Okay, so admittedly, you’re probably not initially fond of swimming around a place called “The Dead Sea”. Make no mistake, though: That’s more of a misnomer than anything. The lake is actually one of the most placid, magical places you’ll ever visit. The Dead Sea is a salt lake (a landlocked ‘sea’ highly concentrated in salt—this one being even saltier than the ocean itself at over 30% salt content) that borders Jordan to the east and Israel/the West Bank to the west. It spans about 42 miles, has the lowest elevation on Earth (at 1,300ft below sea-level), and—contrary to its name—is renowned for being a sort of Mecca for health research AND treatment. Jessica