Fun Times in Israel

Out of all the things I expected from my recent trip to Israel (culture, religion, spirituality, history, connections), extreme fun was not on the list!! I was more than pleasantly surprised to discover just how much fun our trip would be. From the minute you get off the plane in Tel Aviv, there are a million exciting activities to choose from.

 Sometimes we got to get dressed up and go out on the town

 Party time with my girls in Jerusalem

 Visiting an outdoor dance club with the group

We spent a lot of time in the desert, which is less barren than you might think. I visited my first kibbutz (more on that later), but also got to spend the night in a Bedouin camp. Bedouins are Arab nomads who live in the desert. The changes in borders in the Middle East in the last hundred years did not take into account their lifestyles, which is becoming more difficult to maintain because governments pressure them to modernize, resulting in many urbanizing or moving into small villages.

Sandy photo- this is the inside of a bedouin tent

The bedouin tents we slept in- Negev Desert

Dance party at the Bedouin settlement with a live band

I think it is great that Birthright takes groups to visit the Negev Desert, ride camels, and see Bedouin settlements, because it displays how diverse Israel is. Israel is not just large Jewish communities. According to Wikipedia, there might be 160,000 Bedouins in Israel alone!

 Bedouin style dinner

 Riding camels around the Negev

 I wanted to kick our camel in the side and run off gallopping into the horizon

This guy got LITERALLY SAT ON BY A CAMEL.

This photo is him conquering his fears.

There was much more fun to be had outside of the Bedouin tents as well. We got to explore traditional Israeli markets, or shooks, in a few different places in Jerusalem. This was surprisingly not that different from the artisan markets in Ecuador, except for a plethora of belly dance costumes.

Shook in Jerusalem

Photo Credit: ©JaredSherbert

Indoor local market in Jerusalem

 Higher end market: art galleries, wine shops, jewelry stores

I noticed a really great art scene as we were exploring Israel. On Birthright, you don’t really have a lot of free time because of all of the mandatory group activites, but the minute we had an hour or two to ourselves, I would break off and wander in and out of the art galleries.

 Various art galleries in Tsfat

One of the most fun things we did on our trip was visit the Dead Sea. Because of the low altitude, UV rays get filtered out and sunburns are rare. Also, because of the 34% salinity, you have to be super careful in the water. You float without trying, in fact, if you try to go underwater, it pushes you back up! Cuts will sting really badly and visitors are advised not to shave for a few days before visiting.

Getting dirty in the Dead Sea

©JaredSherbert

The mountains surrounding the Dead Sea are gorgeous

 Bobbing around in the water

Part of the fun at the Dead Sea was smothering ourselves in mud, letting it soak in, and then running into the water to rinse it all out. I ruined my favorite bathing suit doing this, but it was so worth it. We also went river rafting, but there are no surviving photos. Who knew you could go river rafting in Israel?! Near the Dead Sea, there was a beautiful hike with waterfalls and pools along the way. That was one of my favorite activities of the entire trip.

 

Hiking along a stream to the Dead Sea

 

 With some of my group on a waterfall hike

Much needed chilly water in 120 weather!