Conference taveng::bagels

re: .0
    
>>    I'm interested in having a holiday in Eilat in December. I would
>>    like to go scuba diving in the Red Sea and basically lie in the sun for
>>    week or so. Is it possible to go on a course and gain a certificate?
 
Well if you want a certificate, EDU Services are offering the following 
courses during December ..

	VMS USER
	VMS UTILITIES AND COMMANDS I & II
	VMS SYSTEM SECURITY FEATURES
	  ...		..   ..
	  ...		..   ..
		<quite a long list>

The courses are held in Herzliya, however if there are enough people
interested, the instructors will be only too happy to give the course
in Eilat !!!   :-) :-)  :-)

    Do you mean you want to obtain a SCUBA certification?  If so, contact
    your local dive shop.  PADI, which is the largest certification agency
    provides a list of shops worldwide.  If you want to spend your time on
    the beach instead of in a classroom you can take the classroom part of
    the course before you go and take the open water part in Israel.
    
    There's a notesfile for everything - GOOFOF::SCUBA has more info on
    this subject.
    
    I'd like to dive the Red Sea too, some day.
    
    				Paul
    

    Thanks for the replies. Re .1, no thanks I don't fancy travelling all
    the way to Israel to sit a VMS course, I was referring to Scuba
    courses. Re .2, thank you I'll check the other conference out. 
    	However I would like to know what to expect in terms of climate in 
    December, also what temperature is the sea? Can anyone reccomend a good
    hotel in Eilat for a ten day trip?
    
    			Thanks   Al
    

    My daughter suggested the following hotels:
    
          King Solomon - has suites with jacuzzis
          Neptune - a 5 star hotel with more privacy and less factory-like
                    than King Solomon
          Edomit - a good medium priced hotel
          Sports - a good hotel
          Club Med - has everything if going with kids, plenty of scuba
                     lesson programs
                                               
    In addition to all of the other hotels, there are two new hotels
    opening up, but she didn't have their names.  Perhaps a travel agent
    could direct you here if you wanted to stay in new.
                           
    She also suggested that if it is raining it is better to fly down to Eilat
    rather than drive, if coming from Jerusalem.  
    
    

My limited experience with hotels in Eilat is that they can be divided into 3
categories:

    1)	5-star hotels have the best accomodations and service, which you pay
	for accordingly.

    2)	3-star hotels have much more basic accomodations and are a lot less
	expensive.  I stayed in the Moon Valley a couple of years ago, and was
	quite satisfied with it.

    3)	4-star hotels tend to be a poor compromise, both less comfortable and
	more expensive than one might expect.

I believe that *any* hotel with 3 or more stars will have air conditioning in
all rooms and a swimming pool.

    The weather in December will feel *warm* to you if you're coming from
    the Northeast U.S.  The temperature is usually around the '60's
    (fahrenheit).
    
    I'd also recommend the Edomit hotel.  I also understand that horseback
    riding is now available at my old home, Kibbutz Ketura (60 kms north of
    Eilat).
    
    --David 

    Thanks to everyone for their responses! I live in the UK so the
    temperature in Eilat is an attractive alternative. Re .6, I travelled
    all over Israel in May '90 and had a fantastic time. I stayed in a
    kibbutz north of Eilat when I visited this area last, it was advertised
    as a Desert Village called Yelim, is this the same one you mentioned?
    
    	Thanks again to everyone, any more info re diving trips, courses,
    holidays would be welcome.		Al

.6>                                       .  I also understand that horseback
.6>    riding is now available at my old home, Kibbutz Ketura ...

Sorry, but Ketura gave up the horseback riding business some time ago.


.7>                                                         I stayed in a
.7>    kibbutz north of Eilat when I visited this area last, it was advertised
.7>    as a Desert Village called Yelim, is this the same one you mentioned?

Ye'elim is just across the road from Kibbutz Yotvata, about 7 miles down the
road from Ketura.

>.6>                                       .  I also understand that horseback
>.6>    riding is now available at my old home, Kibbutz Ketura ...

>Sorry, but Ketura gave up the horseback riding business some time ago.

    This isn't the first time the horseback riding venture has been
    dropped, I remember when we wanted to do it at first, but it didn't
    work out.

    Who runs Yelim? Yotvata?
    
    --David

    If I remember correctly, Kibbutz Groffit runs Ye'elim.  It is located a
    little to the north of Ye'elim and Yotvata.
    
    Ye'elim, by the way, is a marvelous location for touring the area.  It
    is right next to the Hai'Bar nature reserve and a museum providing
    information on the geological and natural development of the Arava
    Desert.  A few kilometres to the south is the Timna National Park with
    the old copper mines, archaeoligical sites, some magnificent desert
    views (colour changes are beautiful as the sun traverses the sky), and
    even a man-made lake added a few years ago.  
    
    We stayed there a few times for a couple of nights on each trip.  The
    cabins are a bit spartan compared to the Eilat hotels, but they are
    air-conditioned and a lot cheaper for a family. There is a good pool
    and plenty of shade, and also camping facilities. Ye'elim is just half
    hour drive from Eilat.  
    
    Shalom
    Baruch

    What is the status of Grofit these days?  Is Ye'elim a profit-making
    venture?
    
    I remember our first horses, Danny and Natasha (their acutual names!),
    ran away, and that coupled with not enough kesef put an end to
    horseback riding for profit at Ketura.
    
    The more discussion about this area goes on, the more melancholy I get. 
    I wish people didn't have to get in the way of place...
    
    --David