Marti & Jeffrey in Israel, Part III

On Wednesday we explored other areas in and around Tel Aviv including Jaffa Port, Rothschild Boulevard and Shuk HaKarmel.

Marti & Jeffrey in front of an Eastern food store in Shuk HaKarmel.
The name of the store is "balagan" which became Marti & Jeffrey's new favorite Hebrew word (see below).

The big surprise of the visit was that this morning (Wednesday) all the transportation unions in Israel went on strike. What this means practically is that at the moment Marti and Jeffrey may be stuck in Israel. All borders are closed and the airport is not open. Their flight is 10:30 AM on 11-30-06 so perhaps by then the strike will be concluded...we shall see.

After spending 24 hours trying to get out of Israel the word "balagan" took on a very real meaning. Simply, balagan means "a mess" more specifically it means what Ben Gurion Airport looks like the day after a strike of the transportation union ends and their are thousands of travelers trying to get on the first plane out of the country!

We are happy to report that Marti and Jeffrey were only stuck in Israel one extra day and arrived back in NYC safe and sound!

Marti & Jeffrey in Israel Part II

Sunday, Saul spent the morning by the pool and then took a bus back to Jerusalem, while Liz, Marti and Jeff went off across the Israel/Jordanian border to visit the lost city of Petra.

The Treasury in the lost city of Petra.

Monday Liz, Marti and Jeff visited a kibbutz, drove through and then visited the top of Makhtesh Ramon (a large crater) and
then had lunch in Be'er Sheva.

Marti & Jeffrey on the edge of Makhtesh Ramon.

We arrived safely in Tel Aviv to enjoy the sunset over the Mediterranean and then dined at Pastis on the famous Rothschild Boulevard (fabulous food - we highly recommend it!). Tuesday was spent visiting our cousins, Shimshon & Rivka Eden, who now live in Tel Yitzhaq a retirement community near Netanya. Here is Marti with them at lunch.

Tuesday afternoon Liz, Marti and Jeff explored Neve Tzedek the hip, happening community that is in Southern Tel Aviv right next door to Jaffa. Saul rejoined the "tour" on Tuesday evening. We ate at another terrific place called Caremella.

Marti & Jeffrey in Israel

Liz's mom Marti and her step-dad Jeffrey arrived in Israel on November 21st. Here are Marti and Jeffrey in the shuk (outdoor food market) in Jerusalem. While at the shuk we shopped for last minute food items for our Thanksgiving dinner.

What an amazing week we all had around Israel and Jordan. Here is a brief list of our adventures: we spent Thanksgiving Thursday cooking and entertaining at our house in Jerusalem. Then on Friday morning (11-24-06) Mom, Jeff and Liz met up with Liz's friend Gadi and took a tour of the Mt. of Olives and into the Old City.

We had what Liz's Mom is calling "the best hummos I have ever tried" at the legendary Abu Shukri Restaurant in the Old City. From there we spent Shabbat services with my new classmates at HUC and then back home for turkey left-overs. Saturday we drove down to Eilat and spent a couple hours walking around Timna National Park. We ate dinner at a terrific fish restaurant in Eilat called The Last Refuge.

Team Liz around Jerusalem

Team Liz took a lovely morning walk around the Old City in Jerusalem.
After that Team Liz visited the Mt. of Olives.

Check out the photos from our walk.
Here is the Midgal David or Tower of David.
This Tower is next to the Jaffa Gate entrance to the Old City.

Saul sitting in the Armenian tile shop on the Via de LaRosa.

The amazing view of the Temple Mount from the Mt. of Olives.
The Dome of the Rock is the gold dome and the
Al Aqsa Mosque is the black colored dome to your left.

Dinner Party in NYC

During Liz's last visit to the states her friend's Ari and Sharon where kind enough to host a small dinner party for Liz.
Here are some fun photos from the evenings festivities.

Ari & Sharon my dear friends and the hosts.

Marti, Hanna, Susan and Michael.

Ari, Liz and Ari watch the election results.

Visiting NC

Liz spent a week in NC visiting her dad and family.

While there she finally got to meet her new nephew Noah. Noah was born at the end of August and
is the son of Liz's step-brother Paul and his wife Carrie.
Liz's brother Jonathan and his wife Ginny also were in NC during Liz's visit.
Here are some photos of Liz's family.

Liz and Liz's step-mom Digna holding the beautiful baby Noah.

The proud papa Paul and mama Carrie with little Noah.

Liz's brother Jonathan with Noah.

Team Liz Goes North for Sukkot

Liz & Saul rented a car and drove North for their Sukkot break.
We started in Acco which is a crusader port city on the Mediterranean. It has an amazing old city
with lots of windy streets and wonderful stone buildings.
We went to visit because the city hosts an annual Theater Fringe Festival - we enjoyed many performances including some outside on top of the old walls as well as one directed by a friend of ours!

Here we are on the port of Acco - behind us in the distance
you can see the remains of the retaining walls.

To see more pictures from our trip up north click HERE.