it's all Greek to me...

what better way to return to the blogging world than a fun post about my recent Greek adventure/vacation? I apologize for the lack of pictures. It's really my fault since I made Dave (my vacation buddy) take all the pictures on his camera, but you'll all forgive me. I'll post links as soon as pictures are up (which, knowing Dave, won't take long).

The radio edit: lots of great food (read: stuffed tummies), endless beautiful scenery, numerous laughs at the expense of language barriers and translations, and enough relaxation to hold me over until my next getaway.

For those who want the extended album version, read on.

Wednesday July 4th, 2007
Day 1: After not sleeping the whole night since I thought my flight was earlier than it was in actuality, I arrived at the Ben Guiron airport around 4:45am for my 8am flight. Murphy's law was certainly in full-gear as all I can recall from that morning is standing in the seemingly shortest line for each part of the airport check-in process, and then having each of those lines proceed to move at turtle-speed. Nevertheless, I got on the plane in time and slept my way through the two hour flight to Athens. Upon exiting the customs section of the Athens airport, I saw Dave, for the first time in almost two years, holding up a hand-made sign with my name on it :-)

We did all the rental car check-in stuff, found the car we'd be driving in for the next five days, (a very cute Ford Fiesta) and shortly after that we were navigating our way out of the airport and on the way to a quaint little town called Stemnitsa. It took a few hours to get there, including a lunch break, and a few instances of stopping on the side of the road to figure where we were and what the signs said (perhaps I should have paid more attention to the Greek letters we used in high school physics?). The ride was beautiful, and the winding roads with amazing views made the time pass rather quickly.



Stemnitsa is home to some amazing honey. On the way we saw tons of boxes covering beehives on the side of the road, and in town every little shop sold various kinds of honey and jams. After a little bit of exploring, we found this very pleasant and homey B&B place to stay at for the night. We took a walk up to the highest point/view lookout area of the town and took lots of nice pictures, none of which will do the view justice. The whole town was probably a maximum of a few hundred people, and we seemed to be some of the only tourists there (granted, it was the middle of the week - apparently it's a very popular weekend getaway)

We decided to have a late afternoon snack at one of the coffee shops. They had this delicious dessert called Loukamades (sp?) which are essentially small fluffy balls of fried dough with honey, cinnamon and crushed nuts drizzled all over them. So good. I should learn how to make them. On second though, it's probably better that I don't... that could be dangerous. ;-)

In the evening we walked around and sat at one of the restaurants underneath our B&B for dinner. Well, I remember the wine more than the dinner (I believe there was some very salty fish involved). And of course the hand signals and gestures needed to facilitate the ordering of food. But it was overall a nice end to a long day, and thanks to the half liter of wine, it wasn't long before we crashed for the night.

Thursday, July 5th, 2007
Day 2: After taking our dandy ol' time waking up and getting our asses in gear, we had a yummy crepe and yogurt with honey breakfast, and strolled around town to buy some local honey. I bought two kinds of honey in the smallest jars we could find (which were not that small, really). Both types were very different in taste, and one was different than any honey I've ever had. "Yum" pretty much sums up that experience. We eventually rolled out of town and headed south towards a coastal town called Kardimili. The drive involved lots of crazy winding roads, a few breaks to take pictures of the gorgeous views, and doing my best to help Dave navigate (and by navigate, I mean point in the general direction we need to go and hope for the best).

By the time we arrived in Kardimili, we were hungry and looked for a place to have lunch. This meal was definitely the least successful (but at least there was some amusing people to chat with). We moved onto the task of finding a place to sleep - which would prove to be slightly more challenging than it was in Stemnitsa. One not so great room, two "I have no idea what you're saying - we don't speak Greek" conversations, and three "this place is nice but too expensive" later, we found a good deal on a fairly nice room where the guest book had positive comments from various past guests, including a couple Israelis. The guy in charge was extremely relaxed, and didn't seem to care who we were or how long we planned on staying. But it was a pretty good deal and so we got our stuff, changed and headed to the beach.

We walked a ways down the coast to a stone/pebble beach and were a less than pleasantly surprised by the water temperature. Maybe I've just become spoiled in Israel, but I had Atlantic-seasoned flashbacks that made it difficult to believe that we were swimming in the Mediterranean. Being the brave souls we are, (or just feeling that it would be rather lame of us to get all the way to the beach and not swim) we took a quick dip before giving up and hanging out at a little outside garden/cafe place across the street. We spent a few hours exercising our brains (well, as much as we were planning on doing while in Greece) with these rather complex crossword puzzles that Dave with him.

I'm happy to report that dinner was much more successful than lunch (yes, food IS a theme), and I even tried this octopus dish that was rather interesting (and chewy...). Towards the end of dinner we watched a boat come into the dock down below the restaurant. At first we didn't quite understand what the commotion was, but then we saw that the fisherman were hauling huge swordfish out onto the dock. We went down to get a closer look, and Dave took a few pictures. I do admit that it made me a little sad to see all the dead fish being weighed and thrown into a truck and was happy to move onto our short stroll through town. As Kardimily is quite small and there wasn't too much going on, we made our way back and settled in for the night.

Friday, July 6th 2007
Day 3: We woke up and had omelets for breakfast at a nearby cafe. After a quick connection with the rest of the world (read: email) we decided to take a drive up to the nearby gorge and walk along one of the many paths in the area. It took a little bit of trial and error, as well as a short but interesting detour before we found the area where the path went along the gorge. In retrospect, it probably wasn't the best idea to hike exactly at noontime with the hot sun beating down, but the views were well worth the sweat. That being said, I'm sure Dave has a least a few pictures of me climbing up rocks, giving him the "what have we gotten ourselves into" look.

Many liters of water we consumed that afternoon, and we had a lovely lunch at a beach town a few kilometers up the road. By that time we were quite ready to cool off in the water and spend some time on one of the sandy beaches around us. Now, it's always been quite difficult to keep me out of the water (just ask my parents) and I am not a big fan of just lying on the beach tanning. But this water was COLD! Just when I thought it was a fluke that the day before we were freezing in the water, we get to this place where the water is beautiful, clear, inviting and freeeeeezing! Eventually you could adjust, but we still didn't stay in for all that long and spent some time reading under an umbrella before heading back to Kardimily.

We showered and had dinner at a very popular little place where this cute little old woman cooked all the food (with the help of her granddaughter it seemed). Dave and I ate separate meals (this is a BIG deal :-P) - he meat and me veggie. Bed was a welcomed and delicious end to our second day in Kardimily.

Saturday, July 7th 2007
Day 4: Saturday meant the end of our stay in Kardimily and the beginning of our drive back east towards Athens. We decided to take a different route than we did on the way down and it was well worth it as we saw some of the coolest views yet (including half and full tunnels through the rocky mountains around various curves of the road). We stopped to visit a little local spring and restaurant area and had lunch with some incredible views of the mountains. After satisfying our tummies and our people watching instincts, we were back on our way towards Napflio, a coastal town on the bay west of Athens, where there was supposedly an interesting fort that we could visit. And really good gelato. :-) We also pulled over to buy some great sour cherries that this old man was selling on the side of the road. The rate per kilo wasn't quite clear, but after handing over a few euros, we ended up with a huge bag full of cherries. Score.

We arrived in Napflio by late afternoon and after some less than successful investigation, we found a decent place to stay for the night and dealt with the higher rates. Napflio is definitely a much more touristy town than the other places we had visited. After getting our stuff together, we headed up towards the famous fort to see what that was all about. It took a little bit of driving in circles before we finally go to the fort entrance and made our way inside. Both Dave and I were fairly skeptical about how interesting this was going to be, having been to various forts in other cities/countries, but this ended up being truly awesome. First, we were able to climb up and around all areas of the fort, with nothing blocked off (not even parts that should probably have been blocked off for the safety of the public; read: clumsy people like me). We also had about four times where we thought we had reached the last part of the fort and should turn around and head back. First there was a steep stairwell that led to a whole other area. Then there was a tunnel and then just a random path through some bushes. About an hour and 30 or so pictures later, we reached the flag and the ledge looking over the mountain below. We made our way back, both agreeing that this was well worth the trip and definitely goes on the top 5 list of forts we have each visited.

After showering and getting ready to walk around town, we agreed that it was time to experience the other Lonely Planet recommendation: gelato. There was brief talk of waiting until after dinner, but really, why wait? Two cups of gelato and many "mmmmmm"s later, we walked up the stairs of the town to get a better view of the sunset. It's no wonder the town is a popular tourist destination; it's quite beautiful and definitely has a venetian feel to it. We walked around town, sat down for some fruit shakes at a restaurant along the bay, and eventually had dinner at one of the many cute restaurants of the old city. Interesting/amusing side notes include:

1) asking this woman if the restaurant had a table open for two, having her answer us, and then about 5 minutes later realizing that she doesn't work there.
2) Dave wishing there were fireworks while we were having our fruit drinks, and then suddenly seeing fireworks across the bay
3) Almost crashing a wedding (OK, not really, but it was discussed) going on in the town plaza
4) After the fort but before the gelato, we managed to get in a quick spanikopita (spinach pie) break. This is why I love eating with Dave - good food is not something one should compromise.

In short, Napflio was quite pleasant.

Sunday, July 8th 2007
Day 5: Sunday was our last day in Greece, and our ride from Napflio to Rafina (where we were meeting up with Josh and his friend) was also the last of our major drives. We started off the day with some breakfast at a street cafe with nice couch-type chairs, and then got a relatively early start in order to get to Rafina by a decent hour. The trip was definitely the least interesting since it was mostly going on the outskirts of Athens and then over to the eastern coast. We were in Rafina by early afternoon and checked into the only hotel that we actually booked beforehand. The place was nice and right on the main plaza of the town. We had no idea when Josh and his friend were expected to arrive from the islands (or what island they were coming from), but the hotel receptionist told us that most ferries came in during the afternoon. So we went to get some lunch and hang out until the ferries showed up.

Lunch was a rather eclectic experience, involving a really good eggplant dish on one hand, and stuffed grape leaves that were frozen on the other. The grape leaves were clearly not meant to be as the first time the waiter brought them they fell off the plate and onto the tray he was carrying them. The second time, when he actually got them safely to the table, they were frozen. Needless to say, we didn't bother to make sure that there would be a round three to that game.

Various ferries came, none of them with Josh, and we eventually went back to nap and read in the room. That got old fast, and instead I re-taught Dave how to play sheshbesh (backgammon). Soon after our third game, we heard a familiar voice and there was Josh!

Ok, side note - when Dave and I decided to meet up in Greece, we had no idea that Josh would be on vacation in Europe at the same time, and planning to be in Greece on exactly the same dates as us. Now that is what I call too random to just chance. But who was I to deny the need for a little reunion?

Josh's friend, Julia, had sprained her ankle the day before so wasn't able to join us in the water, but we all drove to a beach about 15 minutes away and spent some time in some (finally) warm and calm water. The beach was insanely crowded, but it was nice to swim around, play some Frisbee (yes, I'm still terrible) and catch up with Josh.

We took the "Let's Go" guide's advice about a dinner option (or at least, we think it was the place they were talking about) and got a bunch of yummy dishes to share. Tzatziki (yogurt with cucumber), fried zucchini, cheese balls (think creamy mozzarella stick in ball form), fish, and baklava for dessert made for a yummy last meal in Greece. We stayed up and chatted with Josh for a lot longer than we probably should have and then slept a little before getting up to drive to the airport.

Being the "to be on the safe side" people that we are, Dave and I arrived at the airport and returned the car with plenty of time to spare, especially considering his flight got delayed 2 hrs. We got our last coffee together and said goodbye. I had an uneventful flight back to Israel and my bag was even one of the first few out (as most of my readers know, luggage arriving is a VERY big deal with me).

While it was sad for me to not be on vacation with my family (in St. Martin), I am very happy that I got to spend some quality time with Dave and see some amazing parts of Greece. Road trips are the way to go for those thinking of visiting the mainland, and I highly recommend taking a week out of your lives to do so.

Until next time...

quick update, list style

quick update, in list form (clearly)

things i'm happy to have behind me:

1) big conference at work that made it difficult for me to breathe like a normal person should for the last couple of months

2) realizing that i don't REALLY want to go to Business School (at least not right now) and thus not taking the GMAT or applying to grad programs

3) winter

things that i'm very much looking forward to:

1) my sister visiting (she arrives tomorrow)

2) the concerts and fun things that I am doing in the next few weeks (in light of #1)

3) going to Greece in July with Dave - i really have to get that ticket!!

things that i'm finding quite bothersome as of late:

1) global warming...which really just seems like the world was diagnosed as being bipolar/psychophrenic... somehow this one might always be on the list...

2) the fact that Jon Stewart seems more in touch with reality than any politician i can think of and as much as I love the Daily Show, I'm not sure how capable it is of influencing global politics

3) the "love triangle" formed by my three housemates: Amitai, my cat and the plants on our balcony

things that have made me very happy as of late:

1) Liz passing her tests and being done with training (i.e. more normal life and time off from the army...i.e. more time with yours truly ;-P)

2) knowing a lot of people being active for good causes, and being able to support them, financially or otherwise

3) discovery of a new (at least to me) artist, Mat Kearney

4) Sara Bareilles music finally being on iTunes (and her new cd coming out in the relatively near future)

5) watching Brothers & Sisters with Amitai until 2am (minus the getting up in the morning part)

6) summer fruits starting to be available at the market

7) getting a fun amazing new laptop (and recording equipment....mmm, garageband and i will be good good friends very soooooooon)

8) real personalized snail mail

at least the "making me very happy list" is the longest, right?

i know, i know...

what's my excuse this time? yeah. i don't have one really. sorry.

after some comments on how i don't really update my blog (ahem...idan) -- which i haven't in a while, i know -- i realized that i always sort of think about doing it, realize there's not too much NEWS in my life, and move on. Sure, the people that I talk to on a daily basis always have some sort of rambling to listen to about the latest nonesense going through my head, but I guess it's about time I start putting the title of this blog to work...

on that note (laaa!) the latest "deep thoughts" by yours truly
1) I am very spoiled and my currently nonfunctional iPod and laptop is driving me rather nuts. mostly the iPod because who am I kidding, I spend way more hours than necessary in front of a computer every day... but no music while walking around tel aviv? NOT OK. hopefully it's fixable. if not, at least in a couple weeks i will be home and will pick up the nano i got as a gift from my favorite previously-worked-for-Apple-South-American-Traveler ;-)

2) I got text message from a boy i went on a not-so-successful date with saying he doesn't think it's going to work out (clearly) but that he'd like to keep in touch... I haven't decided how i feel about this. While I am not interested in him in terms of a romantic relationship, i guess it can't hurt to have another friend in tel aviv? i don't know. what can i say, this whole dating world still feels sort of new and different to me and i haven't quite figured out my place in it...

3) I got to have lunch and hang out with Liz yesterday before she goes to the army next week. CRAZY. I remember her first getting the letter saying she would be called on the 11th of September... and that felt soooo far away. I'm sorry but Madonna is so very very wrong. Time does NOT go by so (so) slowly (slowly).

4) I'm so ready for vacation...and to see my fammmilllyyyyyy!!! and then my parents come here a week after i come back. and get to see my fun little tel aviv apartment and neighborhood.

5) this friday is my first wedding in Israel. My co-worker Gili is getting married in Mitzpeh Modi'in. should be fun. although interesting to see all my co-workers (yes, all 6 or 7 of them) in a social setting. although possibly less ackward than the Ivri Lider concert at which I was trying my hardest to not to freak out (in a good way) and jump all over the place.

ok. back to work. more soon. and i'm not sure saying that (although at this point why would you believe me... :-P)

sorry about the haitus...I'm back

I must first apologize to those who actually read this blog...it's been WAY too long. My deepest apologies go to those who use this as a form of procrastination. Really, you don't deserve such a lack of new material with which you can avoid doing what really needs to be done... I'll make it up to you, ok?

So since there has been too much that has happened over the last two months for me to really make sense of it in paragraph form, I'll do one of the things I do best: make lists. J C'mon you can't say you're surprised. I'll at least try make it all relatively coherent, ok?

1) I was lucky enough to have attended many concerts in the last two months, involving Ivri (twice), Rita (twice), Daniel Solomon and Rami Kleinstein. It is a little insane that I saw Ivri twice in one week after wanting to see a concert of his for at least three years. Then Rita…wow. Rita. She really outdid herself this time. The show, called One, was incredible. Truly amazing. And I'm not exaggerating. I've never seen such insanely awesome acrobatics and dancing and music and lighting and EVERYTHING all together. I am so happy I got to go twice, although the second time was a little bit disappointing in the sense that I planned to go with Ravit and she and Ishay had decided not to come to Israel given the current situation…

2) The situation. The war, if you will. It's definitely not a pleasant situation. Reading the news is sort of like punching yourself in the stomach, but you do it anyway because I've never believed that ignorance is bliss when it comes to this stuff. That being said, Tel Aviv has stayed true to its somewhat random, self-entertaining charisma, and we haven't felt too much change. Perhaps it was just a matter of everyone going from watching the Mundial on TV to watching the news. And to be honest I'm not sure which one caused more dramatic reactions. Sad, but that's just the facts. I've felt a lot of things given this situation: fear, anger, disappointment, resentment, but mostly just sadness. I feel that Israel is justified in her actions despite disliking the results. I wish there were not families dying in Lebanon, but I don't believe that it is our job to protect them. We must protect ourselves. And while this is not a situation I would wish upon any country, here in Israel at least I feel like people are doing all they can to help one another – inviting strangers that live in the north to come live with them, etc – and at the end of the day there's definitely a sense of "mi casa es su casa" in situations such as these. And they don't think twice…it's just an obvious course of events. At the very least it's nice that this sense of closeness and caring emanates from such a scary situation.

3) I've now been in Israel for a year and celebrated as such with my friend Leora (who also celebrated her one year in Israel anniversary) and a bunch of our friends at this bar called Blend in Tel Aviv. It was a really great night and I felt like it was exactly what I needed given a crazy week at work and the stress of watching and reading the news all the time. Plus, after a year of so many things, it was great to just relax and sort of enjoy the present. Seriously this year has been so full in so many respects and yet flew by faster than I think any other year of my life. It hasn't all been great, and I have definitely had my tough moments, but overall I am generally extremely happy and appreciative of how great things have worked out for me here in Israel and wouldn't have it any other way. In any case, there are pictures from Thursday night (courtesy of Miri's camera) that will follow in a separate post (since that's just easier). Check those out.

4) I officially have a reserved (but not totally set in stone) ticket to visit the States in Sept/Oct. I am going to visit for the holidays which will be really great and lots of fun. I kind of can't believe it will have been a year since I was there, and yet I'm sure I'll have some good quality culture shock to remind me just how America works these days… it's a little bittersweet in the sense that there are some friends that I won't necessarily get to see since they are moving elsewhere or have moved elsewhere (not that I can talk since I have put the Atlantic ocean between us…), but I will have some quality time with my family which I can't wait for. I'll even bring with me the DVD of Rita's concert so that my sister can at least get a taste of what she wasn't able to see with her own eyes…

What else can I say… I'm sure a lot more has happened along the way, but that's all I can think of at the moment. I'll do my best not to disappear from the world like I did for the last couple months. Between craziness at work and dating this boy for a while and then breaking up with said boy and Amitai being here and then leaving and then Ravit and Ishay not being able to come after all, and friends and family here that I love and get to see quite often and all the rest of the awesome things that happen here… well, I know, my excuses aren't really good enough, but they are my excuses nevertheless.

I hope all of you out there are doing well and are enjoying life as you should be.

and we're back...

for those of you who use gmail (and gmail chat) - that subject line will be quite dear to your hearts. or maybe just those of you, who like me, have tempermental internet that decides not to work every once in a while without any particular reason.

enzywayz...since i last wrote a good amount has happened and not happened. had my first little house-warming gathering which was fun, we still lack a couch but other additions have been made -- including cable and stove-top burners so i can finally cook like a normal person with gas heat (booo to electric when it comes to cooking). que mas? not too much that is newsworthy, just enjoying getting around on my new bike, and getting more and more used to living like a tel-aviv'it.

oh yeah, the other night I was priviledged enough to see my first fireworks show from a boat! Idan's dad has an awesome boat which we took out from the marina in Herzliya and sailed to the Tel Aviv Dolphinarium area to watch what turned out to be quite the impressive fireworks show (courtesy of the French...don't ask).

tov...back to work. but more soon.

work is work, and i have to say that this week i'm SO happy that it's finally thursday. not sure what my problem is -- head in the clouds or something of the sort.

you say tom-ate-oh, i say to-ma-toe...

last night we watched When Harry Met Sally (yes, this is time number 2034750328529035 that i've seen it, but it's still great).

repeat after me: peeaaacaaaaan piiiiiiiiiieee.

anyway. other than counting down the days till my mom gets here (we're currently at 6!!!) things are same old same old. Job stuff is good, apartment stuff is...well, it's apartment stuff. never can be that good of a sign if i'm still looking, right? but patience is a virtue i am doing my best to have. Also my friend Sivan said that she's thinking of looking for a new place since hers was good for a little while but she's ready for a more normal kitchen and having a living room (two very important parts of any apartment i'll live in!) so perhaps we'll try to look together and see if we can find something that works. It would be great to live with someone I already know and like too, so fingers crossed!

here's a shoutout to my girl Iris who got accepted to the University College in Utrecht (sp?) and rocks big time! I had no doubts she would get in, but its still nice to know for sure and I'm so so happy for her.

Ok...I'm going to try something new. In order to improve (i.e. start) having my typing skills in Hebrew be faster than snail-paced, I am going to try to write (translate) some of this message. Maybe it'll attract more readers, who knows ;-P

טוב, אז נתחיל עם העובדה שאני כבר הרבה זמן סופרת ימים עד שאמי נוחתת בארץ, והיום הביא אותנו למספר שש. חוץ מזה הכל כרגיל, בעבודה ממש סבבה, וחיפוש דירה... טוב העובדה שאני עדיין מחפשת כבר משמן שאין חדשות טובות להודיע לכם. בינתיים המטרה היא לא לאבד סבלנות. חברה שלי, סיון, החליטה לעזוב את דירתה ולחפש מקום קצת יותר מתאים עם מטבח וסלון נורמלים, ואלה דברים די חשובים בעיניי אז יכול להיות מאוד מוצלח לחפש ביחד. תחזיקו אצבעות

אני חייבת למסור המון המון "מזל טוב" ליקירתי, איריס, שהיא לפני מספר ימים התקבלה לאוניברסיטה באוטרחט (אין לי מוסג איך כותבים את זה). לא היה לי םפק שהיא תתקבל אבל בכול זאת זה פשות מדהים לשמוע ממנה כעובדה

זהו בינתיים. להיתראות חמודים

a little update and some pics...

So none of these pictures are mine, but they are nice/pretty/amusing and as such have been posted. In order:







1) The two dogs outside the "heder ochel" at Ma'agan Michael that almost always looked as if they were dead or about to die...of boredom or depression...we'll never know.

2) Liz and yours truly at the little fiesta we had in honor of the end of the Ulpan.













3) Eitan sitting on a ledge of some sort in J-lem. Just an awesome picture I think.

4) during our Negev trip, we woke up in the Bedouin tent and outside there were camels that looked as if they were praying to the sun



5) Roie, Iris and Liz, each making a face...a picture is worth a thousand words they say...this one's gotta be worth at least double.



6) Amazing shot at the beach of MM -- it really is this beautiful. Pretty much ALL the time...











so I'm at work -- which means that i shouldn't be procrastinating by writing in my blog, but oh well. they'll forgive me.

things have been going pretty well...the apartment search goes on, but at least I saw another place that seems like it could work, so send good "Lerone-will-get-the-apartment" vibes my way, k?

I got a haircut last night -- it was meant to be a trim since the current goal is to grow my hair long(ish) but apparently this hairdresser had it in his head that i needed to cut off more than just my split ends and that "many layers" was what has been missing from my life (hair). So yeah...it'll take some getting used to, but like my mom says: "you know what the difference between a good haircut and a bad haircut is? A couple months." And she's right...as usual. I wouldn't call it a "bad" haircut really, more just "unexpected."

In other news, a girl that I used to go to camp with and then be a counselor for, Sam Preis, who at the time was just starting her singer/songwriter thing, is now working on an album-ish thing in Cali, and I wish her much luck. Some of you may remember me sharing her track, Breathe in Life, from our songwriting class at YPI. Check out her myspace website: http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=18877624

Enzywayz...back to work. Enjoy the pictures :-) More to come, PROMISE!

just a little update

it's been a little while and i just thought i would update whichever dear souls actually read my rants and ramblings about life...

had a pretty low-key weekend, involving friends and family and sleeping, just as it should be :-)

today is the first of my many days to come (hopefully!) working full time here. It's going well thus far and I am learning more about this whole world called "venture capital" which meant very little to just a month ago. What can I say, it's nice to be using my brain once again.

Yesterday my Dad went to visit Jared and Mary since he's down in Florida for work and only about an hour away from where they live. I found it amusing how he asked me if Mary was the type to be ok with the kind of bear-hugs my dad is used to giving...I said I'm sure she'd be fine and in any case, probably got a proper warning from Jared :-)

i actually have a good amount to do, so i'll leave it at that for the moment. but i'll write again soon and hopefully have something interesting to say...cross your fingers that it will be along the lines of "this is my new address because i found an apt..."

ciaaaaaaaooooooo.

ate too much...

uggh, i'm so full. not that im surprised. this happens a little too often on the weekends. we just go from house to house, visiting family and eating blah blah blah. it's great to see everyone though and it's fun to be here with my dad.

last night i went out to a bar/restaurant in tel aviv with Amitai and some of his buddies. it was great to see him, of course, and fun to finally meet the famous "danny" and one of the many Roie's i'll meet, and of course Miriam who is my partner on the receiving end of many emails :-) the place we went, Times Square, on the corner of Montefiori and Yavne, was really nice and even the bathrooms were a lovely experience!

que mas... i am currently at Arie and Shula's house in Ramat Gan so i dont have the pictures from my comp to upload, but perhaps that'll happen tomorrow. tonight dad and i are going to his friend Boaz, which will be nice. i may have met him before in my life but i don't remember... it's always fun to be with your parents friends...sometimes they even tell stories from when your parents were little --- the stories your parents don't tell you, that is.

i'm really psyched to know that i'm going to be going to a bunch of concerts in the near future. ivri, yehudit, rami for sure...maybe more. we didn't end up going to Miri Mesika last night but it would be fun to see her in concert.

ok, time to just sit and relax (digest). it'll be great to go on our tiul to the negev... i want to be HOT again. it's not that cold here relatively, but it's still cold, and rainy -- but this is a good thing, the land needs it, so it doesn't bother me the way it did in Boston when i knew it could continue that way for a week without sun.

yalla...more tomorrow with pictures.

no, i haven't fallen into a coma

I know I have been really awful about writing here, i realize, so my apologies to those who check it...and maybe don't anymore??

anyway...i won't do the "update" thing because that's just annoying. what i will say is that tomorrow is my last day of work...holy shit! i can't believe it! our test for the Ulpan is on Thursday and in general the next to weeks are full of things wrapping up around here and us all needing to bust a move.

the job search is still in progess...i am doing my best to remain optimistic. I have an interview with a placement agency in J-lem next Thursday which hopefully will help me have a better idea of what's really out there...i can't say yet how i feel about the idea of living and working in Jerusalem. I guess I definitely haven't ruled it out and if I am able to find a really great job there i think it might just be silly to not go for it. we'll see.

other than that, things are going really well. It's almost Channukah! my first one in Israel which is great, but it's also kind of sad to not be at home and able to make chanukah food with my mom. I might go for the first night to Miri and Ori though, we'll see. The only reason i wouldn't is that we have to get up at 4am the next day for our tiul to the negev for two days.

soooooooo....what else. My dad is here visiting!! woohoo! and this Friday Amitai gets here! Woohooo! starting his trip in style, we're going to some type of concert on Friday night...perhaps Miri Mesika in Ramat Gan, which would be quite convenient considering we're going to Ishay's parent's for Shabbat lunch regardless. que mas? this past weekend Gali and I and her friend Na'ama went to this bar in Tel Aviv (ouzie or something like that?) and this guy was like, do i look familiar to you? at first i assumed he was trying to hit on Gali but it turns out that he was in a commerical that just came out and wasn't sure if people have seen it or if they would recognize it. we both had no clue and i barely watch TV so i definitely haven't seen it, but since that night, Gali said she sees it all the time, which is cool for this random dude. Hopefully I'll see it as well sometime soon.

Leaving here is going to be so crazy i think. I am definitely not mentally prepared and even less physically prepared (i.e. not even thought about packing and i have wayyy too much crap accumulating here). Luckily Iris and Noa and Aviva are all staying for a while longer and so saying goodbye in the beginning of January won't really be goodbye.

ok, i'll write again really soon...promise. i'll add some pictures to make up for my absence :-P