lol classic me.
It was time for a hike up a 350 meter mountain, which I guess is like .2 miles high. "Psh," I thought, "piece of CAKE."
Ha. No.
What I Expected:
After 1 minute:
I mean, look at this thing!!!!
HOLY CRAPOLA
It was ginormous! And it wasn't even a sloped path--it was a bunch of actual stairs! Talk about an intense stairmaster. But--it was absolutely worth it. PLUS--I was the first person of our tour group up the entire hike!! Wahoo, Aubs!!
Looking out over the Dead Sea about 20 minutes before sunrise
Exhausted and very proud Aubs
Only true Israelis bring pita and hummus for breakfast!
Look at that sunrise!!
And if that intense sunrise wasn't enough reason to make the trek--there were Roman ruins of Masada all over the hill!
Wowza
Look at those dwellings!
This was the final Jewish stronghold in their war against the Romans thousands and thousands of years ago. It was used as a settlement by the Romans after the Jews were defeated. I was freaking out. Of course, I'd been travelling with Kara and Kajsa for almost 24 hours already, so they were accustomed to my frequent bursts of exhilarated and probably abnormal emotion. I'm probably like the funnest person to travel with--simply because you get to laugh at me all the time. I mean, I'm basically Buddy the Elf when he thinks Santa is coming--but I'm like that all the time.
"LOOK AT THIS TREE." "HOLY MOLY, WE ARE IN JERUSALEM." "TAKE MY PICTURE." "THIS IS SO BEAUTIFUL!" "I LOVE EVERYTHING."
From Masada, we rode on over to the natural oasis and springs of En Gedi, where King David took refuge in some caves. Of course, an Aubrey trip wouldn't be complete without me obsessing over some animals, so here are some adorable--and quite fearless--ibex and groundhog things that I want as a pet/want to be in my next life.
Hard to see, but they're there. A momma and her baby!
Groundhog chillin out, snufflin' for some grub. I wanna be him.
We hiked a little more (and our legs hated us) to get to some stunning waterfalls.
One of the little waterfalls
There are actually four waterfalls in this picture, and I make my way to the top one!
Accompanying my obsession with animals is a love for tunnels and caves. This is a cool natural grotto formed from overhanging palm fronds.
Terrible lighting, but I hope you get the idea!
And then... King David's Waterfall
OMG! It's out of Indiana Jones! Or Veggie Tales!
It was dangerous right in this area, because of the dangers of falling rocks.
Debbie Downer
So of course I followed the rules....
Yeah right.
YOLO
But seriously--I wasn't letting some signs stop me! Israel has a way different perspective than America on rules and the like. In America, you best believe there are secret cameras watching your every move and that there are dams that will block the waterfall if you step under it and an omnipresent NSA officer will call over a hidden speaker "EXIT THE WATER IMMEDIATELY."
"I just wanna--" "NO."
In Israel, it's kinda like "eh, you might die, you might not, do what you want." Fences are suggestions and warnings are careless afterthoughts tossed in the breeze. I mean, I think. Idk, maybe I just haven't been caught yet...
Anywho! Off to the Dead Sea!!!
Of course I exfoliated with some mud.
Got a nice tan.
My newest date look
The floating sensation in the Dead Sea is bizarre. It's not just buoyancy. The water is actively pushing you to the top! It's almost like laying on a barrel that's on its side. It's wobbly and takes a lot of balancing effort, but you don't have to kick or exert any upwards motion. I don't know scientifically why that is--I took Science and Cooking for physics in college, I'm not gonna give you any info.
Just keep floating
The tour was over around 1 or so, and we headed back to Jerusalem. It took me about three hours to get back to my street in Raanana--and now I'm EXHAUSTED. Shabbat is about to begin, so I'll be heading up for a family dinner shortly. But this weekend was one I'll never forget.
With all the love and joy and peace in the world,
Exploring the Great Outdoors Aubs
No comments:
Post a Comment