We have put together some ideas on what to experience either before you leave or while you visit this beautiful and enchanting country. From literature to cuisine, accommodations to historical attractions, or simply souvenirs, you will find it here. Simply click on a tab above to read more about the topic.
King David Hotel
The King David Hotel is a majestic and historic building with captivating ambience. It is a unique combination of modern facilities and traditional atmosphere and host to diplomats, experienced travelers and all dignitaries visiting Jerusalem. All of its rooms are renovated and well equipped for the discerning traveler. All of the guestrooms are comfortable and nicely equipped to give a feeling of being home while away from home. The hotel also has a variety of facilities and services that are sure to meet the needs of both business and leisure travelers.
The King David Hotel is a majestic and historic building with captivating ambience. It is a unique combination of modern facilities and traditional atmosphere and host to diplomats, experienced travelers and all dignitaries visiting Jerusalem. All of its rooms are renovated and well equipped for the discerning traveler. All of the guestrooms are comfortable and nicely equipped to give a feeling of being home while away from home. The hotel also has a variety of facilities and services that are sure to meet the needs of both business and leisure travelers.
Gourmet Israeli Dining
Dining in Israel has it all: Elegant four-star restaurants can be found alongside small cafes and pizza or falafel stands. Today's Israeli food is a mix of tastes and ingredients- herbs, oils and spices-indigenous to the region. The new Israeli chefs, who have trained locally and internationally, have brought in the cooking influences of France, Italy and California to create the new "Med-Rim Cuisine."
Please note that while kosher food is predominant in Israel's hotels, many restaurants are not kosher. For excellent wine to accompany fine dining, there are more than 21 wineries in Israel, particularly in the Carmel, Golan and Galilee regions. Many are open to the public, including the Rishon-le-Zion, Katzrin (Gamla) and Zichron Yaacov wineries.
Mansaf
The national dish of Jordan is the Bedouin specialty called "Mansaf" - lamb seasoned with aromatic herbs, sometimes lightly spiced, cooked in dried yogurt, and served on a large platter with huge quantities of rice, sprinkled with almonds, pine kernels, and other nuts. Feasting on Mansaf is taken seriously, and hours are spent in its preparations. This extravagant cuisine is served primarily on special occasions such as weddings, birthdays, and anniversaries, as it possesses an important symbolic function within social gatherings.
Dining in Israel has it all: Elegant four-star restaurants can be found alongside small cafes and pizza or falafel stands. Today's Israeli food is a mix of tastes and ingredients- herbs, oils and spices-indigenous to the region. The new Israeli chefs, who have trained locally and internationally, have brought in the cooking influences of France, Italy and California to create the new "Med-Rim Cuisine."
Please note that while kosher food is predominant in Israel's hotels, many restaurants are not kosher. For excellent wine to accompany fine dining, there are more than 21 wineries in Israel, particularly in the Carmel, Golan and Galilee regions. Many are open to the public, including the Rishon-le-Zion, Katzrin (Gamla) and Zichron Yaacov wineries.
Mansaf
The national dish of Jordan is the Bedouin specialty called "Mansaf" - lamb seasoned with aromatic herbs, sometimes lightly spiced, cooked in dried yogurt, and served on a large platter with huge quantities of rice, sprinkled with almonds, pine kernels, and other nuts. Feasting on Mansaf is taken seriously, and hours are spent in its preparations. This extravagant cuisine is served primarily on special occasions such as weddings, birthdays, and anniversaries, as it possesses an important symbolic function within social gatherings.
Israel has a large variety of tempting souvenirs. Israel has a large diamond and jewelry industry, whose products can be bought both at special shops and factories. In addition, there are oriental rugs, furs and leather goods. Smaller souvenirs are embroidery and needlework, pictures, ceramics and various arts and crafts.
Israel
- Winner Takes All by Stephen Brook is a great primer for a visit to Israel.
- Jerusalem: City of Mirrors by Amos Elon is an illuminating and entertaining guide to the author's home town.
- From Beirut to Jerusalem by Pulitzer Prize winner Thomas Friedman gives an excellent background to the strife still tearing apart this region.
- Gaza: Legacy of an Occupation by Dick Doughty and Mohammed El-Aydi gives an emotive, gritty view of Palestinian life in the Strip.
- Exodus by Leon Uris is a hugely popular, hugely fat novel with an Israeli theme, great for long bus rides.
- The Bible - the classic travelogue to this part of the world.
- Kingdom of the Film Stars: Journey Into Jordan by Annie Caulfield tells the story of the author's relationship with a Bedouin man.
- Treks and Climbs in the Mountains of Rum and Petra by Tony Howard is an excellent handbook of walks, climbs and car and camel treks.
- A History of the Arab Peoples by Albert Hourani gives a feel for the evolution of Muslim Arab societies.
- Seven Pillars of Wisdom by TE Lawrence is Lawrence of Arabia straight from the camel's mouth.
Jordan's desert castles
Scattered throughout the desert east of Amman are a number of castles, which constitute the most important examples of early Islamic art and architecture to be found anywhere in the Middle East.
The castles were built in the 7th and 8th centuries A.D. by caliphs of the Umayyad dynasty, who constructed them as both palace retreats and as fortification.
Qasr Hallabat
Travelling from Amman, the first of these to be reached is Qasr Hallabat, first used as a second century Roman fort and later rebuilt in the third century by the Emperor Caracalla. Later, between 709 and 743A.D., the Umayyads virtually demolished the Roman buildings in their entirety and rebuilt an extensive complex including a castle, mosque and bath-house. These buildings have fine decorations of mosaic, carved stucco woodwork and frescoes, many of which have been removed for safe-keeping. The site is not yet fully restored.
Qasr Azraq
Qasr Azraq is a castle built of basalt, located in the middle of the Azraq oasis, about 100km east of Amman. It was originally constructed as a Nabataean or Roman fort and was later rebuilt by the Mamelukes in the 13th century. T.E. Lawrence used the castle as his headquarters while fighting in the Arab Revolt and his office was in the room above the entrance gatehouse.
The Azraq oasis contains the only permanent source of fresh water in the surrounding 12 thousand square miles of desert and, in consequence, attracts a large number of birds en route for migration destinations. Part of the area is now protected as a wetlands reserve. Although up to 300 bird species were recorded visitors during the 1970s, this number has declined drastically, due to the pumping of water from the oasis to supply an ever-increasing demand in Amman.
Qasr Amra
The most famous of the desert castles is Qasr Amra. This was built by the Umayyads as a pleasure and sporting retreat and contains an early 8th century baths complex in a triple-vaulted building full of colourfully painted frescoes. Although somewhat scarred by time, these frescoes depict dancing women and the then-abundant animal life of the desert area. The original well and underground water system can still be seen here.
Qasr Kharanah
Qasr Kharanah is yet another imposing fortress built by the Umayyads, once thought to have been constructed for defence purposes. It is perhaps more likely that it was a former caravanserai, where camel caravans pulled in to break their journey.
The thick-walled structure has two floors of living space topped by an open-roofed area and is built around a courtyard. The windows are narrow, arrow-slots and these open in all directions, lending considerable credence to the fortress theory, although many historians feel that they would have offered insufficient field of fire to archers and are more likely to have been used for light and ventilation. Decorations are few, but some frescoes are to be found in the upper rooms.
Qasr Mushatta
Qasr Mushatta was once a true palace, but it is in the poorest state of repair of all the desert castles. Situated near the Queen Alia International airport, it is a huge square walled enclosure with round towers at the corners, five semi-circular ones and a monumental gateway on the south side. This was once embellished with lavish carvings, but these were given away in 1903 by Sultan Abdul Hamid II to the German Kaiser Wilhelm II. Wilhelm had them sent to Berlin, where they can now be seen in the Pergamum Museum. A few delicate carvings remain, some lying on the ground where they fell.
Scattered throughout the desert east of Amman are a number of castles, which constitute the most important examples of early Islamic art and architecture to be found anywhere in the Middle East.
The castles were built in the 7th and 8th centuries A.D. by caliphs of the Umayyad dynasty, who constructed them as both palace retreats and as fortification.
Qasr Hallabat
Travelling from Amman, the first of these to be reached is Qasr Hallabat, first used as a second century Roman fort and later rebuilt in the third century by the Emperor Caracalla. Later, between 709 and 743A.D., the Umayyads virtually demolished the Roman buildings in their entirety and rebuilt an extensive complex including a castle, mosque and bath-house. These buildings have fine decorations of mosaic, carved stucco woodwork and frescoes, many of which have been removed for safe-keeping. The site is not yet fully restored.
Qasr Azraq
Qasr Azraq is a castle built of basalt, located in the middle of the Azraq oasis, about 100km east of Amman. It was originally constructed as a Nabataean or Roman fort and was later rebuilt by the Mamelukes in the 13th century. T.E. Lawrence used the castle as his headquarters while fighting in the Arab Revolt and his office was in the room above the entrance gatehouse.
The Azraq oasis contains the only permanent source of fresh water in the surrounding 12 thousand square miles of desert and, in consequence, attracts a large number of birds en route for migration destinations. Part of the area is now protected as a wetlands reserve. Although up to 300 bird species were recorded visitors during the 1970s, this number has declined drastically, due to the pumping of water from the oasis to supply an ever-increasing demand in Amman.
Qasr Amra
The most famous of the desert castles is Qasr Amra. This was built by the Umayyads as a pleasure and sporting retreat and contains an early 8th century baths complex in a triple-vaulted building full of colourfully painted frescoes. Although somewhat scarred by time, these frescoes depict dancing women and the then-abundant animal life of the desert area. The original well and underground water system can still be seen here.
Qasr Kharanah
Qasr Kharanah is yet another imposing fortress built by the Umayyads, once thought to have been constructed for defence purposes. It is perhaps more likely that it was a former caravanserai, where camel caravans pulled in to break their journey.
The thick-walled structure has two floors of living space topped by an open-roofed area and is built around a courtyard. The windows are narrow, arrow-slots and these open in all directions, lending considerable credence to the fortress theory, although many historians feel that they would have offered insufficient field of fire to archers and are more likely to have been used for light and ventilation. Decorations are few, but some frescoes are to be found in the upper rooms.
Qasr Mushatta
Qasr Mushatta was once a true palace, but it is in the poorest state of repair of all the desert castles. Situated near the Queen Alia International airport, it is a huge square walled enclosure with round towers at the corners, five semi-circular ones and a monumental gateway on the south side. This was once embellished with lavish carvings, but these were given away in 1903 by Sultan Abdul Hamid II to the German Kaiser Wilhelm II. Wilhelm had them sent to Berlin, where they can now be seen in the Pergamum Museum. A few delicate carvings remain, some lying on the ground where they fell.