The lowest place on earth

I'm actually back in Boston now but sad that I wasn't able to keep this up while I was away, so I've decided to "back blog" the last couple of weeks since I last wrote from Jerusalem. 7 flights, 6 hotel rooms, 4 countries in 14 days, and maybe it's not hard to imagine why I found it difficult to find time to write. It truly felt like the Amazing Race at times. So here come a few catch up installations...

The primary purpose of the trip was an integrative musculoskeletal meeting in Ein Gedi on the Dead Sea. Best conference location ever. The meeting itself was fabulous - good speakers, good colleagues, and a great chance to catch up with old friends. But it also raised my standards for future speaking engagements...you cannot beat spending the afternoon before giving a talk relaxing at a resort and floating on the bouyant sea in the warm sun. A group of us, smaller than I'd expected, spent the free hours between sessions at the spa. Fantastic people watching. Folks from all over the world, and particularly the old israeli ladies, come to the dead sea spas for what are purported to be the great health benefits of the mineral rich mud and salty sea. So we joined right in the mud bath which involves slathering your whole body in slimy sulfuric mud that dries and cakes in the sun and makes it difficult to move. I joked about doing a slow "running man" until I froze in statuesque position. The guys took the mock mud wrestling approach. And then we strolled down to the sea to rinse off the mud and float. When I say "float", that's an understatement. It is impossible to sink on the Dead Sea. It is the craziest feeling ever. You aren't in the water. You're on top of the water. You can assume a full crucifixion position, fall completely asleep, and not drown. You might end up floating across to Jordan, but you'd arrive safely at least. But next time I will be bringing a little pair of surf socks since the shoreline is encrusted with thick salt deposits. The sea is apparently about 35% salt, which is pretty much super saturation, so the water's edge is almost like a coral reef of salt. Not fun on the feet, but worth the pain for the reward. And I do think my skin is radiantly healthy now!