I recently completed a study abroad course in Israel for counter-terrorism. It was a two-week course that had other assignments afterward.
Previously I had only been to Dubai and Cairo in the Middle East. I enjoyed this trip a lot because we were able to travel all over Israel, from the Gaza strip to the Western Wall in Old Jerusalem. The food was great. Tons of Israeli salads and hummus... and of course falafel and shwarma (especially when you are on a budget, the latter two are going to comprise your staple diet).
Before entering I had imagined Israel as being a sandy desert but was surprised at how many greens there where depending on the location.
$7 for this hummus combo, including french fries, falafel, and salad.
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The old city of Jaffa. The winding alleys remind me of the time I temporarily forgot my way to my lodging in Athens :D Jaffa is mentioned in the bible quite a few times, and was the place where it was said that Jonah was swallowed by a giant fish.
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The view of Tel Aviv from Jaffa port city. Jaffa was around before Tel Aviv, and started to grow when the Jews fled North after being attacked by Muslims in the 1920s.
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Studying at the International Defense Center in Herzilya. Brownie points if you can name the kind of notebook I am using (Sailor fountain pen out of view).
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If you look on the right you will see a very small fence. The other side is the West Bank. When people think of the walls and barricades built by the Israelis, they think they are monstrous in size like the Western Wall. The physical fence is not their main level of protection. They have very high-powered cameras stationed around on nearby hills, as well as 24/7 monitoring by female IDF soldiers. Their main level of defense, however, is vibration detection systems. They can tell when someone is walking anywhere near a fence and can bring land and air scouts immediately if they need to.
I could see many Arabs coming in and out of Israel to work on the farmlands near the border.
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Yes, this is a Kosher McDonalds. Don't visit Israel if you need bacon at every meal :D... No, I did not eat there (I prefer strictly eating more local food when I travel).
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This is a photo of me on the Golan Heights. On the ride up the land was completely fenced off. Apparently, there are millions of landmines surrounding the area. Not something I'd be interested to test out myself...
*At the top you can see Syria, Lebanon, and Israel. *
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This was a very tasty kebob plate that you will find in Israeli fast food places all over.
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Right after eating the kebob I took a walk on the beach in Tel Aviv!
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Another photo of the beach at Tel Aviv.
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This was at Sderot, right next to the Gaza border. This photo shows some of the missiles that were sent over by Hamas towards the civilians living there.
A villager told us of a humorous (depending on how you look at it) story of the first missile that was sent over. She heard a small crash and went out of her house. On her farm was a small missile sticking out of the ground that had done no damage. The other villagers came to look and started laughing. Since then, with the support of nations such as Syria, the missiles have become much more powerful.
This village has a detection system for incoming missiles. All houses are required to have bomb shelters in them, and even the playgrounds have bomb shelters. One was in the shape of a cute catepillar. When the sirens go off, they have around 10 seconds to get into a shelter.
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Me at the Gaza border.
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Gaza border
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Amazing Arab food in the desert! We used the bread to make wraps. Reminded me of Ethiopian food.
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At the top of Masada Mountain. In the distance is the Dead Sea and on the other side is Jordan.*
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Eastern view from the top of Masada.
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Getting read to float in the dead sea!
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Turkish delight, anyone? At a Jerusalem market.
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A famous Jerusalem dish called... Jerusalem mix meat. Very creative.
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The Western Wall, where people come to pray from all over.
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A view of Jerusalem.
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:)
This was my first post on Steemit ever... Let me know what I could improve on. Do you think this was too many photos for one post? I could break it up into smaller posts, but this way I just choose some of my favorites.
-JackMoniker