Time-Out Vacation

I had to take some time off and go out of my house (and away from the computer!) :)

I usually don't like long drives away from home, but Israel is such a small country! It takes only 4-5 hours to drive from the center to the southern border (and the same to go to the northern border), so I decided to spend a long weekend in Eilat, which is the southern city of Israel.

The weather there was great - not too hot (it can reach to 40 C and higher) and not cold, and except from haziness we had for one day, it was just perfect for a short spring vacation.
I am always excited to see how the colors of nature changes as we go south.
From green fields in the center of country it changes to glittering gold of the sand dunes in the Negev desert, and then to many shades of brown and grey of the rocks and hills, to the breathtaking red colors of the mountains surrounding Eilat.
At night in the desert, when the skies wear their black dress, you can clearly see the millions of stars shining like Swarovski Crystals ;), and during the day you can see the blue skies merging with most beautiful clear blue of the sea.

On our last night of the vacation, I had the chance to meet a dear member of the beading commune, aka Zebra, who lives in sunny Eilat. She makes such beautiful beadwoven jewelry, some of them I could look close and touch thanks to the fact that she actually WEAR her designs (not like me..;)

My family and I had such a great time, that we didn't want to go back home...
My partner, who is usually being a "wheel-freak", willingly gave up driving so he could take some photos of the amazing places we passed along the way.

The Arava Desert

Contrasting colors of the soil

"Acacia Raddiana" (Shitah in Hebrew) - The widespreaded tree in the desert

Zin Stream area - Beautiful colors and shapes

Nothing is man made - Amazing nature sculpting itself..

Rocks and soil turn to red as we approach Eilat

Eilat - the view on a haziness day - The Jordanian city of Akaba and the breathtaking Red Rocks in the background.