"Who does this donkey belong to?"

I decided to spend this week in Jerusalem. Side note: one of the perks of my job is that I can do my work from anywhere as long as I have access to the internet... be it Tel Aviv or the middle of the desert. I love my job!

So back to my story: My cousin Maya, her boyfriend Liron and I decided we need a little vacation at the Dead Sea. So along with two friends, we packed the car full of water and food to make al a esh (which literally translates to "on the fire" but is really just a better version of the American B-B-Q). Within 30 minutes we were already there. One of the best aspects of Israel is that even though it is a tiny country, roughly the size of New Jersey, there is so much variation with respect to the landscape and topography. In the north there is a mountain called Mount Hermon where people actually ski (I didn't ski in Minnesota so why would I ski in Israel?!), in the south a desert and the resort town of Eilat, the Dead Sea (the lowest point on earth) is in the East and the Mediterranean Sea is on the West. And a whole lot of historical places in the middle. Imagine if there was that much to do in New Jersey?!

Anyway, we decided to rough it and so rather than going to an actual beach, we went down the side of the mountain to get to the water. I was surprised to see other people there and even a donkey tied to a tree. Some lady felt bad for this donkey and kept asking, "Shel me a chamor?" (meaning "who does this donkey belong to?") because she wanted to give it water. I couldn't stop laughing that this was a legitimate question that you would only hear it in the Middle East.... America felt so far away at that moment :)

So at 1,378 feet below sea level, the Dead Sea is a salt deposit, nine times saltier than the ocean. You can leave the air mattress at home, because the concentration of salt makes you float naturally, even if you aren't trying. Besides the stinging sensation in every cut and orifice, it is so relaxing! People usually rub the mineral-filled mud all over their bodies but since there weren't any showers in our makeshift beach, we skipped the mud this time. We then made our delicious meal.... topped off with black coffee and biscuits.

As the sun was setting, the Dead Sea looked pink and the view into Jordan was beautiful. I couldn't help but think maybe there is someone sitting on the other side wondering what Israel is like... but I will skip politics for now. We stayed late enough to see the stars come out and I have to say that there is nothing like star-gazing in the desert. The lack of light pollution makes them shine even brighter... Laying on the ground and staring up, I felt sheer bliss at being back in the desert.