Our Trip to Israel

The Pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/johnsilb/Israel12008

Pam and I spent 5 days in Israel. Pam went for work and I got to tag along. We left on Tuesday evening at 10:00ish and left Israel in the afternoon.

When choosing a flight, timing is everything. It is one thing to be on a red eye flight that gets you in first thing in the morning. It is quite another thing to get in at 3:15am. It is still early enough that you are thinking about how much sleep you will get and when you will wake up, but not so early that it makes that much of a difference.
All that being said, we touched down at Ben Gurion International at about 3:15 on Wednesday (Donnerstag) morning. It was a fine flight on Lufthansa, I think maybe a little more leg room and nicer seats than USAir. Interesting thing, as many of you know, when I fly I try and order a kosher meal so that I can more easily avoid Milk products. This works most of the time, a notable exception was when I received a Milch (milk) and not a Glatt (meat) meal. Well, on the flight to Israel a very large percentage of the passengers had kosher meals.
We disembarked and then walked to Passport control. It was a very long walk. We were a little leary about passport control and SAP had given us letters to aid us on our way through. Well, it all went well, perhaps the letters helped, who knows. Our bags came quickly, Pam is Chairman’s preferred and we get the nice pink, “Priority” tag on our luggage.
After a little searching, we found the Sixt rental car desk which had a note that directing us to go to the parking lot. More walking, but we found it. Inside there were three young ladies and the lot attendant and a customer with some kind of problem. The girl who checked us in asked many questions, who are we visiting, where are we staying, what is the number of a local contact. More questions than the guy at Passport Control. Then, and this is the annoying part, Pam asked what the spot number was and there is no spot number, the lot attendant gets the car for you. Well, the lot attendant is working with the guy with problems. At this point the problems are solved and he is going over the car. He was obviously looking for dents and scratches and such. The whole process took about 15 minutes. Then he had to check in another car before he could help us. Finally he took the keys from Pam and brought the car over and he goes through the same routine, looking over every detail of the car. I have never seen anything like this. Then he insists on showing us the spare tire in the trunk the yellow vest in the glove compartment and several other details. Then he points to the key and says here is the security number. You have to enter the number so that the car will start. Ok. He points us in the right direct and we are off, except there are three cars blocking our way. We immediately go a different way, but we got out despite his friendly attitude and pleasant demeanor (many people would call that sarcasm).
The directions to the Hotel are not great, but we make it there. We check in and find out that parking is about 8 NIS(New Israeli Shekels) a day….we do it. We go outside to move the car to the parking lot. We enter the security code, nothing. The bell hop tries entering the number, nothing. This is not good. Pam calls the 24hour number on the rental paperwork, no answer. She tries the second number and gets a live person. She tells us what the code is for the car (not intuitive) and it starts. It is now 4:30 in the morning.
The Daniel Hotel is on the Mediterranean and is a Hotel/Spa. At 4:30 in the morning, there is not much going on. We checked in and went to our room. Interesting foot note, each room has a mezuzah.
I was up and out by 10am. Pam had been at the office for more than an hour by that time. I debated taking the car and driving in or taking a Taxi. My concern is that between the cost of gas and parking, I would spend more on driving in than taking a taxi into Tel Aviv, but I decided on the Taxi. The Taxi ride is kind of cliché. I have no idea what nationality the driver was. He was a big guy and had obviously not bathed recently and does not believe in deodorant. I opened the window. It was cool but not cold out so I was comfortable. My target destination was the Carmel Market in the Yemenite district of Tel Aviv. The Taxi ride cost me 90 New Israeli Scheckels (NIS) or roughly $25 or about 17.50 euro. The Lonely Planet tour book artfully describes the Yemenite district as the only medieval part of Tel Aviv filled with ramshackle buildings. Well, that is only partly true. It looks like the real estate investors are busily destroying another quaint rundown setting and erecting scaffolding in an effort to replace decades old run down quaintness with pastel colors, new windows and off street parking for the cars.
The Market though, was as advertised. Between 8 to 10 blocks long (it did not spill too far to the left or right) of just about anything you could imagine buying. There was fish for sale that looked like they had been swimming in the Mediterranean only an hour ago, fruits and Veggies, clothes, videos and tourist crap. Everyone was speaking Hebrew or Arabic and there was very little written English. Where is Ryan when you need him…his little bit of Arabic would help.
I was getting a little hungry at this point, so I found a decent shop back on the main street and purchased a chicken schawarma and a bottle of water. They put the pomme frittes right in the wrap. The wrap was fairly large and I enjoyed it. After lunch, I decided to walk to the train station and head back to the Hotel in Hezaliyah. I was never completely lost, I knew I was in Tel Aviv, but I did not get to the station I wanted, but I got to a station. The entrance to the station included a security check point. It is also a good time to mention that there were Military/Police personnel everywhere with big Guns, Automatic Weapons. I am not sure whether the number of armed personnel had anything with Bush being in Tel Aviv or if it is completely normal. Some of it seemed pretty normal (such as the military types at either end of the Market).
I pay my fare and go through the turnstiles and then look for maps and route information. I find neither. Not maps with the train routes and no schedules. I ask some people and I am told to go ask information, which is on the other side of the tracks and outside the turnstiles. I go to the information desk and I am told that I need to use Platform #2 and that the train I need comes at 2:26. I also find a schedule and the schedule indicates that the train I want is at 2:08. I go to the platform and the train comes and I ask a kid with a big gun if I am on the right train and in fact I am. I take the train successfully to Hezliya and decide I am do not want to walk and instead take a taxi to the hotel.
I take my laptop to the lobby where Pam joins me a couple of hours later and we have conversation and dinner overlooking a dark Med. You can see the waves breaking on the beach and the lights of boats at sea.

Wednesday morning and Pam leaves for the office. I am out of the room by around 9:30. By now, I have learned something about Taxis in Israel. The guide book says that you should ask to use the Meter, apparently it is optional here. Tuesday it cost me 27 NIS to get from the train station to hotel. This morning the guy suggests 28 NIS or the meter. I say that I was charged 27 just yesterday and he is fine with that. I thank him for offering the meter and realize that I had just saved myself a quarter. When we get to the station I give him a 100 NIS and ask for 70 change….big spender.
The train is a breeze, I have that all figured out at this point. I get out to the Tel Aviv train station and look around, walk up the street…I have no idea where to find the Diaspora Museum or the Eretz Israel Museum. They are supposed to be pretty close to each other. I walk back the station and get cab. First though we have a big discussion about where I am going. They have no idea where or what the Diaspora Museum is. The driver speaks almost no English and the guy who is managing the taxi stand has no clue about the museum. Finally I give up on the Diaspora Museum and ask for the Eretz Israel Museum. They know that and the taxi ride is 25 NIS (no meter).
The museum is an open air museum with outdoor and indoor exhibits. Two of the buildings were of particular interest. The first was the Man and his Work. That showed collections of Weapons and Armor from about the 15th century through the 18th century organized by world regions. It was very interesting to see what cultures did and relative states of technology and craftsmanship. The second building was the Ethnography and Folklore Pavilion. This collection included menorahs, Torah finials, Torah crowns, Torah breast plates and Torah dressings and well as many other things. What struck me most was that there was nothing there from before the 17th century. I think that reflects the transient state and wealth of European Jewry. What I found most disturbing about the museum was the archeological dig. In the middle of the grounds there is a Dig and I was really looking forward to seeing it. I noticed that at several places, the stairs that go up to the dig are over grown, but I find a good way up. As I am walking around the dig, I notice that it has not had work done on it for a very long time and it has not even been very well maintained. In fact in places the dig is being filled in with dirt as wind and rain erode the sides of the dig. As a history buff, I find this all very disturbing. I would never want to be an archeologist. It seems to be a highly detail oriented job and detail is not my Forte. I do though enjoy seeing archeological digs and artifacts. Hungry and slightly disappointed, I left.
Before leaving I had received directions to a bank machine and confirmed that the Diaspora museum was to the north (up the street). With very little effort I got some cash and then sat down, and had lunch. The woman running the restaurant spoke excellent English and the waitress spoke only a little (not enough for us to communicate effectively). I decided on a chicken sandwich with a salad and a glass of apple cider. This is where it is interesting. In the US, when we ask for Cider, we get Fresh pressed apple juice that has not been filtered. When we get Apple juice we get the yellow filtered version. This was neither. I did not see her make the juice, but there were two distinct layers. Not sure the purpose of the two layers I took a quick sip. The brownish layer at the bottom was an apple flavored syrup and the upper layer was unmixed water. I used my straw and stirred vigorously. It was ok. The chicken sandwich was very good and the salad was very good with a nice dressing.
I left the restaurant and started looking for the Diaspora Museum. I had walked one block west to get to the bank, so I head back the other direct (not the same streets). Then I saw a sign to the Diaspora Museum and I started to follow the signs. It was quite a walk. Then, the signs for the Diaspora Musem disappeard. I have no idea where I missed it, but when I read the entry in the tour book more closely, I realize that the museum is not open on Thursdays, I gave up and instead spent some time in the Tel Aviv University Botanical Gardens. Not the best time of year to be there. Much of it was brown and very little was flowering. In two or three months I think it would be more worthwhile.
Dinner that night would be with Pam’s team in Israel, Irit (8 mos. Pregnant), Davi, Stavi, Leore and Adai. I am not sure on any of the spellings aside from Irit’s name and Leore was the only man there and is not really on that team, but works very closely with them. The restaurant was not far from the hotel and Irit and Pam picked me up at the hotel. Davi and Stavi were already there and shortly after we arrived the whole team was assembled. We ordered some appetizers and entre’s and a bottle of Israeli Merlot. The food was very good and the conversation was better. It was a very pleasant evening. Thursday is their Friday (Sunday is a regular work day – their Monday). The younger of the team had plans for the going out that evening.
Thursday morning and we are checking out of the hotel and going to Jerusalem. Pam is hosting a call at 11:30 local time. We check out and got to the car. The battery is dead. We left the overhead light on from the drive to the hotel Tuesday night. We call Sixt and they say it may be two hours before someone can make it there. Pam is nervous about her call and we decide to stay at the hotel and Pam can login and work from the hotel. We also decide that we really don’t need the car. When we leave the hotel we will stop by the airport and drop it off and then take a taxi to Jerusalem, where we will not need a car.
Here are my impressions of Tel Aviv. On a scale of 1 to ten I would give it a 6. It is a nice city. Pretty clean and safe. Even in the Carmel Market I did not feel threaten or unsafe. From a character and interest standpoint it is pretty weak. It is a modern city with not a lot of exceptional charm or character. There are several mitigating factors. Had we come here in May through September, our experience may have been completely different as the beaches would have been open. Also, there is the language thing. It was difficult to use public transportation because all of the information was in Hebrew. Even when I knew Hebrew at my best, I would not have been able to navigate. Scratching the surface you realize that most people here speak pretty good English. They teach English here starting in 4th grade. I also think that if we had stayed at a hotel in central Tel Aviv I would have liked it better, but this hotel is not far from the SAP office.
We dropped the car off and went to the Taxi stand and instead found the shuttle, 100 NIS for the two of us instead of 300 NIS for a taxi. The shuttle was filled with 12 people. Pam and I were in the back row of four seats. Along the way Pam, who has been suffering with a cold, had a coughing attack. A couple from Canada (how many orthodox Jews can there be in Ottawa?) offered her gum, which helped for a little while but it started again 30 minutes later, the older man sitting between us, offered her a throat lozenge. Additionally, he was headed to his home and arranged with his son to provide Pam a cup of water. He was the first out and indeed, his adult son came out with a cup of water (with an ice cube) for Pam and then carried his father’s suitcase to the house.
We arrived at the hotel in Jerusalem with no problems. I have really wanted to eat a Middle Eastern meal, something that I was not able to find to satisfaction in Tel Aviv. I spoke to the front desk and asked for a suggestion. Abed at the front desk, suggested Shalizar and said that I should tell Mohamed that Abed sent us. So we walked out of the hotel to look for the restaurant. We found it pretty easily. The interior was very cool. It was made from local stone and had arched ceilings. When I said that Abed sent us we got smiles from the guys (the owners?) at the front door. They sat us at a table. We ordered several plates and it was exactly what I was looking for. All the food was excellent. I doubt that we will get back there, but it was nice and I would love to return.
It is Saturday and we have a full day tour planned with Egged Tours. One of Pam’s coworkers, Nancy, who is also in Israel for the week told her about the tour. When we get to the hotel lobby, Charlie, the tour guide is waiting for us. The badge Charlie is wearing says that he speaks, Hebrew, English, French, Spanish and Romanian. Outside the lobby there are many tour busses. Luckily, ours is a small bus and there are going to be 9 of us in our group. It was a very nice group. There were Gary and Sue, Gary is a retired teacher from Michigan. They are Florida snowbirds and take long vacations each winter because they find Florida a bit boring. A woman from Boston who is a Biotech engineer and works for an Israeli company and here for business. Raphael who speaks a little English and is from France. Steve who is from Florida and works for Volvo Aerospace and is in Israel for business working with Military types. Vittorio who does speak English and is from Trieste. Last is Nancy, Pam’s coworker who had planned this tour for Friday but had to postpone because of Bush being in Jerusalem and instead visited Masada and the Dead Sea.
The tour was intended to be a general overview of Jerusalem and the surrounding areas and it loosely followed the traditionally path Jesus took when he returned to Jerusalem from Galilee, as well as other sites and got some very nice views of Jerusalem. One of the interesting insights is anyplace that Jesus went and did something, there is a church. Jesus was taken into custody by the Romans at an olive oil pressing facility and now it is a church, the Church of the Agony/Church of All Nations. The gate that Jesus went through into Jerusalem was sealed by the Muslims after they conquered the city. The site where Jesus was crucified and where the Roman Emperor decided he was laid to rest is now the church of the Holy Sepluchre. The Church being built around the mound on which he was crucified, the slab he was prepared for burial and the cave where he was laid to rest and where he was resurrected and seen by the three Marys.
We ended the tour with the Wailing Wall and then a walked through the street markets. The Markets were interesting as the streets are very crowded and narrow with shops lining either side. We wound up at the Jaffa gate where the bus met us and took us back to the Hotel. Pam and I decided that we were going to return and do some shopping as there was no time to shop during the tour. Pam purchased a pair of earrings made with Roman era glass. Then we saw a Chess/Checkers/Backgammon table that we really liked. We talked at length about whether or not to get it. My argument being that we see these kind of pieces often enough then wonder later why we did not ship an item home with us. We spent quite a bit of time with these guys, three brothers, Aymin, Joseph and Omar. After completing the purchase, Pam asked where we should eat. The first place they suggested was Shalizar, where we ate the night before. I mentioned our recommendation from Abed and asking for Mohamed. It seems that Mohamed and Omar are buddies. Very strange. Comments flew around and Pam said, “Let’s all go to dinner,” which was not going to work as they had commitments, but they did invite us to breakfast. We wound up eating at a place called Naflora as which they recommended. It was quite nice.
Pam woke up and planned on doing some work, which meant that she had to go to the lobby of this hotel to use the wireless connection. She had already packed so she showered, dressed and grabbed her things and went to the lobby. I followed shortly thereafter.
At about 9:45, we checked out and headed to the Old City for Breakfast with the Brothers. So, we navigated the streets of the New City and the Old City with no problem, except that we could not remember what the store looked like and went past it, way past it. We walked back and Joseph was waiting for us outside. Something tells me that there was word on the street that they were expecting visitors and that we a couple was wondering around.
We were offered tea and coffee and breakfast was not set out when we arrived. Joseph beads and he actually sells his stuff online and Omar takes his work on the road, in the US and Europe, Joseph does not like to travel. Joseph has never been out of the country, not even to Jordan although He does travel within Israel. Pam and Joseph spent time chatting about beading as Pam does some beading herself (and is pretty damn good).
I sat with Omar chatting. We chatted about a lot of stuff. He went to University in the US on a soccer scholarship to Illinois (I did not ask where), near Chicago. As a Palestinian living in Israel, he had to return once every year to retain his citizenship. If he were to stay away for longer, he would lose his ability to return. They would have turned him away at the airport and he would then not have a country. His family has owned the building we were sitting in for over 300 years. I am not really sure what that means because at street level it is hard to get an idea of what the building really looks like. Also, his father runs the store next door, doing money changing. The family must have considerable wealth as they own several other properties in the old city and elsewhere. Omar has visited 37 countries. His initial interest in travel came from reading about the spice road which he has since traced back to China, how cool is that!
Aymin was in the front of the store working. Aymin received his masters in Chemical Engineering from a school in the US. Aymin is the kind of person that you think you have met before. He is a very personable and likable guy. At 30 he is doing orthodontia.
When the food arrives, it arrives! There were two trays which included a big bowl of Hummus, a Hummus like bowl, a bowl of olive oil, a green herb and tomatoes and two type of flat bread. The one was your standard white flour pita and the other a handmade whole wheat flatbread. Everything was amazing! The flat bread was great the Hummus like thing was marvelous and warm, not like anything else I have ever had in the states. They also served tea with our meal. Pam and Joseph were looking at pillows. Something Pam had been looking at the night before also and found a pair that she was interested in and we purchased. Omar went over rugs us and Pam was afraid he was going to talk me into a rug also.
I could go on and on about the two hours we spent in their shop with them. It was really great to connect with people in that manner. We hope that more than just being customers of the Brothers, we have found friends that we will see again in the future. Pam and I walked out feel very happy about our intercultural exchange.
For the most part our trip ended when we walked out of their shop. What remained was really mechanical, shuttle to airport, plane to Frankfurt (there was a group of sales and Cust. Svc. People from a company called Isgro(??)) and then the shuttle back to our place.