Shalom from Israel! (Feb 26-March 9)

After a six-hour layover in Istanbul airport I arrived in Tel Aviv to be welcomed by Johnette and Peter. It felt a bit like coming home, seeing my friend who I've known since junior high and her husband waiting for me!

First Impressions
Let's see... so far here is what I've been doing in lovely Israel. First, Tel Aviv is a really nice city that is easy to get around. I've been running to the beach down the street a bit a few days since I've been here, only about four days total. Johnette has Hebrew school in the mornings so I do my own thing until she returns about 1pm. So, up around 8:30/9 am then some breakfast and hopefully out and about a bit. The weather has been really beautiful almost every day. A bit colder yesterday (8/9) and today but some much warmer too!

The beach here is pretty nice, really fine soft sand and pretty water. Not very crowded when I head there for my run. Twice I hung out there for maybe an hour before heading back, just relaxing and watching the few people and dogs on the beach. On March 1 we went out to a nice dinner at Brasserie to celebrate Pete's 40th birthday. Good food and drink! Johnette also took me to the markets in Jaffa, very close to Tel Aviv. Hope to maybe see Old Jaffa today if we have time. Jaffa is an old Arab town that used to be the gateway for Jewish immigrants from Europe. The market sellers are very insistent, reminding me a bit of the Indian shopkeeper as well.

Jerusalem
On Friday, March 1, Johnette took me to Jerusalem (only about 45 minutes drive) to see the Old City, markets, Church of the Holy Sepulchre (Christian Quarter), Western Wall (wailing wall), Dome of the Rock, etc. Because it was Shabbat a number of the shops were closed but it was interesting to walk through the winding narrow streets. The city is separated into five areas that overlap a bit: Armenian, Christian, Muslim, and Jewish Quarters, and the Temple Mount/Haram esh-Sharif area. We entered through the Jaffa Gate, there are seven gates total.

We went to visit the Church of the Holy Sepulchre first and it was an interesting site to visit, generally considered to be the place where Jesus was crucified, buried, and resurrected. It is a strange architectural phenomenon where Christians from all over each have their own portion for prayer. Some are as small and dingy as a duneon while others are bold and glittery. As you enter there is a rock that is supposed to be holy so many are seen to kneel and kiss it - yikes talk about germs!

After being stopped by a lovely carpet salesman I succumbed to my desire for a beautiful silk rug! The one I bought is actually from Iran and I LOVE IT! Sending it home before I leave Israel otherwise it would be a bit of a pain to carry with me for my month around Europe. Next, we went to the Zion Gate and walked by (it was closed for Shabbat) King David's tomb. An old man took me up the tower for a great view, he was a bit creepy and Johnette stayed behind because she was too tired for the steps. She said she almost started up to make sure I was okay. He was harmless just creepy in a too friendly sort of way. Then we walked on a wall with a great view of the Dome of the Rock, the Muslim Mosque of Omar and Haram esh-Sharif, holy esplanade is sacred to Jews, Muslims, and Christians. Finally, we went to he Western Wall, known by non-Jews as the Wailing Wall because the Jews have traditionally come here to mourn the temple's destruction. In the Dome of the Rock there is a sacred rock upon which Abraham prepared to sacrifice his son, Isaac, and from which Mohammed began his Night Journey.

Poleg Nature Reserve (North)
The next day all three of us took a drive a bit north of Tel Aviv to the Poleg Nature Reserve and beach. It was a pretty day although slightly cool. By the time we got there, with a stop in search of the missing jelly for our sandwiches, it was later afternoon. No swimming in this cold weather today, Pete found some Black Iris' while doing a little hike. The girls hung out on the beach and chilled out - all in all a lazy day. Oh, I did find their method of peeing in semi-public to be quite useful in this situation. I'll never look at a tennis ball can the same way!

Dinner & Concert (March 3)
Met up with group of Embassy people for dinner at Gilly's and a concert by the pier, both were fun experiences. But, the concert was unforgettable - Israeli music with Ethiopian influences and artists involved. They played for about three hours, definitely going to buy the CD's. There are a huge number of Ethiopian Jews that came to Israel to escape persecution and they are still coming. I wish I could tell you the name in English but I haven't gotten that info yet (perhaps Pete can update me later).

Gamla Nature Reserve (March 4)
Johnette & Peter sent me off with a group of Embassy staff on a "field trip" to Gamla Nature Reserve and Chateau Golan winery. Gamla is north of Tel Aviv near the Sea of Galilee, in the center of the Golan Heights. Gamla contains a waterfall (highest in Israel at 51 meters), archaeological sites (i.e., remnants of ancient Gamla), a field of dolmens, the biggest Griffon Vulture Nesting site in the country. We took the short walk on the Vulture Trail to a Gamla lookout point and vulture observatory where we saw a bunch flying around. The wingspan is pretty incredible, 2.7m and they fly on air currents without moving their wings. Thankfully they only feed on carcasses so unless we had a bad slip we were safe! :) There are only about 60 pairs left in Israel, 40 of which are at this reserve. One of the largest bird of prey in Israel and the world. My group joked that since I was the newcomer I would be the first to become the sacrifice if necessary. Thanks guys! Trivia Point: This vulture is also the most mentioned bird of prey in the Bible.

There is a Golan Heights Memorial commemorating the residents of the Golan Heights who were the victims of acts of terror. Syria and Israel fought over this area in the late 60's and early 70's. The international community considers the area Syrian territory under Israeli occupation, but Israel has more involved in their position. It is still basically an area of dispute. The heights are a plateau on the border of Israel, Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria. On the map there are even two areas shown to be a landmine and shooting area. Don't worry guys we didn't go over there! There were a lot of young soldiers having some lunch at the reserve, a bit strange to see so many young guys toting guns around like its nothing (and you do see them everywhere).

Ancient Gamla is a city on a steep hill, surrounded by cliffs and there is only one trail to reach the city. Gamla joined the revolt against the Romans in 66 CE with the Romans eventually destroying the city with the Jewish defenders taking many Roman lives in the process. The synagogue remains are considered the oldest synagogue ever discovered in Israel.

We had a great picnic lunch. It was a beautiful day, not too hot or cold with some great company, thanks to the crew for including me even without Johnette and Pete around. Thanks to Dad Pete for sending me off with some granola bars to contribute.

Wine Tasting (March 4)
Ah, now on to Chateau Golan winery for a tour and tasting! Our tour guide Itzhak Ribak, and director of the winery, gave us some new info and lots of stuff about this winery in particular. They had a table setup with cheese and goodies to go along with our wine tastings! Yummy, I really enjoyed the wine too! Since Johnette & Pete couldn't go I brought back some wine for a home tasting. Itzhak even led us to where the real vineyards are located which also happens to be along the Syria border, hey if the embassy staff thought it was okay...sounds good. It was a bit spooky to ride along a road where to one side there are at least three different barbed fences and signs for Mines. Itzhak also took us to the Peace Vista for a great view of the Sea of Galilee.

The harvest is done by hand and most of the wines are red and are held in French new oak barrels. Itzhak and his wife used to be farmers and together with another couple they began Chateau Golan in 1999. Great fun! (www.chateaugolan.com)

Miscellaneous
Besides chilling out with my lovely friends I have been going running to the beach, a bit of shopping to prepare for colder weather in Europe, rolling around the city with Johnette on the scooter (Weeeeee!), sitting at a cafe in the warm weather, and much more. Oh, I did visit the Tel Aviv Museum of Art one morning and had some Thai food that night (you would think I had enough of that for the 3 weeks I visited).

Bat Sheva Dance Company (March 9)
I tried to see Kombina dance company, my friend Meisha used to dance with them in Jerusalem. They weren't performing but I was able to get tickets to see Bat Sheva and it was just incredible! The dancers were just gorgeous and were beautiful as an ensemble (huge group too) as well as solos, duets, etc. The partnering was probably what I loved the most about the company,very different from DC partnering. Unique and clever work! ahh, okay now I'm missing dance again! I realized that before this trip I had not taken more then a two week break from dance since 1994.

My last weekend we are going to visit Jordan! More on that in my next installment.