Touring Israel

Lag b’ Omer

Joe Yudin — 2012-05-11T06:20:36+00:00

Lag b’ Omer can be a confusing holiday to those Jews and gentiles who live abroad and come to visit Israel during this time. A walk through any neighborhood will see children piling high stacks of wood scavenged from vacant lots, building sites and unfortunately even healthy trees. A walk through an ultra-orthodox neighborhood will see hundreds or even thousands of these bonfires being readied for the night’s activities. Children will then run around the neighborhoods chasing each other with toy bows and arrows some bought at the store others made from scratch, some simple, some elaborate. It is…

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The Queens of Purim

Joe Yudin — 2012-03-08T08:05:40+00:00

Since the whole Purim story actually happened in Persia (modern day Iran), there really isn’t anywhere to tour in Israel that is connected to Purim. Some might say that the “tombs” of Esther and Mordecai are situated in the Galilee near the village of Baram, but this myth is based on the fact that when Arabs pronounce the word “Purim” it sounds like “Birim” because they don’t have a “p” sound in their alphabet. The Arabs of Galilee call Baram, Birim. The tomb near the ruins of Baram may very well be from the Persian or Hellenistic period but…

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Along the Gaza Border

Joe Yudin — 2012-02-20T08:14:48+00:00

"Is it safe to come to Israel right now?"

This is the eternal question. Almost every tourist who has ever inquired about an Israel tour with me over the last 15 years or so has asked me the same question. It is a concern for those people watching the news from afar and I do take these concerns seriously; however the very short answer to the question is "Yes."

For those people who are very nervous, for their "peace of mind" we stay away from perceived "dangerous" areas such as the border…

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Wildflowers in David’s Path

Joe Yudin — 2012-02-14T06:40:30+00:00

As for man, his days are as grass; as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth.
For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone; and the place thereof knoweth it no more.
But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear Him,
and His righteousness unto children's children (Psalm 103).

Today, during the season of the first wildflowers, this excerpt from a Psalm above which is attributed to King David brings images of him strumming his harp, writing his poetry, all the while…

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The Land of Wildflowers

Joe Yudin — 2012-02-10T07:06:03+00:00

Most tourists who have never been to Israel before think of this land as a vast desert, which was the setting of the biblical stories and the Arab-Israeli conflict. Images of the Bible and wars are what they think of when Israel comes to mind. The news media has much to do with this reputation, even though Israel has much more to offer than just the desert, the biblical setting and the modern conflicts. About 60% of the State of Israel is indeed desert. However the winter rains turn this mostly dry, beige, and rocky wilderness into a picturesque…

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Church of St. Anne

Joe Yudin — 2012-01-25T14:29:19+00:00

More often than not, while wandering around the Old City of Jerusalem, eavesdropping on some of the tour guides, you can observe that some guides pronounce certain sites and places as being the place where "so and so" did this miracle and "so and so" fought that battle and "so and so" walked here or there. Other guides will state that "tradition holds" that "so and so" did this or that at the specific site. When talking about what happened in the Bible and where it actually happened, faith and belief plays a major part and evidence is hard…

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Mt. Gilboa

Joe Yudin — 2012-01-15T14:51:13+00:00

"Thy beauty, O Israel, upon thy high places is slain! How are the mighty fallen!" II Samuel 1:19.

There are a few passages in the Bible that can be quoted (and misquoted) by almost everyone because of their infamy due to their absolute poetic beauty. The aforementioned quote is one of them. It’s part of David’s lament upon receiving the news of King Saul’s tragic death on the slope of Mt. Gilboa. Certainly this biblical passage is one of the most beautiful in its poetry. Bring your Hebrew-English bible and a good map for this tour…or…

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Battle for the Golan Heights

Joe Yudin — 2012-01-12T10:46:17+00:00

Between 1948 and 1967 the Syrian military sat atop the Golan Heights and on the shores of the Kinneret (Sea of Galilee), looking down at Israel in the valley below. In 1964, the Syrians began work on canals to divert the water sources of the north away from the Kinneret and by the end of May 1967, the Syrians had moved the bulk of their forces to the borders of Israel and their leaders were openly boasting of Israel’s eminent destruction in the press.

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Hiking the Negev Desert

Joe Yudin — 2012-01-05T10:02:03+00:00

Hiking in Israel isn’t just for nature lovers. I actually got into hiking during my first visit to Israel, but when I went back, however briefly, to the United States and hiked there, it just wasn’t the same. Don’t get me wrong there are tens of thousands of intense and beautiful hikes in North America that are challenging, fun and a nature lover’s dream, but my point is that hiking in Israel is a whole different experience. The key to hiking in Israel is by knowing it’s in depth history.

The best place to start…

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The Royal Tombs of Jerusalem

Joe Yudin — 2011-12-12T12:43:06+00:00

There is no other place in the world like Jerusalem. A tourist I was guiding once told me that while he was touring Jerusalem and Israel, his brother toured Rome and Italy. When they got together after their respective trips his brother was astounded by the two thousand years of history. “Two thousand years is that all?” questioned my tourist, “In Jerusalem that’s not even the halfway point!” I couldn’t have said it better myself. A walk through any neighborhood almost anywhere in Israel, will show you some incredible and diverse gems of history, archaeology and architecture. On this…

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