Intensive Arabic Semester

The Negev is a great place to spend a weekend camping or visiting a Bedouin community. For camping, it’s best to ask an Israeli where to go, or check out a guidebook. There are many eco-communities to visit as well. For Bedouin communities, you can visit the somewhat touristy Joe Alon Center or some fancy tourist tents or go to visit a tent in an unrecognized village (around 100 shekels for dinner, tent accommodations, and breakfast). Past students have used this website to contact the unrecognized villages and have stayed in both Al Foraa and Khashm Zanna. You can also look here and here and also here for Bedouin tent information. You can also go down to Eilat for a weekend and spend some time enjoying the red sea. Eilat is called the Las Vegas of Israel and has plenty of clubs and bars you can enjoy.

If you have a long weekend or a vacation, Jordan is a fairly easy visit from the kibbutz. Jordan is a fantastic country with beautiful scenery and ancient ruins you must see. Besides that, it is a fantastic opportunity for you to practice your Arabic since you can rely on your English (and Hebrew) much less there. There are three ways to get to Jordan from Israel. The nearest border to the Kibbutz (45 minutes) is the Sheikh Hussein Bridge near Bet She’an. This border is the least busy, but beware, it still takes about two hours to get across (even when no one is there). You must pay a fee for a Visa when you get there (if you are an Israeli citizen you must get a Visa before you arrive at the border) as well as a small fee for a bus that takes you across the border. Once you get to the Jordanian side, there is no ATM so be sure to bring at least some money. On the other side you can change Shekels into JD (Jordanian Dinars). On the Jordanian side there is basically nothing at this border. The nearest tourist site is Jerash (a ~30 dinar cab ride), a northern town with ancient Roman ruins about 45 minutes away. Amman is not too much further (~40 dinars a cab). You can also cross at the Allenby Bridge in the middle of the country although any traveler who wants to cross here must obtain a visa before crossing over. The Allenby Bridge is the most packed point of entry because many Palestinian also use this point to get into Jordan. The last border is the southern border between Aqaba and Eilat and is fairly easy to get across although it is busier than the northernmost border. Once you’re in Jordan here are a few places to check out: Madaba, Jerash, Irbid, Amman, Petra, Wadi Rum, Wadi Musa, Wadi Araba, and Aqaba.

Egypt is at least a four or five day trip. You can get there by bus (but it takes quite a while due to political issues) or you can fly. El Al Airlines, Air Sinai/Egypt Air, and Royal Jordanian all fly between Tel Aviv (TLV) and Cairo (CAI). Some bus trips are offered by Mazada Tours or you can book a tour with a travel agency in Jerusalem (there are many, especially in East Jerusalem). Professor David Mendelsohn can also help you out with arranging Egpyt-related adventures. Most people visit Cairo, Luxor, Alexandria, Aswan, Hurghada, and Sharm-El-Sheikh.

Some people go to here to camp, although when most people plan a trip to Sinai they are talking about a visit to the Egyptian cities of Taba, Dhahab and Sharm-El-Sheikh. All of these cities have cheap, but nice hotels, and are lovely for a beach vacation. To get to Sharm-El-Sheikh, you need to either fly from Tel Aviv to the Sharm airport (on Air Sinai or El Al depending on the political situation), or cross the border from Eilat (usually less expensive). You take a bus down to Eilat and then cross the border into the Egyptian city of Taba, which has some hotels, but is not nearly as large as Sharm El Sheikh. Many Israelis stay in a city called Nuewiba, just past Taba. Between Taba and Dhahab there are many small "hostels" (huts on the beach) run by Bedouins. Dhahab is about an hour and a half from the border and Sharm-El-Sheikh is about two and a half hours from the border. You will need to pay for a taxi or a van once you get to the other side. When you cross the border you will be issued a separate Sinai visa (as opposed to an Egyptian visa) that lasts for fourteen days.

Cyprus is a mediterranean island very close to Israel. Because Israel only provides religious marriages for its citizens, many Israelis travel to Cyprus to get hitched, secular-style. Here are some choice destinations in Cyprus: Paphos Harbour & Castle, Courion/Kolossi Castle, Larnaca Salty Lake & Hala Sultan Tekke, Ayia Napa and Protaras, Nicosia & the House of Hadigeorgakis Kornesios, Cedar Valley, Panayia tou Araka, Choiroktia, Lefkara, The Paphos Mosaics.

Turkey is just a 2 hour flight from Israel.