Aaron's Worldwide Adventures
Rain sure does have a way of putting a damper on your plans, doesn’t it? As a hardened traveler, I’m a pretty firm believer in making the most out of any situation. After all, rain can bring some pretty wild experiences (see: collapsed bridges in Laos…). But this wasn’t just any experience. This was Christmas […]
“Millions of the faithful gather in Manger Square to celebrate the birth of Christ,” scream the headlines. After all, if there’s one place in the world that you would want to spend Christmas Eve, wouldn’t it be in Bethlehem? No, not Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, I mean the real Bethlehem. You know, the one where Christ is […]
Hanukkah (or Chanukah, depending on which transliteration you go for) is a pretty exciting time in Israel. The candles, the cheer, the doughnuts… Yes, the doughnuts, a special Hanukkah treat that Israelis are down right obsessed with. See, I went to Israel expecting to find that Israelis ate latkes as a Hanukkah treat like their […]
Think of the Holocaust. It’s a rather intense topic, especially for a museum, right? Having previously visited the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., I was ready for a gloomy experience as we pulled through the thorny gates of Yad Vashem, Israel’s national Holocaust museum in Jerusalem. Literally translated as “Hand and name,” […]
David Ben-Gurion, founder of the State of Israel, loved the vast desert covering the southern half of his country. Called the Negev, he made a point to be buried here (in Sde Boker, to be exact), and spending some time exploring this desert’s stunning scenery makes it easy to see why he loved it so! […]
Ever wanted to float around and read a newspaper? I mean without a floatation device. You know, like those famous images…like this? Photo Credit Why, to do that, you’d have to be in the Dead Sea! I mean, who wouldn’t want to just lie back in water with absolutely nothing to catch you and just […]
It was 4:30am when my alarm went off, as I wandered out into the darkness. An Ibex appeared in silhouette, perching itself on a nearby hill, watching as we rubbed our eyes on the way to grab lukewarm coffee and some stale pastries. In the distance, the moon reflected brightly off the shimmering waters of […]
“Everything you see from here used to be Syria,” we were told. High atop a hill, we stood, surrounded by signs of war. Land mines. Barbed wire. Bunkers. A memorial pierced the sky, cutting upwards like a knife. A cool wind chilled our bones. Israel may be warm and desert-like, but neither of those things […]