Tel Aviv

Tel Aviv 25-May-2010

We got in to Tel Aviv's airport (another good looking airport) around 7:30 last night. Diana picked up a bug somewhere between our Paris hotel and the airplane, so by the time we got off the plane, she wasn't feeling too hot (see her post). So today she slept in most of the day and started feeling better later on...

I slept in until noon too (man, Paris was go-go-go!). When I finally headed out in the afternoon, I went to one of Tel Aviv's markets to what it was all about. There were all kinds of stands selling fruits and vegetables, meats and cheeses, and cheap clothes (mostly Levi's and ladies' undergarments). It was at least a half mile long strip of stalls - my favorite ones were selling spices; everything good you ever smelled in food was sitting together and smelled amazing. Then I turned the corner and headed down a special (Tuesday/Friday only) market with people selling jewelry, drawings and wood carved stuff with cafes lining the route. Pretty cool and fun, but I was on my own and didn't feel like buying much. (Oh, an aside - I did have my bag checked by security on the way in. He only was armed with a radio though, not like the big guns carried by the guys at CDG).

After a little while browsing I headed back to the hotel with a stop at a quickie mart for cookies, crisps and 9 liters of water - we each are drinking about three-quarters of a gallon a day; judging by the usual indicator, I'm still not getting enough fluids and we aren't even in the desert yet. We've stuck to bottled water here out of an abundance of caution (it is supposed to be fine); ironic though that Diana probably got her stomach bug from water in Western Europe.

I got back to the hotel and tried to perk up my travel companion, but she wasn't having it. So I went out exploring more on my own. I headed north up the coast a few minutes to the beaches where there were at least 30 kite-surfers but no one swimming. It's still early in the year and probably cool for locals, but if I had my suit on, I would definitely have jumped in.

Then I headed about 15 minutes south of the hotel to Jaffa. While Tel Aviv only sprung up out of the desert 100 years ago, Jaffa is one of the oldest (or THE oldest) port cities in the world: the cedars for the Temple in Jerusalem were imported through here, Jonah set off from here on his way to the whale's belly, and Perseus rescued Andromeda from a rock the Jaffa people had tied her to as a sacrifice to Poseidon (I guess). Anyway, it is a neat place with tiny alleys, lots of steps, a tall, handsome clock tower, AMAZING views and about 4,000 stray cats.

After wandering a bit, I went back, convinced Diana to get dinner and then caught the end of regulation for the Celtics / Magic Game 4 on tape delay (the only TV so far; hopefully we don't accidentally watch any more). At the end of the 4th, with the score tied, they put up a commercial for Wednesday's Game 5 - no need to watch the OT now!

So I'm doing some laundry in the bath tub as I scribble these notes, then it's to bed. Tomorrow we get up early (early for vacation that is) and head up the coast to Caesarea and Haifa, then inland to our hotel on the west side of the Sea of Galilee.

Cheers!