The REAL trip

Okay.. so for the past few days I've been traveling around alone with some of my friends, completely without guides and chaperones and a structured schedule. It has been an entirely different experience. Now back to where I left off --- we went to the airport to drop off everyone going home after getting about two hours of sleep the night before. We had already changed our plans, deciding to head up to Akko for the first day, instead of Haifa, and to sleep in Karmiel at Pavel's , who was the medic and guard from our trip who offered to host a bunch of us at his apartment. Sage, Jen, and I were going to meet up with Dina (Lisa and Jen's friend from home who came on the trip with us) and Jason (one of my room mates on the trip). At the last minute, another guy named Seth joined our trip because all his plans fell through. So the six of us headed up to the North with Pavel and dropped our luggage off at his apartment where his mom had baked dozens of Russian meat bread puff things for us... very odd.. but appreciated greatly. We got in a taxi and made it back to Akko to see the old city fortresses and maybe the beach.

Walking into the old city, we realized that it was a completely Arab village. Everything was in Arabic, no one was speaking Hebrew, and some kids threw rocks at us as we walked by. We found a map and navigated our way into the main Arab market bazaar where we were surrounded by the smells of spices, stores and cafes full of hookahs, cheap plastic knock offs, stray cats, women selling all types of baklava and dozens of things that look like it, and textiles hanging from shops and roofs. It was such so surreal to come from a very sheltered and organized trip to an incredibly real and lively Arab shuk, alone, guiding myself, and with two hours of sleep the night before. We found a place called Hummus Said where everyone recommended we go to get the "best hummus in the North".. whatever that means. It was delicious though. We wandered down to the marina where fishing boats were pulling in and unloading their catches, and where a little Arab kid spit on Jen's leg. We watched the local kids jump from the 60 foot high walls of the fortress into the green Mediterranean below while the minarets of the mosques played the call to prayer. It was hard to soak in the enormous contrast between where we were standing and what we had been doing the week before. We were VERY sheltered on the organized trip.

We went to find a beach to nap on, but were confronted with a sign with a skull and crossbones at one entrance that showed a message in Hebrew, Arabic, and Russian. With our collective skills in Hebrew, we picked out the phrases "not allowed", "here", and "murder", so we decided to pass on the "no murder" beach, and we continued down the road. (Later we found out it really meant "no swimming", but we were happier not taking any chances). We never found a beach, but we stopped to rest at a soccer field and met a local Arab social worker who worked with the kids in Akko to organize a soccer league and the keep them busy and off the streets. We made small talk about Israel and the US, but after realizing that we were Jewish, the man started asking us what we though of the Arab aspects of Israel and especially what we saw in Akko. He was suggesting that neglect of support and guidance for Arab kids was a major problem in their culture, and he left us with the statement "enjoy your visit, pray for us here..... and pray for peace." After seeing the negative aspects of those kids spitting at us and throwing rocks throughout the day, his statement was encouraging.

We made our way back to Karmiel and Pavel dragged us around his town meeting all of his friends. This too was surreal, as anything is after a day of walking around in the heat with almost 36 hours with barely any sleep. We ended the night smoking a hookah at a random friend's house in Karmiel overlooking an Arab village that was celebrating a wedding with music, prayer, fires, and fireworks echoing through the valley late into the night. And to think, just a day or so ago, we were touring Mini Israel, one of the most touristy places you can imagine.

Being able to travel on our own is making this experience for me. COMPLETELY different, and MUCH more exciting.

I still have more to update before the blog is caught up to real time, but it's too late, and I need sleep.

Until next time ---

Jerusalem

So after we left the hotel in Tel Aviv, we went to Rabin Square, where Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated. It was a pretty powerful place. To visualize the magnitude of such an event taking place where were we were standing, only 10 or 11 years ago was deep. Then, on a lighter note, we drove out to Mini-Israel where we got to tour the entire country scaled down to a miniature size. It was really corny but fun nonetheless. We then drove the rest of the way into Jerusalem and went to Har Hertzel, the Arlington cemetery of Israel. Unlike Arlington, it is designed like a botanical garden park and feels nothing like a cemetery. It's a really beautiful place, but still very moving. We went out to the German Colony at night and walked around going in and out of coffee shops and book stores, practicing our Hebrew and enjoying the great Middle Eastern weather. We spent the later part of the night out on the balcony of our hotel overlooking Jerusalem while smoking a very relaxing hookah that one of the Israeli soldiers brought with him.

This morning we visited Yad Vashem, Israel's Holocaust memorial. I had been there before, but the museum part opened since we were here. It was moving, but more in an educational way than the Holocaust museum in Washington DC, which is one of the most deeply emotional places I've visited. I don't think I'll need to go back again. That took up most of our day, and we were all exhausted by the time we got back, so we took a good 3 hour nap before heading to Mevatzeret Tzion for Shabbat services. I was there also last time (this Birthright trip is very much the same as when I came with Sage and everyone two years ago), but they built a new synagogue on a hill with a dramatic view of Jerusalem, which made it one of the most spiritual services I've been to. We'll all be partying out by the pool tonight and then relaxing and walking around Jerusalem tomorrow for Shabbat.

My schedule for the next week or so ---

Sunday - We all go to the airport and pick up our return tickets. Then Sage, Jen, and I, and maybe a few more kids we met on the trip, will be heading up to Acco in the north for the afternoon. We'll spend the night in Haifa with my friend Merav, who's planning on taking us to a pub outside the city. We'll most likely stay in a hostel in the city.

Monday - Traveling around Haifa.. beach.. Bahai'i gardens.. whatever else there is to do there. Sleeping in a hostel again.

Tuesday - We're taking the train down to Ra'anananananana to meet up with Gal and Nadav who are taking us to Tel Aviv for the day and then out for the night. We're staying with them.

Wednesday - More Tel Aviv, or maybe just a beach day in Herzliya, Netanya, or one of those beautiful Mediterranean beach places near Tel Aviv.

Thursday - We'll take a bus down to Eilat and meet up with Inbal and her boyfriend to hang out on the beach and in the city. Another hostel.

Friday - Eilat

Saturday - Eilat

Sunday - We're going up to Jerusalem (maybe stopping at Inbal's army base for a while or the night)

Monday - Jerusalem

Tuesday - Beaching in Tel Aviv again before heading to the airport for Greece!

The Next Couple of Days

So back to Jerusalem... (I'm in Tel Aviv right now.) We started out eating the same Israeli breakfast which I once used to love, but now makes me crazy -- lots of bland eggs, bread, cucumbers and olives, yogurt, strange salty fish parts, chopped inedible vegetables, and strange pink creamy things. We headed to the Old City, entering through the Zion Gate. We walked down the 3,000 year old cobble stone streets, passing through the Jewish quarter, archeological dig sights, the room where the last supper took place, underground Arab markets, and we tried many times to see the Western wall, but there was always some kind of problem. The first time, it was too crowded, then it was too hot, then there was a suspicious package left on the road between us and the wall that had to be destroyed by the army before we could go through. The procedure for an unattended backpack in Israel is to block off the area and send in a robot that covers the bag and blows it up. It is VERY weird to hear an explosion like that in Jerusalem. Eventually we did see the wall though. We spent most of the day in the old city, but I can't remember much more that we did that day. We've done so much.

The next day we drove up to the Galilee, and we picked up 8 Israeli soldiers (all our age) to join us for the rest of the trip. We passed the separation barrier of the West Bank and climbed into the fertile, hilly North. We stopped in Zipori, an archeological dig sight with some of the oldest Jewish ruins in the world. We then went to the Kineret (Sea of Galilee) and hiked through a river that runs off the Jordan. After drying off, we headed to a Kibbutz youth hostel on the shore of the lake. We picked up some wine and everyone had a really great night down on the lake talking with each other and the Israelis about life.

Yesterday we went up to the beautiful Golan Heights and looked out over the entire country. We then went to Tzfat (which was REALLY hot by the way... over 105 degrees). There we saw a lot of Kaballah and religious sights. It's such a beautiful city. We drove down past the shore of the Mediterranean to Tel Aviv, and we visited Independence Hall before heading out the the Tayelet (promenade) on the beach where we spent the night in restaurants and drinking on the soft Mediterranean sand of Tel Aviv.

Today we're heading back to Jerusalem, where we'll be for the rest of our program. I'll try to give some more details and thoughts later on, but I've been pretty crunched for time, and computers are not easy to access.

L'hitraot!

First Couple of Days

I'm finally at a computer for the first time! It's only our third day here, but it feels like its been a week. I'm so time disoriented. The flight over was about 9 hours, and I didn't get any sleep. When we got to Tel Aviv, it was about 8AM, so we had to get right into the tour.. no time for sleeping. After stopping in Jerusalem to look out over the city and for our introduction to the program, we drove through the West Bank and down past the Dead Sea to Kibbutz Yahel in the southern Negev. We were about 45 minutes north of Eilat and right on the Jordanian border. It was a really beautiful drive through some intense desert mountains. Lots of dramatic desert scenery. By the time we got there, it was evening, so we had our first dinner on the kibbutz. The food was surprisingly really good for a kibbutz cafeteria. Lots of chicken and hummus. We had shabbat services and passed out early, about 11PM, because we hadn't slept for about two full days.

Day 2 - Being shabbat, we got to have a very refreshing day of laziness. We toured the kibbutz, learning about the dairy and sheep farm and the strange Israeli fruits they grow. It really blows my mind to think that they can have such successful agriculture in the middle of a pretty serious desert. We spent the rest of the day by the pool in zero humidity 95 degree weather.. very nice. At night we drove into Eilat, Israel's Atlantic City type resort town on the Red Sea, and stopped at a Bedouin camp near the Egypt border for some Arabic tea, baklava, nargileh (hookah), camels, and Arabic dancing and music. It was such an awesome experience. I've wanted to do that type of thing for a really long time, and it was TOTALLY worth 10 sheqels ($2.50). After that, we walked around the boardwalk and all ended up in a bar on the beach. We headed home at about 1AM and passed out. I really cannot wait to come back here on our free time.

Day 3 - Today
We got up at 6:30AM, not fun after only four hours of sleep. We were supposed to hike Massada at sunrise, which is pretty much a vital part of birthright trips, but for some reason we didn't. This tour seems to be cutting a lot of corners in that respect. Although I'm loving it, we definitely aren't doing what we expected. We went to Massada and took the cable car up and down. It was nice, but not worth it. We went from there to Ein Gedi, a beautiful national park oasis in the middle of the desert next to the Dead Sea. We hiked up through the mountain pass to a beautiful waterfall swimming pond where we all jumped in to cool off. After that, we went to the Dead Sea, finally, and went swimming. I really love this place! You really can't describe the water. Apparently the famous mud is not common, and you can't get it from the water. You have to buy it. Luckily, some nice tourists gave us their back and we lathered up. It feels really cool and when it dries your skin looks elephant-like. After that we got back on the bus and headed up to Jerusalem. We'll be here touring the old city tomorrow, and then we're heading up to the Galilee, Kineret, and Golan Heights for the next few days. Hopefully I can find another computer soon!

Last Night

Last night at the lake... Everyone stopped by for a great bbq and we had a fire in the pit down on the dock. I'm really gonna miss this for the next 7 weeks!! Make sure everyone leaves me comments to keep in touch. Let me know what souvenirs you all want!

I'll be back soon.

North Carolina

We just got back from North Carolina last night. It was great like it always is. Spadone, Drew, and I took the mega minivan down 95 on Wednesday. As soon as we got to Topsail Island we unloaded our stuff at Nana's house and went across the street to the beach. The weather wasn't great when we got there, but it completely cleared up by Friday, making for a beautiful week on the island.

Topsail is a barrier island south of the main Outer Banks. It's not as touristy, commercialized, and condo-ized as the Jersey Shore is, so it's really a great place to get away from all the chaos of the North. Plus, the Southern food, accent, and atmosphere all make it a really relaxing place to be.

For the most part, we spent all our time out on the sand, building huge castles, soakin up the sun, eating barbeque, fried chicken, seafood, hush puppies, and SWEET TEA, and watching "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" pretty much every night. I met my new cousin Terry and her son Cole who are both great. Spadone and Cole are now best buds. We saw a bunch of "beach-going rednecks", and we couldn't decide whether or not we would prefer them to their NJ counterparts, Seaside Tonies, but aside from them, all the people we met were awesome. You gotta love that southern hospitality.

We drove back up the scenic route along the coast and over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge/Tunnel last night and got in around 11:30. Everyone was finally home from school, so we got a great welcome back at my house.

It was a perfect and relaxing way to start the summer. I love that place!

Home from College

Okay, so I just made this blog page, and I'm testing it out. College is over, and it's officially summer! I'm pretty pumped about all the traveling I'll be doing over the next few months.

Here's a basic overview:

• (May 10th - May 14th) North Carolina
• (May 18th - June 6th) Israel
• (June 6th - June 26th) Greece
• (June 26th - July 6th?) More Israel

I'm planning on keeping a journal of my travels on here and posting my itinerary, thoughts, experiences, and maybe some pictures along the way.

Make sure to leave comments so I can keep in touch while im gone for these upcoming two months!