A Babymoon in the Holy Land

We finally did it.  We have been talking about if for the past year but we finally made it to Israel.  It was a short trip.  We left on Saturday, got there Sunday and then left at midnight on Tuesday.  The flights were great, we slept for most of the 11 hour plane ride, of course it helps when you are flying first class (don't be too jealous i had to deal with a lot of angry travelers to get those seats!).
We landed mid afternoon on sunday and then took a shared taxi straight to our hotel.   I found a nice bed and breakfast place that was $60 a night right by the bus station.  After getting settled in we went straight to the old city to do some sight seeing.

The Old City

Inside the walls of Jerusalem - King Davids Tower

The Western Wall of the Temple (very sacred place for jews)

On our second day we went to Masada and the Dead Sea. Masada is this ancient city built up on a hill that is the site of where a bunch of Jews held off the Romans and ended up committing suicide rather than being taken captive. Really cool area, pretty dang hot, well worth the trip, especially if you can borrow some hats from your guesthouse to shield the sun.

Masada overlooking the dead sea

Coolest hat ever

Cave dwelling of Masada residents

Ancient bird houses in Masada

Later that day we caught a bus to the dead sea, it was really cool, the lowest point on earth. Swimming in it was awesome, you seriously can't sink if you wanted too. The water was less refreshing than we had hoped because it was warm and the salt burns but to be able to get one of those pictures while reading, I would take just about anything.

Why doesn't he slick his hair back all the time?

Our last day we went back to the Garden of Gethsemane and that area of Jerusalem. It was a little tricky to get into a few of the areas because of some religious holidays but we were still able to see a lot. It was amazing to see how the city is viewed as such an important area for three major religions, Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. It never felt unsafe even with the clash of cultures and the history of the region.

Olive tree at Garden of Gethsemane

Orson Hyde park at the Mount of Olives

View of the Dome of the Rock

This is a great country to visit and we could have spent much more time if we were to explore other areas like Galilee and that region. The bus system is great, except for some reason the concept of a line hasn't made it's way to Israel yet, everyone is pushy and cuts in front of you. We loved the trip and it was a great way to celebrate out last 5 months without kids tagging along!

Hotel for 2 nights $120  +  Masada entrance fee $12 + Bus from airport $20 each + having a falafel everyday $5 each + buying stuff at the market $who knows = about $400

From New York to Maine

This will just be a quick post but we took a little road trip from Maine back down to Brooklyn... in our new car! We, I mean Lauren, has been driving a 1997 toyota tercel for the last year and after the AC broke down during the New York heat wave we decided that it was time to get a new car. We found a nice little hatchback just north of Boston so we flew up there with some cash in hand and started our trip.

We went immediately to Maine, which is an under-rated state. We walked along the beach and grabbed some lobster. We had a fun time and it wasn't very crowded, I can see why G W has a summer home up there.

Lauren had to flirt her way into holding a lobster

We didn't stop in Boston since we had been there before and headed to Rhode Island and the famous Newport Beach cliff walk and mansions. The cliff walk is amazing and much more grand than I had imagined. The walk is about 3 miles and right along the coast. There are some of the biggest mansions ever, more like castles as you can see. 

And back home to Brooklyn. It has been a great summer living in the city. We are ready for a change of pace and to be back in Ithaca but it was fun while it lasted. Here are a few pictures of our time in NYC.

The Law and Order building, that show is good drama!

People are crazy in New York

The French and Italian Riviera

Nice, France

I know we told some of you that we were going to Israel, but we ended up in Nice, France instead. Besides having a useless Israel guidebook weighing down my backpack, it was great how it worked out. I would recommend the trip to anyone.

We landed in Nice Sunday Morning and went outside to catch a bus into town. They have several buses to take into town but I think the best one is the 23. Its only 1 Euro and takes about a half hour total. There is also a 98 and 99 bus into Nice but they are 4 Euro. Once into Nice, you can take a tram (light rail) around the town.

We stayed at a little hotel called Hotel De Kent. It was about 50 Euro a night and was worth just about that. I was amazed at how many small dingy hotels they have over there. I mean, it works for me since we don't have any money but I was surprised so many other people travel that way. The food in France, especially the bread was great. We were content just eating a fresh baguette and cheese most of the time.

In Nice there was a really cool market selling flowers and local food called the cours saleya. It was a lot of fun to walk through but pretty expensive if you want to buy anything. On Mondays the market turns into a flea and antique market. We walked through but we felt a little out of place with all the old people walking around.

The beaches in Nice are beautiful but are different from anything i have ever been on. Instead of sand the beach is filled with smooth rocks. While it may have been a little bit more uncomfortable to lay on, it was nice not to have to wash sand from your hair for the next week. 

I tried to edit pictures for topless bathers

One of the great things about Nice is that they have a boardwalk that runs for miles. They have free bikes that you can use but you have to sign up for it.  We never figured out how to do it so instead we rented rollerblades.  We paid about 5 Euro and got to keep them overnight.  

 

 For some reason we thought it would be a great idea to rollerblade from Nice to Monaco.  It was only 15 km away so we figured we could do it, it just might take us a little while.  Little did we know that it was all up hill.  

before

after

Needless to say it was really hard and we never made it past Nice.  

Italy and Cinque Terre

After a few days in France we decided to move on.  We ended up going to Cinque Terre.  Cinque Terre  is made up of 5 cities that are set on a hill overlooking the Mediterranean Sea that, as far as i know, can only be reached by train. They have a path connecting all five cities that you can hike.  It is a national park so you have to pay an entrance fee of 5 euro per person but it is well worth it.  

The hike is pretty demanding.  It is supposed to take 6 hours and that is for people who are in shape.  The trail goes straight up and straight down in some parts.  While we were there the path between two of the cites was closed so we had to use the foot path that the locals use.  I am glad we did it but it was hard!

In the middle of our hike we saw signs for a beach and decided to follow them.  The path took us straight down the mountain.  After we were almost to the bottom, we noticed that we weren't just headed to any beach, we were headed to a nude beach.  After debating whether or not to turn around, we decided to keep going.  We had been hiking for 4 hours and the only way back was straight up the mountain so there was no way i was turning around without at least jumping in the water first.  We got to the beach and found a secluded spot where we didn't have to see anyone.  The beach was great and luckily not very crowded.

On our way back from the beach we stumbled upon somebody's house.  We started taking to the occupants and found out one of the guys was from Argentina.  Grady started speaking to him in spanish and asked him if he had any mate (an argentinian tea) and the guy loved us after that.  He told us that there was an easier way to get back to civilization without having to hike straight up the mountain.  There was an abandoned tunnel that the trains used to pass through.  If we just walked a mile through the tunnel we could get back to the city.  This was the tunnel.

If you can't really see anything don't worry we couldn't either.  The guy gave us a flashlight that didn't really work and told Grady to either stay to the right or stay away from the right, it was all in spanish so we couldn't really tell.  It took us about twenty minutes to get through the tunnel and i don't think i have ever been more scared.  At one point i was certain that the tunnel wasn't abandoned and that we were going to get hit by a train.

We eventually made it out of the tunnel and back home safely.  We hadn't planned on going to France and Italy but i am glad we got the opportunity.  We had a lot of fun and hopefully we will be able to visit  again soon!

St. Lucia and our German Hostess

We made it down to St Lucia for a few days for my spring break. It was a lot of fun and we got some sun that we needed. We found this place called Villa Wellness that we just kinda stumbled across. It was pretty awesome, just a little house that this German lady rents out a couple of rooms in. I called before we went and the hostess said she would pick us up at the airport and sure enough when we got off the plane she was there waiting for us with a sign with our names on it!

The room we stayed in opened up to the deck which overlooked the ocean. It was great to watch the sunsets in the hammock. The first morning we were there she was going to the local market so we tagged along so that we could get some fresh coconuts. They are sooo good! If you haven't ever had a green coconut you need to go somewhere and get one.

The website said that a room comes with a veggie breakfast and so we were expecting some fruit and maybe toast but the breakfast was huge! All kinds of fruit, eggs, fresh hot bread, and all kinds of cheese and some unique St Lucian foods. We ate so much we never really ate lunch. And it gave us enough energy to play some soccer with the locals. I scored the first goal of the game and Lauren knocked some kid down so we earned their respect!

One of the places we went was called the sulfur springs. The island is volcanic and so they have some natural hot springs near Soufriere. St Lucia has the typical Caribbean buses that just wait until they get enough people to leave, which I think are awesome. So we went to the bus stop and jumped in the big van. It took about a half-hour to get to the entrance and then a 15 minute walk to the hot springs. It was only $5 us for the hot springs. The coolest part is they have this clay that everyone lathers all over their body, that all the locals swear by. Lauren looked like she was 15 again after that clay treatment!

On Sunday we went to the local mormon church. It was a pretty small branch but everyone was pretty nice. Afterwards we went to the beach and laid by some palm trees. We realized how little sun we have been getting in Ithaca when at the end of the day we were both pink and swollen. Oh well, the sun is good for you right?

Here is a shot of the view we had from the deck. If you get a chance to go to St Lucia you have to spend a few days with Christina at Villa Wellness, we didn't get the opportunity but supposedly she is a wicked belly dancer.

3 Nights stay $160 + 8 coconuts $5 + mud bath $10 + bus $6 + some pretty dirty chicken $4*3 = $198

The Dominican Republic con Fuerza

The DR was sweet! I have wanted to go there for a while and when Lauren found this deal for an all-inclusive resort for $20 a night, we had to go. The deal was through cheapcaribbean and we stayed at the lifestyle resort in Puerto Plata. We flew into Santiago and took a caro publico into into the city. The public transportation there is locals driving around old cars but they actually follow routes. The PA route goes back and forth from the airport, and our driver had a 1990 civic. We paid a dollar for our ride from the airport, and by the time we got out there was 7 passengers, plus the car was a 5 speed, he had to shift! Being a part of that was worth so much more than $1! To get to Puerto Plata we took a Caribe tours bus for about an hour and a half but you could take a guagua and it would have been just as easy, both are about $3. Then once in Puerto Plata we decided to take a Motoconcho (3 people and bags, 1 motorcycle) to the resort. It made me want to buy a motorcycle.

Our first day, we wandered around town towards the beach. We were walking through the slums and eventually made it to the dirtiest beach ever. We were just reading a little and these kids cam up and sat really close to us. So I started talking to them and I told them to get a baseball which they were pretty excited about. So after playing catch for a minute they showed us their field they had built out of trash. We split up and played ball for about an hour right on the beach, it made my day. These are the kids we played with, they gave me the ball to keep.

Once at the resort we laid around, swam, and played games but mostly just relaxed. Jon and Melissa Kidd came, it was really fun having them there. On Sunday we went to the Mormon church there. The first chapel we went to started later so the second counselor took the girls on his motorcycle and me and Jon shared one over to the other chapel. Everyone in the DR is really cool.

The Kidds went to Damajagua (27 waterfalls) one day during the week and we went our last day. It is this awesome national park that has a bunch of waterfalls to climb up and jump in. You gotta check out this link to see the promotional video! 27 Charcos. You have to pay for a guide/entrance fee but its pretty cheap and definitely worth it.

The trip was great, it was easy to get around without taking taxis, speaking better spanish would have helped but we were fine. The people were super cool and helpful, and they had some good food, especially the Pico Pollo. And the resort was nice! The VIP beach with the beds was hard to resist.
The Cost = Resort $200 + Total Transportation $30 + Hotel last night $18 + Breakfast in town $3 + Papaye and Pina $.80 + AntiDiarheal $15 = $266.80