First Interaction with a local, while attempting to buy deli meat/cheese before Kippur:"This place is a disaster….I mean this market, not the country….Well, both, kind of"

My time in Israel was tremendous. There were tons of things that I enjoyed about it but like so often on this trip, it boiled down to the people. I got to meet two great friends of Alexis that i've heard so much about over the years and who were able to share snippets of their lives in Tel Aviv with me. I got to experience Israel with Alexis, which is something we've talked about doing for a long time. And I met new people, who's company I enjoyed and who added to the experiences I've accumulated on the trip.

My first full day in Tel Aviv two things became completely clear to me: First, this place was hot and humid compared to Finland. Second, Yom Kippur was about to start and everyone was making preparations for it. These preparations felt a lot like hurrricane shopping back home, so I wasn't completely caught off guard, but it did bring it with it an unmistakeable sense of impending isolation/dread which was weird. I'll say this though, the frenetic grocery shopping pre-Kipuur is something I'll never forget.

My apartment in Tel Aviv was not glamorous but it was definitely in a part of the city that I really enjoyed, and it made strolling around town really fantastic and an easy base of operations for exploring the northern part of the city - and bus connections to the South were easy enough.

Overall, my take on Israel in two not-long-enough weeks there was that it's a special place, its a place that has created a culture that is really different than anything I'm used to in terms of secular/religious/cultural interactions and impact to daily life.

Most importantly to m though, it was really important to see something that is so important to so many people (Jerusalem) and have some in-person context for The Holy Land. I think its cliche to say that being there and talking with people that are actually living the conflict makes a huge difference. But it does. And, even more importantly I think that being there helped usher in new images to associate with Israel that aren't the ones constantly associated with the country in the media back home. I now have what I believe is a more real point of reference for the country and something to counter-balance the reports of instability.

Israel left me with a desire for more Israel, which I think is a great sign - and I see myself returning in the not-to-distant future. Anyways, I enjoyed myself - it was a great combination of cultural experiences, nature experiences, nightlife experiences, and relaxing. Kind of amazing.

My Israeli Top Ten (12):

Hiking into the Makhtesh Ramon Crater - I hadn't done any hiking like this before in my life. But, making my way down to the center of the Mahktesh all alone in the middle of the day in the center of the Negev was unforgettable. The feeling of solitude and nature's grandeur was pretty epic. This is a highlight of the entire trip for sure.
Running up to the top of the Mount of Olives - I did this run on my last day in Jerusalem before heading to Hungary. I didn't want to accomplish much except run up to the top of the Mount and check out the view of the Dome on the Rock. Well, the run ended up being pretty demanding ( about 1 hour and 40 minutes with many long uphill climbs) and I got to see all kinds of neighborhoods I wouldn't have experienced otherwise. But, the highlight was definitely the view from the top of the Mount, overlooking the entire old city and having just worked hard to get myself up what felt like infinite stairs. It was special. Also special because it went undocumented, since I was running I had no phone or camera to capture this view.
The Western Wall during a special prayer service for Sukot - On the first day I was in Jerusalem I made my way down to the Western Wall and stumbled upon what I later found out was one of the largest and most important prayer services at the wall during the entire year (or so my tour guide told me). The important thing is that the entire plaza was overrun with devout Jewish folks following the prayers of an apparently very high rabbi. The energy I felt during this service was incredible. It was truly moving, even though I had no idea what these cats were saying.
Yom Kippur in Tel Aviv - This was something that could have been a pain to deal with but really just ended up being a highlight of the trip and helped provide some cultural context around the place for me. I got to shop with Israelis as they prepped for the shutting down of the city and I got to ride bike with kids all day on Saturday on the streets of Tel Aviv. These kids were running around like the owned the city able to ride on all the major arteries of the city (Allenby, Dizengoff, King George, etc)
Meeting Alexis' Israelis - It was great to meet Liron and Anat in Tel Aviv. They were great at showing us around and sharing some of their insights on the country and city and I truly enjoyed my time with both of them.
Floating in the Dead Sea - This is a thing I didn't think I would care all that much about, but man was it weird and fun.
Food - I ate very well in Israel, which is probably not surprising. But, it will go down as one of my top memories of the time there. I think the highlights were my Falafel at Hakosem, The Sabich from the Sabich stand on Frishman and Dizengoff, The Shakshuka at Didoo and of course our Arab Meal in Old Jaffa. (I actually might try to sneak in some more Sabich during my 12 hours in Tel Aviv next week.)
Strolling Divengoff - I loved this part of town where our apartment was and just taking in the neighborhood made me smile daily.
The Snake Trail climb to Masada - This got a little dicey. It was hot as heck (we decided to start climbing close to 8AM, when apparently the smart time to go UP is closer to five am or four thirty am). Anyways, it was crazy hot, and the hike was crazy intense. At some points, I think Alexis and I might have been concerned for our health. But I felt insane accomplishment making it to the top of the Mountain and the views out to the Dead Sea were tremendous.
My interrogation upon trying to leave the country to Hungary - Having to explain that i was coming back to Israel, to go to Jordan, but needed to leave to resolve my Indian Visa Problems in Croatia was not something the security personnel could understand.So this took a good forty minutes of chatting and trying not to freak out to resolve. (I got sent to a special line) (Travel Bonus Points: The dude I was talking to for about an hour or two before security and I were planning on having a post-security drink. He quickly distanced himself from me once this started: "I have no idea who this person is.")
Waiting in line for the Temple Mount with the very-not-accepting of other religions religious Jew - This guy was intense, and made me tremendously uncomfortable with his anti-muslim rhetoric and general strangeness. But, I do think it made me realize some very unpleasant realities regarding the distance that some folks have from being able to reconcile the difficult task of dividing up the Holy Land Real Estate.
Tel Aviv Beaches - I hung out at the beach a fair amount and I loved every minute of it. Aside from feeling a little less fit than acceptable for the Tel Aviv Beach Crowd, it was splendid.