return trip at some point. My only beef with the county is it's lack of use of English on signs and the airport security is the most absurd I've ever experienced. It took a full two hours to check my bag and get through security and it wasn't because of the length of the line. They interrogated me and every other person for 10-15 min asking ridiculous questions like if I knew Doug's parents names since I said I had traveled with him to Indonesia.
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