Shalom from Jerusalem! It's been a long and strange night and day since getting in to Tel Aviv. Yesterday, our plane arrived at Ben Gurion Airport after11 hours in the air, during which I felt miserable due to my sinus infection, but once we got into Tel Aviv and I breathed the warm, sultry air of the Mediterranean climate, I began to feel much better. I picked up an Israeli cell phone provided by Birthright, and exchanged my dollars for sheckles. Once on the bus with my group, we drove north to Netanya, a city by the sea, to stay at the Margoa Hotel. Given our exhaustion, after reaching the hotel, we chomped down our chicken and eggplant, and passed out immediately. Netanya looks strangely like Fort Lauderdale, in terms of the architecture, weather, and seashore life. Oh yes, and the old Jewish people, of course. If not for the Hebrew letters all around, I wouldn't have been very surprised if someone revealed that it was South Florida all along.

During the middle of the night, after attempting to sleep for a bit, I woke up to take a bath so my nose would stop being so cruel to me. I suppose it's a good thing I was awake at 5 am, because some pervy old man came into the room in the middle of the night. The girl I was sharing with was passed out, but I growled “Who are you?!” at him, and he left. Apparently, this guy walked into a few different rooms throughout the night, and though he didn't try anything with anyone, managed to creep us all out.

Otherwise, Israelis have offered nothing but the warmest reception. The metaphor I've seen in the travel guides comparing the Israeli attitude to the sabra cactus – prickly on the outside, sweet on the inside – is in some ways true and false. I don't think Israelis are rude, I think they just get to the point, like New Yorkers. Life is short, and there's no time for being roundabout. However, Israelis do know how to kick back and relax. For a country torn apart by war and bombings, Israel has an abundance of beautiful locales where one can lay back and live for the moment. The expanse of the glittering Mediterranean as seen from Netanya and Tel Aviv is brilliantly blue, and absolutely alluring. The Old City of Jaffa, a port dating back 2,000 years, is composed of ancient stone buildings connected by hideaway tunnels and staircases. There, on the wishing bridge, I took part in the old tradition of standing on a mosaic of my zodiac sign (Pisces, the fish) and looking out at the sea to make a wish. I took a lot of gorgeous pictures of Netanya and Jaffa, and if one needs a good reason to go to israel besides religious purposes, these cities could attract the most strigent atheist.

Between Netanya and Jaffa, we briefly visited Rabin Square, where Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated after making grand peace accords with the Palestinian Authority. Our guide explained how the vast majority of Israel believes that the Palestinians should have the right to rule over their lands, whereas a small minority of Israelis believe that the promised land is the promised land no matter what -- and that constant violence is fine as long as those lands are in Israel's hands, is preferable to peace. Sure enough at that moment, a man walked up to the memorial, spat on it, and yelled the Hebrew equivalent of “Fuck Rabin!”.

Next, we walked around the Tel Aviv Carmel market, and I picked up a few souvenirs. I wandered about on my own, haggling regarding a hat in Russian, and being literally meowed at as some sort of cat-call, no pun intended. I sat on a bench and ate a falafel sandwich with melt-in-your-mouth hummus, and spoke to a woman from Kurdistan. Tel Aviv is full of eclectic architecture, and beautiful people of both genders. The IDF soldiers are particularly attractive, most likely because they're so fit and tanned, and the guns and aviators are an added bonus.
After the market stroll, it was the late afternoon, and I was absolutely exhausted from jet lag. Still, there was a brief scavenger hunt for historic buildings, and I found a Max Brenner Chocolate Bar. That's an overpriced restaurant in my neighborhood, and I think that's the only other location outside of New York. As my little team and I passed a water fountain, a possibly-Palestinian little boy of about 7 years old who was swimming in it decided it'd be hilarious to flash all of the girls. He even ran after us for a minute with himself in his hand, which was quite unexpected. Somehow we still wound up at Independence Hall, where David Ben Gurion first proclaimed Israel a state in 1948. The story of Tel Aviv's founding and struggle was portrayed on film, and was quite the tale.

From there, the bus headed to Jersusalem, over the very modern highways and between the carved grooves and valleys of the rough hills. We stopped on Mount Scopes, and I could see the Palestinian settlements, the Dead Sea, and Amman, Jordan, as well as Jerusalem itself. The view was breathtaking, and I contemplated the thousands of years of history that took place in this calm, lovely town.

Finally, we got to the Shalom hotel, from which I am writing. I'd love to write more about feeling spiritual and connected to my roots, but I keep nodding off, and we've got to wake up at 4:30 am for a hike through Mazada and a swim in the Dead Sea. I can't believe that we did all that I mentioned above within the first day! The one thing I will mention before going is how pleased I am at how environmentally-conscious Israel is. Toilets have two flusher buttons; one for #1, and one for #2. There are also massive recycling displays, and water restrictions. It's all tied into the idea of tikkun olam, or taking care of the earth, an integral tenet of Judaism. Al Gore would approve.

The internet connection at this hotel is horrifically expensive and terribly slow, so I probably won't be updating as much as I'd like to be. If it were working well, I might be getting more than 4 hrs of sleep tonight. Oh well, I'm in Israel, and it's a once-in-a-lifetime trip! Hooray!