Turkish Baths

Today Courtney and I made our own boat tour by taking commuter ferries from place to place and then we hit up the spice market where I bought enough herbal tea to last me for the next year at least. We then spent the afternoon at some Turksih baths, which was quite an experience.

The website has photos of models wrapped in towels lounging about in a sauna. Our experience differed a bit. When you enter the lobby you pay for the services you'd like and receive the corresponding tokens. We went with the traditional bath experience then added a clay facial mask. We were led to a locker room where we dressed in the black bikini bottoms provided and a towel-like wrap (notice I did not mention that we were provided with a bikini top). Then we made our way to the baths. We walked through a big wooden door to find a dozen or so topless women, few of which could be mistaken for a model, lying on a large round flat stone in the center of a room with many sinks around the edges. We laid out our towels on the warm stone, laid ourselves on our towels, and waited. It was hot and humid in the room so we started perspiring immediately, which I think is the part of the process.

After awhile a worker came over to me (you could distinguish some of the workers because they had a black bikini top, but mine did not) and had me follow her to another spot on the stone where I was told to lie face up. She then took what must have been a large brillo pad and rubbed my skin raw, then had me flip over and did the same thing to my backside. Then she dumps half a bucket of cold water on me, dumps the other half on herself, and rubs bubbles all over me. All over me. This part involved another flip, some more buckets of cold water, and a mini massage. She then led me to a sink on the edge of the room, had me sit, shampooed my hair, and dumped 10 more buckets of cold water on me to rinse me off. Then I was left to do my own thing. I lay on the warm stone for awhile and then when Courtney was finished we went into the jacuzzi for a bit.

When we'd had enough we went into the towel room where a mud mask was painted on our faces and we were led to the lounge area to wait for it to dry. The lounge area was cool and dry, filled with women wrapped in towels (the website wasn't completely misleading), and drinks were being served. After we each drank a bottle of water and our mask was dry we went back to the towel room to wash our mask off in the sink. However we were scolded and told that we must wash it off in the shower. By this time we had regretted not signing up for a massage and asked if we could do so then. After some dialogue back and forth between a number of workers we were led upstairs to the massage rooms. The massage was enjoyable and seemed completely unintrusive after what we had just gone through.

While in the bath it was so hard for me not to laugh. It reminded me of when my high school friends and I had all turned 18 and decided to go to an adult store just because we could and had to fight to not giggle because although everything about the experience was hilarious, the other people there meant serious business. (Tell me you and your friends did the same thing and that I'm not a total perv?) Once I was able to control my laughter and get used to being so close to another mostly naked stranger it turned into quite the relxing experience.

Istanbul

I have been pleasantly surprised to find that traveling in Turkey is quite easy. The people are friendly and many of them speak English. While dragging our suitcases through cobblestone streets to find our hotel no less than 10 people offered directions, completely unsolicited. The directions were such that it took all 10 sets to actually find the hotel, but it was nice to see how willing people were to help. With the people of Turkey determined to make sure Courtney and I have a pleasant trip and don't waste any time being lost, I'm sure it's going to be a great couple of days. Istanbul is yet another amazing city. There are beautiful old buildings everywhere you look. Although it is a mostly Muslim country, it's not Muslim in the way Jordan and Egypt are. Women dressed in traditional clothing with everything covered make up the minority of women out in the streets here.
Here is the Blue Mosque. Even though it is still used as a mosque, visitors are allowed inside. I was excited because it was the first time I can think of that I have been inside a mosque.

Then there was the Hagia Sophia--the most spectacular church I have been inside. The amount of detail and beauty is incredible.

We've had a lot of fun just wandering and eating food from street vendors. Most notable are the doner kebabs and baklava in its many forms. Because it is during Ramadan, the streets are filled at night with people celebrating the fact that they can eat again. The festive spirit makes being out even more enjoyable.

Jerusalem, I'm Not Finished with You

My mom and Daniel headed home on Saturday and Courtney and I spent our last two days in Israel going into Jerusalem to see as much of that incredible city as possible. We signed up for several walking tours so we could get a history lesson along with secret passageways and rooftop views. The other tourists on one of our tours were much more colorful (annoying) than the other tours--I'd say I was equally entertained by the other members of our group as I was by the tour itself. My favorite were probably the middle-aged balding Asian Computer Science professor and his beautiful mail-order Ukranian fiance that kept holding the group up to take pictures and buy fresh-squeezed orange juice. I'm not sure if they were both coming down with colds, but 3 glasses in four hours seemed to me a bit much. Probably the best moment of the tour was when we entered the room of the last supper and the tour guide acknowledged the bad smell, we all agreed, then went on with the tour. Suddenly, out of nowhere, the Italian lady said: "I know what that smell is: cat pee." Thank you for that. All of us were laughing so hard it took several minutes to compose ourselves and continue learning about the Holy City.
We took the bus to and from Jerusalem. I always feel so capable and proud of myself whenever I successfully navigate the public transport system of other countries. However, one morning while waiting for the bus a man came over and asked if we were headed to Jerusalem and told us to follow him. We were hesitant so he said "taxi" and we shook our heads, thinking we couldn't afford one, and he quoted a price equal to the bus fare. We still weren't sure about following a strange man to his van, but there were two other women who went with him so we decided to give it a try and hope for the best. The next bus didn't come for an hour, and we wanted to have as much time in Jerusalem as possible. There is a fine line between being safe and allowing adventure to happen. We arrived safely, but became less enthusiastic about our short cut to Jerusalem when the driver pulled out a cigarette.

It's hard to pick a favorite thing in Jerusalem, but just wandering the streets is so much fun. There are many churches and other monuments built for important Biblibal events. Even if those things didn't actually take place in the spot marked, seeing how touched people are by visiting those places makes them meaningful. Another highlight was Hezekiah's tunnels. We walked through a narrow, dark, wet passageway for a quarter of a mile--so much fun but definitely not for the clausterphobic.

Jerusalem is an amazing city with so much meaning. I have to come back some day for a longer visit. Now we are on to Istanbul for a few more days of adventure.
*Note: apparently I have been mispelling, and thus mispronouncing, Istanbul. I had thought there was an extra "n" in there. I discovered this mistake when I went to make hotel reservations. I really hate mistakes that make me seem illiterate.

No Ordinary Walk on the Beach

The Mediterranean has some beautiful coastline, and Israel is no exception. There are tons of shells in the sand. It made me wish I were craftier because I had an almost overwhelming desire to start collecting the prettiest ones, but I have no idea what I'd do with them.
We walked to a little parkt hat has some Roman ruins in it. No big deal.

Then the most exciting part of our walk along the beach was when we got to see an anti-ballistic missile shoot down another missile coming in from Gaza. Here is the trail it left in the sky. Israel tries to get all incoming missiles before they hit the ground, but are successful only about 50% of the time. I'm sure glad they got this one because I have a feeling it might have landed close to us...

Up North

To see a little more of Israel we took a day trip up north. First we stopped at Caesarea, a huge Roman ruin on the coast built by King Herod. Herod sure knew how to pick a location. Please disregard the sweaty girl at the front of the photo.
Then we continued our drive, stopping through many biblical towns and visiting churches. There is a church built for pretty much every event mentioned in the New Testament.

We ended our tour at the Sea of Galilee and stopped at this spot on the Jordan River where many people come to be baptized, or rebaptized. It was after hours so no large group baptisms, but we did get to see 3 men hop the fence so one could strip down to his underwear and baptize himself while his friend caught it all on his smart phone. I'm sure his family and friends will enjoy watching the video of it later, but I think it was best live. I am impressed by anyone willing to be baptized in that spot as it is full of fish, including some large catfish, as well as nutrias.

Jerusalem, Finally

Jerusalem is the place I have wanted to visit most in the entire world, and now I have. I could have wandered those narrow, winding streets for hours.

We had a lovely dinner on a rooftop with an incredible panoramic view of the old city.

This is one of several places that claims to be the last spot Jesus stepped before he ascended up to heaven. My mom thought this pose was disrespectful, but I just thought it would be a way to make a picture of a stone floor more interesting. Then at the Garden Tomb I kind of wanted to take a picture of me coming out of the tomb, but was afraid I would be judged by my own family and other visitors. However, as we left we saw a woman taking a picture coming out of the tomb wearing a long scarf over her head like they did in biblical times like she was Mary Magdalene herself. I wished I was touring the city with that group--they really know how to pose for pictures.

We stopped at a 24-hour bakery when we made it back to my dad's town. While we were there we heard an air raid siren go off, so took cover inside of a building for 30 seconds until we heard the bombs hit in the not-too-far distance and then went back to the car to go home. My dad said he could tell from the sound that the bombs actually hit the ground and weren't shot down by missiles. Although it was of quick duration, it really shook me up. Although we've seen signs of the potential violence all around us with the endless checkpoints and plentiful armed guards everywhere, hearing the air raid siren and then hearing bombs hit the ground made it very real to me. Everyone else around us just went on with their business as normal--bombs hitting the area are a regular occurrence as the town is a mere 10 miles north of the Gaza Strip. Then about thirty minutes later, as my dad predicted, we heard army helicopters overhead on their way to Gaza to return bombs there. I cannot imagine this being part of my everyday life.

Masada and the Dead Sea, or the Best Day Trip Ever

My dad had to work today and my mom wasn't feeling well so Courtney, Daniel, and I packed up and headed off for a new adventure. We first stopped at Masada, but that was less exciting so I'll talk about it at the end. First, (but second on our trip) the Dead Sea. Floating in water without trying is one of the most incredible things I have experienced. We could have floated out in the water for hours, but it was just too hot to stay for long. The water was warm like bath water--literally the temperature of water I put into my bath. And it was 100 degrees outside, so we floated, snapped some pictures, and headed home. Look--no hands!
Have you ever floated on your stomach in water? The dead man's float doesn't count.

I could have taken a nap like this.

Masada has an interesting history and it was cool to hike around, but the pictures aren't that exciting--it's just us and a bunch of rocks. Masada is the second largest tourist attraction in Israel, but I had never heard of it before my dad told us we should visit. So if you also don't know what Masada is I'll give a short history lesson. It is an isolated mountain peak by the Dead Sea that Herod built a palace on. Then later some other group of Jews lived there and then the Romans came to take it over but couldn't get to it because it was up on a mountain. So the Romans spent an entire year building a ramp up to it and then the day before the Romans were going to break through all of the Jews that lived there killed themselves. There was a TV miniseries made about it in the 80's. Today there is a tram up to the top (you can hike up too, but we opted for the tram because it's August in the Middle East) and there are ruins of the ancient city. The view of the surrounding area is spectacular.

Drive Like an Egyptian

Walk like an Egyptian nothing, the way Egyptians drive is what's impressive. For the day inbetween hiking around Petra and driving the 6 hours to Cairo we stayed at a resort on the Red Sea, which is now my new favorite body of water with its crystal-clear water and incredible coral reefs. Then a driver picked us up and drove us the six hours to Cairo. The man's driving was genius. He kept a steady pace of 130 km/hour, which on bad roads in a large van that has absolutely no shocks left takes true talent. He slowed down only for the dozen checkpoints along the way and once to avoid hitting a camel. For the first time this trip my mom insisted we all put on our seat belts. Then when we got to Cairo the driving only got more spectacular. In a city of 18 million there are about 5 traffic lights, yet it somehow all works. On the way back to Israel a car drifted across the freeway and our driver had to slam on the brakes and swerve to avoid hitting him. Our driver came to a stop and got out of the van. I thought maybe he was going to check on the people in the car to see if they were OK, but no, he just pulled over to yell and make hand gestures at the other driver. Amazing. Our day at the Red Sea was so enjoyable that I tried to convince the rest of my family to cancel our excursion to Cairo and just stay a few more days at the sea relaxing, snorkeling, and eating well, but everyone else still wanted to see the pyramids, which I think turned out to be the right choice. Aisde from the pyramids we also saw several other ancient sites, the Egyptian Museum, and took a dinner cruise on the Nile. We packed a lot into those two days and I'm so glad we made the trip over to Egypt.

Riding a camel is not the most comfortable way to travel, but now at least I can say I've done it. Aside from a driver we also had with us at all times an armed body guard, a tour guide, and the tour company manager. While having 4 grown men escort our family of 5 around was overkill, having our own entourage made us feel like rockstars. Although having a guided tour makes everything easier, it also has some downside: time at all of the places you actually want to see is shortened to make sure you have time to visit all of the souvenir shops they want you to buy from (and thus get kickbacks from). Courtney became a little hostile towards our guide by the end of the second day and it got a little awkward. But now we are back in Israel where we have complete control over our schedule each day.

Petra

We started our trip by walking across the border to Jordan. They take border crossings seriously in this part of the world. There is nothing quick about the process and there are so many inspections and stamps involved that by the end of this one trip my brand new passport is going to be half full. Border crossings aren't made any better by the fact that it is a million degrees outside in August. (My centigrade to fahrenheit conversion isn't perfect, but I think that a million degrees is fairly accuarte). We had a driver waiting for us on the Jordanian side and he drove us to Petra where we met my mom and brother who had flown into Amman the day before. We arrived at the hotel within minutes of each other. Spectacular planning on my dad's part. We went on an introductory hike through petra that afternoon with the world's most annoying tour guide. He had some good information to share, but we really had to work for it. He wouldn't just tell us, he asked a question and then made each one of us offer a different guess before telling us the correct answer, which was always different from all five of our responses. I stopped being amused by this approach after the second question, but he persisted for the full two hours of the tour. Later that night we went back for Petra by night that involved the same hike down to the treasury with the path lit by luminarias. It was stunning.
The next morning we made a final excursion to Petra for a longer hike to the monastery. The monastery is at the end of a very long, hot, and steep climb, but so worth it. Petra was an incredible place. There are so many ruins--I had no idea. Hiking around Petra felt a lot like hiking around Zion with all the same beautiful natural scenery, with just some incredible ancient architecture thrown in there. I also loved our drive through part of Jordan for some beautiful mountainous desert scenery. We got to see plenty of camels, but there was an alarming lack of women out in public.

Out of nowhere my dad started using pidgin English, thinking it would help all of the Jordanians understand him better, but really it just served as entertainment for the rest of our family as we laughed at his terrible grammar and complete disregard for prepositions.
Two people drove us around--an older man and a younger one. The younger one was quite attractive and Courtney and I kept making jokes to each other on inappropriate conversation starters, but nothing happened beyond the joking because I've always thought pulling off a fling on family vacation is just too awkward to be worth it. Maybe next time though. :)

The Best Way to Deal with Jet Lag?

Lay out at the beach for the day.

(Note: this is made easier if the place you're staying is less than a block from the Mediterranean).

Our journey here was uneventful, which I think is the best thing you can hope for with international travel. Isn't it amazing to think that in the time it takes me to watch 4 entire movies, I can travel from the west coast of the US to western Europe? (Props to Delta for having an excellent movie selection).

The only funny story of the trip so far happened today. Courtney and I were napping at my dad's apartment when we were woken up by a stranger's voice inside the apartment. I sort of freaked out and started screaming--not just startled, but screamed. Courtney turns to me, tells me to stop screaming, then has a conversation with the stranger through the bedroom door. Turns out she was just the landlady who had come to check out the Internet because it hadn't been working the day before. When she left Courtney couldn't help but ask: "It was a woman's voice--what did you think was going to happen?" I still can't really answer that question. Just something about being in a foreign country I don't quite trust yet combined with jet lag produced some serious overreaction on my part. Courtney and I keep spontaneously bursting into laughter whenever we think of the incident. I've a feeling this will become an oft repeated embarrassing story of mine.

Tomorrow we leave for our excursion to Petra, the Red Sea, and the pyramids, so stay tuned!

P-Town (The Good One)

This is what my life would be like if I lived in Portland. I'd spend my Saturday mornings tending to my community garden plot.
While snacking on blueberries I grew myself.

Then I'd go hiking somewhere beautiful like the Columbia River Gorge.
To end the day I'd go out to dinner with friends at one of Portland's many fabulous restaurants.

And best of all: I would do it all with Courtney because she lives here!