Gambling - Gambling is apparently a huge deal in Eilat. I walked into a little shop to get a cup of cappuchino in the morning and wound up watching some type of card game thing on TV as I sat next to a room full of slot machines. I’m not into gambling at all, but if you are please take note that Eilat is a mini Las Vegas.

Entrance to Egypt - In Eilat not only can you get a visa to travel to Egypt, but the border with the country is just a short bus ride from wherever you are in town. Eilat is a great place in and of itself, but it also is an easy and very interesting entrance and departure point.

Great Jogging - Eilat is the most joggable place I’ve been in a long time. When I arrived, I was aching to jog as I’d skipped three days of exercise. This town, with its stretching beaches and lightly trafficked roads, was the right place to be.

Public Bomb Shelters - I’m sure public bomb shelters exist throughout Israel, but I’ve only run into one previously. Most of those I’ve seen have been private. In Eilat, however, I ran into several public bomb shelters. This town must really be accustomed to being bombed during wars.

Cheap Shopping - In Eilat the waterfront is not wasted on water. All along, as far as I walked, little shops were lined up with touristic treasures as well as more practical items like clothing. The shopping extravaganza which laid before my eyes reminded me of Tel Aviv, in that the prices I saw were extremely low.

I didn’t do the touristy things in Eilat, as I didn’t have time. I still enjoyed my few-hour visit, though.

5 Cool Things in Eilat, Israel (Besides Chain Hotels and Dolphins) is a post from: Solo Travel Tales and Tips from the Middle East and Elsewhere on the Globe

When I again headed overland from Israel to the Sinai yesterday, it wasn’t for a cute little vacation so I’d decided ahead of time to get the traditional three-month Egypt visa. During my earlier trip to the Sinai from Israel, I had learned from the man who stamped my passport that there are travel agencies in Eilat, Israel, which is on the Israel side of the border, which can get the Egypt visa for you. It’s cheaper, though, to get it on your own from the Egyptian embassy in Eilat. This is what I did. It cost 65 Shekels, or approximately 18 USD, and I had my Egypt visa in hand in approximately three hours.

The Egyptian embassy is located in town, far away from the beach, which is Eilat’s primary draw. It’s an aproximately 30-minute walk away from the Leonardo Hotel which, as far as I could tell, is the closest beach hotel. If you get lost, plenty of people both speak English and know where the embassy is, so it’s easy to become un-lost. The embassy hours are from 9:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Sunday through Thursday. Since this is an Egyptian government building and not Israeli, I’m assuming they don’t close for the many Jewish holidays which occur throughout the year.

Because tourism to Egypt is at an all-time low due to the revolution which occurred at the beginning of this year, there was no line whatsoever. In fact, I was the only person in the embassy office where you fill out the very basic one-page form. Great, I thought, thinking back on the 15 minutes it took to get my Vietnam visa in Cambodia earlier this year, I’ll be out of here and on my way to the border in five minutes. Not quite. I was told to come back at 2:00 to pick up the visa.

I came back early, shortly after 1:30, then easily exited, visa in hand. There was one quite large glitch in this otherwise easy process, though. Checking the stamp before I left, I noticed that while the dates of validity are from 25 October 2011 to 24 January 2012, the duration is listed as only one month. I asked the man behind the counter what this meant, and he said that I have to leave Egypt after one month or go to the Ministry of the Interior to get permission to stay additional time. Since this is the case, I don’t know why they wrote 24 January 2012 as the expiration date of the visa.

I didn’t ask if they give everyone only one month or if they had for some reason singled me out. So if you’re traveling overland from Israel to Egypt and you want to spend more than a month in Egypt, beware that there is a possibility you’ll only get permission for one month in Eilat. Still, this is better than two weeks and allows you the freedom to move out of the Sinai. It didn’t turn out perfectly for me, but it came so close and was so little trouble that I do recommend this means of getting an Egypt visa.

The Quickest, Easiest and Cheapest Way to Get an Egypt Visa in Israel is a post from: Solo Travel Tales and Tips from the Middle East and Elsewhere on the Globe

Saturday Market in Jenin, West Bank is a post from: Solo Travel Tales and Tips from the Middle East and Elsewhere on the Globe

What exactly is a sukka? Sukka is the singular of the word sukkot and is a replica of the booths that the Israelites lived while in Egypt after their exile from slavery. For this reason the holiday is also called the Festival of Booths. A sukka is comprised of cloth or wood walls and has plant material, such as palm fronds, for a roof. All of the sukkot I have spotted are made of cloth. My first Sukkot in Israel I thought they were tents until someone corrected me. As far as I can tell, once people put them up they keep them up all week long. It’s fun to see these cloth booths popping up all over town as I walk around this week. This morning I went down to the garden outside my apartment complex to see the morning sun over the Sea of Galilee and found two sukkot on the lawn.

By a long shot, though, not everyone erects a sukka during this week. Secular Jews, which comprise the majority of Israel’s population usually do not put up a sukka. It is primarily the religious Jews who follow this practice. During this week it is easy to tell which homes belong to secular people and which to religous.

A lot, maybe all, of the sukkot I’ve seen have two entrances. I don’t know why. But in certain cases the double entrance makes it easy to walk right through as well as stay a while. The people who do erect sukkot during Sukkot eat inside and often sleep inside too. The seriousness with which Israel takes its holidays I think is admirable and extremely interesting. I would really enjoy eating and sleeping inside a sukka, but I’ve never even stepped inside one.

After the Exodus from Egypt – Sukkot in Israel is a post from: Solo Travel Tales and Tips from the Middle East and Elsewhere on the Globe

Most of Israel’s population are secular, yet 63 percent of its people say they fast, said a television news report, refraining from both food and drink, on Yom Kippur. Closing their stores and fasting is not all this country does to recognize their holiest day. All television stations stopped broadcasting for 25 hours, leaving me to click through channel after channel of nothingness. The most noticeable aspect of Yom Kippur, though, was a sight which would immediately alert even the most clueless person that something is going on. Streets and highways ordinarily packed with honking traffic were completely devoid of traffic. Totally empty. For driving on Yom Kippur in Israel, you see, is forbidden.

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To experience the wonder of extremely congested streets now thoroughly devoid of traffic, I walked from my hilltop apartment down to town and back. During the hour and a half journey I saw only two police cars with flashing lights, then another car making its way around with its hazard lights blinking. When I later told someone that I did actually see a non-police vehicle on the street, she said they must have had their hazard lights on to avoid having rocks thrown at them. It turns out some of the country’s very religious people take a real dislike to the occasional secular person who breaks this holy day law. I didn’t observe any rock throwing, but I did get to see streets ordinarily filled with careening automobiles now absolutely empty save for little children playing, riding bikes, and running around in the middle of the street.

I’ve been in Israel for other religious holidays, like the Jewish Passover and the Muslim Ramadan, but walking down the middle of streets silent save for sound of the bicycle tires, children playing and my footsteps made this holiday my favorite ever in Israel.

No Food, Water, TV or Driving Allowed – Yom Kippur in Israel is a post from: Solo Travel Tales and Tips from the Middle East and Elsewhere on the Globe

Stray cats are as common in Israel as tuk-tuks in Southeast Asia. You can scarcely throw your trash in a Dumpster without strays jumping out when the bag hits bottom, nor take a walk of any length without them scattering in fright as you approach. As many stray cats as there are, so many more would be dashing through the streets if their lives weren’t so hard.

I’d known the kitten who died on my sofa for only a couple of weeks, the child of a beautiful brindle mother with flashing eyes who lives in the gardens two floors above me. The kitten, who remained nameless, began showing up at my door, meowing loudly in nightly demands for food. Its mother would sit and watch as her kitten ate all the bits and pieces I tossed at them. This little one, I thought, is a survivor.

The little kitten and its mother

Unfortunately, I had to dig a grave for the kitten last night at 9:00. I thought for sure this kitten would end up in the league of other survivalist strays here in Israel. One of my other favorite cats is a favorite because he too is such a survivor. He himself is very young and already lost an eye to the dangers that lurk in the wild, but he’s as playful and loving as any unscathed cat his age.

The kitten who died had proven to be an early expert at procuring food by appearing at my door and ever-so-cutely yet loudly demanding it, and he’d obviously been able to find enough water to live through Israel’s hot, dry summer months. Without any shots, though, and in the constant company of other strays of questionable health, this little cat just couldn’t make it. Because he was so tiny and adorable, I had trouble picturing him as the big, tough stray Israeli cat I’d thought he surely would become. Now he’s gone. Yes, it’s tough to be a cat in Israel.

You’ve Got to Be Tough to Be a Cat in Israel is a post from: Solo Travel Tales and Tips from the Middle East and Elsewhere on the Globe

We drove into the Jerusalem Central Bus Station and, after a security officer boarded, then walked slowly down the aisle looking at every person carefully to ensure none of us was a terrorist who would blow ourselves up upon entering the crowded station, Noam asked Would you like to have ice cream at my brother’s shop? I nodded happily. It’s in the market, Noam said. Which market? I asked. The market, he said, looking at me quizically.

The market was Mahane Yehuda, Noam explained, the largest shuk, or Jewish outdoor market, in Jerusalem. I later learned that is also, by a long shot, the largest Jewish market in the city. I’ve spent significant time in Jerusalem previously and am likely the only person to ever do so while remaining completely oblivious to Mahane Yehuda, but Noam was about to right that wrong.

We boarded the brand new light rail train, a controversial means of transport, as part of its tracks lie in East Jerusalem, a section of the city which might be at least in part be turned over to the Palestinians if a peace agreement with Israel is ever reached. Whatever its ultimate fate, now during its first two weeks of operation the train was free of charge and filled to capacity.

This was Friday afternoon just before Shabbat, the Jewish Sabbath which occurs from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday. Since it’s Friday, Noam said as we began to whiz through, they’re selling things for as low as one shekel.

The shuk was in full swing, packed with sellers of fruits, vegetables, Judaica, nuts and seeds and a sight that stopped me in my tracks. What is this? I shouted to Noam, now far up ahead and unaware I’d stopped. Ahh, that’s Halwa, he said when he noticed I wasn’t there anymore and walked back to me. How do you say it in English? I asked. There is no English equivalent. Indeed, there can’t be. This was the most delicious looking dessert I had seen in my life.

Noam was in a hurry so we left the halvah behind and finally landed at his brother’s ice cream shop, where I ended up spending 17 Shekels for three scoops. I had thought it might be free. Oh, well. My only regret is now I was full of sugar but still couldn’t get that halvah out of my head. Noam and I said good-bye, and I continued to wander the market to soak up the atmosphere.

After 10 or 15 minutes, I still had visions of halvah dancing in my head, so I did a U-turn on foot. Ah, there it was again.

The halvah was pretty pricey so I ordered only one kind, a big fat slice of medium brown with cashews sprinkled on top. It wasn’t until later, when I was alone, that I finally opened the little cardboard box and bit into it. Ever so slightly crunchy, this delectable treat tasted like syrupy sugar. Every bite was a dream.

With the box tucked safely away, I weaved my way back to light rail train stop, now strangely barren. After a few minutes two teenage boys walked by, looked back at me, said something indecipherable in Arabic, and pointed to a sign flashing above my head, also indecipherable in Hebrew and Arabic. I got the gist quickly. In Israel all public transportation except for Arab-driven taxis ceases from a few hours before Shabbat until just before its conclusion. I had missed the last train and was now going to have to walk the several kilometers to my guesthouse in the Old City. One of the boys grabbed my suitcase handle without me even asking, and we began the journey to the Old City.

Despite the fact that I missed my ride to my guesthouse, I am so glad I sat next to Noam on that bus. Without him, Mahane Yehuda and its delectable halvah would still be unknown to me.

Mahane Yehuda Market, I’m So Glad I Found You! is a post from: Solo Travel Tales and Tips from the Middle East and Elsewhere on the Globe

Note: I took many photos of the engagement party, however Saed asked me not to post any of the party or him and his family, so of course I won’t.

I set out with Saed and his family from Jerusalem’s Old City for the approximately 15-kilometer drive to Ramallah at about 6:00 p.m., with the party due to start at 6:00 p.m. So you were late to the party, you must be thinking. No, we weren’t. The West Bank and Gaza Strip don’t always change their clocks on the same dates as the rest of Israel. This year the West Bank reverted to standard time before Israel, I think in an effort to make the Ramadan fast a little easier. So we arrived at the party well before 6:00.

Our drive took us along a long portion of the infamous eight-meter-high concrete wall that separates Israel from much of the West Bank. We drove straight through the checkpoint at the entrance to the West Bank with no lines of traffic. Palestinians don’t have to stop at the checkpoints when entering the West Bank, I learned.

A portion of the wall in or near Bethlehem, which I saw on a previous trip to Israel

Once in Ramallah we walked into a modest banquet hall and sat near the front, at one of dozens of long tables decorated in pink. One professional photographer and one videographer moved in and out of the 200 or so guests, photographing and videoing the hall and the people arriving as Arab music began to play. This is some party, I thought, if it has to be professionally filmed. It was then that Saed floored me with this bit of information: This was not just a party to celebrate a recent engagement. At this party tonight the couple was going to actually get engaged!

Christian Palestinians, Saed now told me, like their Muslim counterparts and indeed like most Middle Eastern Muslims, do not date. I knew that in some Muslim cultures parents arrange marriages for their children while in others couples court rather than date before they marry. Both the Jewish and Arab populations of Israel, though, are so affected by the Western world due to tourism that I never dreamed the Arabs, Muslim or Christian, did not date. But now I know. Christian Palestinian couples are not even allowed to spend time alone together until they are officially engaged, so getting engaged is a major event. And the official engagement of this particular couple was about to occur.

Soon a new song began to play at a much louder volume, and everyone turned to look at the back of the room. A tall, thin man in a dark suit and pink satin tie along with a woman wearing a beautiful fancy pink dress with her black hair piled atop her head began slowly walking arm in arm toward the front of the room near where we sat. The music stopped, and three priests walked up to the couple and began speaking in Arabic to them. After a few minutes they finished speaking, everyone clapped, the music resumed and the engaged couple began dancing the night away along with their guests. They paused only when an enormous pink cake appeared with what seemed to be extremely large candles on top. The “candles” were lit, and flames shot up halfway to the ceiling. These were not candles but veritable torches. I missed seeing how they were extinguished, but suffice it to say no one was injured.

We stuck around for an hour or so after the engagement, then climbed back in the car for a ride to downtown Ramallah on what was not just a special engagement night for this Christian couple but one of the final nights of Ramadan for Muslims. Now I can finally post a few photos of the evening. Unfortunately, since it was nighttime, none of them are exactly good.

The sun had set a couple of hours earlier and the streets were packed with people eating, shopping and enjoying themselves. I was really surprised to find that there were a lot of high-end boutiques in this West Bank town, so high end I wasn’t about to buy anything. No matter how you slice it, Ramallah was all decked out for Ramadan.

There was also this uniquely attired man selling drinks of some type from a…thing. Such a seller of drinks might be a staple of Ramadan life in Israel’s Muslim population, as I saw someone else dressed just like him one night in Jerusalem.

We had three small children with us, so finished the night early and piled back in the car for a ride back into East Jerusalem. I’ve heard about the lengthy lines Palestinians have to wait in to get out of the West Bank, and when we drove into the line at the checkpoint this particular night I said Wow, this is a long line. With about 10 or 12 cars in front of us, it looked long to me. This is nothing! Saed and his wife said. Sometimes we wait an hour.

Checkpoint somewhere near Jericho, taken on a previous trip to Israel

In about 15 minutes we were the first car in line, and Saed hopped out to give the Israeli soldier our passports. You were supposed to have walked through a separate line since you’re not Palestinian, Saed told me when he got back into the car, but the soldier said you can go ahead and drive through with us.

I enjoyed seeing what it’s like driving through checkpoints with a Palestinian family. Now, though, I’d like to see what it’s like to walk through on my own. Well, next time.

A Palestinian Engagement Party in Ramallah, West Bank is a post from: Solo Travel Tales and Tips from the Middle East and Elsewhere on the Globe

It is within the Old City that I write this, on the last day of Ramadan, the month-long period during which Muslims across the world fast during daylight hours, eating only when darkness falls, to cleanse their bodies and souls. I didn’t travel to Jerusalem to experience Ramadan, but when you’re in the Old City there is no avoiding it.

The Old City is normally crowded with its local population and tourists, but I have never seen its streets clogged like I have on Ramadan. I managed to arrive on Friday afternoon just as thousands and thousands of Muslims were making their way to the Temple Mount for prayer, lengthening the walk from Damascus Gate to my guesthouse from 10 to approximately 45 minutes.

Inside Damascus Gate on Ramadan

The reason for the throng of thousands is the Al Aqsa Mosque, which Muslims consider to be the third most important holy sight in the world. This mosque stands on top of the Temple Mount, a huge complex 35 acres in size and covering one-sixth of the Old City. Also on the Mount stands the Dome of the Rock, its famous gold dome one of the signature sights of Jerusalem. Muslims typically worship not inside here, as many people think, but inside the plain exterior of the mosque. During Ramadan, though, so many people come to worship that I think they must be spilling out of the mosque and onto the remainder of the Temple Mount.

Al Aqsa Mosque

Except for a few hours a day, non-Muslims are not allowed on the Temple Mount. On Ramadan, I’ve discovered, non-Muslims are not even allowed on the streets leading to the Temple Mount. These streets are unmarked, and I have on many occasions in the past couple of days unwittingly started down several of them, only to be very politely turned back by Muslims, Israeli soldiers or Israeli police. Not only these streets but others in the Old City are decorated for Ramadan with colorful lights strung overhead.

Ramadan decorations

I’ve spent weeks of my life inside the Old City previously, with the neverending calls of its shopkeepers ringing through the crowded streets, Madam, come into my shop? Perhaps because these shopkeepers are fasting during the day now, though, I find them unusually quiet – in fact, nearly silent – as tourists flow past them. Their chorus of voices is such a mainstay of Old City life that their absence is quite disconcerting.

The Old City souq

Muslims break their fast each day at dusk, and in Jerusalem beginning an hour or so beforehand people begin preparing food on the streets of the Old City for fasting people who can now eat and for anyone else who happens by.

Breaking the Fast

Also seen on the streets of the Old City after darkness falls during Ramadan are piles of sweets to help celebrate the now festive air.

Ramadan sweets

Daytime and nighttime differ greatly in Jerusalem’s Old City during Ramadan, as the atmosphere moves gracefully from unusually quiet to bold and festive. If ever you want to experience Ramadan in the Middle East, Jerusalem’s Old City will give you a taste unlike any other.

Breaking the fast outside the Old City's Damascus Gate

A Glimpse into Ramadan in Jerusalem is a post from: Solo Travel Tales and Tips from the Middle East and Elsewhere on the Globe

1. Get Your Egypt Visa Ahead of Time or Get a Sinai Visa at the Border – I thought that I would be able to pay $15 for a three-month Egyptian visa upon entering the country at Taba. I was wrong. The only visa available at the land crossing is a two-week free-of-charge Sinai visa. If you want a visa to travel into the rest of Egypt, you have to get one before you arrive in the Sinai. There is no way you’re getting out of there and into the rest of Egypt without it, as there are checkpoints all over the place. While I was in Sharm el Sheikh, the southernmost town in the Sinai, I was told that I could get an Egypt visa by first going to the Thomas Cooke travel agency to arrange for the visa and then traveling to the Sharm airport to pick it up. I didn’t try this, though, so I don’t know if it’s true.

2. Plan Around the Jewish Sabbath and Holidays – Israel takes its holy days very seriously and shuts down public transportation during these times. Beginning every Friday afternoon until every Saturday evening, there are no buses or trains and only very limited taxis. It’s best to travel on other days of the week. Religious holidays are likewise devoid of public transportation. Consulting a comprehensive listing of Jewish holidays will help you with your planning.

3. Arrange to Travel to Eilat, Israel – This is Israel’s southernmost town, a popular Red Sea resort and the last stop before the border with the Sinai. You can fly, drive or take a bus to Eilat. I traveled by the cheapest means, bus, first riding from Tiberias to the central bus station in Tel Aviv, then traveling from there to Eilat. Unlike other bus routes in Israel, the bus from Tel Aviv to Eilat requires a reservation. I did not know this. Fortunately, I arrived early enough to nab one of the last seats on the next bus to Eilat. You can reserve a seat the easy way by calling Egged, the one bus company which travels to Eilat,

4. Settle in For a Long but Scenic Journey – The journey from Tel Aviv or Jerusalem to Eilat is about five hours, including a couple of rest stops, on air conditioned, comfortable yet toilet-less buses. The rest stops are modern, with plenty of food options and restrooms. You’ll be riding through the Negev desert for a few hours, so have your camera at the ready.

5. Take a Bus or Taxi to the Israel/Egypt Border – If you travel by bus, once you’re dropped off at the Central bus Station in Eilat you can jump on another bus to the border with the same bus company from the same bus station. The cost is 7.50 NIS and buses run every hour except late at night. You can also take a taxi from anywhere in Eilat, including the bus station, at a cost of 40 NIS. Be sure to tell the driver to turn on the meter.

6. Pay the Crossing Fees to Exit One World and Enter Another – You must pay 101 Shekels upon leaving Israel, after which you will exit a little building on Israeli soil, walk for approximately one minute and enter another little building on Egyptian soil, where you’ll get your two-week Sinai stamp. Once you exit the building and are in a taxi or van which will take you off the property, you’ll be stopped and told to pay 75 Eyptian pounds to enter the country. The Taba border website is full of information about the crossing.

7. Get Local Currency – An exchange office and an ATM are located in the Egypt border building on the left-hand side before passport control. Be sure to get local currency before you leave so you can pay for your ride and because, depending on where you’re heading, there may not be ATMs easily found.

8. Negotiate With the Drivers – After you exit the border building in Egypt, you’ll be greeted by many Bedouins offering taxi rides. Unless you’ve arranged ahead of time for transport, this is the way you’re going to be traveling to your next destination. I found it to be safe, but you do need to find out ahead of time how much you should be paying for a taxi to wherever you’re going. And be prepared to negotiate with the drivers until you land on one who will take you for a reasonable fee.

9. Explore the Sinai and the Rest of Egypt – This country is still filled with peaceful beauty, mysterious history and incredibly exotic cultures and, despite its recent troubles, it is still ready and waiting to be explored.

10. Travel Onward – If you’re traveling back to Israel you can take a bus or taxi or from wherever in Egypt you might be or, like I did, ask a local travel agency to arrange a shared taxi for much less than the cost of a taxi and with more flexibility than the bus schedule. If you’re traveling elsewhere in Egypt or the world, buses and taxis can take you to your final destination within Egypt or to one of the airports located in the Sinai so you can fly wherever you wish.

How to Travel Overland from Israel to Egypt is a post from: Solo Travel Tales and Tips from the Middle East and Elsewhere on the Globe