Israel

A few friends and I will visit Israel for 10 days starting this Friday. We're planning to stay the first 4 days in Tel Aviv, move further to Jerusalem for 3 days and come back for Tel Aviv.
Are we missing anything huge? I'd love any recommendation for stays, things to (not) visit, see and eat!

Brompton Junction in Tel Aviv?

I'd be checking my conscience before giving money to a country that is literally committing genocide.

Take a look at the caged animals in Gaza?

i'll echo the above sentiments
not a country to be supporting in any way currently
also trying not to buy any produce or goods from there either

ditto saudi arabia

Worst trip ever , unhelpful people wouldn't recommend it anyone now.

Nice. We're visiting Israel mostly because a friend has family and relatives over there who he didn't see for nearly 20 years now. I don't know the exact circumstances as he didn't talk much about them but I don't blame him (and us for going with him).
I honestly don't know where I stand in that regard but I'll try to keep an open mind. Also Tel Aviv seems to be one of the most liberal cities in the world so I'm a bit excited

Stayed by disengoff square it got blown up . Went through jericho , military curfew . Afula armed guards but they where nice and pointed the gun the other way . Ein geddy mtb shoes stolen . Ranty egg bus driver to jerusalem . Mitspa ramon crator . Again military all over the place . Swedish driver gave me a bottle of water. I couldn't wait to get out of the country.

I would say, obviously enjoy Tel Aviv which is a cool city and go and see the normal sites, go to the great clubs and bars and restaurants especially in Jaffa but if you do, remember that only a few miles away are a load of people who can't access it all and make sure that you make an effort to go and see that.

So, when in Jerusalem make sure you visit the Arab areas. You will have to make a real effort to do it because the way the city is designed is to make them invisible. So go to the City of David 'Museum' which is a settlement and all the donations to the museum fund the settlement, then walk down the shitty road past the museum away from the old city and you will find the Arab area of Silwan. Not much to do there but if u turn left you will see the Israeli guards with their guns guarding the settlement, its a bit mad be careful and respectful (you do not want to be mistaken for a settler!) but definitely worth seeing the starkness of the apartheid, hidden in plain sight as long as you look...

Take a trip to Ramallah. Go to the Palestinian bus station outside the old city in Jerusalem and ask for the bus to Qalandiya. Get the bus, go through the checkpoint and then get a shared taxi to Ramallah via Kufr Aqab (read up on this area its v politically significant). Hang in Ramallah and go and get drunk at Snowbar in the evening. Cave bar is also good. Next day get a shared taxi to Bethlehem through Area C and you will see the settlements of kfar Adumim and Maale Adumim en route and realize the enormity and intractable nature of the conflict. See the separation wall and the church of the nativity. Then head on back to Jerusalem through the checkpoint (try and go through the checkpoint on foot) and wonder how it's so easy to travel like a normal person in Israel but so hard in the West Bank.

Also Breaking the Silence tours of Hebron are amazing if you have the time.

Then realise what the awesome, forward thinking, progressive country of Israel is really built on. And then it will be difficult to enjoy the liberty of Tel Aviv so much

or dont bother.....it sounds shit.

Damn, this was a good answer

I'd be checking my conscience before giving money to a country that is literally committing genocide.

not a country to be supporting in any way currently
also trying not to buy any produce or goods from there either

Utterly wrong-headed. Sad to hear people blaming an entire population of a country for the actions of their government. The political situation, a hard right leadership, shouldn't close the country off to us culturally. Cultural ties between people are one thing that can help in these kinds of situations.

Finally – a space on the internet where we can debate this issue!

And I came here naively for recommendations and locations for Instagram likes.
Seems like I definitely have things to catch up on Israel politics though

I'd also suggest visiting the west bank in addition to Tel Aviv and Jerusalem to get a better understanding of the area. Walking from Bethlehem back through the checkpoint was straightforward.

@bibimbap Would be nice to read your impressions when you're back. Genuinely curious, must be quite a special part of the world.

I think @punkture pretty much sums up the country . May i add the open prison in negev desert where you don't get fed . The bus to be’er sheve passes through there.

We mostly stayed in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem sadly. I would have loved to visit Bethlehem and Ramallah.

Then realise what the awesome, forward thinking, progressive country of Israel is really built on.

That's exactly the impression I got. The people you can see in the cities are lovely. Vendors in the markets and even random people asking for a lighter were genuinely interested in where we're from. Nowhere a sign of discrimination except at the airport.
Security check was a real pain. Even though said friend has a German passport, he has a Palestinian last name so he got questioned for 2 hours after arrival. Things like what his grandfathers name and birthday was, what he was doing in Israel and so on (remember that he didn't have any connection to his relatives for 20 years).
For departure we all got pulled out and searched thoroughly. Solely for the reason that we're friends with him. We had to wait a lot and unpack everything so arriving about 2-3 hours before departure was a good call. But they had to touch my worn underwear which was quite awkwardly funny.
The trip was awesome though. We met many 'local' people (especially in Tel Aviv I couldn't differentiate locals from tourists), had awesome food and did a lot of arak shots. And left a lot of money.
I definitely recommend to go there and see it for yourself. But read in first to really appreciate the situation there. I didn't and therefore it was kind of 'just' a holiday trip - a good one though.

I'm hoping that you realise that my comment was saying that Israel is NOT forward thinking, progressive or awesome and that impression is a total and well cultivated mirage. It is the opposite and I was being sarcastic, because all your good times and arak shots are effectively funded by the misery of a captive population.

If you partake without making an active effort to see another side, you legitimise apartheid and are complicit. This is partly because it is SO EASY to see the other side because it is as I said before, hiding in plain sight.

You didn't see discrimination? Seriously? If you were in Jerusalem, one of the most racially divided and segregated cities in the world and didn't see discrimination then you didn't look.
How many Arab areas does that tram stop in? Whats the difference between the Jewish and Arab bus stations? Why are there separate bus stations?!? Why are there so many 18 year olds wandering around with army uniforms and massive guns? Did you see any Arabs with uniforms and guns? How much of the 'Israeli' infrastructure is located in illegal areas? Did you see the seperation wall? You know it runs through Jerusalem right?

I'm sorry to have a go but you cannot go there and have a neutral, apolitical experience. In that country, every action is political.

You started this thread...

I forgot about the lines of sand that are over 20 feet wide on the boarders . Inspected daily for footprints.

You started this thread...

I didn't ask for a personal rant against me though.
While I admit that we traveled to Jerusalem for more cultural and touristy reasons and didn't ride the tram or bus at all, the hospitality the people showed us still remain. And that is a huge point that I hope will have an affect on politics in the following generations.

Jesus wept.

He did though, right?

It's easy to be hospitable in a house that isn't yours