Page 6 - Ulpan-Or E-Tone 01.11.16 Advanced Level

E-Tone™: Ulpan-Or Weekly News Digest

Item #1 (Advanced Level)

Returning to Sinai

Salim, owner of a beach shack site in Sinai at the Great Dune Beach, one
hour away from the border, still hasn’t gotten used to the workload
overwhelming him this holiday. “People call, come, and it gives a nice
feeling, as if people really love Sinai.” These holidays he brushed up on
his Hebrew and had hundreds of Israelis over, new travelers who have
never seen Sinai, and old friends. Salim remembers worse times too, when
no Israelis came at all. But now it doesn’t seem like it’s a passing trend.
Three thousand people a day come in and out at the Taba border crossing
recently, and the pace only increased over the High Holidays. And one can
see all kinds of travelers here - post-army youngsters, senior citizens as
well as families with children. The Bedouins in Sinai are happy about the
Israelis’ return, the Israeli security agencies - not as much. An incident that
occurred in northern Sinai about two weeks ago, in which twelve Egyptian
soldiers were killed, probably by ISIS [organization], doesn’t bother the
travelers very much. The location’s charm and peacefulness, as well as the
weakening of the Egyptian pound and the price that’s lower by half or
more than a vacation in Israel, makes the concerns easier. “Do you feel
safe?” “Yes. (We) don’t think about it either. It’s like going to Jerusalem,
it’s like when a friend asks whether it’s safe to come to Israel.” “You’re
happy, we’re happy, everyone’s happy.”

Page 6 - Edition 11-01-16

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