Don't Come for the Animals: Go to Africa

A gazelle in the Negev desert, Israeli biologists are introducing native species

Israelis like to think of Israel as the ultimate place to visit. Well, that is true if you are an archeology buff and want to see Roman temples and early Hebrew synagogues. If you are coming for spiritual reasons, there are Jewish, Christian and Muslim sites. You can take the bible and literally use it as a travel guide while walking in Jerusalem and many areas in the Gallil (northern Israel). If you want to see medium size museums with some local archaeological finds, from glass plates and vases two thousand years old and looks like they belong on a dinner table at a fine restaurant (they probably did see fine dining in their time), to coins from the last 2,500 years, that you can do in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and Haifa. If you want to see some of the original Dead Sea scrolls, there are a few on display, including an almost complete book of Isaiah. But don't come here if you are looking for a safari adventure or want to photograph lions walking through your camp. If you are looking to photograph a massive migration of animals, forget about it! Go to north America, Africa or even northern Europe. Not here, not unless you are looking for migrating birds twice a year, traveling from the northern countries to Africa for the winter. Then back again, going north this time, in the spring. If you are fashionista, go to Paris, London or New York for fashion shows and shopping. For sports, any big US or European city will have more events with world famous teams than Tel Aviv (try Barcelona for football or New York for baseball and basketball).