Greetings from the Dead Sea!
After a long, cold night sleeping on the floor in the desert of a Bedouin tent, we thought a day at the spa was in order. But boy were we wrong! We first had to earn our beautification treatments by climbing Masada. The 5,000 year old ruins overlooking the Dead Sea and mountains of Jordan were awe inspiring! It looked like we were standing in a painting. It felt as if we were walking amongst the old kings. When we touched the walls it was as if we were touching history and we could almost hear the whispers of our ancestors who gave their lives for our survival.
Several hours and a 40 minute descent later we definitely were ready for mud baths and salt treatments! People spend hundreds of dollars in the States on mud baths such as these, so we knew we were in for a treat! We covered ourselves in the mud hoping it would remove the eau-de-camel, but little did we know we were in for something much worse. The smell of rotten eggs from the sulfur baths to remove the mud and complete the treatment nearly made us run back up Masada! The next stop on our spa adventure was floating on the dead sea, which felt as if we were rafting on the clouds. In fact, our skin was covered in salt so we even looked like we had been playing in the clouds. But in the end, our skin was glowing, giving us the confidence to browse Jerusalem for Israeli princes.
... and we're still looking.
Love from Jerusalem,
Randi Lieberman, Mandy Tehaan, Samantha Kurtz
Bedouin Camp (Day 6)
After visiting Beit Shean National Park we hopped on the bus for a short ride to the Bedouin camp. Immediately after arriving we unloaded from the bus and hopped on camels and donkeys that were there waiting for us. While most of the group rode on the donkeys, I ended up on a camel. The camels were making loud grunting sounds as they stood up; it was a startling sound to hear! It was funny to look over at the part of the group that ended up on the donkeys. This was only until the middle of the camel ride where the group ended up switching places. It was a lot less fun to be the part of the group looking hilarious on the donkeys.
Back to the bus to grab a day pack. Our group was then led over to the tent that we had been assigned to. It was a fairly large tent and every one ventured in to grab a sleeping bag and a ground pad. Then it was off to stake out a sleeping location. On my way to the tent I ran into a friend who is on birthright through the University of Wisconsin. This was a pleasant surprise.
After getting situated we were sent over to a tent with some of the Bedouins. They made coffee and tea, both of which were good but a little on the sweet side. These were made over a fire in the tent. The Bedouins are always very welcoming people but if they give you a full cup of coffee it is time to go.
The group was gathered up by Sue and Larissa, who had us follow them out away from the camp. As a group we discussed what was important to us and reflect on the parts of the trip that we had experienced this far on this already amazing trip. After the discussion Sue described to us a meditation technique which involved sitting still for one hour. Most likely after one hour you will be in discomfort and dealing with this will help you reflect on and appreciate everything else that you experience. We all sat in silence in the cold desert night for about 45 minutes and watched the sun set.
Dinner was amazing! It consisted of turkey kabobs, rice, pita and a delicious salad. Immediately after dinner they told our group to go over to a tent for a drum circle. “If you get lost just listen and follow the music” they told us. The drum circle was very entertaining. During the drum circle the brought out a bunch of bongo’s and taught us how to play.
Then it was time for more free time. We enjoyed building an amazing fire. This was only after struggling for some time due to the fact that they left wet wood at our camp site. I decided to call it an early night to catch up on some sleep. An exciting day laid ahead with hiking Masada and floating on the Dead Sea on tomorrows Itinerary. ”
Alex Niderberg
After a long, cold night sleeping on the floor in the desert of a Bedouin tent, we thought a day at the spa was in order. But boy were we wrong! We first had to earn our beautification treatments by climbing Masada. The 5,000 year old ruins overlooking the Dead Sea and mountains of Jordan were awe inspiring! It looked like we were standing in a painting. It felt as if we were walking amongst the old kings. When we touched the walls it was as if we were touching history and we could almost hear the whispers of our ancestors who gave their lives for our survival.
Several hours and a 40 minute descent later we definitely were ready for mud baths and salt treatments! People spend hundreds of dollars in the States on mud baths such as these, so we knew we were in for a treat! We covered ourselves in the mud hoping it would remove the eau-de-camel, but little did we know we were in for something much worse. The smell of rotten eggs from the sulfur baths to remove the mud and complete the treatment nearly made us run back up Masada! The next stop on our spa adventure was floating on the dead sea, which felt as if we were rafting on the clouds. In fact, our skin was covered in salt so we even looked like we had been playing in the clouds. But in the end, our skin was glowing, giving us the confidence to browse Jerusalem for Israeli princes.
... and we're still looking.
Love from Jerusalem,
Randi Lieberman, Mandy Tehaan, Samantha Kurtz
Bedouin Camp (Day 6)
After visiting Beit Shean National Park we hopped on the bus for a short ride to the Bedouin camp. Immediately after arriving we unloaded from the bus and hopped on camels and donkeys that were there waiting for us. While most of the group rode on the donkeys, I ended up on a camel. The camels were making loud grunting sounds as they stood up; it was a startling sound to hear! It was funny to look over at the part of the group that ended up on the donkeys. This was only until the middle of the camel ride where the group ended up switching places. It was a lot less fun to be the part of the group looking hilarious on the donkeys.
Back to the bus to grab a day pack. Our group was then led over to the tent that we had been assigned to. It was a fairly large tent and every one ventured in to grab a sleeping bag and a ground pad. Then it was off to stake out a sleeping location. On my way to the tent I ran into a friend who is on birthright through the University of Wisconsin. This was a pleasant surprise.
After getting situated we were sent over to a tent with some of the Bedouins. They made coffee and tea, both of which were good but a little on the sweet side. These were made over a fire in the tent. The Bedouins are always very welcoming people but if they give you a full cup of coffee it is time to go.
The group was gathered up by Sue and Larissa, who had us follow them out away from the camp. As a group we discussed what was important to us and reflect on the parts of the trip that we had experienced this far on this already amazing trip. After the discussion Sue described to us a meditation technique which involved sitting still for one hour. Most likely after one hour you will be in discomfort and dealing with this will help you reflect on and appreciate everything else that you experience. We all sat in silence in the cold desert night for about 45 minutes and watched the sun set.
Dinner was amazing! It consisted of turkey kabobs, rice, pita and a delicious salad. Immediately after dinner they told our group to go over to a tent for a drum circle. “If you get lost just listen and follow the music” they told us. The drum circle was very entertaining. During the drum circle the brought out a bunch of bongo’s and taught us how to play.
Then it was time for more free time. We enjoyed building an amazing fire. This was only after struggling for some time due to the fact that they left wet wood at our camp site. I decided to call it an early night to catch up on some sleep. An exciting day laid ahead with hiking Masada and floating on the Dead Sea on tomorrows Itinerary. ”
Alex Niderberg
1 comment:
Thanks for the update and the wonderful pictures! Thanks for taking an additional group shot! I can't wait to see you all on Sunday. Have a safe trip home!
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