Last week I bid a bittersweet farewell to Bangkok — a city I have come to regard as a home — and said shalom to Israel, a country I love visiting equally as much. My final days in Bangkok were fantastic; jam-packed with as much som tam and mangosteen goodness my stomach could handle and coupled with some final great nights out with friends. I said my goodbyes and hopped a red-eye flight to Amman, Jordan for a brief layover before making it back to Tel Aviv, Israel.

I spent almost a month in Israel exactly this time last year. After first taking part in a Taglit-Birthright Israel trip last year for 10 days, I loved the tiny country so much I decided to extend my stay by another 14. I’ve seen most of the sites and traversed the country from North to South by bus with 40 other 20-something Jews, including my sister. It was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had traveling and it was great to extend my stay and spend some time with friends from the country. When planning my backpacking trip last year, I knew I had to come back.

This time though, I find myself unprepared. Not only am I still suffering a bit of culture and sticker shock since leaving Southeast Asia (you mean I can’t ride a motorbike everywhere and I can only have ONE meal for $7 and not all three?), but I’m not sure where to begin an “unorganized,” secular trip through Israel. I know I’m interested in seeing the aspects of Israel the Jewish program does not take you to; the Muslim Quarter of the Old City in Jerusalem, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and I don’t really know how to go about it. I also can’t help but compare this trip to Israel with my last one, which set the bar incredibly high.

My first week however, has been wonderful. I stayed with my good friends Lior and Elizabeth for a few nights and a good party, which was followed by a surprise business trip for my Dad, bringing him to Jerusalem at exactly the same time as me. The last few days have been filled with falafel, catching him up on my last five amazing months and roaming the streets of the Old City. I made my first venture to Temple Mount in Jerusalem where the oldest Islamic building, the Dome of the Rock, resides. I toured the City of David (one of the first cities built in Jerusalem, by uhh…King David) and roamed through the Jewish Quarter of the Old City near the Western Wall.

Next week I plan on meeting up with some more friends from various areas of the country and then heading the farthest South I’ve ever been in the country, to Eilat where beautiful beaches, people and nightlife reign supreme. I’m considering taking the PADI diving certification I missed out on in Thailand and maybe hopping the border to Egypt to see the Pyramids. But more on that soon…