The oldest state in the world. Cradle of three religions. A country that does not include a map if you know the Bible. Israel is contrasted ... As old as new; as conservative as one that absorbs everything that is advanced; as peaceful as military. Israel, in which they either fall in love for life, or absolutely do not accept it. But he will not leave a single person indifferent. Israel, generously receiving emigrants, pilgrims and tourists. Israel is orthodox: closed, intimidating and fanatical. Israel is amazing: modern cities sprung up in the desert.
Intriguing? This is not a set of cliches, it is pure truth, no matter how contradictory it may look from the outside. There is only one way to be sure: visit Israel and see everything in person.
What is interesting about Israel
In addition to all of the above factors, there are several more important components that increase the number of people arriving in this country from year to year, the main of which are the following:
A large Russian diaspora (conditionally Russian, rather Soviet, since there are a lot of immigrants from Belarus, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Moldova in Israel), to which relatives and friends go.
Excellent medicine attracts a lot of suffering to Israel, since what is done in this country is a priori considered advanced.
Three seas washing the land of Israel allow you to plunge into at least one of them practically at any time of the year; religious shrines, with their origins, going back to times long before the Nativity of Christ.
And the main thing to say at the very beginning: the Israelites strictly adhere to the Sabbath. Remember that from Friday evening to Saturday evening all entertainment establishments, banks, shops, institutions are closed, public transport does not work. Be sure to take this fact into account when planning your travel itinerary.
How to get there
Airplanes of almost all airlines that carry out international flights fly to this state.
Pros:
The abolished visa regime has greatly simplified the procedure for visiting this country.
Minuses:
Boarding planes flying or departing from Israel is so tightly controlled that people visiting the Promised Land for the first time are intimidated by it. Total control, which includes checking baggage, and personal inspection, and the most unexpected questions, often leading to a stupor.
Ben Gurion Airport has the reputation of being the strictest in the world. And this is not a metaphor. Searches and checks continue upon arrival. No guards or police are visible in the hall, but every centimeter of the hall is monitored by video surveillance. Everyone understands perfectly well what caused this: the Arab-Israeli conflict has taken on a protracted form. Such control has borne fruit: there has not been a single terrorist attack in the country for several years, and Ben-Gurion is rightfully considered the safest airport in the world.
Four hours of air travel, a series of checks at Ben Gurion and: “Hello Israel! Shalom! "
Transport
It depends on how you are resting. Organized rest? A bus will certainly come for you and take you to your destination. Have you decided to explore Israel on your own? Then you will get to the place of deployment yourself. How? From Ben-Gurion it is simple to make it banal.
There is a railway station on the lower tier of Terminal No. 3. A comfortable train will quickly take you to Tel Aviv or any other city in the country. Trains run every twenty minutes during the day and every hour at night. Remember about Shabbat, if the time of arrival or departure coincided with it, then only a taxi is at your service.
Taxi offers its services around the clock, on Shabbat and any holiday. Yes, it costs more than all alternative ways to get to the desired place (to Tel Aviv, for example, on average - $ 50 for three passengers), but you are guaranteed comfort. Prices for intercity taxi services are fixed; a car can be ordered from a special counter in the airport lounges.
Buses and fixed-route taxis will take you to any city in Israel, absolutely all vehicles are equipped with air conditioning, so that the journey will be comfortable. The parking for these types of transport is also located next to Terminal 3.
Minibuses work around the clock, very often the drivers are "ours", so it will not be difficult to explain to which hotel in Haifa or Jerusalem you can drive you. And keep in mind, almost everyone in Israel speaks English, so if suddenly there is no person near you who speaks Russian (which is almost impossible), then a school English course will help you out.
Renting a car is a great alternative for an active holiday. Israel is a small country, and you can get around it quickly. There is such an anecdote: two Israelis are talking: “Moishe, what are you doing tomorrow? - I will ride around the country. - And the rest of the day? This is the real scale of the country. You can book a car rental in advance and it will be waiting for you at the airport. It should be borne in mind that despite the fact that renting a car in Israel is inexpensive, petrol is quite expensive here.
Routes
Again, the route to follow the most unforgettable places in this country directly depends on the way of rest. If a travel agency is organizing your vacation, then there is nothing to worry about: all the routes have been thought out for a long time, you just have to decide what is interesting.
All routes, indeed, are incredibly informative: you will be taken to all significant biblical places, you can see with your own eyes the most ancient cities, admire new cities that have grown in the desert, famous churches, visit amazing museums on expositions, lie down in the salt water of the Dead Sea, if you wish , - scuba diving in the Red Sea.
If you are not a supporter of a group of tourists running from one artifact to another, and decided to spend a vacation, independently moving around the country, then you, in fact, will travel the same route as the above-described groups of tourists. Your advantage is the free management of your time, but your concern is the independent search for housing. However, this is not a problem either, because the mass of hotels, apartments and modest apartments is up to your choice.
Israel landmarks
Jerusalem
The center of the world, the oldest city in the Middle East, where modern new buildings, government buildings and religious shrines are intertwined. A new city that has grown over a century, and an old city that is timeless. The old city is conventionally divided into four quarters: Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Armenian. And each of them has its own flavor.
Church of the Holy Sepulcher
The main relic of the Christian quarter is the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. The number of churches in this quarter is huge, and each is a story. Some contain the greatest relics, for example, in the Church of the Resurrection - part of the crown of thorns of Jesus Christ. The Church of John the Baptist is the oldest in Jerusalem. The “Doomsday Gate,” the Sorrowful Way that Jesus walked to Calvary, is all there. The Western Wall is located in the Jewish Quarter. Write a note with your deepest desire and try to put this message into the clogged cracks of the wall, the Almighty will certainly hear you.
Nazareth
Holy Christian city. It was in Nazareth, where Jesus spent his childhood, that the largest Catholic church in the Middle East was erected.The beautiful Sepphoris Park is the parental home of the Virgin Mary, the remains of Roman reservoirs, in which, according to the Bible, Jesus Christ turned water into wine; Tsippori is the oldest Jewish city with a Crusader fortress.
Bethlehem
Located in Palestine, just 8 km from Jerusalem, on the banks of the Jordan River. It was there that Christ was born in the Cave of the Nativity, which is one of the main shrines of the Christian world. Just a few kilometers from the city, there is the ancient fortress of Herodium, the only site in the world that bears the name of King Herod.
Acre
Imbued with the architecture of a later period. The Arabic flavor has permeated the city: the Al-Jaz-zar mosque, the Turkish bath Hamam Al-Basha, the fortress and the ancient wall of Akko, which skirted the city. Well, the most beautiful synagogue in the country "Or Ha-Tora" is located here.
Dead Sea
Unique, it is impossible to drown in it even with a strong desire. The density of the water is so high that lying on the swaying water surface and reading a book can be effortless. The Dead Sea is the entire periodic table. And what about mud and thermal springs? People from all over the world come to this place for health, so it is illogical to visit Israel and not visit the Dead Sea.
Eilat
This is a fashionable resort located on the shores of the Red Sea. This is a place of active recreation: numerous beaches, scuba diving, windsurfing, water park, fishing, bars and yachts. The nearby Arava Desert will add extreme entertainment.
Tel Aviv
Israeli new building. There are no historical sights, except, perhaps, the legendary Jaffa, where every centimeter is history, flavor and oriental generosity. Tel Aviv is all about museums, nightclubs, the best shops and simply delight in how people built a fairy-tale city on a deserted place. And this is only a small part of what you can see ...
Israel cuisine
Perhaps there is no such person who would not know that Israeli cuisine is kosher. What is kosher food? These are dishes prepared with the requirements of kosher, which stipulate the permitted food, the rules for slaughtering, the requirements for the compatibility of products. All vegetable products are considered kosher, but not all living creatures. What will you never taste in Israel? Pork and rabbit, wild bird. Never in his life will a devout Jew eat seafood, although they have two seas teeming with squid, lobster, mussels, oysters and shrimps.
Any seafood is non-kosher by definition, since it has no scales. Even a fish that doesn't have it is non-kosher. So, in Israel, catfish and eel are prohibited, Orthodox Jews do not eat sturgeon, although this particular fish is in the border zone: some allow it to be eaten, some do not. The simultaneous use of dairy and meat products is prohibited by kashrut, that is, such a banal example: cabbage rolls with sour cream are not kosher. Or cabbage rolls, or sour cream. In general, kosher food is the oldest nutritional system, wholesome, quite tasty, and balanced.
Cafes and restaurants in this country are on every corner, there is even a kosher McDonald's, there are restaurants with European food, so it is difficult to stay hungry in this cosmopolitan country. But to come to Israel - is there borscht? Come on, leave the usual dishes for everyday life, and while traveling in Israel try hummus, falafel, prakes, forshmak, and gefilte fish ... mmm, you will not try such stuffed fish anywhere else!
Sweet haroset and teglah will leave the most unforgettable impression. To be in Israel — and not to taste matzo and challah — is amazing to say the least. The portions in local restaurants are so large that one is enough to feed two. In Israel, in general, there is a cult of a well-fed life, it is enough to recall the anecdotes about Jewish mothers: "Moishe, eat porridge ..."
This is how it is, modern Israel - a new old state that carefully preserves its original culture, sacredly preserves religious shrines, prides itself on the fact that almost everything is grown on stony soils and the harvest is harvested more than once.
Rules of behavior
A state that joyfully welcomes tourists, but shields its life from prying eyes.
You will be welcome everywhere, the main thing is to maintain a certain line of behavior:
- respect the customs of the country;
- obey certain safety requirements, after all, all these precautions are created just for you;
- avoid confrontation in Arab quarters;
- well, it is extremely tolerant to treat Orthodox Jews, especially on Shabbat. This is a closed life, closed people, a mass of conventions, customs and foundations. They are on their own, you are on your own.
Enjoy your stay!
