Jerusalem - Post Report Question and Answers
What have been the highlights of your time in this country? Best trips or experiences?
Celebrating the Feast of Tabernacles with local families, hiking to Eilat/Red Sea, seeing families cherish and respect one another. - Sep 2024
The people I've met and worked with are definitely a high-light. The locals here, including the local staff, are some of the warmest and most emotionally generous people I've ever known. - Oct 2019
Despite the complaints, Jerusalem is a very easy place to live. The weather is amazing, the food is really good and there are more national parks and historic sites than you'll ever have time to visit. Highlights are the beaches, the Galilee and Golan Heights, visiting wineries, the Dead Sea, camping in the desert, wild camels, hiking to waterfalls up slot canyons, goat cheese, hummus, figs, mangoes, and sweet cherry tomatoes. Plus living here I have experienced the conflict and controversy first hand and understand both sides more than I ever would have just reading about it. Overnight trips to other places are difficult because hotels are $200 a night for a room that is worth about $40. We ended up driving a lot and making them day trips, camping a lot and searching for reasonable AirBnBs (and usually not finding any). - Aug 2018
The city is full of history, and it is palpably spiritual. One should have memberships to the zoo and the Israel Museum. Tel Aviv and its beaches for relaxation, the Dead Sea, national parks, and too many day trips to mention. You won't run out of things to do here if you like history, museums, ruins, and nature, as any guidebook will show you. - Apr 2018
Saturday morning (shabbat) trips to Tel Aviv to hang out at the beach for just a few hours... Masada. Ambling through the Old City with no real agenda. Shopping in Machane Yehuda for the makings of a great dinner party. Jerusalem Marathon. Tel Aviv Marathon. Any of the parades and festivals in the city when you get to see the full flavor of the city. - Dec 2016
There is always something to see and do here, both in Jerusalem and in Israel or the Palestinian territories. There are numerous Israeli national parks that warrant multiple visits, including many that aren't necessarily historical but that have natural beauty - Gan Hashlosha, Yehudit Nature Reserve, Maktesh Ramon, all of the Negev, numerous beaches (Dor Habonim - where there's great camping as long as you don't go from Friday to Saturday), etc... When you tire of dealing with what can be a rather abrasive Israeli culture, you can head to Bethlehem or Jericho to visit historical sites or get some great Arabic food. Aqaba is about a four hour drive away - Petra and Wadi Rum are a little bit further but also really accessible. You won't lack for things to do. - Aug 2015
1) The view of the Old City and surrounding hills from our home 2) Getting to know every nook and cranny in the Old City 3) Palestinian hospitality 4) Going to Tel Aviv all the time 5) Day trips to hike or visit archeological sites - Aug 2015
Seeing things I thought I would only ever hear about. Visiting and floating in the Dead Sea, The Old City, the museums here hold some amazing items that can only be seen here. Visiting outside the city. Traveling to Jordan. The beaches..:) - May 2015
Mediterrean beach, convenience to visit Jordan (Petra, Jerash, Wadi Rum, Dead Sea, Aqaba), great hiking, exploring Crusader castles, visiting historical and biblical sites. - Mar 2014
Visiting all those places you read about in the Bible, history books, etc. This might be the only place you'll find a church on one side, the holocaust center on the other and nestled in between a Muslim cementery all within steps of each other. - Aug 2013
Exploring the Old City and the nooks and crannies of West Jerusalem, hiking in the Galilee, and popping down to Tel Aviv to go to the beach or explore Jaffa on the weekends. - Jul 2013
