Tel Aviv Adventures

We had a relaxing day today, we went shopping at the market and sat on our beaches of Heaven. But some funny events took place about which we are still laughing.
- Our bus hit a car. I know I shouldn't have been driving, but it sounded like such a fun idea. . . .heh, I wish. We were alone in the back and whether the car hit the bus or the bus hit the car, we don't know, but that poor car had a flat tire and a nice, black streak down the side, and our bus kept on rollin along like nothing ever happened. We've noticed that a large percentage of cars in this country have at least one dent or accident scar of some sort on the side.
- When you pick the prickly pear with the paw, wear gloves. The Ouriels (the couple with whom we're staying laughed for a really long time about this one) We didn't know what cactus fruit looked like. While we were ordering a delectable fresh-squeezed mango-passion fruit-strawberry and a mango-strawberry-banana juice at a juice stand, we saw this fruit on a mound of exotic fruits, and Stace picked it up and asked what it was. They gave us a Hebrew answer which meant little to us, so we just shrugged and she put it back. I later picked it up and examined it more closely. As we were walking away I made a comment of how I thought I must have glass in my hand from breaking a glass last night (it got me out of having to do dishes anymore!) but she had something in her hand too. Cactus fruit has practically invisible splinters all over the outside. Israelis actually call themselves cactus fruit--prickly on the outside, but oh so sweet on the inside. We're going to buy one to eat next time we get the chance, but we'll let someone else peel it for us. Lesson learned: I need to learn Hebrew so that when Stacy asks what she is holding and I hear that it's cactus fruit, I just let it rest.

Other Lessons We've Learned Lately:
1)Times when you honk your horn in Israel:
- If there is a car parked in the lane with it's hazards on and no driver in the car
-If someone is parked in front of the entrance to your apartment. You can lay on the horn for that one, it happened to a guy today at the felafel stand. He can run fast.
-If you are driving and approaching a car in front of you who is not driving at your desired speed.
-If a moped changes lanes in front of you. Or if you just see one.
-If you are approaching a red light and cars are stopped in front of you at the light, and then the light turns green. Honk many times for this because the people need to get moving.
-Any time you hit your brakes when you are not the first one at the red light.
-When you see a person standing on the side of the road.
- When you see two good-looking American tourists on the side of the road with really pretty hats on looking a little lost. Mopeds can just stop and communicate verbally to these, even though they have no idea what the person is saying.
I kind of want to drive just to be able to honk my horn all day long and have no one even think twice about it. It's tempting to do while walking on the sidewalk when the slower people in front of us are blocking the way. We may try it before we leave. Maybe on the moving sidewalks of the airport.
2) If a man on a loud speaker starts shouting at the top of his lungs so that all the world can hear, it's not an alarm of an attack, it's either one of two things: A Muslim call to prayer with a song praising God, or the lifeguard on the stand shouting at people in the water in Hebrew--viciously. If only we could understand what he was saying . . .
3) There is no such thing as personal space. When I am standing at the window of the ticket counter, the next person in line is literally on my back, with his elbow on the counter and money in hand. I thought this was just a thing that a man in a rush did, but then another day an elderly woman did the same thing. At the beach, a family sat down right behind our chairs, even though the whole beach was open, and when I was laying on my stomach reading a book, the little baby was leaning on my chair and smiling at me, and the mom's foot was about that distance from my face. I love these people.
4) Eggplant is a staple. We've had it for 3/4 of the dinners here, all in different forms. We've even had eggplant with scrambled eggs a couple times. We had it in Ratatouille. Cold, hot, it's on the plate.