Monday: July 10: Four-wheelin' in the Negev

I just got back from an amazing trip in the Negev. There is little or no connection to the civilized world, so I didn't get a chance to post to the Brog:)

On Thursday night several of the other students on the trip came to stay with us in Nazareth. We had dinner at our little hangout. The Can Cun (as in Mexico's Cancun) is owned by a very jolly and very nice man named Ramon. The little Mexican restaurant does not serve Mexican. It actually doesn't have a menu but they do have a bar. Ramon just cooks whatever he's got in the fridge and it always turns out wonderful. He also makes the best cupa-shino (cappuccino). That night he made us a mini feast for the gang. I also had my very first absinthe drink. It was a very low alcohol content level but it burned going down. I honestly didn't get too much out of it. But it's fun to say that I've had absinthe.

Early Friday we piled into a van and headed down to the Dead Sea for a little mud slathering and a bit of a float in the salt water. Since I've been already, the experience lacked novelty. What did strike me about the spa was the amount of old people. As I entered the dressing room I was confronted by the oldest pair of breasts known to man. I was looking for my locker number when this tiny old woman walked towards me. She was wearing this brownish-tan bathing suit with an abstract pattern. I thought nothing of it….until closer examination! That was not a bathing suit at all! It was her skin! The woman was at least 200 years old and worst of all…..she was naked! Lord help me, I think I saw Jesus Eyes. My life flashed before me. I can’t describe the fear that oozed over me; the fear of getting old. And the lack of proper coverage of the cleavage and lower nether regions shocked me a bit too. Have mercy old people! Why is it that the older people get the smaller and tighter their swimwear gets?!!

After a traumatic 3 hours at the spa we hopped into two landrover jeeps. The desert tour started off with a stop in a cave, then to some amazing springs and overlooks. I can’t tell you how ‘at-home’ I feel in the desert. A quiet calm spreads over me and I feel like cares and worries evaporate. Our drivers Bari and Barak raced through the desert while I shot water from tiny water guns from one jeep. We had a blast. We ended the night at a Bedouin tent, where we had a traditional dinner of rice with chicken, hummus, salad and other tasty dips. The night sky was fantastic. I’ve never seen so many stars in my life. That night we slept under the stars next to a dwindling fire. We woke up the next morning, had breakfast and loaded up the jeeps again.

We toured the desert some more, climbed ridiculous hills in the jeep…literally defying gravity! It’s mind-blowing to think what these drivers can do. The highlight of the day was walking to a fresh water spring. The spring was at least 25 meters deep, cold and refreshing. You could drink the water that fell from a tiny fall above the spring. The spring was surrounded by a steep cliff on three sides. Several guys decided to dive from one of the perches. It looked easy enough so I gathered up what little courage I had and began my assent. I would jump too.

The closer I got to the little ledge the more I remembered how afraid of heights I am. An intense fear came over me. I couldn’t figure out what had come over me. What the hell was I doing on this ledge 50 feet above this tiny green pool? My classmates and friends were at the bottom cheering me on. I couldn’t do it. This was too much. The audience started clapping and slowly chanting “Wajmah…Wajmah….Wajmah.” The pressure was on…. I looked down….held my nose and jumped. The trip down took a millisecond. As my feet hit the water I tilted back a little too much and landed flat on my ass. Yes, I did an ass flop.

For those of you who have never experienced a 50 foot dive into a complete ass flop, I shall elaborate. As your butt hits the water, the intense force causes your swimsuit to miraculously shrink and travel north, through your nether regions, into your spleen and somehow reaches your throat. I could literally taste my bathing suit. I had the wedgie of all time. I thought I might need medical treatment. It was quite an experience.

After the springs, we dried off by lying on the rocks. We then went to a local goat farm/winery where we sampled some amazing cheese and wine. We toasted the end of our desert excursion and made our way back to the Naz.