My wicked world Head in the clouds, feet on the ground, mind on food and heart on the road!

From Antalya (Turkey) I flew to Jerusalem for a one day trip. Reaching Tel Aviv it was adventure time. After getting the entry visa and a bit of wandering around, I found the tour bus.Getting on, I ask the guide if she speaks English, and she calmly replies “No” (even though I was promised an English guide back in Turkey). I stared blankly at her, trying to get over the shock of the news. After it wore off, and considering my options, I decide to suck it up and make the most of my day, while taking a lot of pictures, doing the research on places, at home.

Saw the Church of all Nations, which is my “number 1 location to see in Jerusalem”; the Garden of Ghetsemane, with its beautiful olive trees – you can see the rock where Jesus supposedly prayed before being taken away by the soldiers, with an ingraving to prove it, and the Olive Mountain. After lunch, the guide tells me there is another group whose guide speaks English, and I can join them. Turns out the other group was Russian as well, and no English word was spoken.“What in the world is going on here?”

We visited the Church of Holy Sepulchre (the Tomb of Christ), the currently claimed place of Golgotha, packed with pilgrims from all around the world – the sunlight streaming from the ceiling is spectacular; the Wailing Wall or Kotel, whose entrance is heavily guarded and you need to pass a security gate like the ones in the airports, then get to see the millions of prayer paper pieces squeezed in the crevices.

Leaving Jerusalem, we arrived at the Dead Sea. You have to be careful – the water is extremely salty, so you are advised by a panel at the entrance to avoid ingesting it or getting it into your eyes. I covered myself in mud (apparently healing), then went swimming. Well guess who got water in their eyes? After a near-blind walk back to the beach and a healing shower, I felt I deserved a beer, so after having one everything was alright in the world. The day coming to an end, we stopped for dinner and souvenir shopping at the gift shop where you can find anything from trinkets to Dead Sea weed based cosmetic products.

A great joy of mine at the airport was the ability to walk around in flip-flops (it was summer, so it seemed appropriate). While heading to the check-in, I find my original group and got in line, secretly enjoying the inability of the Russian ladies to understand English (I was avenged). Naturally the adventure would not have been complete had I not received the seat next to the emergency exit, so praying was an ever-present element throughout my journey. Getting back to Turkey I let the adventure sink in. I saw amazing places, felt amazing things, and got Dead Sea water in my eyes. How many people can brag about that?