Day Two: More Trees, No Breeze.
A solid 6 hours of sleep on Saturday Friday night and we were good to go. This time, we headed for Galilee in search of its treasures. No real destinations, just places on the map that we hadn’t been. The land in this direction was little like the arid desert near the Dead Sea; it was much greener, hillier, and tree-ier. The day before, we had seen camels parked by the side of the road, but Saturday (? – yes, that’s correct, I think) we saw fluffy sheep grazing instead. A rather attractive area, actually!
(This is where I'm supposed to post pictures of this blissful realm. Oopsie.)
(This is where I'm supposed to post pictures of this blissful realm. Oopsie.)
Tiberias
We rolled into Tiberias, a rather large town situated on the western shore of Lake Kinneret (AKA the Sea of Galilee). The lake/sea was a very popular weekend destination, and we actually had to go a little bit offroad to secure a parking spot. Skillful driving (and good spotters) kept us from needing to use the rental car insurance we purchased. It turned out to be impossible to make it to the water without paying a fee. I’m sure there are spots where one can just go for a dip, but everywhere we found required us to pay for parking or admission. We came upon a venue that, upon entering, we discovered was teeming with young people and families, and it included food, restrooms, swimming pools, and even a live DJ playing house music! It was a fun place to visit, but it was far from a relaxing day at the beach. Regardless, it was awesome to just be outside, in Israel, on the shores of such a famous and historic body of water.
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| This awkward shot made possible by three tourists exited to catch a panoramic glimpse of the Sea of Galilee, and needing a better shot, while one such tourist surreptitiously decided to document the creative process. |
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| Tiberias from above |
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| Tiberias from . . . "at"?? |
Windows Down
Leaving Tiberias, we went for a loop drive around the lake/sea. I don’t doubt that, once again, we drove past a hundred important sites in history. I also don’t regret not really caring; just being there was such a thrill. By the way, for those who’ve read that big storms on the Sea of Galilee are ultra rare, it makes sense: it really is a tiny Sea, and the “Lake” title is much more appropriate. I fail to see how even a strong wind could have enough fetch (that’s a real nautical term, for any landlubbers reading this) to create any waves of consequence. A big storm there, enough to make a team of fisherman fear for their lives 2000 years ago, would be a really big deal.
We wanted to see the Jordan River and go for a dip. How convenient, there was a park nearby on the river. But it cost 55 shekels to enter. Grrrr . . . we dipped not.
The plan was to next drive through Nazareth on the way to Haifa. A curiously squiggly looking road on the map, however, drew us instead. It rewarded us with a fun drive, with some great views, through some awesome hills. Looking back now while typing this, I remember being very content to be there. It’s a special place.
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| See what I mean? What's not to love? |
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| Especially with such colorful companions and car |
The “other” City on a Hill
Haifa was weird. It has a reputation for being this beautiful seaside town on a hill. The beauty, however, is relative. My reference when I think “beautiful seaside town on a hill” is Laguna Beach. Compared to the other Israeli cities on the coast, Haifa was pretty nice, but if you miss it on your next trip, you’ll have missed little. Especially as much of the town is sketchy-looking rough neighborhoods (it is a major port city, not so much a tourist town). Critique aside, it was rewarding to see and drive around and get lost doing so. We also walked through the cool, bohemian(ish) neighborhood and caught dinner overlooking the city from atop the hill.
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| This is called a "salad" in Haifa. Wow. No idea an entire loaf of bread was coming with it, too! |
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| Haifa from above. Or at least a tiny taste of Haifa. |
Windows Up
And with that, darkness fell, and we drove home. I had looked forward to our drive home because it was going to be all along the coast, but by the time we hit the road, it was too dark to see the sea, you see. All in all, it was an amazing weekend that I will struggle to best anytime in my life.
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The Remaining 3/4 of My Time in Israel
Because the Israel visit was unlike the Norway visit, in that it was all in one place and it consisted much less of field trips, the rest of my time in Israel is mostly a jumble of memories and observations. Accordingly, I think the rest of this blog must become a similar jumble. Whenever I saw or did something that I wanted to write about, I wrote a little note for myself on my phone. What I’ll do from here on in is to just go through those notes. There’s no order to this. Random points will abound. Enjoy.
Wings of Death
Kicking it at the beach was, of course, pretty awesome each time I did it, and very relaxing. But not too relaxing, as the Israeli military constantly reminded us of where we were. At home, when you see a helicopter flying past the beach, it’s usually a police or news chopper. In Tel Aviv, it’s an Apache Gunship sprouting rocket launchers and dangling a machine gun. They fly by fairly often, actually. At the Dead Sea, too, I got a free air show: patrolling F-16 fighter bombers buzzed us at low altitude. An incurable airplane buff, I was happy to see them, even though I was sad that I knew the reasons they had to patrol.
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| Not my picture, but the same helicopter I wrote of |
Malls of Life
Also keeping us safe were legions of security guards. Especially in Jerusalem, nearly every spot where people would congregate – including malls, street fairs, and of course the bus station – was guarded. At the least, you underwent a quick wanding and a bag search. Some places required you to empty your pockets and pass through a metal detector. Yet others added an actual airport-style x-ray machine. The guards were always armed, too.
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| Hard to see, but a guard is here keeping the mall . . . lively |
On the subject of arms, I noted an interesting cultural point. When I saw people carrying guns, it made me feel safe. I knew that any rabid humans who tried anything wild would be swiftly put down (Norwegian terrorist, anybody?). When done correctly, more guns means less violence. Many of my classmates, however, felt quite squeamish seeing guns everywhere. It made them feel less safe. And it wasn’t just because they were reminded of where they were and that violence could erupt at any moment (I know because we talked about it), it was because they just fear guns and those who wield them.
I’m anti-gun. I wish the things had never been invented. But now that they’re here, and all the bad guys have them, I think we all should be allowed to have them. Guns restore balance to an imbalanced world. A sarcastic little expression says it best: “In the moment of danger, when every second counts, the police are only minutes away.”
More to come. It's been a busy time preparing for school to begin after such a hectic summer of chores remaining undone.
Oh, by the way: here's a visual of both road trips:
Oh, by the way: here's a visual of both road trips:
