So, first of all, I want to admit that I am completely addicted and obsessed with a wonderful, spicy, tasty hot pepper concoction called "Schug" (the "ch" pronnounced as if you are hacking something up). Rafi had told me about it back when we were still planning and dreaming about the trip to Israel. We got a jar of it here and I put it on anything I can! It is so yummy-it adds spice, but also a great flavor. I layer it on and put dollops of the red stuff in my pitas, potatoes, sandwiches, etc...Speaking of food, I have been cooking up a storm since arriving here :) I love cooking, so it has been great that we have a kitchen all to ourselves that is fully stocked with cookware. We have been buying fresh pitas and since they are so great tasting-we have been using them as the base of many of our dishes. For breakfasts, I have been making scrambled beitzeem (eggs) between two slices of whole wheat lechem (bread) with gvina (cheese), with fruit on the side (we had mango this morning). Last night for dinner, I cut up strips of chicken breast, threw it in a pan with a little olive oil, salt, pepper, and the schug. I diced up fresh melafefoneem (cucumbers), sauteed diced beitzal (onion) seasoned with salt and a ton of pepper, diced tomato, and put it all into a pita with more schug (and hummus for me). Today I experimented with putting different things into the pitas, like diced and seasoned potatoes. Yum!!! The hummus we purchased at our local supermarket is literally the best hummus I have ever had EVER!!!! It is better than any hummus I have had in the states-and I have always been a fan of the stuff.
I should mention that Rafi had trouble sleeping again last night/this morning. Since we took a long nap in the afternoon yesterday, we ended up going to bed around 2 am. Rafi woke up at 5:30 with only 3 and a half hours of sleep. I was able to sleep a little longer, waking up around 8am. We think it is because of jetlag and the heat here.
After our breakfast, we decided to walk around and explore Ramat Gan-the area we are living in. I put on my new walking shoes that my mom got me this summer (thanks mom!!!) because yesterday I hurt my feet and ankles so much after walking for hours in my unsupportive sandals. They were just the thing to make the walk so much more physically enjoyable today. We walked for quite a while through Ramat Gan simply looking at buildings, getting our bearings about the place, people watching, and schvitzing like mad. It was so humid and hot! I was pooling sweat because first of all I was wearing black spandex capris, socks and sneakers, and a long sleeve shirt to protect my back and shoulders from the sun (I got sunburns the day before), second-we walked a lot in the heat, and third-I was blessed with the "Swan genes" otherwise known to people in my family as the "sweat genes." Swans are prone to sweating profusely. It was still a great morning though. It was fun to see the hustle and bustle of Ramat Gan.
We ended up catching a Sherut, or shared taxi, from Ramat Gan to Tel Aviv. We wanted to check out the Carmel Market which is the main market in Tel Aviv. We arrived there soon enough and were overwhelmed in an exciting way by the sights, sounds, and smells of the marketplace. There were vendors shouting out deals to shoppers passing by. Spices of many shades red, gold, and green were piled in bags on display with signs indicating their prices. Fresh fruit and crisp vegetables were up for sale everywhere. The dates and olives looking especially appealing. There were random "stuff" vendors selling anything from funny tee shirts, clothes, Jewish mementos, kippot and other Judaica, flowers, and other knick-knack type items. Rafi and I bought some green grapes as a snack. They were sweet and tangy all at once and had about three seeds per grape. It was a perfect snack for the heat of the day. We also purchased two different spices.
After leaving the market, we saw a line of cars stopped in a traffic jam. A lady passenger was poking her head out of her taxi cab window and waving her arms around -clearly in a hurry. Cars were honking crazily (a normal occurance here anytime someone stops in the road). The lady got out of the cab she was in and began walking forward to figure out what was stopping her from getting to her destination. We watched her discover that another taxi and a bus are squished together tightly and neither one can move. If the bus moves, it would rip the side of the taxi. The taxi itself is smashed against the sidewalk ledge. Eventually, the taxi turns its wheels to the right and gently drives its right wheels onto the sidewalk while the left wheels remain on the road. The wheels made scraping and squeaking noises as he did this because of how close it was to the sidewalk already. It drove forward like this until both it and the bus were free. Traffic was then able to continue and the lady returned to her cab to continue onto her destination, wherever that may have been. Traffic was backed up from all directions because of this incident. The Israelis were not happy. I included pictures of this situation at the beginning of this post.
To me, it is really interesting to see the very religious Jews and the secular Jews carrying out their business and walking arund the same streets. There are so many arguments and issues between the secular and ultra-religious Jews, but in the end, it comes to the fact that we are all Jews and all belong to the same People. What I really don't understand is how Chassidic men wear those black coats, pants, and hats in the sweltering heat! Those outfits were worn in Polish winters! I would be so uncomfortable dressed like that in Israel. I guess they are acclamated to the climate.
Rafi and I caught our first bus in Israel back to our apartment from Tel Aviv. After lunch, we began to relax after our long morning and afternoon exploring. Earlier in the day, I made the suggestion that we not take a nap in the afternoon to help ourselves become accustomed to the sleep pattern in Israel. Aa Rafi was relaxing with his book after lunch, he began to feel a bit shluffy and wanted to take a nap. I played the "bad guy" and basically made him get out of bed and put his shoes on to get out of the house. After much hassling on my part :) Rafi was out the door and we were on our way to a coffee joint we had seen on our trips to the supermarket. The lady who ran it was very pleasant and made a great latte. We each drank one in the nice air conditioned cafe. We were the only visitors as the shop was almost closed (it was almost 6pm by that time). Rafi was in a disheveled state and did not seem to happy about being awake although he was a good sport. The shopkeeper let us stay late and relax with our coffees and when we decided to leave, I paid the bill. Since Rafi was in a lack-of-sleep stupor, I was the sole communicator with this woman-in Hebrew!
To end this post, I will say that we did not do much for the rest of the night, except relax, make dinner, and relax some more. Rafi ended up telling me that he was glad he did not take the nap, and that the coffee seemed to work. He just fell asleep right now, actually. It is 10:55pm. I wish him sweet dreams and a full night of rest! Lilah tov!!
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