By: Jason

A primary research goal of mine here in Israel is to work with lobsters.  The Mediterranean slipper lobster however, is not like the lobsters you might be used to seeing in New England – that is readily visible (underwater), plentiful, and cheap.  As a result, I have had to rely on many people to help me navigate through the fishmonger stalls in Akko (Acre) to negotiate and, in most cases, purchase lobsters.  “Do you have any lobsterim (lobsters, that is) today?” in Hebrew or better yet Arabic (the preferred way to ask).  Oh yeah, I have also actually seen clawed lobsters at the fish market, flown in from Canada or Maine – unbelievable how those guys get around! 

Slipper lobster: Notice the beautiful purple highlights.
Once I got this lobster into the lab, I glued on the tag
(so I can tell who is who for experiments).

Over the past month or so, I have made myself familiar to a couple of the guys in the market, and they now recognize me.  This has been part of my usual routine, scampering around the Akko fish market, walking around the port, etc.  However this week, one of my colleagues at the University managed to hook me up with the Kingpin of the Akko fishing community (his name I will keep anonymous for obvious reasons).  I met this character on a stairwell, on a sweltering afternoon and, having made introductions (in very, very broken English and Arabic) he took me up the stairs, down a seedy looking hallway and into a dark room. 

There in the kitchenette sink were 5 nice-looking lobsters.  After little verbal communication and invisible writing of the price on the wall, we had made a deal (and excellent one!).  I had made a new friend and am excited to see this guy again.    

It’s still never a sure bet going to Akko for lobsters for one reason or another which brings me to the other way to get lobsters – go dive for them myself.

In fact, this is another part of my research: to capture and tag lobsters in a Marine Reserve, Achziv Marine Park located north of Haifa and on the border with the friendly neighbors to the north, Lebanon.  I have been getting the help of the Park Ranger there and am making some good progress.  

Diving for lobsters

As I alluded to earlier, these lobsters are hard to find.  They are cryptic and extremely camouflaged.  They tend to take up residence under large rocky ledges or inside small caves or holes, often hanging upside down.  Not that easy to find and catch when you have a limited source of air and need to hang almost upside down to find them.  Then there is their strength -- because these animals have no claws or spines, they rely on their brute force to cling to rocks or other hard objects.  They can use their powerful legs to open up bivalves (we have to shuck them with heavy, sharp knives) and the force at which they do so is tremendous.  Let’s just say they are like the true 4x4s of the Sea with the impenetrability of an army tank. 

Capturing these lobsters is a multi-step process: find ledges, caves, or holes in the sea bed, use a good flashlight to scan around, and hope to find one or two.  Other critters such as stingrays and even an occasional moray eel have  been known to co-exist with these lobsters as well.

Just another challenging but exciting adventure!

Our good friends Beth and Craig visited us for a week earlier in June. Keeping up the tradition, we asked Beth to write a guest post about their adventures...

What an amazing trip! We only went for 7 days, but packed so much into the short trip that it felt like so much longer. After what seemed like an interminable flight from JFK direct to Tel Aviv and then an hour train ride to Haifa, we finally met up with Rebecca. We took the bus up to the university and checked out Jason’s lab and the awesome slipper lobsters! As you can see, they are so completely different from the lobsters in the US.

Mediterranean slipper lobster

The next day, we went up to Akko where Jason was doing some field work. Not only did we do some shopping in the local shuk where I bought the most amazing dates. But, being scientists, no trip to the local market is complete without collecting some data on the lobsters. Of course, no trip to an ancient city is complete without climbing onto the fortress walls and seeing the sights. We even checked out the old Templar  tunnels before heading off to Nahariyya and swimming in the Mediterranean Sea.

Measuring lobsters in Akko's market

The next day we traveled to Zichron Ya’acov to touring some gardens and taste some wine. Given that Israel is a desert, the greenery found everywhere is amazing.

Craig’s favorite thing of the entire trip was the next day, a trip to the Dead Sea and the lowest point on the planet. We visited Mineral Beach and spent hours floating in the water, you could float on your stomach with your hands as a pillow and not have to worry about sinking! Of course, no trip to the Dead Sea is complete without slathering your whole body with mud and floating in the hot sulfur pools. We also went for a quick camel ride at the local gas station. How often does that chance come up?

Don't try this at home

Camel Ride!

After the Dead Sea, we headed into Jerusalem for the night. While our hotel was nice, the one across the street, the American Colony Hotel, was amazing. The best part of the evening was the bisht (robes) that the restaurant gave Jason and Craig to wear. The rest of the evening they couldn’t stop laughing about it and enjoying showing them off to the rest of the patrons.

Jason and Craig having a little too much fun!

We saw so much in Jerusalem, I don’t know where to start. It's an unbelievable city with many things to see and do. We did the usual tourist sites including walking the city ramparts. 

After Jerusalem, Craig and I abandoned Jason and Rebecca to travel to Eilat and Petra. We left at 6:30 am to head to the Jordanian border where we walked through the crossing. On the other side, we got in a bus and started the 2.5 hour drive to Petra, arriving around 10:00 am. We spent the next 8 hours hiking all over and saw some amazing sights. We were originally scheduled for a two day trip, but were so exhausted after 8 hours in the sun going straight up, that despite there being so much more to see, decided to leave after breakfast (rather than lunch) and return to Eilat. Once there, we wandered around the city and swam in the Red Sea. Despite the crowds, the beach was nice and the water was chilly.

Petra

On our last day in Israel, we explored the Underwater Observatory Marine Park where the aquarium descends over 12 feet into the Red Sea and is surrounded by amazing reefs and zillions of fish. You can climb up the top and look out over the Red Sea from the observation tower. The rest of the aquarium was pretty amazing also, there were more sea turtles than I could count and a dark room to admire phosphorescent fish and corals.

Red Sea Observatory

Corals

Reef and fish!

Itinerary

Tues: Arrival in Haifa, trip to the University, dinner

Wed: Trip to Akko, shopping and exploring, trip to Nahariya, swim in the Mediterranean Sea

Thurs: Gardens and Zichron Ya’acov

Fri: Trip to the Dead Sea (Mineral Beach), dinner at American Colony Hotel 

Sat: Trip to Jerusalem, explore the Old City, stay in East Jerusalem, travel to Eilat

Sun: Jordan and Petra, spend the night in Wadi Musa

Mon: Return to Eilat, explore the area, swim in the Red Sea

Tues: Explore the Underwater Observatory Marine Park, travel to Tel Aviv and back to JFK 

Thanks Beth for writing up this post! There are more photos of Beth and Craig's trip in our photo albums.

By: Rebecca

Our friends Beth and Craig visited this past week. We enjoyed showing them around Israel to some of our favorite places and some new places. 

One place that was new to me was the Dead Sea. Up to this point, I hadn't been further south than Jerusalem. I can't believe how different the landscape is once you pass Jerusalem to the south and east! The desert is unbelievable. The brilliant blue water of the Dead Sea sets off the mountains of rocks and sand. The only green to be found is in the plantations of giant date palms. It is completely different from the north and perhaps even more stunning in it's starkness. 

Desert Mountains in Israel

Our plan was to drive along the Sea until we found a place that looked clean and not crowded. We ended up at Mineral Beach - a beach/spa owned by a kibbutz. There is a swimming (well, floating) area with chairs and umbrellas, mud baths, a thermo-mineral spring, a fresh water pool, and a spa offering massages (unfortunately closed the day we were there). 

Mineral Beach on the Dead Sea

Floating in the Dead Sea is one of the strangest experiences I've ever had! The water is so salty (33% - or almost 9 times as salty as the ocean) that it's impossible to sink. Even if you wanted to go under, you can't without major effort - and shouldn't because the water REALLY stings your eyes. Of course, that didn't stop Jason and Craig from trying. 

Floating!!

Just relaxing

Covered in mud, which actually feels great!

We had a very relaxing afternoon and since we were only headed as far as Jerusalem that evening, stayed until almost closing time taking full advantage of the sea, the mud, and the spa. It was a unique experience and definitely something I would do again. 

More photos of our visit with Beth and Craig here.

By: Rebecca

Since we don't have a car, our primary means of getting around is by bus. Around the neighborhood we do a lot of walking, and the train is great for getting to Tel Aviv or the airport, but for everyday, the bus is it. 

Standard issue city bus

Like most of Israel, Haifa has a great bus system. We are lucky to be in a central location on many different bus routes. It's a short walk up some stairs (well, 117 stairs to be exact) to one bus stop, and a short  walk down the block to another. 

Jason can take the bus directly to the University (usually a 30 minute trip) and we can easily get to the two central bus stations, the train stations, and the major shopping centers. I often walk down to the shuk and take the bus home since, even when it's not 90 degrees out, lugging armloads of produce up the mountain is no fun. 

Haifa is also one of the only places in Israel (Nazareth is another) that has bus service on Saturday (Shabbat). There are fewer lines and the buses are less frequent, but we can still get to most places we need to go in the city. 

The bus drivers seem to think they are driving sports cars. Sometimes you have to hang on for dear life even if you are sitting down. Also, when you see the bus coming, you have to really look like you want to get on it - pointing to the ground works, as does stepping to the edge of the curb. Stay seated at the bus stop and the bus is likely to drive right past you! 

When Jason's mom was here, we rented a car for a week. Although it was nice to go where we wanted whenever we wanted, we still appreciate the bus for getting around. 

By: Jason

I recently had the opportunity to participate in a Department-sponsored research cruise aboard Israel's R/V Mediterranean Explorer or MedEx.  The research cruise featured a week of inter-disciplinary projects onboard the vessel and along the coast of Israel.  This was a real treat since I was not only going to be able to see what other faculty, staff and students were up to, but I was also allowed to conduct some of my own work and have the help of others along the way.  What really impressed me was the effort that was made to organize everybody's research needs and the teamwork and cooperation that everyone showed along the way.  Imagine an underwater archaeologist, a marine biologist, and a scholar in classics literature all working together hoisting ropes on deck and drinking coffee in the galley.  

Rummaging around the sea floor for
ancient artifacts -- no Coke bottles here.

Some of the research activities included surveys of underwater shipwrecks and ancient ports in Akko and Achziv, bottom sampling of deep-sea sediment cores in Achziv Canyon at more than 400 meters deep and conducting sampling tows for tiny creatures called plankton along with marine debris -- mostly plastics that find their way into our oceans and, unfortunately, are consumed by marine animals that should not be eating them.

Measuring some unknown underwater relics.

See the stingray? (Look for the tail)

Although I did not participate in all the activities, I was able to SCUBA dive for a day to help conduct a survey of an ancient Byzantine boat launch.  Aside from the lobsters I was searching for and the giant octopus and moray eel I found, I really had no idea what I was supposed to be looking for.  Yet, I learned quite a lot about the ancient seafaring cultures that came to colonize and live in the Levant Basin and among all the 'rocks' I found, was able to share in a few interesting finds of pottery shards and ancient anchors, give or take 2,000-3,000 years old!

Ehud and I were able to conduct a series of plankton tows (are part of our ongoing grant-sponsored project)  and had the opportunity to collect environmental data using a CTD (conductivity-temperature-density) unit.  This is a standard oceanographic instrument that is used to assess the 'vital signs' of the ocean in a particular area.  With today's technology, you can stream real-time data to a monitor and see what's going on -- very cool stuff!!

Drs. Spanier & Goldstein working 

on the deck -- a job well done!

The CTD unit being hoisted back on board

Although the MedEx was not as large or quite as equipped as other research vessels I've worked on, it had a great crew, and all the tools and equipment that was needed.  Turns out, the MedEx also sponsors a variety of educationally-based cruises for students and under-privaledged kids.  What a great idea.

By: Jason

The last Fulbright-sponsored event of the year was two weeks ago. We received our formal invitation for dinner at the U.S. Ambassador's house several weeks ago. It was a great chance to see the other American Fulbrighters (some of whom are leaving in a month or two) and meet the newly minted  Israeli Fulbright Scholars who are going to the United States. 

Our fancy invitation

We got all dressed up (you'll have to take my word for it, somehow we don't have any pictures).

Unfortunately, because John Kerry was in town, the Ambassador, Mr. Daniel Shapiro, was absent from his own dinner and instead was in Jerusalem! He missed a good time. The food was nice, the atmosphere nicer -- a lush hilly green backyard lawn (almost never see this here) gave way to a beautiful scenic overview of the Mediterranean Sea at sunset.  And, yes, there was a large in-ground pool and jacuzzi too! Our dinner tables were clustered around the yard and though it would have been nice to sit with my U.S. Fulbright colleagues, it was also interesting to have sat with Israeli Fulbrighters and those in the community and get their perspective on things. 

From my point of view it was nice to be recognized so formally by Fulbright, the U.S. Department of State, and the country of Israel.  I felt for at least a few moments the pride in representing my country, my family, and my academic discipline.

Almost forgot about dessert --- something of a variety of colors, tastes, and flavors and, interestingly enough, was the same dessert that was served during President Obama's recent visit to Israel.

Dessert - this was in addition to the towering
plates of chocolates at each table

We decided to stay with another U.S. Fulbrighter (from Vermont) at her place in nearby Herzliya.  A mere 20-30 min. walk from a beautiful beach, so we took advantage of our time there.  Beaches in Israel range from idyllic large stretches of soft white sand and great beach combing, to centers of sunbathing, eating, drinking, and shopping.  But I might add that in the latter case, Israelis do it well.  Most of the really large beaches that folks flock to are bounded by a 'promenade' (you might call this a boardwalk) along which are found some really nice restaurants, chairs, umbrellas, etc..  You can lounge in the shade and have a beer while your kids play in the sand close by - not a bad deal!!

One of Israel's idyllic beaches - in Mikhmoret