I left off last entry after the first day in Tel Aviv, so logically that's where I'll pick up. Tel Aviv was really hot at night, like REALLY hot. I woke up in a puddle of sweat, awesome. After a much needed cold shower, Marnie and I walked to Jaffa. Shabbat was beginning that night so we thought Jaffa would be more lively than Tel Aviv, as Jaffa mainly Arab. By the way, Tel Aviv and Jaffa are actually the same city its called Tel Aviv-Yafo officially. Jaffa is an ancient port city, in fact one of the oldest in the world. As Tel Aviv grew after the formation of Israel it kind of swallowed up Jaffa, but it retains a unique look and culture different from Tel Aviv. Jaffa is crowded, smaller, and older; a nice introduction into the Arab world for me coming from the modern European style city that is Tel Aviv. We saw the market which has everything you could never want to buy; who really wants a random AC adapter that may or may not blow up what you plug it into? But overall it was really cool. On the way back we went to the beach and I swam in the Mediterranean, no big deal.
After Jaffa we went to central Tel Aviv and saw Rabin Square. The square itself is not really all that special physically, its a large public space in an urban setting. Maybe because I've been to Pariser Platz, Marien Platz, and the National Mall; but it was not that impressive. That said the importance of the space in the history of Israel is incredible. I really felt emotion of it all. Rabin's murder was terrible tragedy, a loss to the world not just Israel. Really, that is all I can say on the matter. Oh, and I ate the most delicious burger across from the square. Lamb and beef ground, with cheese and bacon on top; the most un-kosher meal ever but it was fantastic haha.
This morning we left Tel Aviv and embarked on our journey to Jerusalem. We took a Sherut for the hour across the country. Sheruts are kind of like a bus but much smaller, more like a van or shuttle bus. They're crowded but cheap so it's pretty nice. But damn are Israelis strict! Our Sherut was pulled over on the highway and cops boarded it looking for people not wearing seat belts. Two guys were pulled off, interrogated and given tickets. The driver yelled out in Hebrew to put our seat belts on as he was pulling over, I couldn't understand him but just copied everyone else thankfully.
Upon making it to Jerusalem Marnie and I got lost several times over finding our hostel in the old city. Marnie got to show off her Arabic though, which I was very impressed with. The hostel itself is awesome, the building is 700 years old! Jerusalem just has so much history imbedded in it. The rest of the day was spent exploring the old city and a bit of West Jerusalem. We met up with Marnie's friend Mohamed, he's a cool dude. Jerusalem is amazing, I can't wait to see more of it tomorrow.
After Jaffa we went to central Tel Aviv and saw Rabin Square. The square itself is not really all that special physically, its a large public space in an urban setting. Maybe because I've been to Pariser Platz, Marien Platz, and the National Mall; but it was not that impressive. That said the importance of the space in the history of Israel is incredible. I really felt emotion of it all. Rabin's murder was terrible tragedy, a loss to the world not just Israel. Really, that is all I can say on the matter. Oh, and I ate the most delicious burger across from the square. Lamb and beef ground, with cheese and bacon on top; the most un-kosher meal ever but it was fantastic haha.
This morning we left Tel Aviv and embarked on our journey to Jerusalem. We took a Sherut for the hour across the country. Sheruts are kind of like a bus but much smaller, more like a van or shuttle bus. They're crowded but cheap so it's pretty nice. But damn are Israelis strict! Our Sherut was pulled over on the highway and cops boarded it looking for people not wearing seat belts. Two guys were pulled off, interrogated and given tickets. The driver yelled out in Hebrew to put our seat belts on as he was pulling over, I couldn't understand him but just copied everyone else thankfully.
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