Israel

The first time I went to Israel was December 24th in the year 2000.
It was the beginning of a BIG LOVE.
I returned 5 times so far.
On my first trip I was fortunate to have a friend, that wanted me to get to know his country as much as possible in just a weeks time.
Turned out, that I ended up going to the top of the coast line the first day...and down to the very bottom tip on the last day...I REALLY lucked out!
The other trips were similar...with new places, intensified looks at old places, little amazing non-touristic places and a taste of the Israeli life.
Along the way I fell in love with this beautiful country, which has a never ending display of wonderful nature and countless historic sites.
I also love the Israeli mentality, which is very positive in though and full of humor.
I hope you enjoy my little "tour" of the center of the world. (Lay out a map of the world and have a look!)
In my lens I'll tell you some of the highlights....
to tell it all, would be never ending!!!

I arrived at Tel Aviv Airport and was then brought to my "home-site", Nachsholim, a kibbutz right on the beach front, between Hadera and Haifa.
A beautiful place to stay if you want a beach vacation sometime!
From there the first trip went up north along the coast, having breakfast in Bat Shlomo on the way in a cute little Bio-Store, that served a fantastic breakfast, then passing through Haifa and stopping in Akko, which has a quaint old city portion and a lovely harbour.
Then we drove up to Rosh Hanikra, right on the border to Lebanon...with a closed gate there, that kind of gets your respect activated having followed the news.
At this point I want to mention, that I never felt threatened or in danger at any time of my visists!!
Rosh Harnika is a wonderful chalk cave in a cliff on the sea. A cable car brings you down to it, and on calm days you can walk into the cave. We had a stormy day and it was impressive to watch the waves crashing into the cave...a very unique place.
From there we drove east, through a mountain area, that reminded my of the lower levels of the mountain in Austria.
We stop at one high point before driving down again, and in the mist I could see the Sea of Gallilea, called the Kineret in Israel.

The area around the Kineret (Sea of Galilea) is lined with olive trees and black rocks, between the golden burned grass.
In the north of the lake, there are sites where Jesus supposedly dwelled....also the place where he held his mountain sermon...although there is no mountain around.
It's an amazing feeling to walk through these places, knowing they are so old and connected to the New Testament.
On the west side of the lake, in the lower area, there is the Jordan River, with a place where Jesus was supposedly baptised. I HAD to put my hand in the water! It was a must.
On the other side of the lake are the Golan Hights...I'll talk about them at a later time.

During the next days I visited Caesarea...an old harbour with lots of archeological finds. A wonderful place, that I went back to often on later trips.
We visited Zichon Yacov, a quaint little town in the hills, where you should try out some of the great wine produced in Israel. My favorits come from the Golan!!!
We went to Ein Hod, an artist village, with lots of art, museums and galleries. A charming place. Should be put on your list of things to do if you go there.
For lunch we had Shwarma...and took a side road to the Alexandria River, near Kfar Vitkin, to eat there on a bridge. I did know exactly why we went there, but soon found out, when my friend told me not to eat it all. He told me to throw a piece of my lunch into the river...and all of a sudden I saw turtles as big as a coffee table, swimming to grab what I had thrown in. Amazing!!!! They say they are the only canaverous turtles in the world.
South of Netanya there is a town called Herziliya, with a wonderful harbour...great for a walk on the pier thru the anchor places and also nice for lunch in one of the many restaurants. Shopping was kind of fun too in the mall there. In Herziliya "Petuach", on the beach, is an awsome "house" that was built into the cliff over the years. As far as I could make out, the front of a pirate ship came out of the cliff....not sure if it was used as a kitchen or patio...
Its real colorful and lots of little details...it's fenced in, but its worth it to take a peek! Never seen anything like it before.

Tel Aviv has a neat skyline, great parks and a wonderful walk way along the sea...
But me, I like Jaffa...the site of Jonah and the Whale. An old town with a little harbour. Kind of artsy, ....just real neat to walk around in and it gives a great view of T.A.=Tel Aviv
There is a fun bazar to visit...with old and new and touristy things to buy and see.
Haifa is a lovely city nestled into the hills of the Carmel Mountain. Make sure to visit the Bahai Temple and Gardens there....absolutely breathtaking!!!

The road from T.A. to Jerusalem is lined with tank wrecks of the past wars...but its a real nice drive thru forest areas.
The City of Gold is set on many hills...awesome!
Driving through the "religious" areas makes you think you're in Anatevka!!
In the ultra areas you, as a woman, should avoid walking around in slacks, shorts or sleevles shirts. Could get you into trouble!
Jerusalem's Old City is really something to experience. So wonderful, so much to see!
A visit to the Wall, called the Kotel, is a must. Make sure you write a little letter of Blessings and Wishes, to stick into the cracks of the wall (if you find a free space!). Its worth it...all I hoped for has become true since I stuck my little paper into the crack!
The Wall has an amazing aura....it was so emotional, that I cried!!!
After touching it and saying a prayer, I joined the others walking backward, facing the wall out of respect, until I almost reached the end of the square. It's a custom...respect it!
The tunnels under the Kotel are said to be a MUST to see. I didnt know it, but you have to make reservations up to 2 months in advance to get a tour. It's something on my list for the next trip.
The Mt. of Olives, outside the city hall, in the back of the Kotel, is a place you should drive to, to get a good view of all of the old city and to take pictures.
The Hollocaust Museum, Ya VaShem, is a definate must! Very interesting, very emotional and a place that assures the horror is not forgot, neither the many lost souls.
Ofcourse there is the Shrine of the Books, Beit Sefer. Where you can see the old scrolls.
The Knesset, House of Parliament, with the hure Menora in front of it, is another thing you shouldn't miss driving by.
The famous bazaar on the other side of town. It's an explosion of sights and smells...don't miss it!
Jerusalem for one day is too much...I would suggest planning in 3 days to get the basics.

Driving down through Beer Sheva and right into the desert is a sight for sore eyes. Beduhins can be seen on the side of the road with their sheep and camels. Most of them now have housing and don't move around any more.
Driving through Arad, you go down hill to the lowest place on earth, the Dead Sea.
There is an area where the hotels are huddled together and you can take that famous bath. And YES you dont go under!!! I layed in liqueur thick water on my back, with my legs and arms up in the air, looking like a spider....you just float!!!! Make sure to keep your mouth and eyes shut...swallowing the water will make you ill and getting it in the eyes hurts like heck! The salt and mineral content is just unbelievable.
While your there, take time for a mud pack and a massage!!!
The water is great for healing purposes...so are the salts and the mud!
Talk about having skin like a baby after the bath!!!
While you are in the area, visit Masada on top of the mountain....go up in the cable car and rent the tape that will give you a great tour and story!
Visit the springs and waterfalls nearby, where King David spent time, writing and composing his songs. Awesome beauty! Nature pure!
From there it goes down south through the Negev Desert, with all its canyons and color splendor.
Lots of Date Palms on the way down to the Red Sea.
When you hit the Gulf of Akkaba/Eilat all you see is RED. The landscape around is breath taking and for sure thats where the Red Sea got its name, it's the reflection of all those reds.
Eilat is definately a vacation spot...not much to see, but great for a break at the sea side. Diving is great all year around and a trip into the desert is fun on one of those 4-wheel motorcycle thingies. If you want to pay the price, you can swim with dolphins!

During my other visits some of the highlights were visiting the Golan Heights.
The view to the Sea of Galilea is breathtaking from there and there are many steams and waterfalls with great hiking trails all over. Just make sure you stay in the authorized places, because in many areas there are still landmines, but with warning signs. The Israelis make jokes about the three-legged cows of the Golan :-)
There are a many historic sites worth looking at...one I really enjoyed was in the town Katsrin.
In the south of the Golan is Hamat Gader, on the Jordanian Border.
Here you find hot springs to bathe in and you can enjoy the little corocodile and bird zoo there too.
The north of the Golan gives a view of the Hermon Mountain, where there is skiing in the winter.
Metula is a nice city on the Lebanon Border, built on a hill with a super ice skating facility.
Just south of Metula and Kirat Shmone there is the Natural Reserve Ha Hula, where you can walk for hours and watch the birds, specially during migration time. All the European birds stop in Israel on their way south. It's amazing....the air force even has special bird radar checks because of all the "traffic".
Tsfat is a town that should definately be visited. A very religious town, with shuls (for Torah studies) on every corner. A wonderful town with a lot of atmosphere.
Souvenir shopping is great here and if you get a chance try out the Tsfat Cheese...very yummy!

Two times I was invited to stay with friends that live on a kibbutz.
Once HaOgen and the other time Alonim.
It was a great experience to see how people live there and at this point I want to thank them for making it possible for me.
Another time I was invited to spend the weekend at a friends house in Netanya. Here I was in the midst of a wonderful family and was able to learn what "kosher" is all about, and experience Shabbat Dinner and the candle lighting. It was really wonderful.
Thanks so much for letting me have this pleasure.

At this point a special thanks to all my friends in Israel, that have generously donated their time and efforts to show me their wonderful country.
It truely has been a rewarding experience for me and I can only say...what a marvelous place Israel is.
Thanks Thanks Thanks!