Israel: General > Reviews > A Contradictory Country

Author's product rating:   

Value for Money
Shopping
Nightlife
Ease of getting around
Family Friendly

Advantages:	many sights to visit, great scenery
Disadvantages:	aparthied society without the international condemnation, Israelis are very rude, prices becoming similar to UK ones

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Going to israel is not like going on a package holiday to Malaga. For a start there is the intensive security grilling you get from the automaton like El-Al stewards where you are warned not to associate with 'local people'. This takes a while. When you finally approach Ben Gurion airport many of the passengers will start singing Ha-Tikvah believing they are returning to their roots.
If you want to forget about any ongoing Israeli-palestinian conflict - go to Tel aviv which is like a cross between New York and Barcelona with some unfortunately rotting German Bauhaus architecture thrown in. the nightlife and the attitudes are western, it is a good place to hang out.
As you go and visit the rest of the country on the efficient good value Egged buses, you see how efficiently the Israelis have tamed this land and how neatly their towns, cities, kibbutzim, Moshavim and villages have been arranged in contrast to the more naturalistic israeli palestinian villages. You then notice that palestinian villages are bypassed by the routes, that more Israeli houses are being built near these villages without the villages being allowed to expand and that hardly any arabs use the buses or in the Israeli towns. Hmmm.. strange. Having said that, Galilee is a splendid region to visit with the scenery around Tiberias reminiscent of Switzerland. Lake Tiberias or Kinneret is very splendid to swim in and you can hike around the Horns of Hittin where the Crusaders were defeated by Saladdin. Haifa and Acre on the coast are worth visiting as well, the Bahai temple being a highlight in Haifa and the old fortress of Acre bringing back memories of the Crusades. In the far north, There is the Golan Heights with its bleak beauty and the Huleh valley with its swamp nature reserve.
If you go south, Masada and Engedi are musts as well as the Dead Sea. Don't swim if you have any open cuts though. The lunar landscape of Maktesh Ramon in the Negev is worth a hike as well.
However, the highlight is Jerusalem, not just for its clash of cultures or the accumulation of centuries of histories, but for the complete naked aggression and hypocrisy of Israeli policy. this place takes time to visit and I will have to describe everything elsewhere. This is the opportunity to see things from the Palestinian perspective and to visit the occupied territories. An opportunity that must be taken!