Floating on water…

So I’ve just boarded my bus from Jerusalem to the Dead Sea.

A few weeks ago, a good friend of mine from the kibbutz, Sophie, asked if I wanted to meet her at the Dead Sea.  Like I’ve said on a number of occasions, I work really hard and am a true believer that one also needs to treat themselves.

So, I said Ken (Yes in Hebrew)!

As I mentioned in my last post, the Dead Sea is about 1 1/2 hours from Jerusalem so in total my journey was about 2 1/2 hours from Tel Aviv.  Not too bad – especially to see a friend.

View from "hostel"

We decided to stay overnight so we had time to get there (as she was coming from the south), catch up in the evening and then have most of the day to enjoy the sea and surroundings.

We did a number of hotel searches.  Tip one: when you search for hotels, I don’t recommend searching “Dead Sea” – as one would think they should.  I found a lot of hotels that came up were actually in Jordan as the Dead Sea is in the middle of both countries.  The 2 main areas for accommodation are Ein Gedi and Ein Bokek.  We had a hard time finding a hotel in our budget so we ended up booking a private room in a hostel, the Ein Gedi Youth Hostel – more on that in a minute.

I suggested Ein Gedi as I had been there years ago and recognized the name.  I didn’t even know what or where Ein Bokek was.  Now that I’ve been, I know that if you want some element of civilization, its best to search for a hotel in Ein Bokek.  Although we had a lovely room with a nice balcony with nice views of the Dead Sea there was nothing around. For 2 girls who want to have a bit of fun, we need to be where the action is .

Before I get into details of our overnight stay, here’s a bit of info on the Dead Sea (or Yom Ha-Melah in Hebrew).  The Dead Sea is a salt lake bordering Israel, the West Bank to the West and Jordan to the east. Its surface and shores are 422 metres (1,385 ft) below sea level which is the lowest elevation on the Earth’s surface on dry land – pretty impressive I know.  As you drive to the Dead Sea, your ears will definetly pop and that’s a sure sign of the decline in altitude.

The Dead Sea is the world’s saltiest bodies of water, with 33.7% salinity – for reference that is 8.6 x more salty than an ocean.  The reason it is called the Dead Sea is that animals can’t flourish due to the high salt content.

Floating away...

One of the coolest things about the Dead Sea is that you can literally float on top of the water.  I did it for the first time in 2000 and it was a very cool experience.  All you have to do is literally lie back and the salt will enable you to stay on the surface.  This “cool factor” has made it a real tourist attraction.

The Dead Sea also has a huge spa industry.  People use the salt and minerals from the Dead Sea to soothe skin.  I have family who go twice a year and swear that spending time in the salty water and using the minerals that are byproducts of the sea (often in the form of mud) are the lifesavers of their skin.  It has been known to help people with skin conditions like psoriasis and eczema.  Pretty remarkable!

My advice for anyone coming to Israel is to give it a try as it is definetly something to say you’ve done and a cool experience.

So all went to plan really – I arrived at the hostel first and my friend met me.  As soon as I got out of the bus I realized the intensity of the heat.  I wasn’t sure of the temperature but knew that I wasn’t in Kansas anymore (so to speak!).  When Sophie arrived, we took time to catch up a bit and then headed out of our hotel to see what Ein Gedi had to offer.

Well…unfortunatley not much if I’m honest.  We ventured down to the sea and Sophie did a bit of a night swim.

One thing to note is that the whole Dead Sea process is great but it is a bit of a pain in the backside.  When you go in you need to realize that any cut or sore you may have will probably sting.  As the salt enters it, it is actually healing the wound but it may burn.  Not the best part of the experience.  Make sure not to touch your eyes after they’ve been in the sea as that will likely burn too.  When you get out of the water, there are a number of showers all over the place so wash yourself really well, including your hair, to ensure that all the salty water comes off of you.

After the night dip, we thought we’d try to find a place for a nice meal.  Challenge #2.  I’m sorry to say that there isn’t much fine dining in Ein Gedi.  We ended up eating at a road side mini mart and managed to convince the shop attendant to grill us up a couple of sandwiches on his panini press.  For this cheese and tomato sandwich plus drink (non-alcoholic by the way) we paid 60 shekels each – which we could get a semi-decent meal for here in Israel.

My friend, Sophie & I

By the time all of this was finished and we walked back to the hotel, it was pretty late and we ended up going to bed.

We decided that for the next day we were going to hit Ein Bokek by bus so we could see how that compared.

Once we checked out and caught the first bus, we were on our way to Ein Bokek.  Ein Bokek is about 25 minutes from Ein Gedi – the drive is lovely as its all along the Dead Sea coast.

Ein Bokek, to be honest, really isn’t anything special either but there are shops, a few restaurants and loads of hotels.  Most shops sell beach things like towels and almost all sell Dead Sea products – like bath salts, mud and creams.

We were in Ein Bokek most of the day.  I did go into the Dead Sea but only for about 15 minutes – Sophie went in a few times.  Although lovely, the salt really effects me as I feel stinging in places I didn’t know I had a cut and I find it is a target for the sun.  With the salt likely pulling moisture out of the skin, I find that combined with the heat a recipe for disaster for me.

The heat is a story in itself.  As we were sitting there – under a gazebo – I looked over to the temperature gauge sign near the lifeguard area.  It was a whopping 45 degrees C (113 degrees F)!  That is bloody hot!  I love the sun but that was way too hot for me to be honest.

Hot, hot, hot!

My friend and I left the  beach around mid-day and found a restaurant to finish our trip in.  We munched on a nice salad and sipped on a nice Israeli cappuccino.  I can’t think of a better way to end a fun night away.

The Dead Sea is great and definetly a place to visit at least once in your life.  Here’s my advice to you -

1) Visit in the late-winter or spring months – the temperatures will allow you to actually sit outside vs heading for cover

2) Take some time at the spa – the minerals are really great for your skin so enjoy some downtime here

3) Stay in Ein Bokek if you are looking for more variety in restaurants and sandy beaches (Ein Gedi is good for natural trails mainly)

and most importantly…

4) Take that photo with you floating and covered in mud…I didn’t this time but I have one from my trip in 2000 (a classic for sure!)

I say goodbye to Sophie and we promise to do this again sometime soon.

As I head back to the big city, I realize how beautiful the Israeli countryside is.  A land full of history and The Dead Sea is another great example of an attraction that has been visited during the course of history by so many!

Enjoy!