My Extended Experience

Hello! It’s been a while! The last time I wrote, I discussed my experience flying to Israel. Today, I’d like to tell you about the journey to and my experience at the Dead Sea, one of my most favorite memories from the trip. The Dead Sea was honestly not something I was sure I’d be able to see for myself. My boyfriend and I explored and exhausted all options trying to figure out how to get to the Dead Sea from Tel Aviv in a fiscal and responsible way. We thought about renting a car and just going ourselves or taking a longer trip and using some of our budget to stay closer to the Sea so we wouldn’t have to join a tour, but ultimately, the day-long guided tour revealed itself to be the most enriching experience. We decided that it would be a crime for us to go all the way to Israel and not visit the Dead Sea (even if it was expensive), and it was important for us to be accompanied by an expert who could tell us things about the environment that we wouldn’t be able to see with the naked eye. 

Traveling to the Dead Sea from Tel Aviv took about three hours. However, the journey became just as amazing as the destination! Along the way, we drove through the Judean Desert, passed Jericho, and even got to walk through Masada, King Herod’s fortress. Getting to see things I had read about in the Bible and studied my whole life was such a surreal experience and made my belief and connection to things that happened 2,000 years ago feel more tangible. Masada was particularly incredible. King Herod built Masada in 37 B.C. to defend himself should the people ever rise up against him, but he never ended up needing it. One of the most fascinating things about it was seeing how architects of the past worked with the land to build- and not against it. The fortress was built out of a cliff, and its three levels fit the natural flow of the different “tiers” of the mountain. Our group took a skylift to the top, but there were 700 steps that one could take should one choose to spend a few hours climbing. If we had had more time, I would have loved to experience this way of getting to the top, just as they did 2,000 years ago. One amazing thing about Masada and King Herod is the strides that were made in the building of aqueducts. Even today, you can see the little channels that rainwater was poured into that ultimately brought water to all areas of the fortress on the mountain. Funnily enough, there was almost no sign of plant life, but there were many black ravens, or Corus Coraxes. Our guide brought (highly processed) chips for us to feed them, but I wondered what they ate when there are no tourists or chips around, as the land seems fairly barren. 

Another thing that we were able to see as we drove along toward the Dead Sea was hundreds of palm-like trees and organized gardens and greenhouses growing out of the desert. It looked like an oasis. Flowers and rows of vegetables and trees- I couldn’t believe it. We were shocked to see so much green in the desertous region (even if it was meticulously placed there), but our guide explained that the conditions near the Dead Sea were perfect for growing dates (produced by the Judean date palms- a member of the Phoenix dactylifera family) and much of the perishable foods that are exported from Israel. Here is a video that shows just a small portion of how vast the planted flora was.

After three hours of passing these incredible sights, we finally arrived at the Dead Sea and were permitted to spend almost three hours there as well. Legend has it that Cleopatra herself used it as her own personal spa because of how peaceful and rich in minerals it is. However, before we were allowed on the Sea, we had to sit through a sales pitch at a “lab” that made skincare products using minerals from the Dead Sea. I was honestly shocked and a little appalled that capitalism had reached a place that was meant to represent such solitude and peace. Edward Abbey would not be impressed. 

Finally, we were able to go to the bank of the Sea. The first thing I noticed about the area was how black the sand was. And not only was it black, but it was crunchy. I looked down to get a better understanding of what was under me only to see salt crystals the high tide had left behind. It looked almost like little snowflakes in the ground. I picked up a piece of salt and examined it, as I had never seen anything like it before. It was thin and had little lines all through it. This was my first run-in with the salt of the Dead Sea. Later, an Israeli woman would show me a cluster of pure salt she would find in the water and take from a larger “boulder” of salt- absolutely wild. As we trudged closer to the shore, the sand turned smooth and mud-like. I made my way down to the bank and was instantly struck by how difficult it was to walk. It was so slippery and suction-like that my flip-flops kept getting stuck and eventually broke! We were instructed to rub the mud all over ourselves, and allow it to dry before getting in the water. After it dried, I slowly made my way into the Sea. I say slowly because the bottom was simultaneously rocky and slippery. Not only that, but the water felt strangely thick- almost as if it was a liquidy slime (gross, I know, but there is truly no other way to explain it). Our guide informed us that the sand and water are like this because, as the Dead Sea is the absolute lowest point on earth, all the minerals from every other body of water flow into it, and then the minerals have nowhere else to go- this is their final destination. The mud-like sand and water are full of magnesium, iodine, calcium, sodium, potassium, bromide, sulfates, Potassium Chloride, Sodium Chloride, and other minerals. Because of all these things in the water, not many things are able to survive or grow (hence the name). 

As the sand washed off our bodies with the water, my skin felt like I had just put 100 layers of lotion on it and had exfoliated like never before. Even weirder, as I got deeper into the water, it became clear that I could no longer control my motions - I was actively having to fight to keep my legs from popping up in front of me. My boyfriend didn’t have the same grit to keep his feet grounded, which resulted in his legs springing to the surface and splashing me with the saltiest water I have ever had the pleasure of getting in my eye. PAIN. Serious pain. After I recovered from my blindness, I had to know what the water tasted like. If it felt so strange, what would it taste like? After all, it’s the saltiest thing in the world (and nine times saltier than the average ocean). Crazy thought, I know. Weird? Absolutely. But when else would I ever get to do a thing like that? So I had to. And I did. Then I regretted it. I figured it would be like tasting normal table salt, but I was so wrong. My entire mouth burned in a way I had never felt before. So, while I’m glad to say I’ve experienced the Dead Sea in a way not many people have, I wouldn’t recommend it. 

I think the great naturalists we discuss and attempt to emulate in class would be proud that I am doing what I can to explore the world and nature in new ways. Yes, there is nature everywhere (even in the ants currently living in my house), but it is exhilarating to gain a better understanding of the environment in places that aren’t directly a part of my little corner of the world. In my opinion, every trip should have a mandatory “learn something about this region’s nature” day! That way, we'll learn that no matter where we are, outside really does lie magic.