the dead sea is amazing...absolutely amazing...not only is it located entirely below sea level, it's the most salty body of water on earth...(i think)...the water of the dead sea is something like 33% solid...the dead sea chapter was one of the first chapters i read when i got my guidebook...
i started the first morning by waking up waaaay too early to catch a bus from tiberias to a national park, from there to a highway junction, and from there to the bottom of a hill...the bottom of the hill was a military checkpoint, as the top half of the dead sea is in the west bank/palestine...the place i had arranged to stay was up that hill, and i found out it was a 5km walk, with no transport available...
the soldiers encouraged me to wait for someone to offer a ride...i waited at the bottom of the hill for a while, and two guys from tel aviv drove me up to the top, i was marveling at the landscape the whole time...amazing...the dead sea is not only really low, it's surrounded by cliffs and wadis...amazing...
i checked into the hostel, which was actually a kibbutz!! i put my stuff in one of the tents meant for three people, rested for a while, then started walking back down the hill...fortunately people started coming down sometime while i was walking (two guys from poland) and they drove me to the bottom of the hill...they were going back to tel aviv, i was going the other way, so i walked to the bus stop and waited for the next bus...buses run the length of the dead sea every so often, but not super often, i had to wait 30 minutes or so...it was an expensive bus for a relatively short drive...
my first area to visit was called ein bokek...it's a public beach, and it's free...one of the few free beaches on the dead sea...it's not a place you go to lay out, at least not in the middle of winter...the area of ein bokek is basically a resort area, a lot of russian families come for a week or more...there are spas in all the hotels...i just wanted to float:)
i had it in my head that the water would be warm...it wasn't...it wasn't cold exactly, but it was.not.warm...i came close to not going in, but then i figured that would be absolutely ridiculous; to go all the way to the dead sea but not go in the water seems like going to the grand canyon but staying in your car in the parking lot...anywho...
floating in the dead sea is one of the strangest things i've ever done...very very strange...as a swimmer i've spent a LOT of time in water, a LOT of time floating...i guess i do certain things to float without thinking about it, like taking a big breath and holding it...howeva, when you are in the dead sea, you don't have to do any of that...it's very odd to stay so high in the water but not feel anything holding you up...my feet wouldn't stay under water until i 'sat' or 'stood' in the water...even as i try to describe the feeling, i know you won't understand until you try it yourself...
the signs on the beach give several directions: don't drink the water (call a lifeguard if you do)...don't swim out very far...don't put your head under the water...(all the minerals in the water are NOT good for your hair)...drink a lot of water as soon as you get out, as the salt will dry you out without you being aware of it...no one splashes around at all because no one wants salt water on their face or hair...
after 10-20 minutes of floating i got out, and changed into dry clothes...there are small little 'changing' rooms along the beach, so i wasn't revealing myself to anyone...
in dry clothes, i walked through some of the shops selling products of the dead sea...there are heaps of face masks, exfoliating scrubs, creams, etc...they all seemed rather expensive, considering the materials came from approximately 20 meters away...i bought my normal purchase: postcards :)
the bus back to the bottom of the hill was really crowded, but at least it got me where i needed to go...i walked up part of the way before being picked up...the stars in the sky were AMAZING!
the next morning i got to enjoy the fantastic breakfast with this hostel...it was kosher, and huge...(and very healthy)...there were a lot of veggies, i took advantage :)
i walked down the hill and caught the next bus heading toward masada...another set of ruins, of course...there are a number of ways to get up the hill, i chose to go up the 'snake path'...it wasn't easy, but plenty of people went zooming past me, so im probably just out of shape...the ruins were nice, but not stunning...(i'm probably just a jaded traveler)...i really enjoyed the views over the area, since the ruins are on top of a cliff/hill...masada was once a protective fortress, hence the reason for its location...
the hike back down went a LOT faster, but i had to worry a bit more about sliding, or falling...i ate lunch in the cafeteria area, falafel, of course...i had to wait a while, but eventually a bus heading to ein gedi came along...
ein gedi is one of the best known resort areas along the dead sea...i entered the spa, and the receptionist told me i only had an hour to relax, as the spa closes an hour early on fridays to prepare for the start of shabat...oh well...too bad i hadn't caught an earlier bus from masada...i took the little train to the beach, where i found mud! it was grey, and definitely an exfoliant...i rubbed it all over, then went swimming :)...i was sad i hadn't brought body lotion with me when i changed into dry clothes, as my skin was crazy dry...i didn't have the guts to ask someone to use a little of theirs...
i waited at the bus stop for a while before realizing there weren't going to be any more buses that evening...it wasn't yet sunset, but i think the buses stop plenty early...i counted myself as very lucky when a car of young men stopped and offered me a ride...they turned out to be russian...they dropped me at the bottom of 'my' hill, and i walked up to thoughts of dinner:)
when i planned this part of the trip, i knew the next day would be shabat, so i would have no way of getting back to jerusalem...instead, i hiked the area around my hostel...AMAZING...i wish i'd had another day of hiking...
the views across the wadi were fantastic...i went down into the wadi, then up the other side...i ended up hiking down another side of the hill with a couple who lived in a kibbutz on the other side...they offered me tea and snacks, then drove me back to the hostel...i would love to do that day again...(but bring snacks with me when hiking this time!)
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