Testing salinity in the Dead Sea, hiking to waterfalls, and hunting for scorpions while studying abroad in Israel.
– Liel Zoran, SPC Student, Israel Program, May 2019
Today we woke up pretty early in the morning, around 6:30 AM, because we had to get on the road–we had a long drive north to the Dead Sea.
Everyone is tired from a fun night in Eliat, but we are excited to see what the “Yam Hamelach” (The Dead Sea) has to offer. We have all heard tales of the benefits the Dead Sea can have on your skin and body, and I was pretty curious what the hype was all about.
The Dead Sea
When we arrived, we entered a cute shop that sells products made from minerals found in the Sea, and they gave us a place to change into our bathing suits. After slathering copious amounts of sunscreen on my body, I was ready to step into the water and take samples. We tested the salinity of the Dead Sea water in the refractometer and it was off the charts! I guess it really is as salty as they say it is.
Before submerging ourselves in the water, a few of us decided to purchase some Dead Sea mud and coat our bodies with it, as it had alleged skin benefits. I don’t really know if the mud did anything, but it was kind of fun. It dried pretty quickly and I was ready to go into the water to wash it off.
Almost everyone was already in the water, floating so peacefully. The water in the sea felt so different from any water I’ve ever felt before. By leaning backwards the slightest bit, my legs effortlessly floated up to the top of the water; it seemed magical. We played around by trying to walk and bicycle through the water. After a few minutes every little scrape and blemish on my body began to burn from the extreme saltiness and I was one of the first people out. I decide to lay out in the sun and try to absorb some tan while I waited for everyone else to finish swimming.
After everyone rinsed off, many people bought some Dead Sea products from the store such as lotions, face masks, and mud for their loved ones back home. I wasn’t too interested in spending more shekels, so I headed straight to the cafeteria where I ordered some schnitzel. After everyone finished with lunch, it was time for us to drive to our next hostel in Ein Gedi. We found our rooms and set down our luggage, and it was time for us to go hiking.
Hiking to waterfalls
We make our way to the Ein Gedi Nature Reserve where there were beautiful paths that led to many waterfalls. I’m definitely not the best person to be writing this blog about the hiking excursion because, if I’m being honest, I stopped hiking after the first waterfall! My legs were sore from diving the day before. After the hike we had a couple of hours to relax in our bedrooms before dinner. I ate more bad carbs that did nothing to fuel my body but were very tasty.
After dinner, at around 8:30 PM, the professors planned another night expedition for us. We went to a patch of desert right outside the hostel, took out our black lights, and searched for some scary scorpions. The location we were searching in was fairly close to civilization, so we didn’t find too many scorpions, as they enjoy complete darkness. Luckily, we did not find any snakes that we were warned about. After inspecting the few scorpions that we did find, everyone headed back to their rooms, and called it a night.
– Liel Zoran, SPC Student, Israel Program, May 2019
Thank you for sharing Liel!
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