I floated in the Dead Sea! Mud masks, Masada fortress & modern Mamilla hotel Jerusalem.
What’s your “happy place”? For me, it’s a combination of gentle sun, friends, travel, exploring cultures, the ocean, and my Scottish Fold cat. I got all of the above (minus the kitty, and with a salt lake instead) on one of my most memorable days in Israel.
Read on for my floaty, muddy adventure in the Dead Sea… (And apologies for the lack of posts over Memorial Day weekend – I’ve been in San Francisco with my friends. Tons of new material coming up; you can see previews of Bianca Del Rio at Trannyshack, oddities at Loved to Death and more on my @lacarmina Instagram.)
My film team and I woke up early at the Mamilla Hotel, a 5-star modern hotel on King Solomon Street. It’s the work of Israeli-born architect Moshe Safdie (who did the Vancouver Downtown Library) and designer Piero Lissoni.
Mamilla is a perfect blend of new and old: witness Jerusalem stone walls next to a sculpted metal staircase. I wish we had time to experience their Akasha Wellbeing Center, celebrated for its organic bar and holistic classes.
I personally love stark, modern hotels. They tend to be ultra-clean with inspiring design, and have fast and free Wi-Fi. (Ideal for germophobic, design-freak, plugged-in millennial travelers like me.)
Photography by Eric Bergemann, Melissa Rundle and La Carmina.
The Mamilla hotel’s facade was built from historic Jerusalem stone (similar to sandstone). Each one was numbered, to mark its proper place in the arch.
Today I’m wearing a lion t-shirt and blue sandals from Izzue Hong Kong, a black and white skirt from Algonquins Tokyo, and sunglasses by Marc Jacobs Dot.
The rooftop gave us a magnificent view of Jerusalem’s Old City walls, the Tower of David and Jaffa Gate.
Perfect for a panorama shot. (My two filmmakers travel with me, and shoot the videos and photos. So far, we’ve been sent to the Maldives, Abu Dhabi, Mazatlan, Maui, Dubai, Portland, around Eastern Europe, and more!)
Time to hit the road. Our trusty driver and Israel guide, Uri Golani, took us for an hour and a half ride to Masada. Along the way, the sand scenery was straight out of Frank Herbert’s Dune (a must-read sci fi novel).
We took a short cable car ride up to Masada, the isolated mountain fortress built by Herod the Great around 37-31 BC. This is the site of the famous siege, where Jewish rebels fought back the attacking Romans after Jerusalem fell. Finally overtaken, the 960 Masada Jews supposedly committed mass suicide.
The rock plateau overlooks the Dead Sea, which we’ll visit after. Up the cliffs, ingenious water cisterns divert water from nearby wadis (ravines), which allowed the rebels to store as much as 10 million gallons of water.
See this black line? It shows the height of the walls before they were reconstructed, since much of Masada was in ruins when it was re-discovered in 1828.
We ducked into the bath houses, which still had remnants of mosaics and painted wall plasters.
Imagining the homes, synagogue and store rooms that stood here ages ago.
We saw a number of these noisy birds. I found out they are Tristram’s Starling, a bird native to this region. The males have orange marks on their wings.
I remember reading about Masada years ago, but history lessons often don’t sink in until you’re actually on the ground where they took place. I think it’s important to see both the old and new sides of a destination, to better understand it.
Alas, the wind is beckoning us to the water. We took a short drive to the Dead Sea, one of the world’s saltiest lakes. No living creatures can thrive in the waters, hence the very Gothic name.
Bathers can grab handfuls of mud from a bucket, to cover their faces and bodies. Dead Sea mud is full of minerals and known for its therapeutic properties.
Why not engage in some Gothic body-painting at the same time? I drew monster scars, crosses, and a Star of David on myself. Tip: wear clothes that you don’t mind getting dirty, as they’ll inevitably pick up some sand and mud.
The Ein Gedi public beach also has change rooms, and a sulphur-water pool.
I saw some people doing standing-board paddling. Make sure you don’t put your head under water or try to swim, unless you want your eyes to burn!
Slowly sit back, and you’ll float. Such a strange feeling. Watch out for the sharp salt formations on the floor, though… they cut my butt!
What a blessing, to be able to experience the Dead Sea. Thank you to Israel Tourism for the experience.
I leave you with my protein-and-veg packed breakfast at the Mamilla Hotel (including shakshuka, eggs poached with tomatoes). What is your happy place?
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Off to Israel & Jordan: Travel video press trip! Cute Japan flower arrangements & Snoopy donuts.
I’ve been itching to return to the Middle East, and am excited to announce (Terminator style) that “I’ll be back!” From late January to February, my filmmakers and I will be in Israel and Jordan for the first time.
Can’t wait to explore Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and the Dead Sea, all thanks to the Israel Ministry of Tourism. Our friends at Ya’lla Tours are helping us get connected, and will also take us on a guided tour of Petra, the historical city and archaeological heaven.
My travel team and I will be shooting stories about the alternative nightlife in Tel Aviv — there’s a colorful LGBT scene here, including an Orthodox Jewish drag queen. We’ll also make travel videos, photos and blogs about the modern local fashion, Israeli wines, and even a hummus restaurant.
Maybe this time, I’ll get to ride a real camel? To get in the spirit, you can revisit last year’s Abu Dhabi and Dubai coverage in my Middle East category. And send us your travel tips; we’ll always keep them in mind.
Before we dive into tabbouleh and falafel, let’s hop back to Japan: the land of cute food.
At the Swimmer store in Shinjuku Alta, I spotted these “hitsuji” or kawaii lamb-faced cakes. Clever, how they use a coiled cookie for the horns.
The bakery also sells “kuma-chan” or little bear cupcakes. I’ve never eaten anything from Swimmer; the pastries look too sweet and cute to consume!
Mr Donut, the Japanese doughnut store chain, has seasonal collaborations with cute characters. Around Halloween, they offered spooky Hello Kitty donuts. For Christmas, they teamed up with Snoopy and Woodstock. Unfortunately, looks trump taste. I tried one, and gagged at the flaky icing and bready interior.
While “character bento” recipe books aren’t as popular as before, there are still kawaii food items everywhere. I found Rilakkuma bear cookie boxes in a convenience store.
Plus a bottle of white cat sake.
I grew up eating Pocky as snacks. Fun to see these panda versions, made with white chocolate over brown sticks.
Do ghost tomato Pretz taste extra scary?
In Japan, you’ll often see vans or trucks decorated to the nines. I stopped short when I saw this one, plastered with cute animals… made from flowers!
Similar to bento decoration, the flowers are arranged in clever ways to mimic figures like Santa Claus. Paper or felt cut-outs form the eyes, nose and details.
These panda bear flowers were my favorites. At first, I thought they were onigiri or rice balls.
Just when you think the Japanese have thought of every possible way to make things cute… a new idea comes along.
Perhaps these photos might inspire you to try “kawaii flower arrangements” of your own.
Back to food, minus the cuteness. Whenever I’m in Tokyo, I gorge myself on sushi since the quality is outstanding here. At “kaiten” conveyor sushi parlors like Hibari in Kabukicho, each plate is only about $1.40.
If you don’t know Japanese, there is usually a photo menu that you can point to. My favorites are unagi (eel), hamachi (yellowtail), bintoro (albacore tuna)…
… and if I’m lucky, toro salmon topped with ikura, (fish roe). It melts in your mouth like nothing else, and is only about $2. I once ate about eight of these!
While not so pretty-looking, okonomiyaki or savory pancakes are a must-try, especially in Osaka. Also visit an izakaya, or homestyle pub, and pop into Coco Ichiban for mouthwatering Japanese curry.
How about dessert? If it’s around October, you can find pumpkin flavored Haagen Dazs ice cream in convenience stores.
Basil and I hope you enjoyed this post about cute and yummy food in Japan. We urge you to step out of your comfort zone, and try new dishes whenever you are traveling. I’ll be doing that soon in Israel and Jordan.
For more cat-ness, I just posted more photos of Basil Farrow on his Scottish Fold blog, and Facebook.
Also add us on Instagram and Twitter — @lacarmina — for previews of my Middle Eastern journey. Above are some snaps from Tokyo.
What type of reports would you like to see from Tel Aviv and Jordan? Do you have suggestions for places to see, and things to eat?
LA CARMINA
