My first night I walk towards the center of Jericho. I stop at the first small eatery I see. I am immediately surrounded by a small gang of Palistinian males in their late teens and early 20s. We talk about everthing and anything they desire. When I tell them I am going to Masada the next day they say they aren't allowed to enter the area. I invite them to come with me and they say they will, but as I expected they are no shows the next day. Their parents probably talked them out of it.
I feel sorry for them and their situation. High unemployment, limited education, poor local governance, restricted travel and limited social opportunities (they can't date if they don't have a job, religious customs). They act five years younger than their chronological age. No wonder some fall prey to the extremist groups or take impossible chances to act out thier frustration. They are victims of history and circumstances that seem insurmountable.
Masada was a summer home to King Herod. Jewish rebels later used it as a fort, where they held out against Roman forces for two years at the end of the Macabee revolt. When their defeat was emminent almost a thousand people carried out a suicide pact rather than becoming Roman slaves. If America has Valley Forge, Israel has Masada. It is a part of the national character and stands as an unspoken threat to Israel's neighbors. Israel is widely recognized as posessing nuclear weapons, which elevates what is known as the "Masada Complex" to a whole new level. If Israel falls, expect bad news. VERY bad news.
Mosaic floor from the time of King Herrod.
Cable car to Masada, Dead Sea in the background. Views from the top are worth the trip.
One of the water cisterns on Masada. Rain water was collected and supplimented by mule hauled water from the valley.
Ruins at Masada.
Another view from Masada.
Young couple I gave a ride near the Dead Sea. Hitchhiking actually works in Israel as a mode of transportation. Safe for all involved. Hitchers ask for a ride by standing near the road by a bus stop. There's a great bus network in Israel as well, but I am too old and set in my ways to do either.
After Masada I head back to Jerusalem yet again. A few days later I escape the so called 'Israeli Prison' I've been labeling my time in Israel. Israel is small, really small. Israel is bordered by four countries of varying stability and hostility. Israel also faces attacks by groups encoraged by other, non-border states. It is a relatively stable coutry in an unstable neighborhood. Israel has the goal of being a Jewish state. Israel faces the challenge of managing its complicated relationships with non-Jews in Israel proper and the West Bank and Gaza. Israel's Jewish status faces unique demograpic problems and internal disputes that limit its internally acceptable choices.
One way Israel has tried to manage these issues is to errect fences along its borders and between conflicting groups. The fences are of varying strength and effectiveness, and they have proven useful in some cases. Israelis generally do not trade goods or people with its neighbors bec ause the borders are almost totally closed. Ask an Israeli in Tel Aviv where he has traveled outside the country and the answer is usually Europe, Asia or America, but never Jordan, Egypt or Lebanon. In an interconnected, hyper-trade oriented world this is unsustainable.
This the 'Israeli Prison' that Israel has created for itself. The fences keep the baddies (and many others) out, but it also keeps the Israelis in. And inside the Israeli prison is a Palistinian prison on the West Bank, another in Gaza. Isolation isn't good for individuals, and its never good for nations. It just can't last.
Fences are not forever. The old fences the British left behind in 1949 and the Israeli fences of 1967 can be seen and are just relics. There were even fences around Masada, and walls around Jericho. Both failed and are mostly gone.
I dont pretend to have the answer to this complicated problem. The Palistinians I talked to just want the Israelis to go away, basically to the 1967 borders, but some want them gone from the Middle East entirely. To this the Israelis say where can we go? You Arabs have a dozen countries to go to if you want a place that speaks your language, follows your religion. We Jews have no place to go. The Israeliis have their overwhelming military power, the Palistinians have varrying degrees of support around the world.
I planned to visit Israel for a week, I stayed for a month. Absolutely no regrets about that decision. Its one of the most interesting and easy places I have ever visited. It was perfect except for the high prices and the $125 of parking tickets I managed to accumulate.
I make my escape via an overnight flight to Moscow with a connecting flight to St. Petersburg. The flight attendants are thowback to the 60s when looks were used in hiring decisions. Their uniforms still carry the hammer and scicle on the sleeves. I hope for a real Russian airplane, like a Tupulov, but instead get an Airbus connecting to a Boeing. Capitalism has reached the former socialist regime.
I arrive more exhausted than I ha planned. It is brutally cold outside. Snow covers everything. I am definitely underdressed. A new adventure awaits.
