Bevy of beards, part one

There's been no shortage of beard recently.

The beard admiring the excellent view from the Istanbul Modern, June 11, 2010.

The beard glowing in the lights of the festival in Jerusalem, June 16, 2010.

The beard taking in the Dead Sea and its tributaries, June 18, 2010.

A sea so salty it hurts

It was almost time to leave, but we hadn't done it yet. We hadn't floated in the Dead Sea. We couldn't come this close and not "swim" the salty sea. We headed down, to the sea, to the lowest point on earth.

I waded into the sea. I started walking out. I kept walking. I kept walking. I kept walking. Then, I noticed that my feet weren't touching the ground. But I wasn't sinking. And I wasn't treading water either. I was just floating there. What a odd sensation!

It felt as though the water was trying to pull my legs out from under me and bring them to the surface. Floating on my back was as easy as, well, just lying there. I think it felt somewhat like what suspended gravity would feel like, though a bit saltier.

Oh, right, the salt. Man, this was less like salt water and more like watery salt. It was so thick that the whole thing was a hazy, cloudy green color. I made the mistake of flopping around a little bit, trying to swim. I got some water in my eye and in my nose and it burned. Worse still, I couldn't rub it out because my hands were covered in salt. No option but to make like a bee for the freshwater showers (as best I could with my eyes closed...).

But still, what a sensation!

Cooking a la kibbutz

Finding ourselves in the small community of Ein Gedi, our culinary options were limited to what was on offer at the local kibbutz dining hall. Though I was hoping we would be roped into helping prepare the food (it is a kibbutz, right?), no such thing happened. Instead, we found a sumptuous and well-stocked buffet for both dinner and breakfast.

The buffet had several sections in a communal semi-circular dining room. The most beautiful table, presentation-wise, was the cold meze table with lots to try. There was also a hot section that had some meats, a salad bar, and a overloaded dessert table.

To start, I got a selection of cold mezes. Starting at 12 o'clock, there was chickpea, onion, and spinach; shaved fennel and dill salad; sliced chicken and bell pepper; hummus; duo of earthy mushrooms; endive and grapefruit salad; and sliced carrot with jalapeños. All were excellent. The vegetables tasted freshly picked, perhaps they were from the kibbutz garden. The shaved fennel and the sliced carrot were the two I think about the most. The fennel was fennel at its height: a hint of anise, a great crunch, and an instant craving for more. The carrots were full of carrot-y flavor and the jalapeños made each bite different and surprising. I could have had a full and happy dinner with just these dishes.

The mains to follow were, from top left, chicken and rice strudel, braised beef brisket, sliced potato gratin, and green beans with carrot and black pepper. They were accompanied by a fresh roll with a healthy dollop of pesto tapenade. This plate, was, alas, a bit of a let down. The beef brisket was simple and straightforward, and quickly got old. The strudel was just so starchy, with too much rice, though the chicken had a nice seasoning. The veggies were overcooked and soggy. The pesto was a light in the darkness, with some very good olive oil at its core.

To lift my spirits after the sad mains I turned to a piece of caramelized apple wrapped in filo dough covered in a scoop of vanilla and a scoop of chocolate. It did the trick, temporarily, but was not note-worthy.

Awaking the next morning, I was amused to find a selection highly, highly similar to the breakfast buffet at Dan Boutique back in Jerusalem. Lots of cheeses, lots of smoked fish, lots of creams and yogurts, and lots of fresh fruit. Fortunately, some of those choices appealed to me.

On the lower plate there was fresh cheeses, one with paprika dust; vinegar-marinated tomatoes; densely-wrapped dough; and a cheese boureka. As a sauce for the dough was a mashed tomato mixture. Both were not good, with the dough being way too dense as to almost cause me to choke and the tomato being a bit, well, gag-inducing. The boureka and the fresh cheeses were nice, however, as were the marinated tomatoes.

The upper plate had some fresh grapefruit and melon and more bread with pesto. Both were tasty and fresh.

So, conclusively, the kibbutz proved itself capable of taking very fresh ingredients and mixing them gently to create some special dishes. I wish I had a bucket of the shaved fennel. It also, fairly conclusively, proved itself incapable of rendering good dishes when much cooking and flavor combination was required. Stick to the cold stuff, especially at dinner.

A hot hike to a cool waterfall

Three solid days in Jerusalem and it was time for a different part of Israel. We got a rental car and headed east, into the desert. On the other side, through the West Bank and south, was the Dead Sea resort town of Ein Gedi. A tiny place, it had a nature reserve, kibbutz and guest house, and spa. That was it.

On arrival, we went for a walk up a dry river bed that still had some active waterfalls. Our timing was not perfect, however. The day was a hot one and our visit landed right at 2pm, the hottest part of the day. It was over 100 degrees Fahrenheit and pure sun. So, a 15 minute walk to a waterfall turned into a trek of sweat, heat, and water breaks. The waterfalls were worth it, though.

The first one was a nice, 15 foot waterfall into a small pool. Refreshing for a dip.

The second was even better, with a rocky overhang and more height. The rocks were even concealing a large boulder, perilously perched on the edge.

The third was the best.

It was a tall, likely 100 foot waterfall into a beautifully colored pond. The water fell enough to get a good arc away from the rock.

In addition to the waterfalls, our hike through the hot desert climate was rewarded with views of the sea and a handful of light green, starting-to-fruit olive trees.