This upcoming Friday is our final for the first module. That meant this week, we had a 'reading period' (aka: time off from class) to study. So - of course - I crammed all my studying into airplane time and took a trip to Israel.
My best friend from high school lives in Tel Aviv, so this trip was more about visiting her and her new husband than really touring Israel. I'd actually been to Israel once before - back in 2006. On that trip I saw the major sites, but we didn't really spend time in Tel Aviv. As the plane glided over the Mediterranean, I couldn’t help but think about all that had happened since I'd been here last. Back when the razr was the "it" phone, skinny jeans were worn only by the intensest of hipsters, and if you had asked me about possibly attending law school, I would have laughed. Amidst the whirl of memories, and the appreciation of where life has taken me, I landed mid-afternoon in Israel. Immediately, I had to strip down into a tank top and shorts. Bilbao was experiencing an unseasonably warm October, but Tel Aviv was HOT.
The newlyweds picked me up and we went for Thai food, which meant I was pretty much in 7th heaven. Oh, sure, the company was good, but the food!!! In Bilbao, there are tons of restaurants and bars, but the options are mostly pinxtos (the Basque version of tapas), or three course meals of bland, heavy Basque food. There are very few options in between and I didn't realize how much I missed the gastronomic diversity of San Francisco until I got to Tel Aviv. I passed the week reveling in the delicious, fresh foods I frequently eat at home - Thai, sushi, salads, hummus, bagels. I even spent an afternoon studying at The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf – one of my favorite California brand coffee shops. Maybe because it's a much bigger city, or maybe because it's full of American expats, or maybe because I was with my oldest friend, but I felt at home in Tel Aviv, more connected to the city than I ever have in Bilbao.
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| Drinking beers (admittedly, we have that in Bilbao) at a lovely farmers market. |
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| Riding bikes and stopping for snacks. That lady on her cell phone was also making us a delicious pita/crepe thing with an herby yogurt sauce. Yum. |
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| Bakery. Ok, Bilbao has plenty of those. But you can never have enough! |
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| Yippeeeeee!!!!!! |
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| Julia and Yoni after a meal at their favorite "local organic cafe". Did I say "yum" yet? |
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| About to enjooy some delicious sushi. (duh, yum ... though Bilbao does have 1 sushi restaurant - and it's quite good!) |
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| Eating a traditional Israeli breakfast - mostly salad! Say it with me - YUMMMMMMMM! |
Julia took me to many beautiful sites in Israel - Jerusalem, Caesarea, Yafo. I think, though, I would have been happy sitting on her couch, giggling, and drinking tea. Israel is a fascinating place; the first time I visited, I remember pondering why it was that so many people had spent so many years - right up until today - fighting over such a small piece of land. I suppose its a question for the ages, but for me it adds to the mysticism of the place. Another fascinating thing happened while I was there. During this visit, Gilad Shalit was released by the Palestinians after holding him prisoner of war for over five years. It was quite a current event; Israel was trading 1,027 Palestinian prisoners, many convicted and confessed murderers, in order to retrieve Shalit. Before this week, I had never heard of Gilad Shalit, but in the days before his anticipated release I noticed the plethora of fading graffiti, posters and stickering demanding his release and demanding the Israeli government figure out how. The morning he was brought back to Israel, everyone - literally - gathered around every available television to watch. The entire country was standing behind Gilad, begging for his return – the return of just one Israeli boy. I can’t imagine that ever happening in the States. Nor could I imagine the US releasing prisoners and bargaining with terrorists. To be sure, plenty of people were nervous about releasing the prisoners, many of them attempted suicide bombers who were welcomed back to Palestine like héroes. We watched the tv in horror as they made speeches encouraging children to follow in their footsteps and kill as many Jews as possible. It made my stomach turn to see these people released and watch this culture in action, but the entirety of Israel rejoiced over the return of Gilad. To them, it was not too high a price and I had to admire the loyalty and camaraderie of the Isareli people.
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| Us in front of the Western Wall in Jerusalem. |
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| Looking out over Jerusalem. |
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| The Tel Aviv coastline, looking south towards Yafo. |
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| The Tel Aviv coastline, looking north towards the newer parts of Tel Aviv. |
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| Jules and I at Caesarea, ancient Roman ruins. |
