Whatever you imagine Israel to be, it probably isn't this:
Buttery local olive oil, hinting of spice, sampled on a breezy afternoon beneath a cardamom tree. Chardonnay so crisp you can almost smell the vines. Couples in plush cotton robes wandering the manicured lawns of a mountain-top spa. Cozy coffee shops, cutting-edge art galleries, designer fashions, sleek boutique hotels, cuisine rivaling any South Florida menu.
This is the Israel Lin Arison wants people to know. Not just the Israel of labels - Holy Land, Cradle of Civilization, powder keg - but a living, bubbling land of pottery makers and glassblowers, savvy chefs and Wine Spectator-worthy vintages.
In this Israel, the Gaza Strip strife that dominates headlines seems a world away.
"Everyone who comes here says the same thing, that it feels so safe," said Arison, who splits her time between Miami and Tel Aviv. "There's normal life here. That's the thing that's so hard to get people to understand."
It was a surprise to her, too. When her late husband Ted retired as chairman of Carnival Cruise Lines, she said, "I didn't want to come." But she saw that it was best for Ted, who was born in Israel. They moved in 1991, to Tel Aviv, the capital of finance and secular life.
He quickly slid into a new business life, establishing a major real estate and construction company and leading the purchase of Bank Hapaolim, Israel's largest. "Linnie" - as Ted always called her - felt like an outsider. She abandoned efforts to learn Hebrew. "I realized at best I would sound like a child," she said.
To get comfortable with her new home, Arison began exploring and writing about Israel, first for a business magazine called Link, and later, in her privately published book, "A Love Story in Mediterranean Israel." (A second book about France, "Travels with Van Gogh and the Impressionists: Discovering the Connections," with photographer Neil Folberg, will be published by Abbeville Press this fall.)
What she discovered was an Israel unknown to Jews, Muslims and Christians on sacred journeys. Unknown by most secular tourists. Unknown even to some Israelis.
The reluctant Israeli found herself so enthralled that after Ted died in 1999, she decided to stay, splitting her time between Tel Aviv and Miami.
With corporate days behind her, Arison keeps a low profile, going public only to support favorite causes such as the New World Symphony and the Young Arts program of the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts - both charities founded by the Arisons.
One of her missions: To share the secrets of her new world with her old. When a reporter suggests Arison play guide, she's enthusiastic.
So here I am.
As a first-time Israel visitor and non-Jew, I expect our tour will be insightful, instructive _ perhaps, even meaningful. In my pre-trip mind, Israel is a place of history, faith, politics - a Bible-story setting twisting with intrigue that-dates from the birth of man. "Enjoyable" isn't on my adjective list.
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