Israel

…was amazing. I had a fabulous trip, and am anxiously awaiting the development of my photos.

The long flights weren’t exactly fun, especially since there seems to be some Murphy’s law of flying that says that the screeching child in the waiting lounge will inevitably end up sitting in my row. Air Canada scored another few points in the “we’re sorry, ladies and gentlemen, but we don’t give a shit about our customers” game. Can’t say I expected otherwise.

Israel itself was great, of course. I spent a week touring, visiting the beaches, the nightspots, Jerusalem and the Kotel, riding a camel in the desert, eating in a Bedouin tent, climbing Masada at sunrise, catching up on sleep at the Dead Sea, touring ancient ruins at Caesaria, eating Mickey D’s in Zichron Yaakov, dancing the hora in a wine cellar, shopping, and eating all the watermelon I could imagine. Mmmmm. Then I spent a week hanging out in Haifa, complete with clubs, pubs, shopping malls, and the beach.

I think I need a vacation to recover from my vacation.

The fluency level of my Hebrew shot up thanks to two weeks of practice. But while I watched plenty of brainless TV, I didn’t so much as read a newspaper the entire time I was in Israel. Funny how here at home, I follow the news from the Mideast obsessively… but while there, I was more cut off from the real world than I’ve been in ages. I didn’t even hear about the tragic suicide bombing in Tel Aviv until I called home and was forced to reassure worried relatives that yes, I was fine. It’s kind of a relief to see how life goes on as usual there. People ride the buses, shop in the malls, go to clubs and cafes and restaurants. Aside from bag checks at most entrances, I didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary. To anyone who is considering a trip to Israel but is wary because of the news headlines, I urge you to go. It’s fine. Really.

Once I get my photos back, I may post a few, if I get around to it. In the meantime, I’m playing catch-up, so bear with me if posting is slow for a while. It may be a couple of days until I get over the jetlag and finish unpacking and catching up on my life.

Back to regularly scheduled programming shortly.