The following morning I woke up well rested and ready to explore a new city. I had a few pieces of toast with hummus (which was incredible) and headed off to old Jaffa with my co-workers. We took a free walking tour and learned about the historical importance of the port of Jaffa while walking along cobblestones streets. After the tour we sat down to eat some fish and chips and have some beer. This led to an exploration of the Flea market, a rest at our hostel and and evening at Carmel market. Unfortunately the market was closed, but we did manage to find a cute little bar offering happy hour prices and appetizers, and so we shared a meal of olives, hummus, falafel, and salad, and ended up taking a taxi back to the part of the city we were staying in. I immedietly fell in bed, which was good because the next day was a long day.
We left at 7:00am for the Northern part of the country. It was a long drive through Tel Aviv as we picked up fellow travelers. It was nice to see the city come alive in the peak hours of the morning, and I thought to myself that other than the traffic I could easily live and survive in Tel Aviv.
The ride to the North gave us lovely views as we drove next to the coast for most of the way. We stopped at the church that was built above the spot Mary was told she was going to have a baby, and the church on top of where Joseph lived. We also passed the site of many miracles, such as the place where Jesus turned water into wine, and where the 5 loaves of bread and 2 fishes was turned into enough food to feed 5000 people.
We then continued on to the fishing village of Capernaum, which is thought to be the place Peter lived. I quickly ignored all the churches and buildings and headed strait for a bench by the Sea of Galilee. After this short stop we ate lunch and stopped at another baptismal site, which was far more crowded than the first one we visited, even though nothing of significance happened here. It was built solely for tourism. Needless to say I was not impressed with the North at all.
After arriving back quite late I ate dinner at the hostel, and sat down to enjoy some happy hour prices and chat to some others who were staying at the hostel. I met two really nice guys and then ended up convincing me to go out. I was really glad I did because although I didn't enjoy the club we went to I got to see the city at night.
The following morning I woke up quite early and went for a walk around the neighborhood of Florentine where I was staying, in order to find some interesting street art and get some exercise.
After this I went back to the hostel and got ready for my day at the beach. I met up with the guys from the previous night and we walked to the nearest beach and sprawled out in the sunshine. Every hour we would take a dip. This beach was absolutely perfect. I do not like beach holidays, but I easily could have spent another day or two at this beach. Perfect weather (sunny and 28 degrees Celsius) perfect water temperature (cool, but not too cold) soft sand to lay on, and plenty of interesting people to watch.
At lunchtime we went and ate shakshuka which is a tomato stew with eggs baked in it. It was so delicious. This was followed by more hours at the beach, back to the hostel for ice cream and a shower, and then heading out to explore Jaffa by night, and eat some more delicious street food.
We all went to bed early as the next day was a day of travel. At the airport the next morning was thoroughly questioned about the many stamps in my passport and my bags were searched for explosives. After this it was a quick beer and coffee before our flight to Kiev and onward to Almaty.
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