WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 15TH-THE LONG JOURNEY HOME

(THIS PAGE IS BEING WRITTEN ON SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 18TH FOR THE REASON THAT I'VE BEEN EXHAUSTED SINCE ARRIVING HOME AT 2AM THURSDAY AFTER TAKING A TRAIN, A BUS, TWO FLIGHTS, A TRAIN, WALKING 3/4 OF A MILE, AND DRIVING 135 MILES)

I was up too early at 430am to make sure I had everything properly packed.  Breakfast isn't available at my hotel until 8am so I prepared for that by buying two pieces of pastry at my favorite Jerusalem bakery the night before.  I left my key at the unattended front desk and walked out into a chili morning yet to come.  I walked the 200 yards to the light rail station and waited for the first train at 530am.  The train arrived a little early and in 15 minutes I was at a bus stop outside of the Central Bus Station waiting for the 6am bus to Ben Gurion Airport.  There were about 25 people who also needed to get to the airport early.  My flight wasn't scheduled to leave until 1020am but getting checked in and through Israeli security can take a while.  They ask you to be at the airport three hours before your flight.  I waited in a short line to check in and get rid of my checked bag.  I went to the security line.  That took a bit of time and included the questions about "did you pack your bag" and "do you have any sharp objects in your carry on bags".  Israel, like many other countries, makes an effort to keep track of its visitors.  When you arrive you see a live immigration person who asks the purpose of your visit and examines your passport before giving you an entry visa.  They don't stamp it in your passport because there are a number of Arab/Muslim countries who will not let you visit if you have visited Israel as evidenced by a stamp in your passport.  When you leave, if you have a biometric passport ( a passport with a chip inside) you can go to a kiosk and slide your passport in and face the camera and an exit visa will be printed for you.  You will need this to place on a glass pane on an exit gate which will open for you to go to your gate.  I got through all of this in record time and I was at the gate for my 1020am flight at 810am.   I said my goodbyes to a bronze bust of David Ben Gurion, Israel's first Prime Minister

and found a seat near the gate and relaxed.  I enjoyed my breakfast pastry purchased the night before and worked on this blog a bit.  While waiting I noticed the strange accommodation the airport makes for smokers.  For a country with a lot of smart people, Israel has way too many smokers especially young people.  The airport has these transparent cages where smokers can enjoy their deadly habit without poisoning others, particularly me. 

  My first flight on Turkish Airlines to Istanbul, Turkey was 20 minutes late leaving.  This was an improvement over my first flight 3 weeks ago from Miami to Istanbul which left 90 minutes late.  As before I was worried how this would affect my making my connecting flight from Istanbul to Miami.  The flight of 2 1/2 hours was okay and the Turkish food a little strange but mostly edible.  At the airport in Istanbul, even though we had been thoroughly inspected at the airport in Israel we were again inspected and made to take off our shoe and jackets, etc.  This only made my rush to make my connecting flight to Miami a bit more critical.  I hurriedly put my shoes on and headed through the very large airport to my flight to Miami.  I was almost the last to board but still took time getting settled in my seat and doing the same thing I do on every flight.  I use the anti-bacterial wipes from Dollar Tree stores to wipe down the seat back in front of me including the video screen and controls and the tray table.  Also the arm rests and the seat if its vinyl or leather.  Another practice to keep from getting sick from breathing the air exhaled by 300 strangers from all parts of the world is to buy the "Triple Antibiotic Ointment" also from Dollar Tree.  You take a generous amount of this stuff and wipe in inside your nostrils.  My doctor swears by this practice so I'm doing it every flight.  You can also wear a surgical mask but people will treat you like it you that's contagious.  By the way my doctor also said not to use Neosporin for this.  She said that Neosporin has an inhibiting agent and won't protect you nearly as well.  The flight was 12 hours and I slept while attempting to watch several movies.  The one movie I didn't sleep through was "Hidden Figures".  It's about three African-American women who were all gifted (meaning geniuses) mathematicians working in a segregated work environment at NASA in the early 1960's.  If you haven't seen this film it shows how much our country has changed for the better in the last 60 years and how the achievements of women like these three were not made public.  One of the woman was solely responsible for confirming some calculations critical to the last minute decision to launch or not to launch John Glenn into space as the first man to orbit the earth.  

I arrived in Miami at 8pm local time which was 3am to me having become acclimated to the time in Israel.  As a "trusted traveler" with Global Entry (which I highly recommend) I didn't have to stand in the long lines to be questioned by a Customs Agent.  Instead I went to a kiosk, slid my passport in, placed my right fingers on a glass that verified who I was, and faced the camera, answered a few questions on the screen and took the receipt with my picture on it and headed out.  I had answered "yes" to the question "Are you bringing any of the following into the US:  seeds, plants, food, etc".  I had in my carry on luggage about 6 pounds of halva.  For those of you who have never tasted halva, a Middle Eastern sweet made from crushed sesame seeds.  When I attempted to turn in the receipt the inspector asked me what food I had.  I explained that i had halva that I had purchased in Israel.  He had no clue what halva is and as I started to explain how it's made, he told me to "get going".  I guess he didn't see me or the halva as a threat to the internal security of the US.

I went to the baggage carousel and because of my easy entry via Global Entry status (it cost $100 for five years and is well worth it) I was one of the first people waiting for the checked luggage.  It was good that I wasn't in a big hurry because it was around 830pm and I had missed the 750pm trirail train to Hollywood, Florida where my car was stored.  The next, and last train for the evening, wasn't leaving until 940pm.  My checked bag was almost the last one to the carousel and I walked leisurely to the train in the airport that takes you from terminal to terminal and makes it final stop at the trirail station.  I found a bench next to the trirail train and waited.  Another prospective passenger for the trirail train going North sat down on the bench.  She was returning from a trip to Ireland (I didn't get a picture but this woman was so stereotypically Irish, bright red hair, green eyes, and an Irish accent that hasn't faded even after 20 years in America).  She insisted on telling me her belief that the Clinton Foundation was just a tool for money laundering disguised as charitable contributions.  While it may be true I was exhausted and didn't need to participate in that discussion.  The train left at 940pm (I woke up in Jerusalem some 24 hours earlier) and I got off at the Sheridan Street station at 1020pm in Hollywood, Florida just 3/4 mile from my car.  I saw two taxis in the distance in the parking lot and walked to them only to discover that they were empty and just parked there.  I didn't want to call my friend Rick because of the late hour so I walked to his place of business where he had moved my car outside and left the key hidden for me.  While walking I realized that I had probably walked farther than 3/4 mile at the Miami airport so this walk wasn't so tough.  I got in my car having not driven in almost a month and started the 135 mile drive home at almost 11pm.  Once I got away from the metro Fort Lauderdale area and onto "Alligator Alley" I-75 heading across the state I realized how tired I was.  Driving was difficult so I stopped at a rest stop, reclined the seat all the way, and went to sleep.  I woke up about an hour later and felt better about driving.  I arrived home at 2am, dragged my luggage into the house, and promptly went to sleep in the bed I had missed for almost a month.  Since then I've been sleepy including fighting off sleep last night (Shabbat) in my Synagogue.  

I'm now getting ready for a two week trip Monday to visit my Sister Phyllis in Sonoma, California for Thanksgiving.  My flight is again out of Miami (the fares are much cheaper than from Fort Myers) at 11am.  I'll drive to Miami on Sunday and stay in a hotel so I don't have to get up super early to drive across the State to make my flight.  My friend Rick Lucci will again store my car and Sunday afternoon he's throwing a party for his dad's 88th birthday.  I met them in 1988 in St.Croix and did some legal work for them over the years during which time we've become good friends.

This is the end of my blog.  I hope that you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.  It takes some effort but its definitely worthwhile.  I've looked back at my blog from the trip my Sister and I took in 2015 to New York, London, Poland, Ukraine, Moldova and Israel.  I find it enjoyable to be reminded of some things on the trip that I enjoyed but my memory of them has faded.

My trip went well.  Nothing went wrong and I'm happy to be home again, even for a short while.  I'm "signing off" now.

Shalom leitraot,

Vic     

TUESDAY NOVEMBER 14TH-BACK TO THE CHURCH OF ST. MARY MAGDALENE

I got up early and availed myself of the hostels traditional communal do it yourself breakfast on the top floor kitchen with outdoor seating on the roof.  These breakfasts are typically bread, hummus, sliced tomatoes and cucumbers, butter and other toppings for bread or toast, coffee and tea.

I shared an outdoor table with a woman from Finland named Anna Liisa.  She was a Christian who had first visited Israel, volunteering on a kibbutz, in the 1970's motivated by a strong sense of sympathy for the Jewish people who had perished in the Holocaust. 

On my way to the Old City I encountered this disabled woman making beautiful music on the violin.  

The picture shows she has a rather hi-tech mobility system.  It appears to be an electric three wheel wheelchair on which she can turn around to perform and be shaded from the sun.  I was happy to give her some of the gelt which won't seem to ever end.  I continued my walk to my last day to visit the Old City.

The following picture is my last view of the Damascus Gate on the North side of the Old City of Jerusalem.  This is the gate most convenient to the Arab residents of East Jerusalem.  Unfortunately, it's also the site of a number of fatal terrorist attacks on the guards who protect it in the past few years.

I took my regular shortcut through the Old City to get to the Lion's Gate on the east side near to the road leading up the Mount of Olives to the Church of St. Mary Magdalene.  I was put upon in the Arab Shuk (the extensive and intense covered market place) by an Arab merchant selling leather goods including fancy hand tooled backpacks.  He tried to encourage me to upgrade to a camel leather backpack for only 550 Sheckels (about $156.00).  I told him I was a volunteer in Israel and I already had a backpack as he could plainly see.  His tenacity and perseverance would have been impressive had I not been in a hurry to get to the Church.  I ended up spending 50 Sheckels ($14.25) on a very soft wallet he claimed was camel skin and made in Jerusalem.  I had been looking for a gift for my friend Rick Lucci in Hollywood, Florida who was gracious enough to store my car during this trip.  I wanted to get on my way and didn't take a picture of this super salesman.  This next picture is of an ungrateful recipient of $2 of my shaliach gelt.  I asked directions of him to make sure I was on the right track to the Lions Gate.  He explained that he worked sometimes for a Jewish charity and could I give something.  He got upset with the $2 I gave him and he didn't like my admonishing him as my Mother and Grandmothers would by explaining he "shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth".  He was further miffed when I prepared to take his picture, hence the back view of him.

I walked the now familiar route out the Lions Gate to the Old City.  On the way I gave more gelt to this Arab woman whom I'm pretty sure was in the same place last year.   

 I arrived at the Church of St. Mary Magdalene just after 10am where I breezed through the gate without seeing the mean nun who had tried to keep me out two weeks earlier.  Iwent first to the gift shop where I did not find my friend or any other nun.

I looked around and found the younger nun who had recognized me from last year when I visited two weeks ago.  I asked again about my friend in the gift shop and she said she was a little ill and was resting at "home" on the church property.  She called her with the idea that she would come down (there are hills and steps within the church property) to see me.  I wanted to see her but I also didn't want to impose on these people who had been so nice to me.  Instead of her coming to see me.  I wrote an note wishing her well and telling her I would be back possibly in six months instead of a year.  I suggested the younger nun take my picture on her celphone so the older nun would know exactly who the good wishes were coming from.  I made a second $20 donation (I had made one two weeks prior) to the girls school the nuns operate in Jerusalem and I bought another of the same and only refrigerator magnet that they sell (Its a picture of the church).  I thanked the younger nun and took a seat on a bench across from the front of the church to get my final view of things which seem to have become an important thing in my life.  There was a tour group of Russian speaking people at the church and this woman took a seat on bench where I was sitting. 

Her name was Julia and she told me that the Russian speaking people were Russians who had emigrated to Belgium and came to Israel as a tour group.  She was curious when I told her about my volunteer experience and told me that she was a nurse and her husband was some kind of urban planner and when the object of the next picture appeared we discovered that we are both "cat people".

She was quick to proudly point out that this beautiful gray cat was a "Russian Blue" that was apparently not just a stray that lived well on the church property, but had a stylish blue collar that made him a real resident of the Church.  I said goodbye to Julia and headed back to the Old City for my last view of the Western Wall and then on to my quest to find the elusive windmill.  I had Googled the "Montefiore windmill" and figured out how I had gotten lost on previous attempts even with what I thought was a good map.  Once out of the Old City it was probably another 1 1/2 miles until I came upon this site in the middle of Jerusalem's fancy hotel district.

 There is a nice park around the windmill and the carriage that Sir Moses Montefiore, who lived from 1784 to 1885 (yes he died at 101) had shipped wherever he was traveling is preserved behind glass.

 Moses Montefiore and his Wife Judith Montefiore (the former Judy Cohen) traveled extensively from their home in England, and were great supporters and financiers of the development of the first Jewish neighborhood outside the walls of the Old City.  Oh, the windmill was to grind grain for the first inhabitants of the neighborhood created by the Montefiores.

I headed back to my room being mindful of the time and my need t wake up at 430am to begin my journey home.  Here's a picture of the front of my accommodations in Jerusalem.

I had one last falafel from my favorite falafel stand and some cookies from my newly discovered bakery and headed to my room to get organized for tomorrow's too-early travels travels.

  

MONDAY NOVEMBER 13TH-RETURN TO JERUSALEM

At 830am I met with the owner of the hotel so I could pay him for my stay.  I thought traveling to Jerusalem would involve taking a train to Tel Aviv and a bus from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.  It turns out there is a direct bus with very few stops to the Central Bus Station in Jerusalem.  It cost the grand sum of 37.5 Sheckels, about $10.50.  The taxi ride from the hotel to the bus station cost 50 Sheckels, about $14.50 (I may not have bargained strongly with an arab cab driver).  Here are some photos taken along the way.

 All of the buses in Israel have wifi, air conditioning, some have adjustable foot rests, reading lights, fold down tray table for your laptop, and a place to charge your electronic devices.  This is the overhead panel from my bus ride to Jerusalem. 

 And some scenery along the way from Haifa to Jerusalem.

 These two pictures do not do justice to the amazing "bridge of strings" in Jerusalem.  A unique structure to say the least.

 The next picture is of the Central Bus Station in Jerusalem.  Public transportation on buses and trains is a big deal in Israel.  It is reliable, comfortable, safe, and a very inexpensive way to get around in Israel.  All soldiers, sailors (yes there is also an Israeli Navy), border guards, and Air Force personnel ride the buses and trains for free at any time just by showing their military ID or being in uniform.

The blurry pictures of the orthodox men is to advance a theory I have that when they graduate as rabbis they are given a celphone and directed to use it constantly.  Although that may be true of everyone in Israel.  I called my Sister from a train and I commented that every person I could see was either talking on the phone, texting, or listening to something stored on their phone.

I returned to the very well located Jerusalem Hostel/Hotel where I had a private room with bath.  It was also $75/night but wasn't anywhere near the comfortable space of my room in Haifa.  It does have a great location which you've seen from my earlier weekend in Jerusalem.

 Among the conveniences of the location of the Jerusalem Hostel/Hotel is the close proximity to one of Israel's best and busiest bakeries.  This place was always busy and had great cookies and chocolate croissants etc.

The following pictures are some of the recipients of the "Shaliach gelt" (the tradition of taking money for the poor when we travel abroad).  I included street musicians and entertainers as deserving of this charitable gesture.

This man played an amplified autoharp (or is it a zither?) with a sound that reminded me of the theme music to one of my all time favorite movies:  "The Third Man".

I arrived after 2pm and headed on foot to the Old City to say a few (previously forgotten) more prayers at the Western Wall and looked unsuccessfully for a certain falafel place that my Swiss walking companion in Haifa referred me to.  I couldn't find it so I went back to my old reliable place for a late lunch/dinner.

After dining I walked the neighborhood including the very popular Ben Yehuda street which is a pedestrian mall without cars and places to sit and eat in the middle of what was once the street.

This building is directly across the street from my hostel/hotel.  It has a bank on the ground floor and several very popular ATMs.  The upper floors appear to be luxury condos which, at least the upper ones, have a great view of the Old City.  The building also does a light show of sorts on the front of the building as shown below.

The following picture is looking down Jaffa Street in front of my hostel/hotel.  It shows the tracks for the light rail train.  In the evening there are rarely cars on the street and when the trains aren't going by, people freely walk in the street.

Tomorrow (Tuesday) will be my last day in Israel and I plan a return visit to the Church of St. Mary Magdalene to find and say hello to the nun who had treated me so well the past two years.  As Tuesdays from 10am to Noon are included in the posted visiting hours at the church, I do not expect to have a rematch with the really mean nun who did her best to keep me out two weeks ago.  I walked around on Ben Yehuda Street and bought some gifts (t-shirts and refrigerator magnets) and enjoyed some improvisational jazz from this man whose English wasn't so good but did manage to communicate that his daughter is a first violinist somewhere in New York.  

 

I spoke with him about the jazz I enjoyed and we clicked on Stan Getz and the Brazillian Jazz sound of the 1960's and Chet Baker.  I sat for a while realizing that the next evening would be my last in Israel and I would need to get to bed early for my morning flights home on Wednesday.  The following pictures are two more recipients of my "shaliach gelt", the money I had brought to give to the poor and had been less than successful so far.

I went to bed anticipating how I could get the most our of my last day in Israel, planning my return to the church for the morning and a last walk through the Old City and to find the elusive Montefiore windmill.

SUNDAY NOVEMBER 12TH, A DAY TRIP TO AKKO

(I HAVE A LOT OF PHOTOS BUT I'M HAVING A PROBLEM UPLOADING THEM TO THE BLOG....I'LL ADD THEM WHEN I FIGURE OUT WHAT'S WRONG)

I did some reading online about Akko, but pretty much left without having an idea what I wanted to see in Akko other than finding the visitor center.  I walked to the train station. 

It was easy without luggage. 

 I bought my ticket for the 25 minute ride and looked for breakfast at the train station. 

Israel has a lot of bakeries.  I found an Israeli version of cheese danish and bought two.  I boarded the train and an American couple from Boston sat across from me.  The husband had a brace on his wrist.  I didn't ask about the injury but I did ask if they play Pickleball where he lives.  He replied by saying that his wrist injury happened in a fall playing Pickleball.  It turned out that his injury happened for the same reason that I fell and injured my shoulder playing Pickleball.  We both made the mistake of wearing running shoes instead of court (tennis or basketball) shoes.  Running shoes are designed only for going forward.  Bad things can happen in running shoes used improperly.  They were with another couple from New York and Florida in the Winter. 

We enjoyed talking on the train and the invited me to join them sight seeing in Akko.

Of the five of us I spoke, by far, the most Hebrew.  By that I mean we were in real trouble getting directions to the visitor center in Akko.  We did find the visitor center and did a self guided audio tour of the old walled city of Akko which was very impressive. 

Not so impressive was a mosque we paid 10 Sheckels ($2.80) each to enter. 

We removed our shoes and one of the women had to use a headscarf provided by the mosque and stated afterwords:  "I hope there weren't any head lice on the scarf".  I politely contained my laughter.  As walled cities go, I can't Imagine one that could be more impressive than Jerusalem's Old City, so I'm not sure if I recommend visiting Akko or not.  You might as well just go to Jerusalem and see lots more.


We, with the help of a few pedestrians found our way back to the train station and returned to Haifa.  We took a picture together at the station, exchanged email addresses (which I used to provide them with the address for this blog) and said goodbye.

Hunger motivated me to walk a few blocks from the train station to the falafel place I had discovered two days ago. 

It didn't dissapoint and I headed back toward my hotel getting lost, even though I had a map, and trying to ask directions in Hebrew from two guys who turned out to be from India on a cruise and were as lost as I was.  I again asked for directions in Hebrew from two young women.  They spoke no Hebrew, but did speak English and Arabic, so I was on the right track again.

On the way I passed an ice cream stand that beckoned and I took this striking photo of my ice cream cone and the Baha'i Temple and Gardens. 

I'm not sure why I thought this would be an interesting photo.  

I was a bit tired so I found my back to my room and napped and wrote a bit and planned how I would travel to Jerusalem on Monday.