Shopping, shopping and falafel

Today was the day to stock the apartment with real food. We crafted a master shopping list and headed off to the Sufersal grocery store for packaged goods: kosher grape juice, noodles, coffee, etc. We brought three reuseable grocery sacks to carry things home. Then for a myriad of fresh food from the shuk: eggs, butter, the makings for Israeli salad, broccoli and fresh apricots.

Then, a nap. And a plan to walk up to the celebrated Falafel HaKosem (the falafel wizard).  A fun place, but not as good as Falafel haKerem in Beer Sheva.

Back in Tel Aviv

Sheila and I traveled to Israel today (or was it yesterday?).  The trip was a little frustrating, but, honestly, uneventful.  Meaning that we arrived on time with our luggage. The TSA line at JFK was about an hour, but it kept moving. We took local transportation from the airport which was something given the luggage. Then we arrived at the apartment just after sundown, let ourselves into the lobby (code was the same as last year), but the office was dark.  Sheila went up to our apartment on a whim, and found the key on the table. I hadn't had a chance to check my email, but that was exactly their plan. We are rehydrating, letting people know we're well, and just kicking back on a 70° evening in Tel Aviv.

Headed back to Israel

I'm headed back to Israel next week.  I think this will be a trip of meeting with people:  Ariel University, Hebrew University in Rehovot, a columnist for Israel Today magazine, picking up a friend at the airport who's arriving ahead of his group, taking a friend to see the Chagall windows and maybe the Chagall tapestries at the Knesset.  In between those meetings, I hope to go to the Levinsky shuk and Sarona market, to see what they have.  And, there would be that little Light Festival in Jerusalem. Oh, and I have opera tickets.  I will do my best to keep up the blog from my Kindle Fire.

End of the trip

So, I'm finalizing this post from Midway Airport in Chicago.  I'm almost home.  It was a good trip and the transportation in the last 24 hours is thankfully unremarkable.  The Allenby Bauhaus Apartments was a good place to stay for transportation out of town, and quick trips to the Carmel shuk.

It was surprising to hear from quite a number of Israelis, over the entire trip, that they were surprised that I studied and knew a little Hebrew.  And then a few were even more surprised to hear about the outreach that Israel Spirit does to promote Israel in the Kansas City community.  They are very glad to know that have friends.

I hope you enjoyed the blog.

Jerusalem Light Festival - part two

We went to the Kotel earlier in the day, and completed some important tasks.

I wanted to go on the Green route of the light festival, because that route tracks on the outside of the old city wall from the Jaffa Gate to the Damascus Gate.  I so wanted to walk in safety in that area, and even at night.  And what a treat it was!

Jaffa Road (you could be photographed under the halo and wings)

Green route marking

Violinist with lucite sofa

Hi-def projection on Damascus Gate (note the Star of David in the picture)

Crayola transition between each of the many pictures

Note the Israeli flag in the picture

I have about fifty different photos of these amazing projections.  It was great seeing a Star of David and Israeli flag on the Damascus Gate!  Oh, what the heck, here's another.

But there was more.  The last stop was inside Solomon's Quarries/Zedekiah's Cave, an underground historic site.  Too cool.

The light show was strobes which caused optical illusions without 3-D glasses.  The static photos don't capture it, but the video did.

Then, we got on the Jerusalem light rail, walked right onto the #405 to Tel Aviv, and caught a non-lions-and-tigers-and-bears bus back to the apartment.  Tel Aviv was a great place to get home to from the Light Festival.

Finally to the Mediterranean

The Etzel (Irgun) museum on King George Street is very comprehensive, like the Hagana museum. Both museums required identification (my passport), perhaps because both are used in IDF training, and there were a number of soldiers there learning about IDF history.  I learned a lot about their philosophy, their mission, and their operations.  They were much more than the clandestine saboteurs that are often the characterization:  they did a lot of clandestine refugee smuggling to the Land before WWII.

And we finally got to the beach, which could, of course, be seen from my rooftop apartment.  Hof Aviv is just about due west of the apartment.  We didn't get there until 1600, so we just took a few dips, caught some rays, and headed back to wash the salt off.

Update for Thursday evening

How could I have forgotten this???  On the local bus from the Tel Aviv CBS (central bus station), on the way back from the light show, we got on a bus with....lions and tigers and bears, oh my!  Well, one tiger, one panda bear, one Oscar (muppet), one Angry Bird, one penguin and one guy with his costume in a bag.  They were all going to work somewhere in the Rothschild Avenue area, and quite late in the evening (around 2300).  It was just a riot seeing them go to work in costume like that.  That's Tel Aviv!