Help. My fiance' and I will be arriving in Tel Aviv on
Sept. 20, 1999 and are staying until Oct. 3, 1999. During
that short time, what kind of a route do you suggest; where
to stay; good eats and if possible, do you know anything
about getting married over there (by the way She's
Christian and I am Jewish). Thanks for your thoughts.
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, where else but Jerusalem. There is sooo much to see here
that will be of interest to you both. Also Jerusalem is a
great jumping off point for Masada and Judean Hills.
Do NOT try and see too much otherwise you will end up seeing
nothing.
You will be in Israel during Succot (Feast of Tabernacles)
as this is one of the three festivals when pilgrims go "up"
to Jerusalem, you will be surrounded by tourists from near
(Israel) and Far.
As far as I know you both have to be of the same religion to
marry in Israel. During the years we lived there, most mixed
marriages had to happen 'off shore'. I do not know, but
assume that this is even more so now.
Have a wonderful trip to Israel and remember even though it
is a small country in size there is so much history,
archeology etc to see that you will be overwhelmed.
Judy's right: There is no marriage possible between people
of different faiths in Israel. By the way, it will be hard
to find a priest or rabbi anywhere on the world to 'do' it.
You will need to settle for a secular marriage, and this
option is non-existant in Israel.
Definitely you should use Jerusalem as a basecamp for your
trip. They have good (and cheaper!) hostels there than
everywhere in Israel. Beyond Jerusalem, you can do a
day trip to Hebron and Bethlehem, one to Jericho, one to the
Dead See etc. tis is just for getting a glimpse of the
country... and come back for more in-depth travelling...
Good luck. God willing, I will be there later this year
again.
Unfortunately Irvus, in Israel even reform Jewish marriages
aren't recognised by the state. Reform Jews usually get
married in Cyprus. Your chances are probably slim unless
you bring your own minister of religion with you.
About thirty or so posts down there is a request from a man
for a four week itinerary in the Middle East. Inside this
post I left a guy called Shaun a 14 day itinerary for
Israel. I agree with Judy about not seeing too much
however, I think this plan could be altered somewhat (it is
very intense) but a 5000 year old civilisation is a tough
call for 10 days.
I am married to a Jewish woman, we are fine and have been
married for 4 years, together for 5 years.
Although it is easier to get married in England it is
possible to get married in Israel. The quickest way to get
married is obviously in a registry office, it's not as fun
or romantic as a Jewish wedding as you are Jewish.
It is a lot easier for a Jewish man to marry a Christian
woman in Israel than a non Jewish man to marry a Christian
woman.
As for your route, an ideal start would be to go to the
North around Lake Kinneret, Tiberias is also beautiful as
well as Saf'ad.
When travelling anywhere in Israel the question you must ask
is "Which is the safest route to get to ..."
It may look simple on a map, but as you are of mixed faith
an Arab that may have a problem with your faiths will go out
of his way if inclined, to hurt you or steal from you.
Choose your route wisely and ask Jewish people in the larger
cities.
Next i would suggest that you make your way from the North
to Eilat via safe roads.
I enjoyed Masada, go there at 5.00 in the morning to see the
sun rise over the mountains, it' beautiful.
If you leave it too late you get too many tourists up there
as there is a cable car.
Walk up its worth the sweat, get the car back.
Timna Park is great, try to hire a car if budget permits the
roads are'nt bad but do not speed as you will waste a lot of
time trying to pay the fine and it is about $120.00 US.
I lived in Kibbutz Eilot for 10 months as that is where i
met my wife.
The volunteer scene is not as popular as it was.
A lot of Kibbutzim employ Thai's or Kenyans due to recent
peace agreements. "We give you Palestinians some land, we
employ cheaper nationalities"
Kibbutz's are for sampling real life. You will earn POCKET
MONEY, Moshav's are places where you can actually earn
money, but is not as social and work can be harder.
Kibbutz Eilot in Eilat i belive has recently finished
building a new hotel.
The dining room actually in the Kibbutz is an eye opener
as the variety of food is great...to the tourist the
Kibbutzniks eat almost as well.
Ask for OODI he works there and he may be able to get you
some accomadation, say that you want to experience life on
the Kibbutz, he will understand
Shalom.
Keren & Ian
P.S. I am in Israel in May. If you want any updates on the
Kibbutz, Hotmail me ijsimmons@hotmail.com
I don't know anything about marriages in Israel, but I did
make a detailed report on my 10 day trip to Israel in 10/98;
Have a look at www.1000traveltips.org