Andrew Lee

October 16, 2013

Who makes the best Philly Cheesesteak?

On a recent trip to Philadelphia the other weekend, a friend of mine and I decided to try our hand at two of the most famous cheesesteak shops in Philadelphia. Pat’s King of Steaks and Geno’s Steaks are located literally across the street from one another at the intersection where 9th Street, Passyunk Street and Wharton Street meet. On any given day at any given time that corner is overflowing with people stuffing their faces with bread and meat since both are open 24 hours (so you can get your heart attack in at any time).

Now admittedly, we heard from several locals that these two places are touristy and that some of the best places are actually out in the suburbs (Tony Luke’s for one was a place a local Philly girl swears by). But since we only had a weekend, we had to see what the hype was about.

Here’s a rundown of how they compared:

Both had similarly long lines and both are Cash Only. Geno’s by far has the more elaborate looking shop; it looks like something out of Las Vegas, wheras Pat’s has a more local, sandwich hut type feel. Geno’s easily has the better eating setup: both have picnic tables (about 12 picnic tables or so each), but Geno’s is smart enough to set up standing bar style tables for people to eat along the side of the walls of the shop. But while Geno’s may have the better seating, they get knocked down a notch because of something that made me feel a little uncomfortable. When you’re at the casher, there are signs and pictures up of the owner with a “I want my country back” sign and “This is America, we only take orders in English” and shit like that. Now, I’m not going to use this forum to get too much into it, but as an Asian-American I didn’t feel all that enamoured by that.

Onto the food. When ordering, both places have the “instructions” on how to order your sandwich quickly. Probably no one will do anything if you don’t order it like a local, but they may just get a little annoyed if there is a long wait. You can compare it to putting ketchup on your hot dog in Chicago – they’ll just frown on the out-of-towner. We ordered the same sandwich, “wiz wit”, at both places. If you get the cheesesteaks “wiz wit”, which is the cheese whiz, it’s going to be very, very messy. The steak at Geno’s is a bit more like steak-umm’s flat and solid strips. The steak at Pat’s is more shredded and a little leaner. The bread at Geno’s is more like a traditional sub roll like one you’d get from Jimmy Johns, whereas Pat’s break is a lot fluffier and spongier and more like a roll.

In the end the winner is: Pat’s King of Steaks. You can’t really go wrong with either; it really comes down to a matter of personal preference.

For good measure, we also tried one of Pat’s cheesesteaks with provolone cheese, peppers and mushrooms and that to me was actually the best out of all of them! So if you’re up in Philly, enjoy!

Geno’s

Pat’s

From top to bottom: Pat’s (wiz wit), Geno’s (wiz wit), Pat’s (provolone, pepers, mushrooms)

September 30, 2013October 1, 2013

Little Serow

1511 17th Street NW
Washington DC 20036

Hours
Tuesday-Thursday: 5:30-10:00 PM
Friday-Saturday: 5:30-10:30 PM
Sunday-Monday: Closed

I’m going to say this right off the bat: Little Serow is my favorite meal experience in Washington, D.C. up to this point. More than living up to the hype, Johnny Monis, the head chef of the famous Komi restaurant (which is regarded by many as the best restaurant in D.C.) has created a cheaper, Asian restaurant right next door. For $45, you get a pre-fixed menu consisting of mainly Thai flavored cuisine. And you’ll be hard pressed to find a better $45 meal anywhere else in the city.

In order to find the restaurant you’ll want to find and face Komi first; Little Serow’s door is the unmarked basement door to the lower left. Keep this in mind: there will most likely be a very long wait. They don’t take reservations, so you have to put your name on the list with the hostess. In most cases, there will be a line JUST to put your name on what usually is a 2-hour wait list. From what we heard, on the weekends that line can even be as long as 20 minutes. It is a ridiculously long wait time to be sure, but it’s worth it. Just plan accordingly, and plan on having a drink at one of the nearby bars while you wait. They will text you when your table is ready, so you can go as far away as you want.

The restaurant itself has very limited seating; there’s only about five tables that seat 4, three tables that seat 2, and one communal large table that seats about 12. The atmosphere is like being in a minimalist kitchen with dim intimate lighting. The music is not too loud and all the waitresses are dressed like mothers or Laura Ingalls’ look alikes. And they were great; perfectly attentive without being too intrusive.

I would typically give a review of each individual food item, but because the menu routinely changes up, there’s no real guarantee that what I’ve tried will be on the menu for you. The menu apparently changes up on a weekly basis. After doing a little research though, it does appear that there are a few staples that are on often regularly on the menu, including the pork ribs on ours.

So even though there’s no point giving individual critiques, as a whole the food was DELICIOUS. There were so many flavors that felt totally new, yet familiar at the same time. The food was very, very spicy too – I cannot stress this enough. The side of vegetables and sticky rice will be your best friend throughout the meal. Our dinner ended up being 7 plates with a small dessert. The standouts on our menu were the mushrooms, which were a unique flavoring of sweet as you first eat it and then spicy as you finish it, and the pork ribs.

To sum it up – try this place. It’s not going to kill your wallet at $45 and you’re guaranteed to experience flavors that you’ve never tasted before. I plan on going back to try some different plates and it only takes a quick look at its critics, Yelp, and TripAdvisor reviews to see a communal appreciation for the place even though several different meals were sampled. For me personally, if Little Serow was this good, I’m more than curious to know what his even more prestigious Komi restaurant is like. It looks like I’ve got something new to save up for. Grade: A

UPDATE: I emailed the restaurant to get a better idea of how much the menu changes. They responded very, very quickly and told me that one item usually changes a week. So if you want to make sure you go back and have a totally different menu, I’d give it a couple months in between visits.

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September 8, 2013

Labor Day weekend in New York City

For the Labor Day weekend, a couple friends from D.C. and I decided to take a long overdue trip up to New York City. Being from the east coast and having several friends and relatives living in the city over the course of my lifetime, I’m very familiar with the place (and their horrible professional sports teams). However, the thing that I love about New York is that every time you go, there’s always something new to discover.

For this post, I’m not going to go over the typical New York places to see that we did (a not so full effort to find the bridge from Home Alone 2 in Central Park, the Flatiron building, Time’s Square, etc.), but I’ll give you a rundown of a few places that we went to that were recommended by the locals.

230 Fifth (the name of the place is the address)
Located down the street from the Flatiron Building, this rooftop bar has the best view of the NYC skyline that I’ve ever seen. Bring your camera, you’ll have some great shots of the Empire State Building, Hudson River and in the distance the Freedom Tower. There’s plenty of space on the rooftop, as well as a large, indoor lounge on the top floor of the building, but regardless it does get busy around happy hour. There’s no cover charge, but the drinks will cost you a pretty penny. Because we went during Labor Day the temperature was nice, but the bar does offer red robes for everyone in the winter months.

Absolute Bagels and Sal & Carmine’s Pizza
We stayed at my buddy’s place on the Upper West Side and these are a few of the quick, and very New York eateries we tried. Realistically, I wouldn’t say to make a dedicated trip up to the Upper West Side to try these places, but if you’re in that area, they are very good options. Absolute Bagels had exactly what you’d expect from a NYC bagel – perfectly warm, soft, but not too chewy bagels with a large variety of cream cheeses and lox. I had a sesame bagel with walnut & raisin cream cheese and it easily trumped any Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, Bruggers bagels I’ve ever had. Keep in mind, there will be a line of Columbia University kids (especially on the weekends) and it is CASH ONLY. And of course, only in New York, you have to pay an extra 10 cents to have your bagel toasted.

For a quick lunch, down the street from Absolute Bagels is Sal & Carmine’s Pizza. Like Absolute Bagels, you will walk right by this place if you’re not looking for it – it’s pretty boring looking. But you’re there for the pizza, not the ambiance. And the pizza does not disappoint. Your order will be taken by this really crusty, curmudgeonly old guy (my guess is he was either Sal or Carmine…) but he’s harmless. The cheese slices are $3 and the ones with toppings are $4. As far as slices go, you’d be hard-pressed to find a place with a better New York slice. The slice was very large, and the crust was perfectly thin and crispy. The pizza had the right amount of cheese and was greasy enough without dripping all over the place. It really hits the spot if you have that pizza craving.

Sal & Carmine's Pizza slices — Sal & Carmine’s Pizza slices

Rue B
We actually found this place on accident and I’m glad we did. Located on the Lower East Side, Rue B harkens back to the jazz clubs of the past. Dimly lit and intimate, the bar isn’t huge, but has a lot of character. The atmosphere is very chill with vintage black and white photos all along the walls and there’s live blues/jazz music performing. Good place to go if you’re looking for a place to have a relaxing drink or taking a date.

Blind Barber
Pretty much the opposite of Rue B, the Blind Barber is like a speakeasy/dance club that literally has a rundown looking barbershop as its front. There wasn’t really anything special about the place (expensive drinks, dance music, people having fun) other than that random ass barber shop that you need to walk through to get inside. If you do get inside, you’ll probably have a good time if you’re with a group of friends and if you can get the bartender’s attention at the packed bar. And you get to say that you walked through a random ass barbershop to get into a club.

The Manhattan Beer Garden at the Standard
Located in the newly created Chelsea High Line (also definitely worth checking out is the new Chelsea Market as well. We only were able to walk through it though because we were on a mission to drink), this beer garden is a great place to visit if you’re looking for a fun, outdoor (and covered) venue with German big beers and a healthy array of pretzels and sausages. The process for getting draft beers is unique in that you have to buy a ticket for a beer at a separate booth first, then go to the bar and order. Each ticket is $8 (which gets you one beer). If you see a long line, don’t let that dissuade you. It moves quick and will have moments where there’s practically no line if you wait a few minutes. If you’re in that area, but want a more rooftopy bar experience with a more standard drink selection, the Brass Monkey next to the beer garden has a nice rooftop where you can catch some sun and a drink list with more typical libations.

Saxon and Parole
For those of you looking for a little bit of a fancier restaurant to eat at, we stumbled upon Saxon and Parole. Admittedly, we were trying to go to the italian restaurant around the corner, but the wait there was an hour long, so we ended up at S & P instead. That being said, I think we were pleasantly surprised. The hanger steak I had was excellent and came with these duck fat fingerling potatoes that were awesome. The cheese plate we ordered as an appetizer was pretty good too, though they were, in my opinion, a little stingy with the amount of cheese given. The service is what takes the place down a notch – it was just a little too slow, though the waiter himself was perfectly fine when he was actually around.

Sing Sing Karaoke
It’s awesome. We went singing there from 1 AM until 4 AM. It’s $8 an hour per person. That’s all that needs to be said.

July 19, 2013

Departure Roulette

My friend forwarded this link on to me – it’s pretty amusing for all you spontaneous travelers out there!

http://www.fodors.com/news/heineken-departure-roulette-at-jfk-6971.html

July 17, 2013

Blue Ginger

583 Washington Street
Wellesley, MA 02482
781.283.5790

Monday-Thursday
Lunch 11:30am – 2:00pm
Dinner 5:30pm-9:30pm

Friday
Lunch 11:30am – 2:00pm
Dinner 5:30pm-10:00pm

Saturday
Blue Ginger Lounge: 12:00pm-10:00pm
Dinner 5:00pm-10:00pm

Sunday

Dinner 5:00pm-9:00pm

For those of you foodies out there who are familiar with the Asian-European fusion chef Ming Tsai, you probably know of his first restaurant called Blue Ginger. Located in the quiet suburb of Boston called Wellesley, when the restaurant first opened in 1998, it drew rave reviews for its exceptional and (at the time) new fusion type of food. People would come in from all around the country to try this place and its blend of French and Asian flavored cuisine.

In 2013, Blue Ginger doesn’t have as much of the fanfare as it used to have, but the food is still held at its highest standard. It’s very pricey, so for those of you who make a decent living, Blue Ginger is a special occasion type spot. For those of you that make more than a decent living, you probably aren’t reading this review because you’ve been there a dozen times already. I’d say that if you’re visiting Boston, Blue Ginger is only worth coming out to try if you’re in Boston for more than a week, otherwise there’s far more that you should see first in the city. If you’re local however, give it a go for an anniversary celebration, graduation or milestone birthday. Here’s a rundown of what we tried:

Hawaiian Bigeye Tuna Poke with Crispy Sushi Rice Cake and Microgreen-Tosaka Salad – This was probably the favorite dish of the night (including the entrees). It was a strange, but very tasty combination of a huge hunk of sushi style tuna on top of what could be best described as a hot, sticky-rice tater tot. The crunchiness of the rice cake with the soft, light tuna made for a really delightful appetizer – one which I would have been happy having a couple of as the main course.

Blue Ginger Charcuterie Plate – Duck Prosciutto, Foie Gras Torchon and Country Pâté – This is where the French influence comes out. The arrangement of the platter was well done and I thought the extremely rich foie gras was the best of the group. The platter also came with a really good spicy mustard that went well with the prosciutto and pate. I wouldn’t bother too much with the random Texas toast that came with the plate; instead I’d opt for spreading the pâté and foie gras on the sesame seed crackers that are on the table when you first sit. The Texas toast was just too buttery and took away from the flavors of the expensive stuff.

Sake-Miso Marinated Sablefish (a.k.a. Butterfish) with Wasabi Oil, Soy-Lime Syrup and Vegetarian Soba Noodle Sushi – This butterfish is considered Ming Tsai’s signature dish, and I could see why. Of the three entrees we had, it was easily the best. There wasn’t anything too fancy done with the fish and you’d probably be able to find a similar dish at a number of restaurants, but they do get points for perfect execution. It was cooked exactly the way it should have been – a nice, light char on the outside and light buttery meat on the inside. They did try and get cute with the Soba Noodle Sushi side, but I didn’t actually care for that all that much.

Garlic-Black Pepper Lobster with Lemongrass Fried Rice and Pea Tendril Salad with Tamari-Ginger Vinaigrette – The waitress said this is also a favorite of customers coming to Blue Ginger. Lobster is never bad, so I’ll say that while it wasn’t disappointing, there was just a little too much garlic for my taste getting in the way of the lobster. I’m sort of a lobster traditionalist where I want just the meat and a little butter, or a plain ol’ lobster roll. Again, that being said, just because it wasn’t my cup of tea doesn’t mean it wasn’t very delicious.

Seared Duck Breast with Sweet Wasabi Sauce and Applewood Smoked Duck Leg Wild Fried Rice with Shiso-Bartlett Pear Purée – This third entree was probably the most “eh” of the three. The flavor of the duck was very pronounced which saved the dish, but the meat was a little too tough/chewy and the skin wasn’t crispy enough for our taste. If they had slow cooked the duck a little more like Peking duck style, it could have easily been the best of the three.

Overall though the food was excellent. That being said, these days there are so many new restaurants, television shows, and food celebrities that Blue Ginger almost feels like an aging veteran. This is both a good and bad thing. It’s bad because despite its success, the menu and atmosphere feel “standard” with nothing nuanced and that nothing has really evolved since it first broke down the barrier between French and Asian cuisine. The good thing though is that it’s still a sure thing. What they do well, they’ve done well for years, and it’s the kind of place that I’m sure very rarely disappoints. Grade: B+

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June 12, 2013June 12, 2013

Weekend Getaway in Vermont

I think at some point everyone just wants to get away from it all. For those living in an urban area, an escape from the city noise, computers, and hustle & bustle is all that one could want for a few days.

Keep a close eye for the “Rushford” sign on the road. It’s very small, and you can easily drive right by the driveway if you’re not paying attention.

For my friends and I, we decided to take a recent “escape” trip to Burlington, VT. Now I know what you’re thinking, and yes it was kind of random. The reasoning was that A) Memorial Day was a good time for all of us to reunite, and B) a friend of ours was running the Vermont City Marathon in Burlington so we figured – why don’t we all just go up? So we rented a house on Lake Champlain, about 20 minutes outside of Burlington, VT.

If you’re looking for a really nice getaway place, I’d recommend checking this house out. It’s got three bedrooms with queen beds, one bedroom with two full sized beds, and one bedroom with a full size bed and two bunk beds. There is also a random bedroom with a queen bed out in the driveway on its own, sort of like an annex (to this day, I’m still not totally sure how and/or why there’s a single bedroom/hut out there…).

The canoe ride on the lake is really pleasant on a nice day

The house is fully furnished with a kitchen, porch, gas grill, and two bathrooms. There is only one shower (and a shower outside), and although we thought that would be a problem for the 8-10 of us, it ended up not really being an issue. The hot water for the shower stayed good and heated for several back to back showers as well. DirecTV and wireless internet are available as well.

The one thing to keep in mind, the house doesn’t have heating. There’s a nice gas fireplace on the first floor, but for the nights upstairs it can get chilly. That being said, there were A LOT of blankets available so you can bundle up.

Plenty of yard space for all sorts of games

Easily the best amenity of the house is its rock dock with fire pit. Out there you can cook up some s’mores, take out the available canoe or motorboat, or try and get lucky with the fishing equipment. Along with that there are available bikes to take out, as well as plenty of yard space for bocce or cornhole. The yard also includes a volleyball net and a horseshoe court.

The house is perfect for any group bigger than 5-6 or for a family vacation. As for the pricing, for the long Memorial Day weekend we had the place for $1,200 pre-tax, $1,308 post-tax for the Friday through Thursday (these prices do probably fluctuate based on the season).

Here’s the contact information if you’re interested in renting out the house:

Marcia Rushford
dmrushford@aol.com
263 W Shore Rd
South Hero, VT 05486

June 7, 2013

Jerusalem – Part II: The Old City

Back to the highlights from Israel. As I mentioned before, the advantage of staying at the Eldan Hotel is its proximity to the Old City. Arguably the biggest religious center in the entire world, the highlights of the Old City can be done in a day – but it would be very, very exhausting. My suggestion would be to give it a day and a half.

***I’ll try and limit the amount of historical background I get into (because quite frankly it would require pages and pages)

Before you go into the craziness of the Old City, I would actually recommend checking out the Tower of David Museum at the Jaffa Gate. We visited the museum at the end of our trip through the Old City, but in hindsight doing it beforehand probably would have been more beneficial. This museum will give you a great history of the city before you go and see the actual sights and can be realistically be done in a couple of hours.

You’ll also notice as you begin your journey into the Old City how remarkably international the environment is. Jerusalem, and in particular the Old City, really is the most international city that I’ve ever been immersed in with every sort of ethnicity represented. It just shows you how widespread Christianity, Judaism and Islam are practiced throughout the world.

Christian Section

We started our journey through the Old City at the Jaffa Gate, and made our way into the market to try and find the start of the Via Dolorosa. For those of you unfamiliar with the Via Dolorosa, it’s the path that Jesus Christ took on his way to his crucifixion. On the Via Delarosa, there are several checkpoint stations that mark where different miracles/events allegedly occurred during Christ’s walk. Be prepared to get lost. Although there are maps and a few signs to attempt to help visitors guide their way through, the Via Dolorosa runs through a very busy and crowded bazaar (much like the one in Fez, but with far fewer shop owners in your face). While some of the locals will actually try and help you, I’m afraid their kindness gets tainted by the locals who try and take advantage of you and get you in their stores. What you will find helpful is that there will be tour groups surrounding each of the landmarks, so use that to your advantage. I really need to find a way to create a perfect map of the Old City, with all the weird little roads and alleys marked. I’d be a millionaire from the sales off of the tourists.

Expect to see A LOT of religious zealots. As we were walking up and down the Via Dolorosa, there were several religious groups carrying crosses and chanting. At the final stop of the Via Dolorosa, the Holy Sepulchre (the site where Christ was allegedly crucified), there were hundreds of worshipers praying and weeping at the locations of the actual execution, where Christ was laid to rest, and his resurrection. I for one greatly appreciate the historical significance of all these landmarks, but I’ll be the first to admit that I was unsettled by the amount of crying and just 100% pure worship around me. I did feel in a way like an intruder invading people’s private moments. And I don’t mean to be insulting, but if I’m going to be honest – I really did think some of the people around me may have been slightly crazy.

Jewish Section

Towards the end of the Via Dolorosa, you’ll approach the Jewish section and the Western Wall (a.k.a. Wailing Wall). Needless to say, you have to go through tight security to get to the Western Wall courtyard. My first reaction to seeing the wall was surprise at the size of what was actually left. I imagined that there was only small portion, but the ruins of the western side of the ancient Jewish temple was much larger than I thought. There are separate men’s and women’s prayer sections of the wall, so make sure to find a place to regroup after you’re done looking and/or praying (though I heard recently they are considering making the prayer areas mixed). There is also a dress code: men should have their heads covered and women should be pretty much covered to the knees and over the shoulders. Shawls and skullcaps are available to borrow.

You’ll notice when you approach the wall that there are thousands, if not millions, or pieces of paper shoved into the cracks of the wall. These are prayers or letters that have been placed in the wall as messages to God by pilgrims and anyone is welcome to contribute. Although I don’t practice the Hebrew faith, I still partook in writing a personal note and placing it in one of the cracks in the wall. God is God, no matter what your faith right?

Muslim Section

Part three of this world religion tour (seriously it was like a straight-up, real-life Epcot Center World Showcase going from religion to religion) was to head to the Muslim section of the city. Because both Muslims and Hebrews share the Temple Mount, you will literally see a ramp along the Western Wall that will take you to the Dome of the Rock, the site where the prophet Mohammad is said to have ascended to heaven.

There aren’t many signs telling you that the ramp is the way to get to the Dome of the Rock, that’s why I’m telling you now. Also, there is a long wait – at least 30 minutes – so be prepared for that. Finally, be sure to figure out what hours the area is open for non-Muslims and plan accordingly.

Once you make it to the top of ramp, you’ll notice how serene the scene is and how impressive the gold dome of the Dome of the Rock stands out. Compared to the rather crowded Western Wall, there’s much more room to leisurely walk around. Although non-Muslims aren’t allowed inside, the Dome of the Rock is very impressive on the outside to see and one can imagine how much more impressive the building was centuries ago to the visiting pilgrims.

All in all, seeing this melting pot of religions and nationalities is easily one of the most unique experiences I’ve ever had. It is hard to put into words how fascinating it was to see thousands of people from these three major world religions crash into this one area no bigger than the size of a small town. It amazes me to think about how much conflict has occurred over the years over this one region and, quite honestly, how much of a shame it is that there hasn’t ever been a way to find a resolution between what are essentially “distant relative” religions.

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May 23, 2013

Franklin Barbecue

I’ll be back soon with the rest of my Israel postings, but I had to interrupt with this quick post. For some reason, I’ve been to Austin, TX quite a few times in the past couple of years, so I’ve had a chance to give a lot of the barbecue in the city a try.

Easily the best brisket I’ve had not just in Austin but, well, in life was at Franklin Barbecue. Located just outside the main downtown of Austin, you’ll be able to spot it with no trouble by the crowd standing in line to get in. Doors open at 11 am (only for lunch), and when we got there around noon there was already a one hour wait. I know it sounds like a long time, but it’s worth the wait.

Because of the limited supply of meat they have each day, they don’t guarantee that they’ll have what you want once you get up to the register. Waiters walk down the line every few minutes to give people an update on what supply is left. Unfortunately for us, they had run out of ribs by the time we were able to order, but the brisket they let us sample (and that we eventually ordered) more than made up for it. Moist, flavorful, fatty, meaty – it was done perfectly.

And they do not cheat you; for $13 you can get two meats and two sides with bread. I opted with the brisket and sausage. I could have taken the slabs of meat they flopped down on the plate and the two sides and made three meals out of it. In hindsight – I wish I just gotten the $10 one meat plate, skipped the sausage since it was “eh”, but just had the brisket to die for.

Days: Tuesday–Sunday, CLOSED all Mondays
Hrs: 11am–sold out (just open for lunch)

900 E. 11th, Austin, TX 78702

Waiters will come outside and sell beverages while you wait to get in

There’s limited seating inside, but there is a bit more outside

So. Freaking. Good.

April 14, 2013

Jerusalem – Part I

After our little excursion to the Dead Sea and Masada, we headed out of the Negev desert and back to civilization. Our next stop was Jerusalem which was what could be considered the main feature of the trip to Israel.

Driving into Jerusalem is tricky so be prepared for a high stress driving situation if you’re behind the wheel. All the maps of the city that we had lacked the small side streets and the Garmin GPS struggled to find certain streets and pronounce the Hebrew accurately in understandable English (You don’t know on-edge driving until you’re in a different country and Garmin spits out “Turn left on Allafuweesa Hearzog” and the only sign you see is Kovshei Katamon Street.)

We eventually arrived at our hotel in one piece – the Eldan Hotel. This place is located across from the famous King David Hotel, so you can use that as a landmark when trying to find it. The hotel itself is very nice, with renovated rooms and it’s in a fantastic location (a quick walk to the Old City, which will be in the next post). There is very limited and tight parking, so again, have a good driver behind the wheel. You will pay a a bit to stay here – at least $200 US a night and there is NO internet (which was very bizarre for the price we were paying for the room), but its location in relation to the sites makes it worth it. If you do want to use the internet, you have to go next door to the YMCA or the King David to get a free WiFi signal.

Here are a few of the highlights from our first day (apologies for the relatively scarce amount of pictures – most of these museums didn’t allow photography):

Israel Museum

Hours
Sun, Mon, Wed, Thurs 10 am – 5 pm
Tues 4pm – 9 pm (*Please note the Museum is closed on Tuesday mornings and during special holiday hours)
Fri and holiday eves 10 am – 2 pm
Sat and holidays 10 am – 5 pm

***Children under 18 free admission on Tuesdays and Saturdays

The Israel Museum is a solid starting point for your visit to the city. There you can view the Dead Sea Scrolls and Aleppo Codex and get a nice, but admittedly typical, look at a range of Jewish artwork. The Judaic portion of the museum is a good exhibit of the history of Jewish culture and worth walking through. There is also free parking at the museum and some very good free tours that are offered throughout the day.

Yad Vashem and the Holocaust Museum

Hours
Sunday-Wednesday: 9:00 – 5:00
Thursday: 9:00-8:00
Friday: 9:00-2:00
Saturday: Closed

A trip to Israel wouldn’t be complete without a very necessary stop at Yad Vashem and The Holocaust Museum. I’m going to say this right off the bat – this part of the trip will be extremely disturbing and emotionally draining, so be prepared for that.

At Yad Vashem, you’ll be able to look at the Hall of Remembrance – a dark, quiet hangar bay like structure that houses the eternal flame and the names of all the concentration camps carved onto the floor. Down the way is the Children’s Memorial. This memorial is a spooky, but beautiful tribute to the children victims of the holocaust. The memorial is a completely dark walkthrough with only one candle in the center and mirrors all around that make the room look like it’s filled with starry candlelight. The only sound that can be heard is the voice of one man reciting the names, birthplaces and ages of all the children victims.

Of the three big parts of Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Museum is easily the most impressive. Being from D.C., I made the mistake of thinking the D.C and Jerusalem holocaust museums would be similar. The museum in Jerusalem is shockingly long, so give yourself at least two hours to go through it and I will admit is FAR better than the holocaust museum in Washington, D.C. As you go through each room and listen to the hundreds of stories and read the thousands of displays, it’s indescribable to fathom just how unbelievably and incredibly horrible of a tragedy occurred. Don’t be surprised if you see a lot of people with watery eyes or if you find yourself crying. At the end of the museum, if you take a look around at all the faces of the other tourists, you’ll just see mass exhaustion and the look that everyone just got hit in the face. Needless to say, this is not a “fun” thing to see or do, but it is an extremely interesting experience.

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April 1, 2013April 2, 2013

Masada and the Dead Sea

Driving north from Eliat, we made our way to the kibbutz that we would be staying in for the next couple of days – the Khalia Kibbutz. The kibbutz is located a few miles from the Dead Sea and going into it I didn’t know what to expect. I really thought it would be like an amish-type village thing, but quickly realized that I was quite mistaken. As we approached the gate, there were armed guards who had to check us through due to kibbutzes being a frequent target of terrorist attacks. We made our way past security, and we saw that that the kibbutz was a modern, fully-functioning community.

More like a vacation resort complex than a farm, the room we stayed in was modest, clean, and affordable with a little kitchen and back patio. The staff was friendly, but like all Israelis they had a curt, edgy directness. The Khalia Kibbutz is good choice if you’re looking to do something very Israeli and need a place to stay when visiting the following:

The Dead Sea

The Dead Sea was definitely one of the highlights of the trip. We went to Mineral Beach, which is one of the beaches you do actually have to pay for to enter. They also offer towels and lockers to rent and spa services (which are very overpriced). The beach itself isn’t really a “lay out the towel and lounge” type beach. The ground is extremely rocky, but there are several beach chairs for you to have so that you’re not sitting on the rocks.

Regardless of that, the reason why you’re there isn’t to enjoy the “sand” – its to experience the water. And it certainly doesn’t disappoint. All the stories you hear about being able to literally float with no effort are 100% true. Once you get in, all you need to do is lift up your feet and it’s like you’re on an invisible floating mat. A few things to note though – DO NOT DUNK. I cannot stress this enough. The water tastes absolutely horrible and will cause serious harm to your eyes if it gets in contact with them. Also, DO NOT SHAVE before going in. The water is SO salty that any small cut or scrape will burn like crazy. I didn’t shave, but there were a few small scratches on my legs that I didn’t know about and the water quickly let me know they were there.

When you’re tired of floating in the sea itself, you can try giving yourself a mud treatment. There are barrels of the mineral mud located on the beach and you’ll see everyone covering their skin up in this gunky mess. When you wash it off, your skin feels absolutely smooth and fresh as the mud has sucked up all the oils and dead skin and washed them away. Be warned, the mud also stings so if you’re going to put it on your face, just be prepared.

It’s also worth partaking in the sulfur pool. This giant hot tub has the same water as the dead sea so you can float around in it with all the other people. The water is very hot though and we couldn’t stay in there too long.

Hiking up the Masada

Another famous Israeli landmark is the Masada, a fortress that was built on top of a mountain in 37 B.C. It’s famous for the great siege at Masada, where 960 Jewish settlers committed mass suicide to avoid capture from the Romans. You can read more about the story here. There are two ways up the mountain to see the ruins of the fortress – hike and the cable car. The cable car will get you up to the top in a few minutes. If you’re going to attempt the hike up to the top of the mountain, you’ll take the snake trail and that climb will take you 45 minutes to an hour or two depending on your pace. You should also be in relatively good shape, the hike up is not an easy one if you choose the snake trail. There is a significantly easier trail up as well called the Roman Ramp, but that requires you to drive 40 minutes around the mountain to the other side. There’s a fee to hike and a fee for the cable car. A popular option is to pay for the hike up and a pay for a one-way trip back down on the cable car. Once you get to the top, you can easily spend a couple hours up there. There are several pretty intact ruins left and the views of the Dead Sea are amazing.

Ein Gedi and Qumran

For more hiking, swing by Ein Gedi Nature Park. There you can explore the park’s waterfalls, caves, natural springs and wildlife. It’s pretty incredible seeing the lush flora and water of this oasis in the middle of the desert. Qumran is also located close by. If you have an hour, check out the site where they found the Dead Sea Scrolls and see how the ancient tribes that found them lived. However, keep in mind that the actual scrolls aren’t kept at Qumran. They’re housed in the Israel Museum in Jerusalem – our next destination.

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