We’re safely in Greece, thank goodness, but internet connection is seriously bad here. I’ll try to keep my posts up to date, but until then, here’s more of Israel!
Thursday morning was a very, very special day.
It was the day the man of my dreams, the heart of my heart, the laughter in my soul, and the pickles to my peanut butter was born.
Happy Birthday, Anthony!
I love you. Thank you for being the most amazing partner, friend and love alive.
To celebrate this momentous occasion, we did a super fun workout, had breakfast, then left our beloved Jerusalem and headed South to Masada, the ancient fortress built by Herod over two thousand years ago.
We went with a bilingual tour group that was Spanish and English. It was fun to test my Spanish skills and see how much I could understand. Turns out, I need some Spanish lessons!
Our first stop was the Ahava factory, where they make Ahava dead sea beauty products. More on the dead sea in a moment, but it sure was cool to see the factory running and making these wonderful goods.
After our detour, we went right to Masada. 
We took the cable car up (sadly, as we would have loved to hike but the tour wouldn’t allow it) which gave us tremendous views of the area.
Masada was a combination fortress and palace created by Herod in about 70 B.C. Meant to be both his winter palace and his safe haven, Masada had traditional roman baths, cisterns and food storage, a stunning bedroom, and a fortified wall system. It’s an extraordinary place at any time, but considering it was built over 2,000 years ago, it is even more incredible.
One of my favorite moments of Masada was seeing where a rabbi is currently working every day, writing a torah scroll. According to halacha (Jewish law) torahs (the written out version of the 5 books of Moses, also known as the “Old Testament”, which are read and used each week in shabbat services and holidays) must be written by hand, on sheepskin, and if a simple mistake is made, the entire sheet is thrown away. It was so cool to see his work station, and the dedication that must be involved to write out an entire torah!
(The rabbi had stepped out for a cell phone call when I took the picture.)
After our tour of Masada, we headed down for lunch in the cafeteria, where once again, Middle Eastern Salad bars reigned supreme.
Oh, salad bars. I miss you already.
We killed some time in the gift shop, where we had a tasting of Rimon winery pomegranate wine. It was delish, and surprisingly dry.
Then, we got back on the bus and headed over to the Dead Sea.
The Dead Sea is named for the fact that it is so salty that nothing can survive in it. It is over 33% salinated, making it 10x saltier than any other ocean. The salts are world renowned for their healing properties for skin conditions, and the water is infamous for being able to float without any effort. 
After our first float, we decided to try on the famous dead sea mud, which is known to work like a mask for skin and give it even deeper moisture.
Of course, give us two a big vat of mud, and you know trouble will ensue…
After drying in the mud and rinsing it off in the Dead Sea (with a lot of giggles and floating involved) Anthony and I both noticed that our skin did indeed feel softer, more moist and firmer. Cleopatra definitely had something when she turned the dead sea into her own personal spa (and didn’t allow anyone else to come into the sea at all!)
Then, we headed back to Jerusalem for a wonderful birthday dinner. It was a fantastic day, and I felt so lucky to get to celebrate Anthony’s birthday with him in one of the oldest and most beautiful places in the world.
We’re safely in Greece, thank goodness, but internet connection is seriously bad here. I’ll try to keep my posts up to date, but until then, here’s more of Israel!
Thursday morning was a very, very special day.
It was the day the man of my dreams, the heart of my heart, the laughter in my soul, and the pickles to my peanut butter was born.
Happy Birthday, Anthony!
I love you. Thank you for being the most amazing partner, friend and love alive.
To celebrate this momentous occasion, we did a super fun workout, had breakfast, then left our beloved Jerusalem and headed South to Masada, the ancient fortress built by Herod over two thousand years ago.
We went with a bilingual tour group that was Spanish and English. It was fun to test my Spanish skills and see how much I could understand. Turns out, I need some Spanish lessons!
Our first stop was the Ahava factory, where they make Ahava dead sea beauty products. More on the dead sea in a moment, but it sure was cool to see the factory running and making these wonderful goods.
After our detour, we went right to Masada.
We took the cable car up (sadly, as we would have loved to hike but the tour wouldn’t allow it) which gave us tremendous views of the area.
Masada was a combination fortress and palace created by Herod in about 70 B.C. Meant to be both his winter palace and his safe haven, Masada had traditional roman baths, cisterns and food storage, a stunning bedroom, and a fortified wall system. It’s an extraordinary place at any time, but considering it was built over 2,000 years ago, it is even more incredible.
One of my favorite moments of Masada was seeing where a rabbi is currently working every day, writing a torah scroll. According to halacha (Jewish law) torahs (the written out version of the 5 books of Moses, also known as the “Old Testament”, which are read and used each week in shabbat services and holidays) must be written by hand, on sheepskin, and if a simple mistake is made, the entire sheet is thrown away. It was so cool to see his work station, and the dedication that must be involved to write out an entire torah!
(The rabbi had stepped out for a cell phone call when I took the picture.)
After our tour of Masada, we headed down for lunch in the cafeteria, where once again, Middle Eastern Salad bars reigned supreme.
Oh, salad bars. I miss you already.
We killed some time in the gift shop, where we had a tasting of Rimon winery pomegranate wine. It was delish, and surprisingly dry.
Then, we got back on the bus and headed over to the Dead Sea.
The Dead Sea is named for the fact that it is so salty that nothing can survive in it. It is over 33% salinated, making it 10x saltier than any other ocean. The salts are world renowned for their healing properties for skin conditions, and the water is infamous for being able to float without any effort.
After our first float, we decided to try on the famous dead sea mud, which is known to work like a mask for skin and give it even deeper moisture.
Of course, give us two a big vat of mud, and you know trouble will ensue…
After drying in the mud and rinsing it off in the Dead Sea (with a lot of giggles and floating involved) Anthony and I both noticed that our skin did indeed feel softer, more moist and firmer. Cleopatra definitely had something when she turned the dead sea into her own personal spa (and didn’t allow anyone else to come into the sea at all!)
Then, we headed back to Jerusalem for a wonderful birthday dinner. It was a fantastic day, and I felt so lucky to get to celebrate Anthony’s birthday with him in one of the oldest and most beautiful places in the world.