Life in Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv is a bustling city. And it is quite fashionable. With an amazing coastline on the brilliantly turquoise Mediterranean Sea, it’s no surprise that there is a lot going on in this city of about a million people. I loved Tel Aviv at night because there was a cool ocean breeze, and whether we walked along the water to a beach restaurant where we could eat with our toes in the sand, or inland to the neighborhood streets, lined with cafes and gelaterias, it never failed to be pleasant, calming, and enjoyable. And it had the most amazing sunsets! Sunsets that made you want to absorb the beauty of them and never forget the vibrant colors.
There is something for everyone in Tel Aviv. Small local shops and massive shopping malls; yummy local food and “safer”, typical Western food (one night we got $2 falafel pitas from a lovely man who was proud to share with some Americans, and another we went to a Michelin-rated local seafood restaurant on the new harbor that was expensive, and divine); meandering along the promenade at the beach or hopping in a taxi to head into the city. Whatever my mood was, whatever I was hungry for, however rushed or relaxed I felt – Tel Aviv was just right.
Someone walking down the promenade at the beach could very easily think they were in California. I arrived on the Sabbath (Saturday) which the Jewish population in Tel Aviv takes very seriously. Because it is a day of rest, the beaches and promenade were full of families having picnics, playing games, and enjoying the sun and the water. And the people of Tel Aviv are not modest by any stretch of the imagination (except for the Orthodox Jews), so let’s just suffice it to say that I saw more Speedos in a day in Tel Aviv then I really ever care to see in my life!
There are really just two things that reminded me that I was not in California: the fact that every sign is in Hebrew and the Israeli men’s obsession with this game called matkot (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matkot). I’ve included the Wikipedia link, so I won’t try to describe it, other than saying that you would never want to get in the way of one of those balls. Walking down the beach, it’s like a symphony of matkot games. And most of the men play in Speedos.
Tel Aviv also has the area of Jaffa, which is one of the oldest port cities in the world. Parts of Jaffa have narrow walkways with high stone walls, with little shops, restaurants and apartments tucked away within. You can easily get lost in what becomes a labyrinth of stone steps, but the safety of the water or the main square are never far away. A clock tower marks the center of Jaffa, and is surrounded by tourist shops, and a few streets away, local antique and flea markets. The cultures in Jaffa vary greatly since there is such history there for both the Jews and the Muslims. Currently, the oldest and probably largest mosque in Tel Aviv resides in Jaffa.
The people and the food
I can’t talk about the Israeli people with talking about religion. For most of them, being Jewish defines them. Granted, there are plenty of nonreligious jews, and there are many Orthodox Jews (although most live in Jerusalem rather than Tel Aviv), all of whom have varying levels of commitment to their beliefs, just as we experience in America. But putting aside religion for a moment, the Israelis are a likeable people. They are friendly, most speak three or four languages, and they seem to have no animosity toward Americans. I will say (with no intention of creating a stereotype here), that the Israeli Jews are physically a very homogenous culture. They all come from varying backgrounds, but they generally look very similar. I was amazed at this, and it made it quite easy to distinguish a local from an American or European tourist. The most distinguishing features are the eyes, nose, and the general way in which they carry themselves. And a lot of men over there are bald. And they wear Speedos. Have I mentioned that yet? :-)
I loved that as an American, I didn’t get treated any differently then a local or any other tourist. When I travel, I love getting treated as a local (but I will take that English menu, thank you) and merging into the culture. It makes me feel at home. And in Tel Aviv, it was very easy to feel at home. For a girl who loves pickles and hummus, I was in heaven. Every restaurant we went to made its own pickles. Yum. They pretty much make their own everything. I love that about foreign lands – their food is so much less processed than ours in America and so much better for our bodies! I honestly did not have a bad meal the entire time I was there. Everything was delicious, whether it was a lamb kebab, a cheeseburger, chicken shwarma, gallons of hummus, salads, gelato, fresh fish, etc. You get the idea – I did not starve in Tel Aviv :-)
A life of constant tension
So being the somewhat ignorant and oblivious American that I will ashamedly admit that I can tend to be, I knew the extreme basics of the current situation between the Israelis and the Palestinians. I mean, we’re talking basic. After this trip, I am proud to say that I have a comfortable level of knowledge about the situation. I’m not a political person and I generally choose to stay out of political conversations. There are too many people in this world who don’t know enough about politics, but who speak passionately as if they do. I don’t want to be one of them.
The main areas of conflict in Israel are the West Bank (as in west bank of the Jordan River, even though it’s in the east of Israel) and the Gaza strip, in southwestern Israel on the border of Egypt. I won’t continue to give a lesson on this Israeli/Palestinian conflict (mainly because I know I would screw something up), but I will tell you how it impacted our trip. In general, there were not many noticeable impacts during my time in Israel. The biggest impact was when we were going from Jerusalem to Bethlehem, which crosses into Palestinian territory from Israeli territory. Our tour guide in Jerusalem, who was an Israeli Jew, could not take us into Bethlehem, so we had to have a different tour guide for Bethlehem who was Arab.
When going between the two territories, we had to cross a checkpoint. We had no issues whatsoever, and the entire process was very seamless for us. I have heard stories where the guards ask a lot of questions, but I think that because we were clearly a group of Americans, there were no issues.
Every man and woman in Israel is required to serve in the army; men for three years (with one month of reserve time per year thereafter) and women for two years. There are certain exemptions, but for the most part, every Israeli has served in the army. Can you imagine telling each American that they have to serve in the army? I don’t think that would go over very well, but then again, this is what they are used to and it’s all they know. And Israel does not have a large standing army. It depends heavily on the reserves.
I don’t have a strong opinion on this conflict one way or the other, but it is clear that the people of Israel and those residing in Palestinian territory (including the disputed territory) are passionate about it. This is clearly something that cannot be resolved over night, but I do hope that everything gets resolved rather peacefully in time.
Masada
My next example of Lisa-ignorance is that I had never even heard of Masada. And I feel ashamed, as this is a fantastic story of greed, insanity, ingenuity, and ultimately death and sacrifice. The day after we went to Jerusalem and Bethlehem, we went with the same tour leader and driver to Masada and the Dead Sea. We drove back through Jerusalem, and then kept going east. As we drove down past sea level, we were almost instantly in the desert. It was amazing how quickly the landscape changed. We learned a lot about the agriculture historically, and today, and why certain vegetation (such as date palms) thrive, and why other plants require to much water and don’t grow well naturally.
We got a teasing glimpse of the Dead Sea before heading to Masada. Masada was built as a fortress on top of a mountain by King Herod, just before the birth of Christ. I vividly remember the three adjectives used by our tour guide to describe King Herod: excessive, paranoid, and a builder. I think these are important because they are really the only logical explanation for why he built this fortress on top of a mountain in the middle of nowhere.
Masada was amazing. It still had some of the old original stone remnants of the structure, and we could see where the storehouses, bathhouses, sleeping quarters, synagogue, guard stations, etc. were located. We literally walked in the midst of this fortress city. To make what could be a very long story
quite short, after King Herod died, and during the time that the Romans were destroying and capturing the Jews, a group of about 1,000 Jews escaped to Masada for refuge. They sustained themselves at Masada until the Romans came and sieged the fortress. Once the Romans breached the walls of Masada, the Jews decided to commit a mass murder/suicide instead of succumbing to the Romans either through death or slavery. I was so captivated by this story, and will be watching the Masada mini-series starring Peter O’Toole very soon; as soon as Netflix mails it to me!Today, visitors can either take a cable car up to the top of Masada or hike up and down on foot. You can walk all over the settlement and even go into the cisterns that were built in the side of the mountain to capture rain water as it ran down the mountain. I’m telling you, these people were engineers. And they certainly didn’t have the modern equipment that we have today. It was impressive!
The Dead Sea
What trip to Israel is complete without a trip to the Dead Sea? Some quick facts about the Dead Sea before I launch into my storytelling:
- The Dead Sea is the lowest place on earth, at about 1,400 feet below sea level;
- The salinity of the Dead Sea is about 33%, which is almost nine times saltier than the ocean (from personal experience, I don’t recommend tasting it!);
- The salinity causes the water to be very dense and buoyant, which allows people to float in the water;
- The Dead Sea abounds with minerals, which are thought to have healing properties and offer up a free full body mud mask!;
- The Dead Sea continues to shrink through evaporation each year. The only major source of water coming into the Dead Sea is the Jordan River, and rainfall in the area is scarce to none;
- The middle of the Dead Sea marks the border between Israel and Jordan. At the narrower parts, you can see Jordan clearly on the other side;
- In addition to the salt content, and the minerals in the water, the atmosphere around the Dead Sea provides relief for asthmatics, cystic fibrosis patients, and those suffering from eczema and psoriasis. This is because of the higher atmospheric pressure and the reduced ultraviolet rays from the sun (as a result of being so far below sea level).
So, now that you all have a crash course on the Dead Sea, it’s time for storytelling again.
We left Masada and headed for a quick stop at Qumran, which is where the first Dead Sea scrolls were found in the surrounding caves. These scrolls have provided a lot of the history that we know about that area.
Then it was time to go play in the Dead Sea. I’ll admit, when I first saw the beach and the area where we had access to the water, I was disappointed and it was very anti-climatic. It was muddy, dark, over laden with tourists, and just overall a bit gloomy. After seeing the Mediterranean Sea and its pristine turquoise water, I was shocked to see dark, murky water. But it totally makes sense, right? There is nothing living in the Dead Sea, the bottom is mud, and the water is thick with salt and minerals.
So, after getting over the visuals, I was eager to get in. I thought that the floating properties were probably overrated and exaggerated. I was happy to be wrong! I felt like a little kid, and probably acted like one too. It was just plain, simple, fun. You can literally walk in, sit down, and float on top of the water. No effort, no struggling, no drama. Just sitting or laying in this water that is supposed to have amazing properties. I could’ve stayed in there all day.
Then it was time for a full body mud mask. Picture yourself covered in rich, black Dead Sea mud. And then floating on top of the water. It was fantastic. But it stank! We stayed covered in mud for about 20 minutes while we all took lots of pictures and tried to let it dry, and then it was time to clean up. I will tell you, my skin has never felt softer in my life. And it lasted for days afterward. Any mud that is packaged and sold from the Dead Sea cannot be near as good as the real thing,, scooped up with your own hands from the bottom of the Dead Sea. Nothing beats the real thing.
So after we’ve all showered and changed and were mud-free, we stopped to have a quick drink at the “Lowest Bar in the World” after heading home after a fantastic but exhausting day. I encourage you to get to the Dead Sea before it evaporates even more. It would be a shame to miss out on a free full body mud mask :-)
Summing it all up
So it seems that I’ve said all that there is to be said about Israel. Well, not really, but all that I think you can handle. So let me just say this: GO. Go to Israel. Experience the spiritual side. Experience the surreal elements of the Dead Sea. Experience the vitality of Tel Aviv. Experience the history of Jaffa, and Masada, and Jerusalem, and every other city in Israel that has more history than America could ever have. And then I promise, when you get back, I’ll sit with you and you can tell me all about it. And how you fell in love with it, just as I did.
(At the time of posting this, the pictures would not upload, so apologies for all of the words. I hope to upload them at a later time!)
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