personal › Beachcomber

Ido & Shaun, Metzukei Dragot Beach, Dead Sea, September 2020

Tali Abramov, Kiryat Haim Beach, November 2020

"For two years I've been a care worker with a 96 year old man. A love story. His brain is degenerating, but our hearts connect. We chat, sing and when he has the strength, we even dance a bit. Occasionally, he recalls some mischief from his childhood, or a rude Yiddish song. He also likes playing "This Little Piggy". Together, we become little children. Of course, there's the dark side to his dementia. He can sit for hours counting his hands."

Uri Gozlan with his grandson Ori, Neve Yam Beach, November 2020

"We were eleven siblings. You see, dad was religious. After the eleventh child, mum started to use contraception. She didn't tell our dad."

Liat Frid, Palmachim Beach, October 2019

"Although I was terrified, I ran into the bushes to save Chaser from the wild boar...in the end we had to amputate one of his legs because the wounds became infected...That event changed my life."

Oded & Matan, Shefayim Beach, May 2020

"When I was a child on the kibbutz, the move began from communal sleeping in children's houses, to sleeping at home with our parents, like regular kids. I'm glad my children get their education from us, not from nanny number 1, 2 or 3. We only saw our parents between 5 and 8pm, before being dumped back into the children's house." Oded.

Vita Tyutikova, Zukei Yam, October 2020

"There's still a stigma surrounding Pole Dance, but it's a legitimate sport that began in India as a form of acrobatics for men, 800 years before it found its way into strip clubs in the '80s."

Oz & Oshrat, Camel Beach, Haifa, June 2020

"My Dad died 9 months ago. The beach was his home. Everyday after work he would come here to run and swim, then, on a family holiday in Bulgaria, he died of a heart attack in the hotel pool." Oz "My father died 4 years ago in a hit and run driving accident in Haifa. The police never found the driver." Oshrat

Nadoush & Dalia, Nitzanim Beach February 2019

"I don't want to study. I want to get married and enjoy my life. To feel free . I want to learn to drive so I can take the car to the beach and watch the sea - no one telling me what to do and where to go. I've never actually gone into the water. I don't know how to swim and I cant wear a swimsuit because I'm religious." Dalia (18 years old)

Yair Sebbag, Zukey Yam Beach, June 2020

"Before I left for the East, I was not what I am now. I did a degree in Economics & Business Studies and became a property valuer. The materialistic world did me no good - I suffered from stress and stomach pains. From the moment I left to travel, the freedom filled me with joy and good health."

Jeni & Maya Sure, Ashdod Citadel Beach, August 2020

"Five years ago I discovered I had breast cancer, and just in time. For a year I had radiation, surgery, chemo...the whole package. It was a turning point in my life. I decided I didn't want to spend another 15 years sitting in an office and am now beginning work as a NLP therapist." Jeni

Sharon Lidan & Madonna, Sidni Ali Beach, September 2020

"Mum was beautiful. She modelled when she was young. She died 15 years ago, when she was only 46... I wanted to die with her. She was everything to me. I sold up- the pizzeria, my horses. I didn't want anything. I reached rock bottom, but slowly, slowly, began to build myself again from scratch."

Ariel & Naveh, Tayo Beach, Bat Yam, June 2020

"It's been a special experience to raise our first baby during the Corona lockdown and be with Naveh during the first months of his life. On the other hand, Corona has badly hurt our income and economic security. I am a Judo instructor and lessons have stopped completely."

Jumbo The Fisherman, Jisr az-Zarqa Beach, June 2020

"Fishing is no longer a business, it's an illness. You can't make a living from the sea any more, because there aren't enough fish. Fishing is the toughest work there is, but it's also the most peaceful. Nothing else is even close to the quiet at sea."

Illi & Aliki, Rishon Le'zion Beach, December 2019

"When you're a freak you feel alone in the world. When I was 17, I had blue hair and weird clothes. I once got yoghurt thrown over me just because I was different. Every time I feel down, I look for a place with water. It's like you can let you're pain leave you and dissolve into the water." Aliki

Moshe Hausenberg, Lifeguard at Beit Yannai Beach, May 2020

“A good friend of mine was killed in the Lebanon war. The night before he went there to fight, we had been sitting together here, smoking and laughing, and he was killed the next day. I got on a motorbike with two more friends and went AWOL into Lebanon. We didn’t fire a single shot and a week later we were sentenced.”

Michal & Daniel, Palmachim Beach, March 2020

"We're supposed to be getting married in July, but we will have to see what happens with the Corona pandemic. We have family all over the world - Australia, Japan, America. It's a depressing situation." Michal "It's all OK, wedding or not, I'm staying with Michal forever." Daniel

Ayal Benin, Neve Yam Beach, January 2020

"In Freestyle Frisbee, when you throw your disc to the breeze, you connect to nature, to yourself and to the object you're controlling...It's like meditation, the surroundings just vanish. I prefer to be with my Frisbee than looking for romantic ties...the disc doesn't disappoint."

Smulik Garciani, Achziv Beach Decemcer 2018.

"About 15 years ago...I found a champagne bottle with a note inside on the beach...A German couple, Brigitte & Bernd had thrown it into the ocean on a Mediterranean cruise. I got in touch by mail and we wrote to each other until one day I went to visit them in their village near Frankfurt."

Diana Krinski, Poleg Beach, November 2019

"My mother died when I was 30. I was totally unprepared for it. I felt wounded. I lost my strength and my faith, so I began looking for ways to heal myself."

Cecilia with daughter Mikki and granddaughter, Noam, Yamit Beach, Kiryat Yam, August 2020

"I have lived half my life in Israel but have never really felt a sense of belonging. I come from a very different culture. In Bolivia people don't shout constantly at each other and the children don't say 'I can't be bothered!'. What keeps me here is my girls. Mikki says that the best thing I've done is to bring them to live here. That's a comforting thought." Cecilia

Boaz & Yehuda, Hasela Beach, Bat Yam, December 2019

"We swim every morning at sunrise, winter and summer. You need a partner to get into the sea in the winter. Just as love requires a woman, the sea requires another man." Boaz

Oxana Reif, Gador Beach April 2019

A few months ago I went through an ugly separation…I was lost. Then I remembered what I learned in Costa Rica, how mankind has lost touch with nature’s cycles and depression has become the sickness of the modern world. I set myself a 21 day quest, to go down to the beach every morning to watch the sunrise…the sun’s energy literally got rid of my suffering.

Iris & Shelly, Ha'Tzuk Beach South December 2019

"I've had all kinds of mystical experiences...Once, while I was driving, with my son in the backseat, I came to a traffic light. It was green, but I heard a voice in my head shouting, "stop, stop, stop!" I stopped and watched as a car coming from the other direction ran the red light. We could have been killed." Iris

The Dumanski Family with their dog, Chuck, Dor Habonim Beach February 2019

"My mother's grandparents mined gold illegally from abandoned mines in the Urals. The mines were guarded, but a cannon shot would signal the end of a shift, and my grandparents would sneak in, before fresh soldiers arrived. They drank away the gold money and fought constantly. My great-grandfather got life for murder, but evaded punishment by volunteering to fight in World War I." Dominik

Ben & Sarah, Metsitsim Beach, Tel Aviv March 2019

"The sea is the best medicine for me. When I’m in the water I don’t feel the pain. It’s the only time I don’t feel pain. I should have been a Mermaid." Sarah

Grandma Edna Hasson with the families of her son Amos, and her daughter, Mazzy. Rosh Hanikra, July 2020

"After my first wife died of cancer 17 years ago, I needed help raising our kids and hired Sharin from the Philippines as a nanny. Five years later I married Sharin and we have had two sons together." Amos

Giovanni Mann, Metzukei Dragot Beach, Dead Sea,

"I found myself homeless and penniless - everybody's nightmare. That's the moment I really started to live my life. I stopped chasing the material dream that we get fed - a house, car and a family, and I started to live my own dream - a communal life in nature. I got on a motorbike and began to live like a nomad."

Noya Melamed, Sidni Ali Beach, December 2020

"I use Buugeng to meditate. Technique alone isn't sufficient- you need to be 100% focussed. The second your thoughts start to wander, the motion falls apart."

Itzik Gitan, Poleg Beach January 2019

"I lost my arm in the Yom Kippur war. In the armoured division where I served over 100 soldiers were killed. Thousands more were wounded and suffer from trauma to this day...After a week in hospital I went home and forgot about the whole thing. The war had no effect on me."

Shanit Vaknin, Zikim Beach, November 2019

"I come here to be alone for an hour or two, calm down and then go back home. Sometimes I write to myself, as therapy. Today I wrote about the future. I write on a sheet of paper, then crumple it up, throw it into the bin and continue on with my life."

Jonah, Shlomi & Belai, Zikim Beach November 2018

"At the start of our service, the commander kept saying that he loves us. 'What are you talking about?', I thought to myself. Later, I understood that he was referring to a brotherhood where you look after one another. If you have an apple you share it." Jonah (on left)

Suzy & Ilana, Rishon Le'zion Beach April 2019

Suzy: "We have a strong connection to water. We meet on the beach 3 to 4 times a week at sunrise, and walk for an hour. In the evenings we work as attendants in a ritual bathhouse. Water is the source of life." Ilana: "When I was young I really wanted to work in purifying the dead before burial, but they said I was too young - you need to be connected to get into that field."

Alon Sibroni, Ga'ash Beach October 2019

"I cared for my father 24 hours a day for several years, until he passed away last year. I felt like a prisoner released from a life sentence and since then I've been living on the beach, cooking for myself, sleeping here alone and enjoying my freedom."

Yair Harlap, Hatzuk Beach December 2018

"There's a heated pool where I live in Bet El, but it's not the same. There's no chlorine in the sea. You can feel the blessed eternal. You are witnessing creation."

Polly & Yonatan, Ashkelon Beach. January 2020

" A few weeks before I met Yonatan my therapist asked what would be my dream date? I said someone who takes me to see the stars. A week after we met, Yonatan took me to a guest house in the Arava desert. The first night, I sat on the balcony gazing at the sky when I burst into tears. Only then did it dawn on me that my wish had become reality. Since then, we are inseparable."

Nitzan, Rotem & Noam, Nitzanim Beach, February 2019

Haled & Hamis, Ashdod Beach, January 2019

Katy & Matan, Gaash Beach May 2019

Matan: "7 years ago I fell from a roof and fractured several vertebrae. Out of work and penniless, I began a nomadic lifestyle. It takes courage to live in uncertainty." Katy: "At 15 I read a romance about a woman who travels to Israel to work on a dig and falls in love with the archaeologist. At 24, I took part on a dig in Jaffa. I fell in love with Israel and Jewish culture."

Shirley Shek, Gador Beach, September 2020

"In 2015 I started losing my hair. The doctor said it was Apolecia. The house filled with my hair, alongside my dog's hair. In a fortnight, all of my hair had vanished, including my eyebrows and lashes. During this time I saw a young girl crossing the road. She was bald, but she walked like an aristocrat, with her head held high. Seeing her helped me to accept and live with my new identity."

Shirley & Sagit, Hatzuk Beach, November 2019

"We meet on the beach for a 'walkie-talkie'. We have an a phenomenal ability for talking with each other. Some years ago we flew together to perform in San Francisco - a 15 hour flight plus connection. We didn't shut up for the entire journey." Shirley

Rami & Yitzhak, Palmachim Beach November 2018.

"We try to get down to the beach every day at sunrise... After a few hours here, you begin the day in a different state of mind." Rami

Yair & Galit, Gador Beach, November 2019

"I am active in the protest against Netanyahu's corruption. I love this country, yet I encouraged my sons to move abroad. My mother was a holocaust survivor and it hurt her that her grandson left Israel for Germany." Yair

Tomer & Yifat, Bet Yannai Beach, January 2019

"We've been living in a caravan for 6 months - we take nothing for granted. The water tank needs to be refilled regularly, and the toilet has to be emptied every two days." Tomer "Living in a tiny space necessitates a change in perception and major downsizing...I miss my clothes ." Yifat

Oran Bismuth, National Park Beach, Ashkelon, July 2020

"I've been playing 'Assassin's Creed' since it's release in 2007. After the army, instead of going travelling, I escaped into the game. I played around 13 hours a day - every waking hour. Completely addicted... Once I began working, I realised there were more important things in life than holding a joystick. Today, I have a balance between the real and the virtual - I play around 4 hours a day."

Merav, Nachsholim Beach, December 2019

"Not a single creature needs to be killed in order for us to eat, neither is it healthy. We've been brainwashed into eating meat & dairy, and everything that's happening in the world today is punishment from above for our deeds against nature."

Shai & Orly, Ashdod Beach, January 2019

"The sand reminds me of the most beautiful chapter of my life,...the age of innocence." Shai

Yeter & Bitya Mizrachi, Nitzanim Beach, November 2019

"When you catch a fish there's this great feeling of success. It's connected to our survival instincts, the knowledge that you are capable of hunting food for yourself." Bitya

Guy & Omer, Ashkelon Beach, January 2019

Yossi Harmani, Rosh Hanikra Beach, October 2018

The Beattie Family, Ma'agan Michael Beach, June 2019

"The lack of privacy [on Kibbutz] isn't easy for me. My underwear gets laundered together with the rest of the Kibbutz! When I realised I was pregnant the first time, Tom was in Gaza during the 2014 conflict. I wasn't sure whether to get a pregnancy test in the Kibbutz clinic because then Tom would have been the last to know the result." Noah Beattie

Thomas & Martina Schwartz, Students' Beach, Haifa June 2019

"As Germans, confronting the Holocaust is always very difficult for us...We feel guilty, even though it wasn't something that our generation did. We try to show that there are Germans that think differently - we both wear Star of David necklaces." Martina

Maria & Oksana, Zvulun Beach, Kiryat Yam February 2019

"Nowadays Ukraine is a sad place. It's hard to make a living and nothing ever changes for the better. In Israel people are happier." Maria

Jonathan & Jorai van Driel, the Aqueduct Beach, Caesarea March 2019

"When you've got a career, a house and a family, you always find a reason to give up on your dreams. That's a mistake. I decided to live my life in reverse - to begin as a pensioner and do all the things that are really important to me, and then to work until I die. Not to work for 40 years in a career and then realise that i'm too old to travel." Jorai

The Balint Family, Ashkelon National Park Beach April 2019

"Immigrants are the solution to Europe's problems. They bring new ideas with them and they are prepared to take chances...Mixing cultures is a wonderful thing. In my opinion, the most significant innovation in Israeli culture is in the increasing influence of the Arab language on Israeli music and cinema." Gery Balint

Pipman Team, Sela Beach, Bat Yam October 2018

"The hardest thing in sport...[is] to get out of bed at five in the morning, especially if the weather's bad. What helps is the commitment to the group." Tami Shoham (3rd from right)

Yassir Makhata, Zikim Beach November 2018

“When I escaped from Gaza I was scared for my life. I said [to the Israeli authorities] that I want to go right now – afterwards we can bring my children. I haven’t been back since. I miss my children that stayed there - we are in touch occasionally. “

Maayan Pitussi, Ashkelon Beach January 2019

"There's no lack of unpleasant sights in a nurse's work, but you learn to see the person in front of you and not their wound."

Manny Sokolovsky, Shave Zion Beach, February 2019

"In 1982, a few days after Rosh Hashanah, my unit was sent to help our forces in purging the PLO from West Beirut. A RPG missile was fired at us, killing my friend, "Roli" Becher...When we came back from the fighting, we went to the memorial for Roli. That's where I met his sister, Shosh. We began dating and eventually married."

Akiva, Avi, Joseph, Rachel & Atara Cohen, Neve Yam Beach December 2018

"The kids surfing class was cancelled this week because it was stormy. When they woke up this morning I said, "Instead of going to school, let's go surf!". They didn't argue." Avi

Olena Dobroslavsky, Nahariya Beach November 2018

"The main aspect which made us move to Israel was the Russian annexation of Crimea. Our business was destroyed."

Tess, Eyal (standing) & Itamar, Bet Yannai Beach December 2018

"I hitchhiked around the world on boats...The highlight was sailing from New Zealand to the Solomon Islands with a group of marine biologists. That's how I ended up studying Marine Sciences." Eyal

Adi, Anita, Ilana & Yoram, members of "Matkot Ashdod", The Arches Beach, Ashdod January 2019

"The beach is my psychologist." Ilana

Elad & Yarden, Nitzanim Beach February 2019

"My eldest brother was killed when he was 5, before I was born. It happened 36 years ago at a military paratroopers' display at Kiryat Malachi. The winds were very strong, but the army decided to go ahead with the display despite the conditions. One of the paratroopers lost control and landed on my brother." Yarden

Ali & Susu, Rosh Hanikra Beach, October 2018

Iris, Lian, Shai Li & Nitzan, Ashdod Beach, January 2019

Omri, Lihi & Neta, Bet Yannai Beach, December 2018

Nissim & Eden, Hatzuk Beach, November 2020

"We came here to do a maternity photoshoot. I don't like going to the beach - the sand, the salt. I prefer a swimming pool." Eden

Ilanit & Lenny, Lagoon Beach, Netanya, July 2020

"My first experience in Nudism was in a nudist sauna in Germany. At first I was paranoid, but after a couple of times I began to feel a sense of freedom. It's got nothing to do with sexuality - the body is the most natural thing there is. The exposure really makes you feel confident about your body." Ilanit

Dina Hasidov, Shave Zion Beach, February 2020

"I believe that you can ask things from the universe, and the universe will answer you. For me, the sea is one of the elements of the universe. It's full of energy and powers. I regularly go down to the beach, to think and talk with the sea."

Ronit & Anat, Michmoret Beach, October 2019

"The men decided that they are going into the sea despite the storm, whilst the women stood anxiously on the beach. My head said I can do this, but my heart was racing and telling me to stay put. In CBT the idea is to let rational thought take control of the feelings and the body...In the end I went into the sea and the sense of overcoming was incredible." Ronit

Naje El Assam, Zikim Beach, December 2020

"We're 11 siblings. Another 7 from my father's second wife. In my generation it's uncommon to have more than one wife - it's hard enough to support one family, let alone two. I think you should have less children so you can afford to educate them. I graduated high school and dreamt of studying Computer Engineering. The college wanted 18,000 Shekels. Where was I going to get that from?"