Since returning from Israel, we have been busy with a marathon and a trip to Champagne that we got a bit behind on our posts. We’ll catch up this week to fill you in on our trip to Israel.
The trip had its ups and downs, but finished on a high. We also ventured over to Jordan which we really enjoyed and prompted us to joke that the highlight of our trip to Israel — was Jordan. During our trip we dipped our toes in the Red Sea, the Dead Sea, the Mediterranean Sea and the Sea of Galilee.
It all started in Jerusalem. And that’s where we started as well hitting the holy sites first thing. We watched Jews pray at the Western Wall (or Wailing Wall) bobbing their head up and down. We walked around the Dome of the Rock, the mosque built over the rock that is the cornerstone of the world — where Adam and Eve were formed, Issac was commanded to sacrifice his son, and Muhammad ascended to Heaven. And we saw the Church of the Holy Sepulcher where Jesus died on the cross. We thought it odd that every holy site has a church or mosque built on top of it — but I suppose that helps to protect (or claim) it. The highlight though was the sunrise service Easter morning at The Garden Tomb.
Israel has a perplexing mix of old and new. Wandering through the souks and stalls in the narrow winding streets of the Old City reminded us of Marrakech and Stonetown. Yet only a half mile away and we strolled down a wide modern pedestrian street lined with global brands that reminded me of the Streets at Southpoint.
While the guide book says you could spend a week in Jerusalem alone, we found two days to be plenty and headed up north on the third. Unfortunately, this is where we hit a few bumps in the road with our GPS and bank card. We spent the afternoon in Akko and enjoyed a nice seafood lunch overlooking the Mediterranean from the city’s ancient walls. Billed as the best of Israel in the guide book, we expected more Cinque Terre charm than it could muster and were glad to head inland in hopes of catching the sun set over the Sea of Galilee.
It was here that we witnessed first hand the air pollution challenges of a small industrialized nation as the sun disappeared long before it hit the horizon. We did dipped our toes in and chatted with some of the locals camping out for their holiday weekend. Still battling to find some place that would take our bank card, we escaped the stress on the Jordan river. Renting kayaks we half floated, half paddled down the river. The river banks were lush and green and we felt we escaped the pollution as well. A small rapid provided a bit of a thrill to contrast with the real-life version of the amusement park’s ‘Lazy River’.
Wrapping up our time in the north after two days, we stopped off at Tel Aviv on our way to Jordan — which I’ll tell you about tomorrow.