Jerusalem and Tel Aviv

That wine I got all excited about bringing home? I totally left it at the last hotel. Grrrr..... That was a waste of money.

We went to Jerusalem for a day, and will be returning back there tommorrow before we leave. While there, we checked out the Old City, including the Western Wall. I've been chewing over the whole experience for the last two days, and I'm not quite sure what to make of it. In some senses, Jerusalem seems like a perfectly normal city – highways, streets, etc. It's quite nice. But there's an underlying tension that is definitely abnormal. Perhaps I'll get a better sense of the place once we return.

Tel Aviv is a wonderful place. It instantly felt familiar. I think the best comparision I can make with Tel Aviv is Miami – metropolitan, populated, on the beach, and full of Jews – albeit in Tel Aviv they're more my age then my grandparent's age. It is quite odd to go out to a bar at night, knowing that probably everyone there – from the patrons to the wait staff – are Jewish.

While here I've done some shopping, ate at some good restaurants, and walked along the Mediterranean. The hotel, however, is a shit hole. C'est la vie.