It seems as though I fell into
the abyss for the past two months so let's get you up to speed. MP (my Man
Piece) and I had a pretty kick ass time smashing Israel and being awesome, there
was never a dull moment as I have a million stories but here is my
...
Top 10 highlights of an Israeli summer
10) First day - clearly jet lagged from three days in Bangkok and not being able to sleep on the night flight due to excitement, the second I saw the giant Star of David I was beside myself. The beautiful scenery, the blues of the Mediterranean Sea, shuk shuka, the hot air, scorching sun, and beautiful people. The architecture had left me in awe, the sunset bursting with reds and oranges as it dipped into the water, and of course the company. The night wrapped up at an "exclusive" pub, i have learned over the summer there are many "exclusive" places in Israel. The first day is always so surreal but this was a whole new category.
9) Golan Heights - let's go to Syria! Or at least give it a glance. It was time for a trek off the beaten path to check out the Hermon Mountain, the highest mountain in Israel and be at one with nature. A peaceful day amidst the chaos.
Top 10 highlights of an Israeli summer
10) First day - clearly jet lagged from three days in Bangkok and not being able to sleep on the night flight due to excitement, the second I saw the giant Star of David I was beside myself. The beautiful scenery, the blues of the Mediterranean Sea, shuk shuka, the hot air, scorching sun, and beautiful people. The architecture had left me in awe, the sunset bursting with reds and oranges as it dipped into the water, and of course the company. The night wrapped up at an "exclusive" pub, i have learned over the summer there are many "exclusive" places in Israel. The first day is always so surreal but this was a whole new category.
9) Golan Heights - let's go to Syria! Or at least give it a glance. It was time for a trek off the beaten path to check out the Hermon Mountain, the highest mountain in Israel and be at one with nature. A peaceful day amidst the chaos.
8) Akko - we took a tour of the old quarter as well as the Templer tunnels from the old city to the sea. A lot of history is in this little town and you feel as though you are in a time warp walking the streets through markets, past old buildings, and pom grenade juice stalls. In one attempt to go for the best hummus in Israel we ended up in a large festival to celebrate the end of Ramadan. There was pumping music, games, tons and tons of people and all around chaos. We then drove up the coast line to Rosh Haneakra (border between Israel and Lebanon) and watched another amazing sunset.
7) Haifa - home to the Bahai Center, the gardens surrounding are immaculate and eye catching from a far. I swear you can see all of Israel from the view from the top. We found ourselves at a place called the Beer Fountain a few Tuesdays, where they block off the street for the night and bring in a band. The music is energetic, people are dancing, beer and perogees (!) are flowing, and the street is packed. They also have a guest singer croon out "Mustang Sally" and "sweet home Alabama" among many others and boy, can he wail!
6) Meteor shower - a night under the stars in the desert (i got so cold the heater was on in the car) and many wishes later, MP suddenly became possessed and we were heading to Mezukay Dargot to watch the sun rise over the mountains. To kick off the day, or continuation of the past 24 hours we had already been up, we went for a float in the Dead Sea. I can honestly say I've hit rock bottom, I've been to the lowest place on Earth. It was the most interesting feeling, like submerging into warm oil only to find yourself floating. I had to do it, I had to taste it, I managed to accidentally get a little splash on my face, stuck my tongue out and oh god did it burn! The worst sensation while I was experiencing one of the greatest.
5) Girls night out - MP had a bachelor party so I set out to Tel Aviv with his sister Shoshan and her room mate Ella to dance the night away and crash a hotel. The night started with some streetside sushi and beachside stroll before we got dolled up for a 80's party at which Ella and I 'work(ed) the blonde' to take advantage of the men who were wanting to take advantage of us. Never trust two blondes together. When we decided we were over the party we ran around the hotel like a Lohan on a come down trying to convince the security guards to let us in the pool, harassing room service for glasses of wine, and cackling at the moon on the balcony until the early hours of the morning.
4) The quarter century birthday (2 parts) - I woke up, put on my zer (head bouquet you wear on your birthday if you are from the kibbutz) and ate cheesecake in the morning sun. MP took me to this fantastic restaurant where you can eat all the cheese you want and drink red wine until your heart is content. Or they cut you off. After that we went to an 'exclusive' beach in the Kineret for a dip and to watch the sunset. To wrap it up we went to the only pub in Tivon and caused quite a ruckus when a fight almost broke out, never in the history has this happened until the Canadian arrived. On a separate day I got my birthday present... A 3:30 a.m. wake up call so I could watch the sun rise... from a hot air balloon! It was Absolutely breathtaking to watch the fields bathe in gold as the sun came up over the hills and I was in the middle of the action.
3) Water War - in Rabin square, Tel Aviv, roughly 5000 water gun toting sun worshippers gathered to soak each other with the water from the fountain. Carnage ensued for hours as young and old, scantily clad and over the top water gunman chased each other around without mercy. This event should definitely go on your bucket list.
2) Jerusalem - the energy here is infectious! We took a quick stroll through the old city where an Arab man told me I was in "good condition" and offered MP 10,000 camels, a donkey, and 2 cats for me. Goes to show you cosmetic value is still at a high in Israel, little did he know... We caught a concert in a park by an Israeli band called Balkan Beat Box, hands down the greatest concert I'd ever been to. The band's dynamic didn't skip a beat and the crowd was in a constant frenzy as the night air wrapped around us and the orange moon rose. To finish off a perfect day we met up with Constantini (MP and he had met abroad), ate jachnun (Yemeni dish that will make you FAT), and danced the night away with some over the top French guys.
Number 1(!!!) Smashing Hummus - hummus is my new addiction. I go through withdrawal, so awful. Going for hummus has to happen at least once a week, we usually manage twice, but thrice is nice. I've had the opportunity to smash hummus all over the country, some really amazing bowls, to some ok bowls, spoken like a true hummus champ. My first time having hummus I couldn't finish the bowl and had no clue what I was doing or what half the other things on the table were. MP gave me the best advice he could, "you've got to figure out a good hummus to pita ratio" ahhh, words of wisdom from a seasoned veteran of hummus intake. I have yet to master the refill bowl that is legend to be better than the first.
Xo BB
