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Gamla Nature Reserve
The Dolmen is the rock structure to the right. I've spent the last week doing plenty of sightseeing in Israel.
On Sunday, Ortal (a friend of Yuda's) took us to the Golan Heights. ...you may have heard of it because it is an area (orignially of Syria) that has been occupied by Israel since the Six Day War in 1967. It is a plateau in the northeast of Israel, bordering of Lebanon, Jordan and Syria (and from a distance I saw each of these countries). Now I've been there I can see what the fuss is about. It's a lovely place, with great views over Israel (this could be why Israel hasn't given it back... Syria could easily fire rockets down the hill at Israel... and apparently they did).
In the Golan, we went to Gamla nature reserve, which has a pretty decent waterfall in what you would otherwise think is barren land. It also has lots of dolmens - these are large rock constructions made in 3000 BC (yes that's a really long time ago!) ... I thought they were decorative, but I've just found out that they were actually graves or tombs for nomads. I can't begin to imagine how they made them. There was also
a lot of bird life - especially vultures and other birds of prey.
We also visited an elaborate memorial at the site where 73 Israelis died when their helicopters collided in 1997 during a war against Lebanon. Israel is a nice country, but it's hard not to notice that there is a memorial on every corner for people who have died at war or been victims of terrorist attacks.
We drove home through Tiberias, where I tried cactus flower icecream. It isn't as bad as durian icecream... but I don't recommend it!
The next day we woke up early and caught the bus to Jerusalem. The route to Jerusalem is through the Palestinian territories. I was only slightly worried (because why would the bus go that way if it is going to be dangerous) but I worried more when Yuda said that all the buses that used to go that way had bulletproof glass... and this one didn't. Soon scenes from Babel were running through my mind! - It is similar scenery - big desert hills running down to the Jordan River. I began to scour the hills for young kids playing with big rifles... but I
soon grew tired of that, relaxed and enjoyed the ride... until Yuda pointed out all the memorials we were passing. They were all for Israelis that had been ambushed or killed along the road. He also taught me to recognise the letters 'hey, yud, and dalet' which stands for something like 'may god avenge their blood'. Those letters are written at every site where an Israeli has been murdered (I've seen lots and lots of them now).
Jerusalem is fantastic. The two days we spent there were not nearly enough. I loved the Old City. We spend our entire first day exploring the Old City on foot - the Armenian, Christian, Muslim and Jewish quarters. I went to ha kotel ha ma'ravi (the western wall). It is probably the most sacred and famous Jewish religious site. It was built in 19BCE, after Jerusalem was seized and pretty much destroyed it was all that was left. It is tradition to write a prayer and put it in the wall. I didn't do this (I felt too guilty being such a blasphemer and all) but I went down and watched everyone else praying.
Our first day in Jerusalem was "Jerusalem
Day". Everyone got very patriotic, the city centre was packed, and a lot of roads were closed. This meant we had to do A LOT of walking. I thought my feet might fall off. They were SOOOO sore! In the evening Yuda's brother (Yair), who we stayed with, took us on another walk through the city at night. It was really nice... but I didn't take any photos because I was too exhausted.
The next day visited a museum about the history of Jerusalem (it was very educational) at the Tower of David. There were great views of the city there. And we spent some time in the city centre... where I had my first genuine kosher experience. We went to a restaurant and the first thing they asked us was 'milk or meat?'. The entire restaurant is split into two - one half makes food with dairy in it and the other half makes food with meat in it. For the record: I chose meat. Apparently this is the norm - I didn't know because until then we had been eating falafel, shwarma and hummus or eating at home.
At the end of the second day we
caught the bus to Tel Aviv. Tel Aviv is a nice relaxed city. The weather is quite humid, compared to everwhere else I've been in Israel, but pleasant. We went out with a couple of Yuda's friends. I had a lot of fun, but I think they were quite disappointed with my unAustralianess... I managed to down two pints and a vodka shot... but that was all I could handle... I was exhausted! I think we tried to cram too much sight seeing in too little time (that's my excuse anyway).
We didn't do too much in Tel Aviv, I wanted to go to the beach... but we ran out of time. We walked around the city and went to the movies and saw Indiana Jones. Next time I'm picking the movie! We caught a late bus back towards Mesillot. I was terribly travel sick. The traffic was bad and I was sitting far too far back in the bus.
We had one day of recovery in Mesillot... then yesterday I finally got to go to the Dead Sea! It was great! The lowest place in the world (and it's getting lower still). Floating was fun, but Yuda
and his Dad wouldn't get in the water with me... so we didn't stay for too long (it was also REALLY hot). I'm normally a sinker (in any other sea) so I was having a great time. At one stage, when I was floating on my back, a small wave got me... and oww it burned! Yuda had to come in with fresh water to wash the salt out of my eyes and mouth. Yuk! Unfortunately the beach we went to didn't have mud... so I couldn't cover myself with Dead Sea minerals... I'm considering buying some duty free on my way to England...
On the way back from the sea we went to St Gerasimos Church. This church is built on the site where Mary and baby Jesus found refuge when they where fleeing for Egypt because King Herod planned to kill all the children (I think that's how the story goes). I didn't know we were going there, so I wasn't dressed appropriately and had to borrow a sheet to cover myself. It is quite a nice place and I think it will be nicer soon... they seemed to be carrying out a lot of renovations and
restorations.
Anyway... that is about it! Tomorrow is a Jewish a holiday (shevo'ut - weeks). I'm not exactly sure what is going to take place, but I think there is some kind of celebration in the kibbutz involving food... But for now, I'm going to try and get as much sun as possible to prepare myself for England (every day here has been 36-43C and the last time I checked the weather for London it was 20C and getting cooler).
Take care and keep in touch. xx
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