Wrong address. Walking around carrying heavy backpacks, a baby and a stroller. Having an argument with a hard headed non-flexible manager, who doesn't know that the client is always right. And a delay of almost 2 hours of our plans. That's how we started our day, trying to get the already booked by internet rental car. To make a long story short: Expedia.ca promised us something - and we have the electronic booking to prove it - and the rental place SIXT - which uses Expedia to sell its services - refused to give us the same deal, wanting to charge more than double. Luckily there were many other rental places around and we could get the same original deal two doors down the street.
WEST BANK
Well, at almost 11am we headed to Jerusalem in our lovely little car, on our way to the Dead Sea. As soon as we passed Jerusalem, we went through the West Bank.
Well, at almost 11am we headed to Jerusalem in our lovely little car, on our way to the Dead Sea. As soon as we passed Jerusalem, we went through the West Bank.
The wall followed us for a while. I've decided to not get political during this trip, but it's hard to not think about it. The whole situation is just unfortunate. I don't think I will ever be able to fully understand conflicts like this. It's all so complex and sad, for both sides. I just hope that the so wished peace will come very soon!
The Arab side.
DESERT
Back to our vacation... Soon we started driving through the desert, with no towns around, just this beautiful scenery.
Marilia, my friend in Calgary: this is for you. I guess you were right. There are camels in Israel!
This is a mark to show the sea level. We were driving down, to about 400 meters bellow it.
Most of the colours here is beige with the sandy mountains, but sometimes we could see some green to contrast with it and reminded us that there is life in the desert too. These are tamar trees.
The mountains are really high, and it's possible to see many caves.
There is one of our destinations: the Dead Sea.
OASIS
We stopped to visit the Ein Gedi Nature Reserve, with a promise to see an Oasis!
FROM WIKIPEDIA: Ein Gedi nature reserve was declared in 1971 and is one of the most important reserves in Israel. The park is situated on the eastern border of the Judean Desert, on the Dead Sea coast, and covers an area of 14000 dunams (one modern dunam equals the area of one decare).
The elevation of the land ranges from the level of the Dead Sea at 423 meters (1,388 ft) below sea level to the plateau of the Judean Desert at 200 meters above sea level. Ein Gedi nature reserve includes two spring-fed streams with flowing water year-round: Nahal David and Nahal Arugot. Two other springs, the Shulamit and Ein Gedi springs, also flow in the reserve. Together, the springs generate approximately three million cubic meters of water per year. Much of the water is used for agriculture or is bottled for consumption.
The reserve is a sanctuary for many types of plant, bird and animal species. The vegetation includes plants and trees from the tropical, desert, Mediterranean, and steppian regions, such as Sodom apple, acacia, jujube, and poplar. The many species of resident birds are supplemented by over 200 additional species during the migration periods in the spring and fall. Mammal species include the ibex and the hyrax.
The Ein Gedi national park features several archaeological sites including the Chalcolithic Temple of Ein Gedi and a first century CE village. The park was declared in 2002 and covers an area of 8 dunams.
Most of the trees I saw had a special irrigation system, with a thin hose around it.
Wow! What a beautiful water fall after driving and walking so long through the desert!
No, Julia! It's not a mirage!!! IT IS an Oasis!!!
I have no idea what these guys are. They are a bit bigger than a golfer and you can see them everywhere, running from rock to rock. They don't seem to be bothered by humans.
There is a school group. Actually one of many we saw. But it was crazy to discovery that in this part of the world teachers carry guns on field trips to protect their children. We saw hot young school teachers with big weapons around their waist. It was scary at first, but then you get use to it... I guess!
Cave family portrait.
The best water fall of this Oasis.
Julia and papai before...
... and after swimming here. Thumbs up!!
DEAD SEA
For me the highlight of the day was the Dead Sea. Since being very little, I have been wondering what it's like to swim in it. I remember being a child and telling my friends: "do you know there is a sea that you can't sink?" Well, today was the day. I finally experienced the best floating place in the world.
FROM WIKIPEDIA: The Dead Sea is a salt lake bordering Jordan to the east and Israel and the West Bank to the west. Its surface and shores are 423 metres (1,388 ft) below sea level, Earth's lowest elevation on land. The Dead Sea is 377 m (1,237 ft) deep, the deepesthypersaline lake in the world. With 33.7% salinity, it is also one of the world's saltiest bodies of water, though Lake Assal (Djibouti), Garabogazköl and some hypersaline lakes of the McMurdo Dry Valleys in Antarctica (such as Don Juan Pond) have reported higher salinities. It is 8.6 times saltier than the ocean. This salinity makes for a harsh environment in which animals cannot flourish, hence its name. The Dead Sea is 67 kilometres (42 mi) long and 18 kilometres (11 mi) wide at its widest point. It lies in the Jordan Rift Valley, and its main tributary is the Jordan River.
The Dead Sea has attracted visitors from around the Mediterranean basin for thousands of years. Biblically, it was a place of refuge for King David. It was one of the world's first health resorts (for Herod the Great), and it has been the supplier of a wide variety of products, from balms for Egyptianmummification to potash for fertilizers. People also use the salt and the minerals from the Dead Sea to create cosmetics and herbal sachets. In 2009, 1.2 million foreign tourists visited on the Israeli side.
It's such a weird experience. You actually make no effort to float on the water. You just have to lift your body and it will stay still because of the density. Even though the water is clear, you can see the salt in it. The water is so thick, it almost feels like oil, but clear. Strange. The taste is awful and it really burns the eyes and if you have a open sore. But it is also a miracle healer.
The family floating.
The rocks get covered by salt. But there no life here. None.
I am not forcing anything here. I just got into a floating position and the super salty water is taking care of the rest. Strange feeling, but cool.
MASADA
Our last stop was at the Masada.
FROM WIKIPEDIA: Masada is an ancient fortification in the Southern Districtof Israel, on top of an isolated rock plateau (akin to a mesa) on the eastern edge of the Judaean Desert, overlooking the Dead Sea. Herod the Great built palaces for himself on the mountain and fortified Masada between 37 and 31 BCE. The Siege of Masada by troops of the Roman Empire towards the end of the First Jewish–Roman War ended in the mass suicide of the 960 Jewish rebels holed up there. Masada is located 20 kilometres (12 mi) east of Arad.
Masada is Israel's most popular paid tourist attraction.
There is a cable car that takes you up to the fort. It costs 72 NIS (less than 20 dollars) a person for a round trip.
The fortification overlooked the Dead Sea.
The Masada is an amazing place and requires some time to visit. Unfortunately we had to rush through it because we got up there too late. Definitely half an hour is not enough. If you are going without a baby :), even consider to climb up the mountain instead of taking the cable car. It should take about one hour... and bring lots of water. The temperature was about 35 degrees. And it's fall now here. AVOID going on the summer!!!
This was the front of the castle. The view was simply spectacular!
Our father, friend, saba and tour guide, Avi, working here. It has been great to have him around, not only because he is a great person, but also because he is so knowledgeable about this place. Thanks Avito for showing us where you come from.
Me on the top. :)
The sign says: "Mosaic floor with motives popular in the Jewish art of the Herodian period."
My desert conqueror!
There were rocks everywhere making it hard to use the stroller. Julia took advantage...
... and was carried around by papai and mamãe.
Poor saba Avi had to carry her stroller!
You must be wondering where the food is. I was too at this point. Because we were rushing so much to fit it all in a day, we skipped lunch and just had a sandwich outside of the Oasis. So, dinner had to be nice. On the way back to Tel Aviv, we tried the Abu Gosh, a famous restaurant in Jerusalem's outskirts. It had the Guiness Book record of the biggest hummus plate ever served, with FOUR tons of hummus. But just two years ago, they lost the title to a Lebanese restaurant which served TWELVE tons of hummus at once (you read it right: 12 thousand kilos)!
We were happy to have just a regular plate full of it.
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