Hey! It still amazes me how amazing it is to be back home! I just love it!!
I told my friend Alyssa that I would have a story about pickles, so eventually I'll get to that, but let me start with some intro to this particular blog, post, thing.
I decided, back when I first blogged after coming home from my 6 week trip, that I would DEFINATELY NOT post about my trip in the order that it happened, and however confusing that is going to make it for all my dedicated readers out there, I apologize in advance. Unfortunatly with my first post that was specified, I went against my own rule and wrote about the first week, well, first. So, now I will follow my rule, and I will write this post on my trip through the desert.
We went into the Negev, the desert in the south that makes up about 50% (or something like that) of Israel. We went into a part of it called a maktesh(I don't know how to spell it, but this is it phonetically: mah-k-tay-sh), and did our hiking in that (Second pic is of the maktesh before we entered). A maktesh is a geological phenominon that only occurs in Israel. It is like a crater that is so big from each side to the other side that you can hardly see the opposite side at the widest parts. You could almost compare it to the Grand Canyon, but instead of being long and made by a river, it is round, and was made by layering of hard and soft rock. Then an ocean covered it, and it turned into a mountain of sorts. After that there was a crack on the top of the mountain, and when rain and other forms of water got in the crack it made the crack bigger. Finally the crack got so big that it widened out to look something like a bathtub. A G-d sized bathtub, that is what a maktesh is.
So, that is what we were hiking in. It was not a desert like what you would see in Aladdin, but it was many rocks and tall walls, a few scattered plants and the very occasional oasis surrounded by greenery.(Third pic is us in the maktesh hiking) The hours from 1 till 3 we were not allowed to hike because it got to be so hot that if we stayed out for more than 15 minutes we would be completely dehydrated and would not be able to rehyderate ourselves fast enough, so we had to sleep in the shade under a rock.
Before we got to the place we were to start hiking from, we got to visit an Alpaca farm. I am a knitter, and I love alpaca yarn, but the animals that the yarn comes from, I don't like as much. They are like bad tempered, ugly llamas. (First pic is of alpacas)
Now, to rapidly change subjects again, I will tell you the story about pickles.
When we were hanging out under the rock during the hottest part of the day in the desert, not everyone could sleep (me included). Right before we were told to go to sleep, we had been given lunch (last of the pics above). One of the things we were given for lunch was pickles, and very few people actually ate them, so we ended up with about a can and a half left over. Well, all the people who couldn't sleep were bored, so we went about trying to find something to do.
One kid found something to do that entertained all the people who weren't sleeping. He took a pickle from one of the cans, and slowly placed it in one of the sleeping kid's hands that was only open enough for a pickle to fit in. When he didn't wake up, we all had to try to keep from laughing, because that would have surely woken him up.
Then someone who did not have as steady hands as the first guy, tried to put a slice of orange in the kid's other hand, but he woke up. When he woke up, he looked at the orange in his hand and was unhappy to find out that we had found it funny that it was there, but it took him a whole three minutes more to even realize that the pickle was in his other hand at all. Had he noticed it right away it would have been funny, but the fact that he didn't notice it for the first while was even funnier! This story is probably one of the most boring stories you have heard in a while, and I apologize for that. Now that I have used up your time, bored you to tears (if not to sleep), and shown/told you more about my trip, it would seem that my work here is done.
Have fun with whatever is left of your summer, I know that there is almost nothing left of mine! And I will hear from you later, and post again sometime soon!
Lizzie~
5 comments:
Hi Lizzie - Thank you for visiting my blog and leaving that nice comment. I'm always glad to hear from you and enjoy reading what you have to say. Yes summer is sure flying by for me and I'll bet it's ten times as fast for you! What did you do at band camp? When I was 12 and 13 I went to band camp and had a lot of fun.
Your description of the maktesh was very interesting. I have never heard of that type of geological formation. I wonder why it only happens in Israel.
I'm amazed that you were hiking in such an arid, desert-like place. And the dehydration aspect is kind of scary. You kids were really brave.
I have been wondering if you or your guides weren't worried about being alone and unguarded while you made your trek. Since things are so tense in the Middle East - Israel especially - were your parents comfortable with you being over there? It may not be any of my business, but my husband asked me that too when I told him where you had been. Well, no matter, you returned safe and sound.
And yes, I laughed about your pickle-in-the-hand story. You're lucky you couldn't sleep during those times or someone might have done the same thing to you. The pickles mustn't have tasted too good if they were being used for jokes. What is the food that is laid out in the photo. And did you like it?
I had always heard that alpacas were really friendly and cute. I guess not.
Have a fun week and start getting ready for school.
Alyssa
A quick note Lizzie. I forgot to say how much I like the new look of your blog! It looks very grown-up. (Hope you take that as the compliment it is meant to be!!)
Hi Lizzie,
glad you had fun in that desert, looks cool... lol I love this post...hahha Never been to a desert myself :(
Thanks for the comments, right now I'm quite busy at work but I'll get back and make more wallpapers.
I'll let you know :)
Bye
lol
no problem, you can use as your own wallpaper, print them, distribute them, anything...
I'm not doing any business/commercial work with them so go ahead :) You're free to do whatever you want with them..
No problem :D
I'll be happier! Yeah I know my friends too tell me to make some money but I dont feel like right now... lol... I want to become better first :)
I'm trying to create humans, but OMG its so hard :( Once i am able to create a human (even the face) then I can say that I am becoming good.Because then I will have a complete composition: character and background :)
Post a Comment