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10 THINGS TO DO IN ISRAEL

Israel is a fascinating country that may be small in size, but huge in terms of things to see and do. There can’t be a better example of an amazing marriage of old and new than what you see in Israel. Every corner of Jerusalem has thousands of years of history staring at you; while Tel Aviv is uber modern that boasts of free Wi-Fi throughout the city. Here is a list of ten things you must-do if you visit Israel.

Visit the Holy Sites – Jerusalem is the capital city of Israel and one of the most sacred places in the world to the three major religions: Christianity, Judaism and Islam. The ancient Old City is encircled by imposing stone walls that date to the Ottoman period and contain within it such holy sites as the Western Wall, The Dome of the Rock and Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

Leave a prayer at the Western Wall – The Western Wall or Wailing Wall has so much history that the place will surely overwhelm you. Jewish people believe that a divine presence rests within the Western Wall, so they leave hand-written prayers on paper and insert them in cracks of the Wall in the hope that they will be answered. More than a million prayer notes or wishes are placed in the Western Wall each year. The challenge will be to find a spot to place your own prayer note.

Explore Masada – This 1st century fortress was the site of one of the most dramatic revolts of the Jewish-Roman wars. The mountain fortress of Masada stands on an isolated rock plateau in the south east of Israel and was[……]

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Travel Guide to Israel: 8 Days in Israel

Every year, my family takes a trip for Christmas. This year, we went to Rome, Israel and Jordan and I was in charge of planning the whole trip. We spent 8 days touring Israel on our own with almost no guided tours.

This blog will focus on Israel: where we went, what to do, where we stayed, and how to celebrate Christmas in Israel.

Here is what we did and how I planned the trip! First, a few things you should know:

Day 1: Fly to Tel Aviv and drive to Jerusalem

The Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv is the main international airport in Israel. We rented a car from a rental car company at the airport and drove to Jerusalem (about an hour drive). On the way, we stopped for dinner in a town called Modi’in, which is a very non-touristy town. We ate at a cool restaurant called פדריק. The staff were excited to speak with Americans, and the food was great! Right across the street is a bulk Israeli grocery store. We had lots of fun walking around and stocking up on tea, dried fruit, and candy. Then we continued on to Jerusalem for the night.

A bulk food market in Modi’in, Israel.

Day 2: Jerusalem: Mahane Yehuda Market, Old City, and Bethlehem for Christmas Eve

Mahane Yehuda Market

We started Day 2 at the Mahane Yehuda Market in Jerusalem, a busy street market also known as “The Shuk”. There are lots of vendors selling fruit, teas, sweets, and other goods. You can easily walk to the market from Jaffa Street or from the Old City. We bought some fruit and tea then ate lunch at a litt[……]

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EGYPT TRAVEL TIPS

For some reason I haven’t heard of many people visiting Egypt on their own, without going for beach holidays. I knew one person who did Egypt travel independently and enjoyed it but that wasn’t enough for me to be confident enough.

But then I read the article about Cairo and I knew I want to travel to Egypt really badly. Shortly after I gave myself a birthday present and booked flights to Cairo.

I spent 10 days in Egypt and I survived.

And, to my great surprise, everything was fine and rather smooth, even if annoying at times.

Egypt was worth all the effort and I really enjoyed my time there, even though on most of the days I was really exhausted.

I put together a list of Egypt travel tips that hopefully will be useful for you when you plan your own Egypt trip.

Best time to visit Egypt

I visited Egypt at the end of December/beginning of January and I think it’s a really good time if you want to focus on sightseeing.

It wasn’t too hot, usually around 20C and sunny although the day was a bit short for my taste, it was getting dark around 5pm.

I also found main touristic sights a bit too crowded and prices were slightly higher because of the New Year’s season so try to avoid the Christmas-New Year time but go around it for the chances of good weather.

In the seaside resorts you will be more lucky with warm (25C and above) weather, it should be good from late autumn to early spring.

Summer time is insanely hot everywhere and I’d generally avoid travelling in Egypt at t[……]

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