Sunset on the Mediterranean

Click on any picture to see a large version.

At sunset, my husband and I walked the boardwalk of Dado Beach in Haifa. Surfers waded out to catch the waves that splashed the pebbled beach.

The sun bathed circles of Israeli dancers in long yellow light. Down the beach, drummers beat as others swung legs in the Brazilian martial-arts dance, Caopeira.

We passed life-guard towers and restaurants, glad the heat of the week was finally breaking.

We settled in lounge chairs at a cafe to sip drinks and watch the sun sink low. One young surfer rode out in the waves. (On the right side of the photo, my husband's toes!)


Waves rippled with flame; clouds melted gold.

Just an Israeli evening.

"Medusa" is not a Greek monster...

... although they do lurk in the Mediterranean.

(You can see the family resemblance.)

Sorry fewer posts than normal this week. My sister is about to visit, life is busy, and... it just got hot! I'm excited for hot weather, although as sweat poured down me today while I was strenuously sitting in my apartment (ha), I also remembered why I was SO excited for cool in the fall last year. Israeli weather in the spring and fall is absolutely perfect for life in general. Israeli weather in the summer is perfect for the beach! With almost 100% certainty, I can say that it won't rain for the next hundred days... blue skies, sunny weather, and the beach a ten minute drive away.

The only problem with this picture is that "meduzot"-- jelly fish-- also love the warm water of the Mediterranean. I've never actually hit a "medusah" in the water, but even the slight sting of medusah venom in the waves is enough to convince me I never want to get any closer. Surfing friends have welts to prove that they HAVE gotten closer, and it's no fun at all.

So listen to the Israeli life guards if they tell you to stay out of the water on a hot day. Instead, stay home and watch Meduzot the movie-- it's an artsy (i.e., beautiful but confusing and depressing) film that I wasn't crazy about, but many people love.

Happy summer!

For the best view in Israel, visit Muhraka

Muhraka monastery is one of those places that makes me feel Israeli-- it's the perfect place to take out-of-town guests, yet mostly locals know it exists. Muhraka is a Carmelite monastery on the Carmel Mountain (hence the name), and it is at one of the spots that Elijah is supposed to have fought with the prophets of Baal... hence this dramatic statue:

Elijah stomping out worshipers of Baal. Click to see a larger version.

For a ridiculously small fee (I think it was four shekels), you can climb onto the monastery roof, where you get this AMAZING view:

Different Israeli cities-- all of which you can see from this
roof-- are marked on the floor. Click to see a larger version.

When I stood on the Muhraka roof in December, I turned around to see the most beautiful sky I've seen in my life, complete with a glimmer of the Mediterranean in the distance:

Amazing sunlight. Click to see a larger version.

It's a bit hard to get the Muhraka-- with a car, you essentially turn right just before you reach the Druze village of Dalyat al Carmel (if you're coming from the east) and drive until you're convinced you're on the wrong road-- and then you're there. This site suggests a bus and then a taxi from Dalyat al-Carmel, which sounds like a good idea.

So if you really want to be Israeli, take your guests to this little gem on the Carmel mountain!

Visit Achziv!

If you really want to be Israeli, you should go on "tiyulim" (trips) every weekend. Israelis know how to enjoy this beautiful tiny country of ours, and everywhere you go you see Israelis hiking (in Teva sandals), barbecuing, and photographing nature with ridiculously large cameras.

At ProphetJoe's request, I'll post some pictures of the Mediterranean today. :) This is Achziv, my favorite beach. It's actually part of a nature preserve north of Nahariyah. It's full of these gorgeous little tidepools that dance with sunlight and minnows. The sandy part (not in any of my pictures) is protected by a natural rocky cove. I took these pictures in December. Enjoy, and visit Achziv!