Israel has become a top tourist destination. The area is quite historic in three religions. No Muslims don’t travel there but the sites allow others to explore the Muslim sites without threats from being non believers. Israel also offers a hospitable Mediterranean climate and so has been trying to branch out to the beach party crowd. This stamp also hints at the unique experience available at the natural wonder of the Dead Sea. So slip on your smoking jacket, fill your pipe, take your first sip of your adult beverage, and sit back in your most comfortable chair. Welcome to todays offering from The Philatelist.
This stamp issue from 1989 does a good job of showing there was more to do in Israel than visit historic sites. Temperate beaches are also on offer. Tourism got going in Israel by offering Christian centered tours of sites from early Christianity. This was a bigger business than the visits of Jews. Visiting beaches can add a new dimension to expand the industry and has been a goal all the way back to 1989.
Todays stamp is issue A434, a 60 Agorot stamp issued by Israel on March 12, 1989. It was a four stamp issue in various denominations. According to the Scott Catalog, the stamp is worth 30 cents whether used or unused.
Tourism is a big and growing business in Israel. It employs over 300, 000 workers and generates about 6 percent of GNP and export revenue. Over 60 percent of visitors are Christian and many from the USA. Recently the country has been welcoming more visitors from poorer parts of Europe like Romania and the Ukraine. Also Chinese tourists are becoming ever more common. There is no mention in the literature of visitors from Muslim countries. Perhaps that will soon change with peace being admitted with the Gulf States that have recently become so important to international air travel.
This stamp promotes visiting the Dead Sea which at first seems a hard sell. The Dead Sea lies 1200 feet below sea level and consistently has very high temperatures and little rainfall. The Dead Sea name comes from the very high salt content of the water preventing any sea life. The salt content of the water is not from being so far below sea level but rather the very high evaporation rate which takes the water and leaves the salt.
Enough of the negative though. The consistently high temperatures and low humidity can offer some relief for sufferers of lung ailments such as asthma. The fairly unique thick atmosphere over the Dead Sea allows helpful UVA sun rays while filtering out burning UVB rays. Thus there is no need for sun screen. There are several beach front all inclusive resorts for those inclined and it is not far from Jerusalem.
There is one thing counteracting the success of tourism in Israel. It is probably in the nature of the Jewish state. With Israelis having so many ties to other countries around the world; for every dollar Israel earns from tourist, an Israeli spends two dollars visiting another country.
Well my drink is empty and at this time of the year I am more looking forward to temperatures dropping than thinking of a place even hotter. Come again tomorrow for another story that can be learned from stamp collecting.