Israel Stories and Tips

Quote: A couple of things I did for security before I left the U.S. to protect myself in the unlikely event that something happened like I get pick pocketed or I lost my passport.1. I took my smartphone and its camera and took photos of…

Quote: Here it is. My Pilgrimage reaches its peak today. Again, remember to retain your ISRAELI LANDING CARD you received in Day 6 along with your Sea Card and photo ID. Basic information and recommendations are the same here as it is for…

Quote: SOME BASIC INFORMATION: REMEMBER to bring your Israeli Landing Card you received the day before along with your Sea Card (room key) and a photo ID. In fact, 1st, you will need to adjust your watch since you have lost an hour of…

Quote: Like so many others before and since, my first direct experience with the State of Israel involved landing on Israeli soil at Ben Gurion Airport amid a thunder of applause. I'm not sure why the applause caught me by surprise, but it was a wonder-filled…

Quote: OverviewFew places on Earth provoke intense emotion more readily than does Jerusalem. Even the name one applies to this ancient city can provoke controversy: Whether you choose to call it Yerushalayim, Jerusalem, or Al-Quds is often a political statement. Certainly there's no shortage of descriptors…

Quote: My Jerusalemite friend looked a bit concerned when I told her my plans to travel by bus to Masada on my last full day in Israel. I reassured her, telling her that I had worked out the schedule for departure and return and reminding her…

Quote: On April 1, 1925, Lord Arthur James Balfour stood on the summit of Mount Scopus (Har Hatsofim, in Hebrew) to dedicate the establishment of The Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Today, 85 years later, the university looks back proudly on an impressive record of accomplishment. As…

Quote: When Pope John Paul II visited and prayed at Yad Vashem, Israel's memorial to the victims of the Holocaust, he spoke eloquently about his personal sorrow and the Catholic Church's sorrow over the tragedies that have befallen the Jewish people throughout history. Predictably, Israeli responses…

Quote: During a memorable summer 25 years years ago, I took up temporary residence in the ageless city of Jerusalem. As a student (somewhat older than most) in the summer program at Hebrew University on Mount Scopus, I quickly discovered that the ubiquitous Egged buses met…

Quote: Based on my own memory, Ben Yehuda pedestrian mall in West Jerusalem has been the object of terror attacks--or attempted attacks thwarted--since the 1980s. One such incident occurred in December 2001, less than 3 months after the events of "9-11" here in the United States.…