So, here we are in Eilat on the Gulf of Aqaba (Red Sea) and I might be jaded, but I think it's a cross between South Beach and oddly enough Downtown Disney. Lovely hotel and a schizoid boardwalk. In one place H. Stern jewelry store, and a few hundred feet away, a Burger King. Upscale meets downscale. Had dinner at an outside place with good food and the first bad service we've had in Israel. Cute guy waiter was busy chatting up girls.
Our trip today was strange; new guide Yehuda is a nice guy, but seems to be ambivalent. We miss Isaac and, as annoying as some of our other travel mates were, there's one woman in our group of 7 who is just a pain in the ass. The fun part of today was our visit to the Israeli Air Force Museum and a fine tour with Yael, a charming young woman IAF member. We then went to a kibbutz where David Ben Gurion and his wife Paula lived. Ben Gurion was Israel's first Prime Minister and was a hero to many American Jews (me included) in the 50's. We went to his grave, which was near a cliff looking into the Negev desert. We had lunch there and witnessed the dreadful woman in our group be rude to the woman in the cafeteria; later she was a little rude to our guide. Two of the women in our group are lovely, so it kind of made up for the shrew.
Tomorrow at dawn was get picked up and taken to the Jordanian border where we get a one day visa to go into Jordan to visit Petra. Must go to sleep soon and store up energy for the 2.8 mile walk into Petra; we can ride a camel or a horse, or even a chariot. Think I'll pass on the camel.
Today's entry might sound disjointed, but the long drive through the desert was exhausting. Our room looks out over the Red Sea and I think I'll fall asleep tonight with the balcony door open and a breeze from the sea. More from Eilat tomorrow....
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