Tel Aviv reminded me a lot of a weird mix of Miami and Los Angeles… The second largest city in Israel, it is definitely the most modern and, as home to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange as well as numerous corporate offices and R&D centers, is the most economically significant. Secular and cosmopolitan, Tel Aviv … Continue reading
When it was built as a simple retaining wall supporting the outer portion of the Temple Mount some 2,000 years ago, I’m sure the builders would have had a difficult time getting their minds around the fact that their modest creation would become the most sacred site in the world for Jewish people: What makes … Continue reading
The small size of Shebaa Farms – only a mile or so wide and several miles long – belies its significance. The next war between Israel and Hezbollah could very well start here… In 1926, when France created Lebanon, they drew the border with Syria in such a manner that it severed a number of … Continue reading
Everyone can find something on their grocery list at the Mahane Yehuda Market and with bargain prices as a kicker, all manner of Jerusalem’s residents converge here. This makes it a fun site to visit – both for people watching and the products on display. The entrances are somewhat narrow and are watched carefully as … Continue reading
Named for the olive groves that used to cover it, the Mount of Olives can be seen in the distance of this picture taken from the base of the Temple Mount… If you look carefully at the writing on the graves in the foreground, you can see that this is a cemetery for those of … Continue reading
I still remember our teacher, Joe Gledhill, describing the discovery of the Dead Sea scrolls to us in the fourth grade at Dobbins Elementary School. After all, it is a memorable story (and one that he told well) – the Bedouin shepherd boy searching for a stray goat and discovering the scrolls inside earthenware jars … Continue reading
Located in Israel’s Golan Heights region, the Banias Nature Reserve serves as a strong reminder that Israel’s capture of the Golan Heights was about a lot more than just punishing Syria and seizing the military advantage afforded by occupying high ground. You see, Mount Hermon is in the Golan Heights. And the Hermon Spring emerges … Continue reading
The Velvet Rocket 