Why did you come to Israel?
This is how our trip to Israel began with a question at passport control: Why did you come to Israel? And we came to implement the plan:
3 days in Tel Aviv
1 day Jerusalem
moving south to the city of Eilat,
crossing the border into Jordan,
3 days on the Red Sea and of course Petra!,
back to Tel Aviv and home.
Israel is open to visitors all year round, since the climate allows. I'll start with Tel Aviv or the "hill of spring" . . what was remembered and impressed the most? The cleanest city beaches, white skyscrapers, the hubbub of street cafes, the Carmel market, the aroma of citrus fruits, mass sports of the population of all ages, the freshest seafood, delicious hummus with mint lemonade, invigorating "bots" coffee at sunset in a cafe on the waterfront with a scoop of ice cream (drink real men), lack of parking spaces, the female half of the population with little or no cosmetics, all kinds of transportation (scooters, segways, motorbikes), original gold items, the amazing Ilana Gur Museum and the magnificent old city of Jaffa.
Tel Aviv was originally founded as a Jewish suburb of Jaffa. The state, founded on May 14.1948, is now included in the list of “not developing, but developed countries, ” as a taxi driver, a repatriate from the Urals, told us with pride. In the Holy Land, you can become a witness to history. This land made their home 7 million people from five continents, united by one goal - to live and pray in the land of milk and honey.
Residents of Israel mostly live well, of course there are problems - price increases (the country is not at all cheap), high tariffs, traffic jams, the country is in a state of martial law, but! they are happy overall! The people who met said with one voice: "Is there a better place than Israel? No! "
As Wikipedia writes, Tel Aviv is similar to Manhattan, Berdichev and Ibiza at the same time. If desired, you can find a piece of Paris and a fragment of Casablanca. In the summer of 2008, The New York Times proclaimed Tel Aviv “the capital of the Mediterranean cool”. It is a mixture of everything and everyone)) In general, this is a young modern city where it is quite comfortable to live, everything is available the pleasures of life for a price : )
Yershulayim . . trembling in the soul when you approach and the great city of all religions Jerusalem is shown behind the hill. There are a variety of people on the street: harsh Hasidim, noisy merchants of the Muslim quarter, pilgrims are trembling; all this forms the unique atmosphere of the city. It seemed to me more serious and more spiritual than Tel Aviv. The guide says "exploring the walled Old City is like peeling off layers of onion skins. "
The city is located on a high plateau, it is one of the coldest places in Israel.
We wandered around the city ourselves with a map, safely found all the places necessary to visit, the last path of Christ along Via Dolorosa, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the Wailing Wall, the mosque with the Golden Dome. to help, showing us the right path, he modestly asked for a reward for his service and, quite immodestly looking into our wallet, said: 10 shekels ! ! The boy’s tone did not require any objections, I had to agree) with me (but this is an intimate topic and it makes no sense to describe personal emotions, everyone just needs to go through them), after sitting on the bench, I forgot my scarf and stood in line for lighting candles with blessed fire. I stood for about 10 minutes and noticed that there was no scarf, I decided to myself that probably it is more important and necessary for someone, let him take it, I won’t be upset because of such a trifle. At that very moment I saw a man in the center of the temple who was smiling and holding my handkerchief in his hands, he brought it to me and disappeared. Once again I was convinced of the truth that you never need to regret anything. It's nice to realize that there are such places. Because nothing just happens.
The Wailing Wall is the largest shrine of the Jews of the whole world, they believe that these are the remains of the temple in which the Ark of the Covenant was kept. do not look for a pen and paper near the wall). Near the wall, I saw many women who really cry during prayers. This is an impressive picture and a good shot to shoot.
Most of all, I felt good and comfortable in the Church of St. Anna, a very beautiful temple with its strict outline and special echo. Here you can sing, and pray alone or talk with the priest. Here, according to giving, the Virgin Mary was born and the house of her parents Joachim and Anna was located . You can just sit in a quiet courtyard, in the company of cats. I entered the Temple at the moment when a group of Catholics were singing the Santa Maria prayer, an amazing feeling due to the special acoustics.
We walked until dark through the old city, while our legs carried us, then there was dinner at the Colony restaurant, excellent cuisine and wine (everyone in the city knows this restaurant) and overnight . .
The next morning, a hearty breakfast - shakshuka (scrambled eggs with tomatoes) and a trip to the Dead Sea, we didn’t go through the Palestinian territories, we decided to wind extra kilometers, which later helped a lot during interrogation at the Israel-Jordan border (more on that later). So the Dead Sea, I read a lot of instructions, but still made a mistake, lay on my stomach out of habit, legs up, head down, useless gurgling in the water) hardly rolled over on my back and lay down on the water in the literal sense of the word (be sure to take slippers, there are solid balls at the bottom crystal salt). All cracks, wounds, mosquito bites immediately make themselves felt, it bakes specifically. In the sea, entry is only on organized beaches, where there is a shower near the coastline, we were in the Ein Gedi SPA center, pay for entrance, towels , therapeutic mud, a locker for storing clothes and use the whole complex during the day, plus lunch is included in the canteen. It comes out about 45 euros per person. whether to watch Masada. This is a sad landmark of Israel, on this flat-topped mountain the Zealots committed mass suicide in 73 AD. When the Romans finally took the fortress of Masada after a long siege, the Zealot leader Elazar ben Yair decided that his people would not fight the Romans so as not to die in slavery later; but they will accept death with honor. Each man killed his family, then himself, until only 10 people were left, then one killed nine and committed suicide. We could not climb to the top, it began to get dark and the cable car was no longer working. Imagine this spectacle; the scorching sun of the desert, the expanse of the Dead Sea and the silence, all this cannot dispel the atmosphere of sorrow. Today, all recruits take the oath here, saying "Masada will not fall again! "
Then we move across the Negev desert to the city of Eilat, from afar it seems that the city is of enormous size, but then it becomes clear that these are the night lights of three cities of three different countries located around a piece of the Gulf of Aqaba in the Red Sea - Egypt, Israel and Jordan. Tel Aviv airport, a car and on foot we cross the border into Jordan. There are no people, one window, the second, payment for leaving Israel, a Welcome to Jordan sign . . again a window with a mustachioed man who smokes and squinting at us, retinal scan, stamp in the passport and we are free.
Then we fall into the “paws” of taxi drivers, where they charge more, you understand this, but there’s nothing to be done, it’s late in the evening . . well, wait for the bus . . let’s go. , but let it be "halal" (as they say in the Muslim world, let it be my gift to someone who needs it and will benefit both him and me, such a donation on Jordanian soil)). The hotel was chosen on the edge of Aqaba, only the desert and the sea, the next day was spent on the beach, restoring physical and emotional peace. The next day, an excursion was scheduled to one of the new 7 wonders of the world - Petra! A few words about Jordan is one of the most stable and safe countries in the Middle East. Here Jesus Christ was baptized, here Moses saw the Promised Land, here he died and was buried, numerous prophets lived here and dozens and hundreds of sacred events for believers of many denominations took place. Waves of many peoples passed through this land, leaving their mark both in the architecture and in the culture of modern Jordan. The waters of the warm Red and healing Dead Seas splash here. Definitely, the country deserves your attention. And so Petra, an impregnable fortress city, is a great mystery that has not been fully solved until our time. For hundreds of years, trade brought great wealth to Petra. But when the Romans opened the sea routes to the East, the overland trade in spices came to naught, and Petra gradually became empty, lost in the sands. The territory of the city occupies a large area, so get ready for a walk, take comfortable shoes, stock up on water, a hat and a warm sweater in case you see the dawn or see off the sunset in Petra. At this time, they say, she becomes pink Petra and is especially amazing. we were a cheerful and interesting young man who focused on the main points and debunked the myths created by other guides. The very famous picture of Petra, which everyone knows . . I was looking forward to seeing this miracle? Then the guide turned his attention to historical facts , saying that only recently archaeologists solved the riddle of what kind of temple it was and why it was built. It was the tomb of the queen, the mausoleum, built for his wife Helda by her husband, the king of the Nabatean kingdom. Then the guide asked us all to snuggle to the right, walk past the rock , turn sharply to the left and look for this mausoleum ourselves. Everyone was confused, because in front of us there was just a rock and that’s all, but it only took a little to turn our heads in to the left and here it is . . that most famous picture is in front of my eyes. Through the gorge, the great Temple of Isis flooded with light, the treasury of the pharaohs, the mausoleum of El Khazne . . an indescribable feeling of delight and joy !! ! I wish you to experience the same feeling.
We wandered for a long time through the tombs of the city, meeting Bedouins with piercing black eyes lined with antimony (they do this not for beauty, but for eye health). If all of Petra is solid tombs, then where did people live? And they lived underground, where excavations are underway now and only the smallest part is known to archaeologists at the moment. Webcams are installed on the Petra website where you can watch the progress of the work. From everything, it follows that in 50 years you need to return to this beautiful city and find out new secrets hidden underground . .
We spent the second half of the day in another sight of Jordan, the desert of Wadi Rum, an amazing place, timeless and practically untouched by civilization. Only weather and winds "worked" here, creating monumental "skyscrapers". I have a special relationship with deserts and this desert only increased my love and admiration. Picturesque Martian landscapes, red sand, sandy mountains and stern faces of the Bedouins living right there. Here I met the most magical sunset in my life, my memory has kept this insanely beautiful picture forever.
Hikers, rock climbers and just lovers of history will find themselves here. After all, some rock paintings on the territory of the Wadi Rum reserve are over four thousand years old.
Wadi Rum Desert Patrol officers wear perhaps the most colorful uniform in the entire Middle East. A long khaki “dish-dash” robe is intercepted by a bright red cartridge belt, a dagger is on the belt, a rifle is in the hands, and a traditional red and white scarf of the Jordanian Bedouins (skufiya) is on the head. In the desert, you can spend the night in special camps, you will be treated to national Bedouin dinner, cooked right there on the fire.
We got to the hotel late in the evening, tired and happy from the pictures we saw and the emotions we experienced. The next day, the border crossing back to Israel was scheduled, the flight Eilat-Tel Aviv. There was a group of Norwegian tourists at the border in front of us, we had to stand in line for a bit. They crossed the border easily and quickly. But then a real raid began, all the suitcases were opened, all liquids, devices, photographic equipment and a tablet were carefully checked several times. Everything is clear, martial law obliges, but when they reached our passports with my husband, something confused them and we were given a classic interrogation) They took us to different rooms, asked the whole history of our life and recent movements in Israel and Jordan. Everything seems to be fine . . phew . . let go. rechecked in their database (and their database contains everything! Who are you, who are your parents). To be honest, it’s not the most pleasant procedure when they try to catch you at every word, breath and slightest hitch. oh not to lose self-control. This is where the fact that we didn’t travel through the Palestinian territory from Jerusalem to Eilat helped us. with things, until they finally gave us our passports and apologized for the inconvenience caused : )) Anything can happen . . on Israeli soil . . We managed to get on the plane, safely got to the hotel, tomorrow morning the flight home. After the experience, we decided to arrive as early as possible to the airport, we arrived in 4 hours, but fortunately everything went quickly and easily. The standard procedure for inspecting photographic equipment and a tablet and we are at the registration. take everything here) and souvenirs are all at normal prices. Then there was a flight of 3 hours and we were at home. Wow, I can’t believe that all the adventures ended successfully. There are a lot of emotions, photos too.
In the end, I can say that everything was a success, everything that I saw was worth those experiences)) When planning each trip, we trust in the hands of fate, and if a person remains unchanged on a trip, this is a bad trip. Ernst Simon Bloch
