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Three Cities Make Top Ten

September 13, 2010 By Leave a Comment

I know I as a guide has always claimed how exciting it is to visit Israel, and particularly Jerusalem. I never get tired of showing off this amazing city. And as I do I constantly see things, I’ve never noticed before. And now I have proof.

Jerusalem

One of the most popular travel websites, Trip Advisor, recently set up a list of top 10 culture and sightseeing destinations. No, sorry to say, Jerusalem did not make number uno, but a proud number seven.

The list was compiled following a survey on the site.

This is what they have to say about Jerusalem:

Religious pilgrims have been traveling to Jerusalem for centuries, yet you don’t have to share their zeal in order to appreciate this city’s profound cultural and historical significance. Plan on seeing the major sights, but also leave plenty of time to walk through the streets and simply immerse yourself in the daily life of such an ancient and revered place.

On a personal note, I must tell you that Jerusalem has developed its own very special after hours life. More and more young, secular people are returning to Jerusalem, and creating something new and exciting. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Jerusalem, Recent Articles, Tel Aviv Tagged With: , , , , ,

Brief Summary of Jewish Wisdom

March 10, 2010 By 1 Comment

There was once a wise Jew, who said that everything boils down to you have in your head.

His name was Moses

After him came a second wise Jew, who said that everything boils down to what you have in your heart.

His name was Jesus

After him came a third wise Jew, who said that everything boils down to what you have in the stomach.

His name was Marx

After him came a fourth wise Jew who said that everything boils down to what you have between the legs.

His name was Freud

And finally came the wisest of them all. His name was Einstein and he said that everything is relative.

Filed Under: Have a Laugh, Recent Articles Tagged With: , , ,

18th Marathon in Jerusalem

March 1, 2010 By 2 Comments

The number 18 has special meaning in Jewish traditions. 18 is of course the age when generally a young person becomes mature (some do, some don’t). When written with Hebrew letters it says: hai, which mean life or alive.

It is just coincidence that Jerusalem’s International Annual Half Marathon, the 18th, falls on March 18th this year. Participating in sports events of this kind is definitely being alive, and bringing more life to the city.

As in previous years participants come from all over Israel and all over the world. The route begins and ends in the Givat Ram Stadium of the Hebrew University and goes through some of Jerusalem’s unique and pictoresque landscapes. The route will take runners on a slightly hilly and challenging route and past the Shrine of the Book, housing the Dead Sea Scroll, the Israel Museum, the Knesset, Israel’s Parliament, and the Jerusalem forest. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Jerusalem, March, Sports Tagged With: , ,

Water Water Flowing

February 18, 2010 By Leave a Comment

There are things that can only be experienced at certain times of the year in Israel. You have to know when and where to go for these special experiences.

Nahal Saar is one of those experiences. Nahal Saar flows between the Hermon Mountain and the Golan Heights in the north of the Israel. The word nahal means stream, and as with many streams in Israel water can only been seen in late winter and early spring. This on condition that there has been a good amount of rain through the winter, and hopefully also some snow on the Hermon Mountain and the northern Golan Heights.

This year has been like this. I was fortunate that the other day I was touring up in that part of the country with my tourists, and I had the time and they had the interest to stop for this special experience. The day was glorious, way too warm for this time of the year, but we made the most of it. So we stopped at Nahal Saar, where it has created a fairly large waterfall.

I have to tell you that we were not the only ones there. Though I did not film it, I could hardly find parking place on the other side of the road. Some people even hiked up for an even better view, but we made do with the low view. This is what I am sharing with you here.

Filed Under: Galilee and Golan, Nature Tagged With: , , ,

Beit Shean (Scythopolis) – A Gem

February 16, 2010 By 1 Comment

Overlooking excavations toward Tel Beit Shean

Beit Shean is located in the Jordan Valley, some 30 km south of the Sea of Galilee. It is considered one of the oldest towns of Israel. Archaeological excavations have revealed that the first human settlement took place in the Calcholitic period (4th millennium BCE). But it is most famous as the Roman city Scythopolis.

Origins and Name
As with many other ancient towns it was travel routes that determined location. Beit Shean is situated on the cross roads of the north-south route through the Jordan Valley and the eastern entrance to the Jezreel Valley at a point, where there is easy crossing over the Jordan River. It could therefore serve as a stop on the trading routes, as well as a buffer town and defense of the Jezreel Valley, the largest and most fertile valley in Israel. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Ancient Cities Revealed, Jordan Valley Tagged With: , , , , ,

Changing Times with Dry Bones

February 7, 2010 By Leave a Comment

I like to start my week with something funny, and nothing has ever been funnier to me than Yaacov Kirchen and his Dry Bones. This time I have also included his comments on why (see below). I try to stay away from politics on this blog, but sometimes it is just not possible.

 


We live in an age of a great religious war.

The Islamist enemy seeks to overwhelm and subjugate the planet. Their goal is to erase all other religions and belief systems. This attack on [Read more...]

Filed Under: Culture, Have a Laugh Tagged With: , , ,

Storm on the Dead Sea

February 4, 2010 By Leave a Comment

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As a tour guide I am always on the road. I see the same places again and again. But every so often land and nature give me surprises.That happened yesterday, as I was touring Masada and the Dead Sea.

On purpose we had chosen yesterday to go to Masada and the Dead Sea. Weather forecast was for rain and storm, and the previous days had been just glorious. It’s always good to get out of Jerusalem, when there is that kind of forecast. At least down at the Dead Sea there is less chance of rain. After all, it only rains 5-10 days a year in the southern part and a little more in the northern part.

Despite the extraordinary strong wind we were able to see Masada in all its glory. And this time the starlings played along, and I was able to get a lot of good shots. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Dead Sea, Nature Tagged With: , , ,

Tu B’Shvat, Tree Planting, Dried Fruits

January 29, 2010 By 3 Comments

The almond trees are blooming, filling the landscape with more color of pink and white on green and brown. It is a sign for the end of winter and the coming of spring. It is Tu B’Shvat

It is mid-winter.
Good winters are filled with cold and rain, and hopefully snow in the higher regions of the country. In this coldest, darkets time of the year, Israel celebrates the holiday of Tu B’Shvat, the Festival of the Trees.

This is not a religious holiday like most of the other Jewish holidays. What this means is that it is not a holiday stipulated in the Tanach (Hebrew bible) and so there are no particular religious ceremonies to keep. In modern Israel work and school continue as usual.  The holiday usually falls in late January or early February. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Holidays Tagged With: , , , ,

God, Adam and Eve, Children

January 26, 2010 By 1 Comment

Here is a lesson to all of us who have children or grandchildren, whether they are our own, or related in some way or another.
The lesson comes to us from God’s relationship with Adam and Eve and it shows us that however omnipotent we may think we are, things can be different.

After creating heaven and earth God created Adam and Eve. And the first thing he said was:

 

“DON’T!”

“Don’t what?” Adam replied.
“Don’t eat the forbidden fruit.” God said.

“Forbidden fruit? We have forbidden fruit? Hey … Eve, we have forbidden fruit!”

“No way!”
“Yes way!”

“Do NOT eat the fruit!” said God. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Have a Laugh Tagged With: , , ,

Pictorial Time Line of the Land of Israel

January 24, 2010 By 1 Comment

I remember when I first came to Israel and started learning its history. I was confused and perplexed. I just could not make it fit together. Until I was presented with a time line. Now I had a tool to refer back to and make events fall into place.

This is also my experience as a tour guide. Many of my tourists get mixed up. After all Israel has quite a long and rich history with many events that have had impact on the world.

Because of this I have created a time line with the most important events, historical and biblical references. I made it pictorial, only to make it more colorful. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Events, Slide Shows Tagged With: , , ,
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