Bethlehem

I was only in Bethlehem for a short time and I never really got out of the car. I got fleeced by an Israeli couple who ended up making 500 shekels off me. The original offer was 400 to get me to Tel Aviv where I would spend the day, and then they would drop me off at the airport. That would have been worth it. Then he basically insisted on taking me to Bethlehem (because I'm American and therefore a devout Christian) spouting a lot of nonsense about how he was one of the only ones who could get me through. While it is true that you can't pass through on foot, getting there is not as difficult as he made out. Certainly not for a white American who just screams tourist. After getting there (and not stopping since he said it was too busy for me to get into any of the churches) we went back where I found that the price had doubled. Doubled for a ten minute stop over! I was utterly disgusted. I had to say to screw Tel Aviv and just have them drop me off at the airport for 500 shekels. Worse than that he wanted me to be happy about it. I was sitting in the back seat fuming quietly and he told me to be friendly because I got a great deal. I can handle being fleeced, but I draw the line at having people tell me I should be thankful for it. I may have gotten ripped off in Jordan but at least there it was only business. I wasn't expected to like it. Which made this an absolutely rotten end to an excellent trip.

Jericho

Jericho is possibly the oldest city in the world, having been inhabited since around 9500 BC. That's a long time! It's also probably the lowest city on Earth, being about 800 feet below sea level. It's still an important place too, being not very far from the Allenby/King Hussein Bridge Crossing into Jordan. It's the largest city in this part of the West Bank and even gets its own governate. Despite that, the city's not really the nicest place to visit. It's a bit of a rough town and when I visited there was some sort of curfew in effect. There are however some very nice places nearby, including the ancient city itself.

Qumran

COMING SOON