Relo Extended!
At last, I get the official approval: my relo has been extended for six months. That means Julien and I will be moving back to the U.S. some time in October. So, if you want to visit Israel, you have to let me know before then!
Now, to entice you, I'll give a quick sketch of what we've been up to this weekend. Dad and Aamer got along well last weekend in Jerusalem, so we invited Aamer along for our trip this weekend also. We got up relatively early so as to be out the door by eight, and we drove south toward the Dead Sea. We arrived at Ein Gedi in the late morning, and did a little hike. We visited the northern wadi, which Julien and I had visited on our earlier trip, and then continued on to the southern wadi, which we had missed last time. We all greatly preferred the southern wadi. It was mystifying -- the scenery was much nicer and it was less crowded. It was warm enough that we even took a swim in one of the many pools.
We checked in to our Dead Sea hotel at about five, but still missed the hours for the pools and the beach. Although we had problems with the rooms and the reservations, we enjoyed the buffet dinner and breakfast. In the morning we all went for a swim in the Dead Sea. It's a novel experience, and I seem never to tire of it. The salt level is so high that it can start to sting after a bit, so after about a half an hour we were ready to return to the hotel to wash off.
Our next stop was Masada, and I was once again impressed by the size of the site. Between this visit and my last one, I probably covered the entire site, but we probably spent about four hours this time and two or three the last time, so that's quite a bit of time to cover what seems to be a relatively small area.
In the evening we drove back along the Jordan boarder through the West Bank and had dinner at Sahara in honor of Dad's birthday. Julien and I were both disappointed by the lamb, which was not up to its previous standard. However, Dad and Aamer both seemed satisfied, which was the important part.
All in all, a very pleasant weekend.
Now, to entice you, I'll give a quick sketch of what we've been up to this weekend. Dad and Aamer got along well last weekend in Jerusalem, so we invited Aamer along for our trip this weekend also. We got up relatively early so as to be out the door by eight, and we drove south toward the Dead Sea. We arrived at Ein Gedi in the late morning, and did a little hike. We visited the northern wadi, which Julien and I had visited on our earlier trip, and then continued on to the southern wadi, which we had missed last time. We all greatly preferred the southern wadi. It was mystifying -- the scenery was much nicer and it was less crowded. It was warm enough that we even took a swim in one of the many pools.
We checked in to our Dead Sea hotel at about five, but still missed the hours for the pools and the beach. Although we had problems with the rooms and the reservations, we enjoyed the buffet dinner and breakfast. In the morning we all went for a swim in the Dead Sea. It's a novel experience, and I seem never to tire of it. The salt level is so high that it can start to sting after a bit, so after about a half an hour we were ready to return to the hotel to wash off.
Our next stop was Masada, and I was once again impressed by the size of the site. Between this visit and my last one, I probably covered the entire site, but we probably spent about four hours this time and two or three the last time, so that's quite a bit of time to cover what seems to be a relatively small area.
In the evening we drove back along the Jordan boarder through the West Bank and had dinner at Sahara in honor of Dad's birthday. Julien and I were both disappointed by the lamb, which was not up to its previous standard. However, Dad and Aamer both seemed satisfied, which was the important part.
All in all, a very pleasant weekend.