Upon learning I was going to Cairo, a co-worker told me, “Cairo will blow your mind.” While in Israel, I asked a couple from Texas to take my picture. When I told them I was going on to Cairo, the man didn’t have any good things to say. He said the food was bad and that you couldn’t drink the water (I already knew about the water). He said to not open your mouth when taking a shower, and as a reminder, it was good to put a piece of tape over your mouth. Well, this didn’t really help me feel any better because I was a little apprehensive about going there anyway. I’d read that Egyptians didn’t see many Western women who were there by themselves so I didn’t know how I would be treated.
It was interesting to fly into the airport in the middle of the desert. For anyone going to Cairo, I highly recommend arranging for a “Meet and Assist” service offered through your hotel to help you purchase the required visa, go through passport control, and get you into a car to the hotel. I think I could have made it at least to baggage claim but am glad I did not have to try. Soon I was in a snazzy Mercedes on the way to the hotel. Along the way (about a 20-minute drive), there were cops on the sidewalk about every 50 feet, plus men standing alone on the road divider or on the side of the road. I asked the driver why; it was because we were near President Hosni Mubarak’s house.
The hotel was nice. http://conradhotels1.hilton.com/en/ch/hotels/index.do?ctyhocn=CAICICI All hotels have gates to let the cars in and out, they use dogs or a special mirror to check the car for explosives, they have the driver pop the trunk so they can look inside, and there are x-ray machines at the entrance to the hotels. The common response at my hotel when I requested something was “with pleasure,” which I found lovely. The people in the hotel were very friendly and seemed very glad that I was there. The room had a balcony with a view of the Nile. The first thing I noticed was the honking on the street below. I’ve never heard so much honking in my entire life. After examining the scene a bit, I understood why. First of all, while there are faint lines painted to indicate lanes, no one stays within the lanes. For three official lanes, there are at least four lanes of cars. Private buses (Volkswagen vans) stop in the middle of the road to pick people up or drop people off (the people are crammed into the van so tightly, usually there are a few people hanging out as the van moves down the road). Cars break down. People cross in the middle of the street and will stand in between lanes waiting for an opportunity to continue to the other side. I saw no crosswalks and only a few traffic lights the entire area I traveled in.
I watched the sun set from my room.
At night, there are boats, called feluccas, with colored lights that you can take down the Nile. I watched TV for a little while. There were a lot of channels-French, Japanese, Italian, German, and about 10 Egyptian channels, all in Arabic. One channel showed old black and white Egyptian movies. I didn’t unpack too much because I had planned to ask for a higher floor the next day—I thought it would be quieter. I decided to see how I slept that night. But I got used to the honking and decided I didn’t need to move.
I will say that when I turned on the shower it smelled like wet soil. I kept my mouth shut but skipped the tape. It was difficult to keep up with the supply of bottled water that I needed. Luckily the hotel was very good about stocking the room and offering more during the turndown service. I rarely drink bottled water at home or when traveling (I am a strong supporter of tap water), but I have used more water bottles during my time in Israel and Egypt than in the past three or four years, which bothers me but there’s nothing I could have done differently if I wanted to stay healthy.
On Saturday, I went to the Egyptian Museum. I had asked the hotel concierge how to arrange the half day tour offered through the hotel, but he said it was easier to do it on my own. He said I could take a taxi there and back. But having seen the taxis, I knew I didn’t want to do that (very old cars with no a/c). So I asked how much it would be to take the hotel car there and back. They arranged it for 254 Egyptian pounds (5.38=$1, so $47 USD). I headed out with the driver. His car had a/c, which was very good because it was about 90 degrees. The traffic and pedestrian scene appeared extremely chaotic, but I think because everyone knows what they are doing, I wasn’t afraid we were going to get in a traffic accident. I just couldn’t believe how people walked across the street and how very, very close the cars got to them. I guess with years of practice you get pretty good at judging the speed of the cars and know which ones to stop for, but it seemed pretty risky to me. He dropped me off right outside the parking garage across from the museum and told me where to go to get my ticket and said he’d be there waiting for me at the prearranged time.
I put my bag through the metal detector and then bought a ticket for 50 Egyptian pounds (about $9 USD). There were Egyptians outside offering their tour guide services, but the concierge had told me that everything was labeled (once I was inside, I caught a few bits of information here and there as I passed by guides talking to their visitors; I think that would be a useful service). Then I entered the building, and put my bag through another metal detector. Once I was in, it was not clear at all where to go. There was no fancy information desk, no plan layout brochures, no audio tour, nothing. Then I saw a sign for “King Tutankhamen” up the stairs and headed that way. Once I got upstairs, there was another sign which I followed. I started to see some display cases that looked like I was getting closer; there were old photos displaying how the items were found in the tomb. Then I hit the mother lode: a small dark (and air-conditioned!!!) room with the Death Mask, the inner coffin, the outer coffin, a lot of jewelry that he had on him in the coffin, etc.
I stood in front of the death mask case and looked it in the eye.
I have been fascinated by King Tut since I was little. I think it was the “Treasures of Tutankhamen” tour, which ran from 1972-1979, that started it for me. I remember getting a book about King Tut at the library during that time, and my dad took it to work and made copies of some of the pages for me, which I still have today. The coffins were astounding.
I couldn’t believe how much jewelry he had on him. I looked at the display cases in the surrounding area. I turned the corner and discovered there was a whole hall full of King Tut items that I had missed in my first sweep of the floor, including the chariots and thrones. There were a lot of other non-King Tut items to see in the museum, but it was so hot and musty, I didn’t feel like seeing anything else. The museum looked like a storage center of antiquities waiting to be classified rather than a museum with items on display. On the way out, on the ground floor, I encountered the colossal statue of King Amenhotep III and Queen Tiy (1346-1349 BC), sitting together on a throne, both smiling. It must have been 100 feet tall. I really loved that monument. After exiting the hotel, I found my driver easily. I was ready to get back to the hotel and have a shower and then eat. My dining options were limited to the hotel. Luckily there were five different restaurants to choose from. Lunch was very good and the service was good. I found out that the 12% service charge added to every bill was NOT the tip; the expected tip is 10%. Plus they charged an additional 2% if you want to charge the meal to your room (and isn’t that one of the advantages of dining at a hotel?). In the evening, I went to dinner at the Italian restaurant in the hotel. I had a glass of Egyptian wine (OK, but not as good as Israeli wine) and ravioli with shrimp and mozzarella. They brought an amuse-bouche of beef stuffed with ricotta cheese which was tasty. They brought thin breadsticks in a most unusual display: standing up straight in a rectangular glass bowl filled with something that looked like salt. For dipping, there were little white bowls of sun-dried tomatoes, blue cheese dressing, and black olives. The ravioli was pretty good. There were four big raviolis and I ate three to save room for dessert (of course). It was very good; a “semifreddo,” (which means semi-frozen in Italian) raspberry custard with a scoop of what was supposed to be chocolate mousse but tasted a lot like ice cream, with a pretty decorative piece of chocolate on top. I ate the whole dessert. And then, they brought a thin rectangular glass bowl filled with that same salt-like substance (which obviously wasn’t salt) with ten miniature cookies sitting on top. I ate all but two (the non-chocolate ones); they were delicious. I told the server he should have told me those were coming! The service was great. They even offered me reading material early on—I think they didn’t know what to do with a woman eating alone. In the hotel, besides two women at the front desk, the hostess at one of the restaurants, the woman who took the room service orders over the phone, and one woman in the fitness center, every single staff person was a man (waiters, housekeepers, etc.). In the evenings, I enjoyed reading the Egyptian Gazette, all eight pages of it. It is the oldest Middle-Eastern English daily, started in the mid 1800’s. I really enjoy reading non-U.S. papers and watching non-U.S. news when I travel. It’s interesting to get a different perspective and find out what’s going on in other areas of the world.
On Sunday, I got up early to meet my guide in the hotel lobby for the Pyramids tour. He started out talking about the history of Egypt, which was interesting. As we got closer, he started talking about the Pyramids. His English was pretty good but not perfect. Along the way, we stopped at the Egyptian Papyrus Museum. I didn’t really understand what the place was about, so I was not happy to find out it was one of those places where they give you a demonstration and then expect you to buy something. The guy assigned to me, named Jimmy, followed me around as I looked at the artwork on the walls. I didn’t see anything that I liked, and I really wanted to leave. But he was very persistent, and started brining me prints that were not on display to see if I would like them. I figured it would be easier just to buy something so I could go. It wasn’t terribly expensive, and I didn’t have anything nice as a souvenir from my trip. He threw in a “free gift” (a small print) and about four bookmarks. He was a very good salesman. I told my guide I didn’t want any more stops like that.
We continued on to the Pyramids. The Pyramids are the only one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World to survive. We parked and he took me around The Great Pyramid, the oldest and largest of the pyramids, built by the 4th-Dynasty king, Khufu (2589-66 BC). The Great Pyramid of Giza was the world's tallest building from c. 2570 BC to c. 1300 AD. The height, originally 481 feet, is now 455 feet. For such a vast structure, the precision is amazing – the greatest difference in length between the four 756-feet sides is only two inches. There were not too many people silly enough to visit the pyramids in June. Luckily there was a good breeze. My camera battery was not charged so I only got a few pictures.
After exploring The Great Pyramid, we got back in the car and drove by the second (the son Khafre) and third (Khafre’s successor Menkaure) pyramid, and the Sphinx, the guardian of the Giza Plateau. The Sphinx is usually dated to around 2500 BC and is the earliest known monumental sculpture. I was very tired and hot and just wanted to get back to the hotel quickly. But the traffic did not cooperate. The pyramids are eight miles SW of Cairo but take about 45-60 minutes to reach in traffic. I was very glad to get back to the hotel. I ordered room service for lunch, and then worked out at the very nice gym. It was so surreal to have been at the Pyramids in the morning and then had room service and worked out in a 5-star hotel all in the same day. Even though it was very draining, I’m very glad I went. The tour guide asked me to write a recommendation letter to give to the general manager of the hotel (as did the concierge who met me at the airport, and the concierge at the hotel who helped me throughout my stay). I guess that really helps them, so I wrote all of the letters.
My last morning, I got up at 3:30. The ride to the airport was interesting. It was dark, but it was amazing how many men were about. We started off down some very desolate streets, and the driver kept slowing down, which made me nervous. But everything worked out just fine. When I got to the airport, a hustler who met me at the car told me he was with Air France (he guessed correctly that I was taking the Air France flight to Paris) and to follow him, but something didn’t seem right, so I kept hold of my luggage when he tried to take it from me. He had me cut in front of people in the line to put my suitcase on the x-ray machine. When he kept asking for my passport and ticket, it jogged my memory that a hustler had conned my manager into giving him his passport and then he demanded money before he gave it back to him. This guy asked me for money for his help. When I told him I had no money (which was true because I had given all of my Egyptian pounds to the housekeeper for his tip), he glared at me but said nothing, and soon afterwards I saw him cutting in front of the crowd again with another Westerner. After I got through security, an airport worker put my bag onto a luggage cart (which was not necessary because my bag was a rolling bag) and then asked for money. The conveyor belt behind the airport check in desk was not working, so a guy was loading the luggage onto carts and wheeling them somewhere (that was not reassuring).
After passport control, I logged on to the internet using free wireless and then I had a fresh Cinnabon! I did not expect either after my experience getting to this point. They also had a Starbucks, McDonalds, and a Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf. I used two different restrooms and each time was asked for money by the attendant handing me paper towels.
I was glad to be going home. I am very glad to have had the opportunity to see Egypt. The people are very friendly, the food was not bad, and I did not get sick. There is an amazing wealth of historical sights to see here. But I do not need to return. It was too draining, chaotic, and hot for me. I also felt confined in the hotel since it was not appropriate for me to go out by myself.
The first thing I did when I arrived in the United Kingdom was to eat a club sandwich. Why, you ask? After ten days of not being able to have bacon or ham, I was craving it like mad. It’s not like I eat bacon on a regular basis at home, but not being able to have it made me obsess about it. There were two McDonalds at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, but they were kosher McDonalds—no Egg McMuffins!
On Saturday, I got up at 4:00am to catch a flight from Bristol to Edinburgh. I was wondering if this weekend trip was a good idea. It was early, the taxi ride was expensive, and it was raining as we drove to the airport. But the flight left on time, and one hour later, I arrived in Edinburgh, where it was not raining. It only took about 15 minutes to get to the Sheraton Grand at One Festival Square. It is a very nice hotel with a great central location. http://www.starwoodhotels.com/sheraton/search/hotel_detail.html?propertyID=474 I left my bag with the concierges—two of whom wore plaid green pants, a uniform I would later see at the museum. One of them had a very thick Scottish accent and I had to ask him several times to repeat himself. I asked them to point out a few places on the map that I was looking for and give me a general overview of where I was. I set out down Princes Street (a major shopping street) for Valvona and Crolla, an Italian foods store. I knew I was close, but couldn’t find it. I stopped this lady on the street who looked nice and asked her where it was. She grabbed my arm and exclaimed with delight, “Oh, V&C,” I love that store! You’re close, let me show you!” And she walked halfway back down the block she just came from. I had been within 100 feet of the store before turning back.
As food stores go, it was nothing out of the ordinary (nothing tops Peck in Milan, in my opinion). But I was hungry and their café was recommended, so I followed the sound of clinking dishes, through the wine shop, by the display shelves of breads so fresh I could smell them, to the lovely little café. I had a delicious breakfast: frittata panetella (an Italian omelette with free range eggs, parmesan cheese, and parsley served on delicious bread), bombolone cioccolato (a fresh chocolate donut, way less sweet than you would get at home), and gamba di legno (fresh orange juice, blended with strawberries and raspberries). While I waited for my food, I studied my guidebook and maps. It was nice to get energized for the day of walking ahead.
The next stop was a chocolate store called Plaisir du Chocolate that was supposed to be fantastic; it had closed a few months ago, but had reopened recently at a new location on Thistle Street. After a bit of searching, I finally saw the sign. Imagine my disappointment when I got to the storefront to see all of the windows papered up and no forwarding address. Then I headed for the Royal Mile, the famous sequence of cobblestone streets from Edinburgh Castle to the Palace of Holyroodhouse (the Queen’s official residence while in Scotland).
It was quite scenic and charming, especially the further you got away from the castle (where it was the most touristy). I found a great little souvenir shop close to the palace called Neanie Scott, a Scottish family-owned store. I inquired about my ancestor’s tartan pattern. Unfortunately, it is not a common one that they stock in stores, but she showed me the pattern in a book and told me she could order it from her weaver. The weather was holding up nicely; although it was a bit chilly (I didn’t pack a coat), it did not rain. On the walk back, off Princes Street, there was a little one-block street fair—a French festival—which I browsed. I went back to the hotel to check in and rest just a little, and then I went back out and purchased a ticket for one of those open-air double-decker bus tours. It was great to get an overview of the town. That evening, I ate at an Italian restaurant close to the hotel, and it was surprisingly good. As I ate, the rain started to fall. Luckily I didn’t have far to go after dinner so I didn’t get drenched.
The next day, I slept in (what a luxury) and checked out about noon. I had lunch at The Hub, the headquarters of the Edinburgh International Festival and housed in an old church constructed between 1842 and 1845. They have a café there, with proceeds going to support the festival. As I ate, I browsed through the festival brochure and couldn’t believe all of the events they have in a three-week period. http://www.eif.co.uk/ I would like to go someday! Then I headed back in the direction of the hotel. I visited one of Edinburgh’s free museums, where they had a small selection of impressionist paintings. On Princes Street, I purchased some chocolate at a place called Thornton’s, which was very good. http://www.thorntons.co.uk/ThorntonsSite/pages/home/default.asp I took the bus tour one more time. Then it was time to head back to the airport.
I did not go to the castle as I had limited time and castles are not high on my priority list (as opposed to art and food and people-watching). It was beautiful to see though.
It was a great weekend and I am really glad that I can now count Edinburgh as one of the cities I have visited.
Saturday was a wonderful day--it was the second day of the weekend. The weekend in Israel is Friday and Saturday. I slept in, and after breakfast, went down to the lobby. I was lucky enough to stay at an amazing hotel. http://www.ichotelsgroup.com/intercontinental/en/gb/locations/overview/tlvha It had a pool that overlooked the sea. I sat as close to the pool as I could without sitting outside. They had a corner with comfy chairs where I could be entertained by all of the sun worshippers and also gaze out to the sea but enjoy the comfort of air conditioning. I sat there for about three hours. It was so nice and relaxing after a busy work week.
In the afternoon, we took a cab to Jaffa, an ancient port city about five minutes south of Tel Aviv. It is mentioned four times in the Bible. Modern Jaffa has a population of Jews, Christians, and Muslims. Parts of the old city have been renovated, turning Jaffa into a tourist attraction featuring old restored buildings, art galleries, theaters, souvenir shops, restaurants, sidewalk cafes and promenades. It was blazing hot, but once we got near the sea, it cooled down. I really loved this town. There is a mix of architectures, and there are lots of cool shops along cobblestone streets. I also loved that since the stores were closed (since it was the Sabbath), there was no one around, so it was like we had it all to ourselves. After we explored the old town, we ate at "the" place to eat in Jaffa: Abulafia on Yefet Street (the main street of Jaffa), a symbol of Jewish-Arab coexistence. We had hummus (of course), amazing falafel, and shredded beef and chicken with pita bread, along with all kinds of dips and spreads. Then we walked back along the promenade to the hotel, about a 20-minute walk. It was a wonderful, relaxing weekend day.
A few days later, our co-worker arranged and paid for a taxi to take us to a town called Zichron Yaacov (loosely translated to mean Jacob’s memory), nestled in the mountains overlooking the sea. Founded by Baron Edmond de Rothschild in 1882, the town is named after the Baron's father James (Jacob of Ya'acov in Hebrew). Before the Baron died in Paris in 1934, he said he wanted to be buried in the Holy Land. After the establishment of Israel, the Baron's son had his body and that of his wife reinterred near the town on the Heights of the Benefactor (the name given to Rothschild) or Ramat Ha-Nadiv. Today, the tombs are set in beautiful gardens filled with the varieties of plants the Rothschilds helped develop in Israel. This is also the home of Israel's famous Carmel wineries, which began operations in 1886. During World War I, the town served as the headquarters for the Nili spy organization that included Sarah and Aaron Aaronsohn. The Aaronsohn House now houses a small museum devoted to the family's history.
The town was cute and couldn’t have been more different than Tel Aviv. We had a drink at an Irish pub, and I asked the waiter for a restaurant recommendation. He recommended a restaurant called Fuego. We walked down the hill from the pub per his directions, and I thought for sure there could not be a restaurant down there, but there it was. It turned out to be the most enjoyable meal of the trip. We sat outside on the terrace; there were only locals dining at the restaurant. The waitress was nice and enthusiastic. There were these two red-headed kids playing nearby (friends of the owner). We had a good bottle of the Carmel wine from just across the street. We had a beef kebab appetizer, which was amazing. I had the most delicious hamburger I’ve ever had in my life, with great fries. Their beef tastes so good. One of the reasons it is easy to appreciate is it will always be unadorned with cheese; you can not mix dairy with meat to be kosher. It was so pleasant and relaxing to sit outside in a quiet environment, It was just great to not be having dinner in Tel Aviv. We stayed a long time. Afterwards, we walked back up the road and then our taxi driver, who had been waiting for us while we had our dinner, took us back to the hotel. I felt like a movie star to have our car waiting while we dined.
It had been an intense trip, and we were lucky enough that we were able to squeeze in a free day to do whatever we wanted. I slept in (perhaps the best part of all), had breakfast, sat in the lobby area near the pool and did personal stuff on the computer, then took a cab to Jaffa to visit the stores that were closed on Saturday. It was extremely hot, perhaps the hottest day so far. I found a nice print for $15 depicting the Jewish holiday of Shavuot, which was the day that I arrived in Israel. We had plans to go to a restaurant for dinner that our Israeli co-worker recommended that was on the beach. My co-workers returned from Jerusalem and said that our taxi driver who had taken us on a few trips (we were using the same company so had repeat drivers some days) wanted to take us to dinner to a place in Old Jaffa that had really good seafood, at no charge for the ride. I said OK. Although later I got a little suspicious—was this a place where he knew the owner and was trying to make some money on the side by bringing unsuspecting tourists to? But I thought worst case, when he drops us off we could go somewhere else if we didn’t like the place. Imagine my surprise when the driver (his name was Tal) pulls up to the hotel and his wife Galit is in the front. I guessed there was no getting out of this! Then I started wondering if they thought WE were going to take them to dinner. We drove through Jaffa and realized it was a lot bigger than we thought. We kept going and I thought there couldn’t be any restaurants where we were going, but suddenly a whole row of them appeared. We went to a place that translates into “The Old Man and the Sea.” It is run by Arabs, and Arabs and Jews eat together in harmony. It is very popular; there were lots of big families and kids. It had a view of the sea. We started off with the requisite 20 little trays of dips and spreads along with pita bread. Everything was fresh and delicious. We all had fish: calamari, shrimp, Dennis (called Denise at another restaurant—I’ve never heard of it), grouper. It was fun to listen to Tal and Galit. Galit’s English is better than Tal’s, and she dominated the conversation. But Tal was able to get in his two cents. We learned he used to own two companies and managed 600 people. But now, the maximum he manages is four people-in his cab! He only works a few days a week and really loves his job. You hear those stories about meeting up with locals and them taking you to the best place but I didn’t think that would happen to me. They drove us back to the hotel. It was a really nice outing.
On my last evening in Israel, as I watched the sun set over the sea, I felt sad. I thought I was ready to leave Israel, but I found out that maybe I wasn’t. The food, the people, getting to know my Israeli co-workers, the sun, the sea, the lovely hotel, and did I mention the food? were all wonderful experiences.
I had heard that security leaving Israel was very thorough. Well, it wasn’t that bad. Your checked luggage has to go through the x-ray machine before you can check it, and if they see something they don’t like, you have to stand in another line to have them go through it by hand. Of course they saw something they didn’t like. It was a coffee table book given to me by a co-worker. They wanted to know where I got it and who gave it to me. They scanned it and then they were done with me. Other than that, it was a normal airport procedure. So much for the hype! Oh, but they do stop you in the car about two miles before you get to the the airport and ask several questions.
I flew to Israel via Frankfurt, with a 12-hour layover there. We took a 747, and when we arrived in Frankfurt, we had to use the stairs and walk across the tarmac, rather than using a jet way. I’ve done on for smaller planes before (even 737s), but never for a 747. Walking past it to the gate, I realized what a massive plan it really is, and the tires (16 of them) were almost as tall as the maintenance guy leaning against them. It was quite a sight. I caught up on my sleep at the Steigenberger Airport Hotel, which was a five-minute shuttle bus ride from the airport. It was a very nice hotel. It borders the Frankfurt municipal forest, so I had a nice view of the forest with the downtown in the distance from my top-floor room.
I sat outside on the restaurant terrace and had a surprisingly delicious dinner. I would have liked to stay longer, but I had to leave for my flight to Tel Aviv. I flew on Lufthansa, on the new Airbus A340-600. Once again, we boarded from the tarmac, and climbed a very tall set of stairs to access the plane. I read in the Lufthansa on-line magazine that the A340-600 is the longest plane in the world! While the 747 carries 46 more passengers, the A340 beats the 747 by five meters in length, and is only one meter less in wingspan. There weren’t many people on the plane. The restrooms were located downstairs, which was interesting. I have never seen such a disregard for the standard airplane rules as on that flight. For example, about five people got up to use the restroom very soon after we took off, and were promptly told to return to their seats. When the plane landed, instead of waiting until right after the seatbelt sign went off, everybody jumped up before that happened. The plane had stopped temporarily, but it wasn’t done moving, and all of the people who were up were jolted upon the final arrival of the plane into the gate. The Ben Gurion airport is enormous, spotless, and hopping at 3:30am, which is when I arrived. I don’t recall ever having to walk as far from the plane to immigration. The lady whose line I chose was in training, and she asked me a fair number of questions, but nothing out of the ordinary. I caught a cab and was to my hotel about 4:30am. I was not tired, since I had taken a nap in Frankfurt. It was dark outside when I got to my room, and since there was not much else to do, I watched the sun rise.
The beach got more active as the day went on, with the colored umbrellas on the public beaches opening up as the sun rose higher.
I went down to breakfast, which had an impressive array of food. A little later, I went to the hotel gym, then came back and took a nice nap. My co-workers and I met in the afternoon and decided to go to lunch at a place that the concierge had recommended that had local Israeli food. It was a 15-minute taxi ride, at the new harbor section of Tel Aviv. There were lots of interesting shops along the way (most of them closed). It was a good choice. We had our first taste of Israel hummus—I will never be able to buy Trader Joe’s hummus again. It came with this soft thick pita bread. We had grilled items (chicken, lamb, and beef) with lots of accompaniments. It was a local place. In the evening, I took a walk along the promenade next to the beach. It was the last day of a four-day holiday, and lots of people were still out enjoying the evening.
On Tuesday evening, we went to dinner on the 49th floor of a beautiful round office tower, to a Mediterranean-gourmet kosher restaurant called 2C (stands for "to see").
The views were great. We had our first taste of Israeli wine, a Merlot from the Golan Heights. It was outstanding. I ordered what I thought would be a simple green salad, but it had couscous on it as well as tomatoes, and it was delicious. My main course was a sea bream with mashed potatoes, which was very good. They had that same bread that you get everywhere (nice thick soft pita bread), but instead of hummus, it was served with three different dips, including one mayonnaise-based dip with fresh herbs, and a tomato-based dip. For dessert, we split three, including a chocolate soufflé that was very deep dark chocolate.
I guess I was expecting all desert in Israel. Was that a wrong assumption. The terrain is varied. One day, we drove past fields of sunflowers, grapevines, and other crops. There was a cornfield in one area. There are little villages set off by a group of trees. There are hills covered with pine trees. There are wide open golden fields with hay bales. Quite a diverse topography for a country the size of New Jersey.
The food at the company cafes is very good. They have the hummus and pita bread there, and every day they have had chocolate cake, so I was very happy! One day I chose an entree of ground beef wrapped in phyllo dough, and it was really tasty.
As for the people, they are very warm and friendly. Everything is very fast here. The people move and talk fast. The turnstiles move fast. The revolving doors move fast. The ants move fast!
Dinner another evening was at Rafael, French-Mediterranean cuisine with a pleasant atmosphere and a great view of the sea. We had an excellent table and great service. We ordered more Israeli wine from the Golan Heights, this time a Cabernet Sauvignon. There was warm focaccia-style bread that was incredible. I had an appetizer of scallops, then halibut with mashed potatoes. For dessert, they had an item on the menu titled “the Valhrona 2008 Chocolate Collection” which was a set of three little desserts that were very good.
Friday and Saturday is the weekend in Israel. It’s interesting that such a small percentage of the population is religious but there are still the observances of their traditions. On Friday, we went to Jerusalem. It was pretty warm, but it is a dry heat in Jerusalem, while it is pretty humid in Tel Aviv. First, we saw the parliament building and the Israel museum. Then we went to a spot where we could see a panoramic view of the old city.
Then we drove about 300 meters away from that view to see just hills and desert, with the Red Sea in the distance.
Then we went down to the old city. I was nervous approaching the Western Wall since I knew that the men and women had separate sections, and I was not sure if I would have to cover my head with a scarf. But it was very easy to figure out what to do. I didn’t stay there very long because it was so hot. I expected to feel something more than I did.
We walked back, drove out of the old city, and had a delicious lunch on the outskirts of Jerusalem. We had this huge round piece of warm pita bread with garlic, feta, rosemary, and sun-dried tomatoes on top. I had a kebab wrapped in a tortilla, with tahini sauce and a huge pile of delicious cucumbers and tomatoes. There was a store called “Chocolate House” right around the corner, and I bought two bars of handmade Israeli chocolate. I tried one bar and I was surprised how good it was. For $5, was a deal too. We drove through a Palestinian village that is one of the many “friendly” ones, where Israelis and Palestinians live peacefully together—there are good hummus places there. We’ve asked a lot of questions to our co-workers about the conflict; I’ve learned more but it is still very confusing and very complex.
I tried a new restaurant over the holiday weekend called Waterbar, located on the Embarcadero in SF. I had a delicious soft-shell crab off the appetizer menu, but the highlight was dessert: ice cream sandwiches. The flavors change every day. That night, the flavors were vanilla and dulce de leche. The ice cream was sandwiched between two chocolate chocolate-chip cookies that were nice and soft. The vanilla ice cream sandwich was rolled in hazelnut pieces, and the dulce de leche sandwich was rolled in chocolate chips. And if that wasn't delicious enough, it came with a small pitcher of warm chocolate sauce to pour into a shallow dish and dunk the sandwiches in. I would definitely return just for the dessert! http://www.waterbarsf.com/food.php
I took a quick trip to Seattle over the weekend. The purpose was to see my #1 favorite piece by the Mark Morris Dance Group: L'Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato.
This was my fifth time seeing it, and each time it brings me more joy as I watch it, because I'm becoming so familiar with it. If this dance company ever comes to your city, I recommend it without hesitation. http://markmorrisdancegroup.org/performance_calendar
I arrived Saturday afternoon, hoping to get a break from the heat spell in my area. Well, Seattle set a record on Saturday; it was 90 degrees! I wanted to peruse the stalls at the Seattle Cheese Festival at Pike Place Market, but when I saw the tables out in the open sun and the long lines of people patiently waiting for their free samples of cheese, I realized that wasn't going to work for me. http://www.seattlecheesefestival.com/ So I went shopping instead to try and beat the heat.
I have had success with a website called www.10best.com. They have the 10 best restaurant listings in a variety of categories (best restaurant, best lunch, best value, best dessert, etc.). I noted a few that sounded good and then went by the places to see which one I might like to visit that evening for dinner before the performance. I selected Assaggio on Fourth Avenue. http://assaggioseattle.com/ It had cooled off enough to make sitting outside at the sidewalk tables very enjoyable. I had a delicious glass of red wine (Sangiovese and Cabernet blend-yum). The bread that they brought to the table was not that special, so I was worried that I had not picked a good place. But then the first course arrived: described on the menu under the "little bites" section, Arancini are big rice balls containing fontina, prosciutto, and peas, lightly breaded and fried, served in a dish right out of the oven with a little tomato sauce. They were crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, with the cheese melted just right. Next, I had a half order (I loved that all of the salads and pastas could be ordered in appetizer or entree size) of Insalata di Francesca: field greens, apples, pears, gorgonzola, candied pistachios, vinaigrette. There's something about that combination of greens, cheese, fruit, and candied nuts. It was very satisfying. For the pasta, I had a half order of Ravioli con Pollo e Noci: roasted chicken, mushrooms, walnuts, and marsala cream. I wasn't sure what it was going to be like; I thought all of the ingredients would be inside the ravioli and then the cream sauce would be on top. Actually, the ravioli were filled with ricotta cheese, and then the chicken, mushrooms, and tiny bits of walnuts were piled on top of the ravioli. The cream sauce was divine (naturally). With each bite, I expressed amazement at how delicious the dish was. I watched some beautiful desserts being delivered to other tables, but I was completely full and had no room left to try the tiramisu. Next time I hope!
I thought it would be amusing to take a picture of the chocolate I managed to get home! There was more, but I ate some of it...
This will be a short entry, because I only went to England for work purposes so I didn't get to see much. I think I like the excitement of going to a European country where I don’t have any idea what they are saying most of the time!
The trip on the Eurostar was a nice experience. It was a smooth ride. We started out at normal train speed, but then we picked up speed and it was evident that we were going very fast! I enjoyed seeing the French countryside. I wish I had brought along a map to get a rough idea of what areas we were traveling through. There were rolling green hills, populated periodically by a little town surrounded by trees with a church in the middle of the town. I wanted to get out and explore! There were big patches of fields with yellow flowers. Some of the seats on the train face the “wrong way” but I was lucky to be sitting in the same direction as the train was traveling. I had a single seat. It was very roomy, with a desk and lots of room for overhead storage.
They came by with a beverage service soon after we left Paris. A bit later, they started with a “light afternoon meal.” They handed out a menu with our choices (cold or hot options). I continued to speak French until we arrived in London and was told that I spoke very good French (of course, all I said was “red wine please” so I don’t think that’s a good indicator). Since I had purchased and eaten another delicious ham and cheese baguette before I boarded the train, I was not that hungry, so I selected the “option froide:” a French regional cheese plate with Port salut, Roquefort, Comté, and a pear and thyme chutney. (The option chaude was roasted salmon fillet with béarnaise sauce, steamed potatoes, baked courgettes and cherry tomato.) I am not a blue cheese fan but I did try a tiny piece of the Roquefort. It seemed about ten times as strong as the blue cheese I’ve had in the States! I would suspect that it is stronger. But the other two cheeses were heavenly. One of them was a semi-soft cheese, with a mild, nutty flavor. The other one was a hard cheese and my favorite. I kept the menu so I could do some cheese research and perhaps find them in a cheese shop. The pear and thyme chutney was served in a tiny pastry cup and was a perfect complement to the cheese. There was also a roll with French butter, which if you haven’t had it, you should definitely try it. There was a side salad with broccoli, cherry tomato, walnut, mange tout beans and olive oil dressing. Dessert was a peach tartlet. There was coffee, accompanied by a little square of Jeff de Bruges chocolate. I dropped my chocolate in the coffee and made mocha. The wine was “Jacques Dubaron” Bordeaux 2007, a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc.
We went through several tunnels along the way, so we had been in one for about ten minutes before I wondered if this was “the” tunnel. Since we continued for about another 20 minutes, I suspected I was correct. When we emerged, the countryside looked completely different. And it was raining. Soon we pulled in St. Pancras station in London. The total time was two hours and 15 minutes. The prices are fairly reasonable if you book in advance. Since I booked very late, my ticket was rather expensive. Plus, I booked a first-class ticket and paid extra for lunch.
The ATM wouldn’t dispense money for any of us tourists. It said “money must be dispensed in multiples of 10 pounds” but no matter what multiple of ten I put in, nothing came out. So I had to change my emergency $100 bill at the currency exchange, and received a measly 42 pounds in exchange. I followed the signs to the tube station and purchased a ticket to go four stops for four pounds (eight dollars). Then I purchased a ticket for a local train to a town about an hour away (36 pounds or 72 dollars). It was Sunday afternoon, and the train was completely packed. There was nowhere to sit or store my luggage. I found one guy with an empty seat next to him and asked him to save it for me while I went back to retrieve my luggage from the car behind me. It took about 30 minutes to wind through the crowd. But he kept his word and saved the seat. At the first stop, a lot of people got off the train, so it wasn’t so bad after that. The countryside was pretty, but it was raining the whole time. After arriving at my station, I took a black cab to the hotel.
I stayed two days, basically just working and then going back to the hotel. I had a nice view of the countryside from my hotel room window. The food at the hotel was expensive as usual, but with the exchange rate it made it even worse. The work canteen did not provide appetizing options for breakfast, but there were plenty of interesting choices for lunch. I found that when walking down a hallway, most people walked on the left. I think this is because they drive on the left. I think most people here have a tendency to walk on the right.
Every morning, there were birds that woke me up at 4am. That reminded me that in Ireland there were birds chirping at midnight. What’s with the European birds?
I stayed near Heathrow the last night because I had a flight scheduled to leave at 10am (which didn’t end up leaving until 11:30). I stayed at the Sheraton Heathrow and it was nothing special. My room overlooked a courtyard which looked reminiscent of a communist-area prison block. There are two Sheratons and my taxi driver took me to the wrong one, so I had to get another cab for 10 pounds for him to take me to the correct one. There was a very modern, architecturally-attractive Mariott near the hotel that I would have liked to try.
I did turn on the TV for the first time in two weeks. First, I watched a Home and Garden Network-like show about a couple who spent 180,000 pounds to redo their house. The wife went overboard on the budget and spent 1,000 pounds ($2,000) on a sink and 1,000 pounds for a toilet. Then I watched the British version of “The Apprentice.” I learned that they say four-letter words in prime-time on UK TV. I also saw two commercials that would never get aired here (one of them showed a man running away from the camera with no clothes on!).
I flew from Dublin to Paris on Aer Lingus, arriving at Charles De Gaulle airport, which appears to be undergoing major renovation. Finding the baggage claim and the taxi stand was an effort, but I was successful and soon was on my way to the hotel. I wanted to stay in the Rue Cler area of Paris, which anyone who reads Rick Steve’s books knows about.
The two places I’ve stayed in before were booked, but I found another hotel nearby that seemed reasonable. http://www.hotel-paris-londres-eiffel.com/ I had reserved the cheapest room for a price of 150 euros. The lady at the reception desk was very nice and swiftly checked me in. When I went to the room (room 15), it was one of those rare moments for me when I knew I would pay any amount of money not to stay in that room. It wasn’t horrible, but it was very tiny, with a décor of tan and more tan, and since it was on the second floor, there was hardly any light coming in through the window. Also, the window would not lock. I went downstairs and asked if she had a bigger room. She didn’t, but told me that she had a room (#65) that she thought I would really like. It was in the same location but on the top (6th) floor. I went up to take a look. It was the same size, but beautifully decorated in red and white, with tons of light streaming through. It would do nicely. I did wonder though why she didn’t give that room to me right away. The room is extremely small; there was no room to open up my suitcase except in front of the door. The bathroom, however, was fairly spacious for a budget hotel, and the shower was bigger than normal--most French showers are very tiny!
I went out to explore. It was very nice weather. I went to the Rue Cler area and went to this chocolate shop that I had visited in 2006 called Jeff de Bruges. http://www.jeff-de-bruges.com/ When I was there before, I bought a jar of chocolate spread and it was delicious; I was very sad when I scraped the l