My previous post was poking excessive fun at the use of the words “resort and spa” - only because the connotation of those words in America is quite different. Ashley is the one who prepared me before we arrived by saying it was more like a retreat, so she gets full credit for finding the word choice that describes this place perfectly. Once you accept it as such, it actually is quite nice.
Hint: I am at a kibbutz. The air, the water, the sky, the trees, and the animals are all beautiful here. The people are friendly. Today we had a gorgeous day – felt a like a spring day in Carolina. Having nice weather can really turn a day around.
We ventured out to the spa again, but this time with my camera in hand. We missed our bus there by a few minutes and had to wait an hour for the next one. While we waited, we enjoyed the back patio of the lobby where it actually does feel rather like an American resort. While everyone else found entertainment with a Kindle or Nook, I took pictures of our beautiful accommodations outside.
Once we got to the Dead Sea Spa I found even more endless picturesque views. It was hard to stop photographing. I noticed also that you cannot play on the shores of the Dead Sea. It’s like a bumpy ice rink, so someone would get hurt for sure. No footballs or Frisbees here! But, it was nice to sun there at the water’s edge. I could have stayed for hours.
Our afternoon tour was of the garden here at the Kibbutz. If you look at the picture here below, this is what the kibbutz used to look like.
A group of people came and decided to make it a community, so they spent years and years growing, planting, and nurturing until it became what it is now. They celebrated 56 years this past week. They have over one thousand species of plants from all over the world, and animals are everywhere. This is this kibbutz today.
“A kibbutz (Hebrew: קיבוץ, קִבּוּץ, lit. "gathering, clustering"; plural kibbutzim) is a collective community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economic branches, including industrial plants and high-tech enterprises.[1] Kibbutzim began as utopian communities, a combination of socialism and Zionism. In recent decades, some kibbutzim have been privatized and changes have been made in the communal lifestyle.”
~ Wikipedia
This isn’t our last night here, but today was our last day here. Tomorrow we tackle the sand.
Love to you all!
PS Dear fuzzballs, I saw a lot of dogs today. Two in particular caught my attention. They were clearly guarding the kibbutz!
Go figure. They are everywhere!
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