Israel is a beautiful country with an amazing mixture of culture and a lengthly filled history BUT one thing you might not know is they also have and are known for the BEST and HIGHEST security in the world. I dare you to argue me on that one.
I go through security in Halifax with no problem, have a glass of wine on the plane and fall asleep. I slept for almost the entire flight. Six hours later I arrive in Heathrow airport. Which by the way is MASSIVE. Any store you can imagine, it's there. So I have a five hour lay over in Heathrow, so I sit in this Skybar place have some frits and hang out.
The gate opens at noon to check through El Al so I decide to go at this time. I get down from the second level to the first where the airline is and the line, 45 minutes long. Why? Because El Al is so great with security that they have their own. (You'll soon hear of Israel and how the entire country is like this. Which is great for safety though.) Anyways, I finally get to the end where there are a ton of security asking you a series of questions etc. For me, the question of "Where are you going after Israel?" I say "Turkey" BAM questions go bonkers I'm waiting patiently while they speak in Hebrew to one another. BUT When you think about it, it's pretty understandable I mean, I don't travel much. Why Israel alone and visiting this family friend? Why a five hour lay over and not a shorter one. Many things made sense in the end. Also I am not Jewish so what is my purpose to visit etc. Added on the factor of traveling with camera gear.
So, after an hour or so of questions after waiting in a 45 minute line, they let me through. I walk to my gate with the load of people and pass in my passport with my ticket at the gate. They take me to a blocked off area and set up a strip search private section with screens and ask me if they can empty and search my carryon. I was like holy crap. While they did this they proceeded to ask if I was okay. DUDE I have traveled for like a million years, am on Malaria medication which makes me want to puke and I'm being checked out, Uhh yeah I'm a little worried. So for like the fourth time that day within being in Heathrow they take my carry on apart again, swipe everything etc. Clear. I finally get to go sit down. Poor dude next to me got strip searched, I was lucky.
Now, within Israel is different quarters of religion so because of this you get to see the origins of them and strong people within practice of these religions. It's really quite neat to see all the different dress, hear the assortment of language and interaction. Especially with the Jewish community.
The weather is perfect, not too hot just right with cool evenings. Roses line the side streets of the neighborhood I'm staying in. The houses are all on mountain side made of white stone but very modern architecture with modern appliances. Well ahead of our time. Its very Eruo, North American. Mind you this is the neighborhood I'm staying in, like other places it varies. This neighborhood is very nice, I'll post a photo tomorrow of it for you guys. One thing thats odd though is it is right on the Palestinian boarder.. for those of you that know your History and Politics this is a different situation here in Israel than in Canada. But from my standpoint I find it interesting. You see barb wire fences and guards in the morning with guns at the boarder gates. (I was told this and have only seen the gates with my good friend Jacob, I would never go there alone..) You can see the giant main Mosk over the wall, from a distance. Its really beautiful. During the times of prayer an announcement is said on a large speaker system and can be heard everywhere. This is very common wherever a Mosk is in Israel.
Anyways, all is well. I'm going inside Jerusalem tomorrow to visit the market and finally get my photo's a flowin' so I have some stuff to post for you! Its been hard to get going with the six hours time difference.
The End
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