We got up at 8 AM in the morning, bright and early. Breakfast consisted of French Toast, a good breakfast to prepare us for a long journey. Since our sleeping bags substitute for blankets in the apartment, we had to wait until the morning to pack our bags, because our sleeping bags go in first. So after packing our bags to the brim, we strapped them on for the first time of many, and took the light-rail to the central bus station.
As you can see, our bags are large and in charge. Here's a list of what we thought important enough to schlepp around for 4 days: Sleeping bags, sleeping pads, tent, flashlight, penlight, headlamp, extra batteries, water - 3 liters each, Chelsey's Nook, Rafi's book, Jetboil cookstove, butane fuel canister, hats, hankerchiefs, Chelsey's sport-hairwrap, sunglasses, two towels, 3 rolls of toilet paper, cell-phones, map, matches, cameras, sunblock, bug repellent, hair scrunchies, first-aid kit, spoons, sharp knife, extra plastic bags, water purifier, moleskin (for blisters), moistened prepackaged towels, pen and paper, wallet, Chelsey's glasses and contact case, toothbrushes, toothpaste, food, and clothing. The food consisted of (estimated): 500g of sliced salami, 8 eggs, 1kg of couscous, salt, a few spoonfuls of oil, a jar of peanut butter, five apples, 100g of dried cranberries, 600g of dried apricots, 600g of dates, 2 boxes of wafers, 10 pitas, 1 banana, 4 cans of tuna, 8 string cheeses, leftover beets, and 5 Nature Valley granola bars (2 per pack). For clothing, Rafi brought along: Sweat pants, sweatshirt, 3 pairs of underwear, 3 t-shirts, 1 long-sleeved shirt, 2 pairs of hiking socks, 1 pair of warm socks, 1 pair of other socks, 2 shorts, and gloves. Chelsey brought: 2 athletic t-shirts, cotton skirt, sweatshirt, 2 pairs of hiking socks, 2 pairs of regular socks, yoga capris, hiking shorts, 2 sports bras, 3 pairs of underwear.
The bus to Haifa left at 11:00, and lasted about an hour and forty minutes. We talked and read most of the way. Throughout the trip, Chelsey wrote down our in the moment feelings about the trip. Here are our feelings as we were on the bus. Chelsey: Excited, nervous, fluttery. Rafi: Medium amount of nervousness, doesn't know what will happen, apprehensive but not in a bad way, excited, "as prepared as we can be without a guide, having not done this before, or having spent insane amounts of time preparing." When the bus left the Jerusalem station, Rafi exclaimed, "Oh my gosh! We're leaving, we're leaving! This is scary!"
After Haifa, we caught another bus to Nahariya, which lasted about an hour and a half due to traffic. In Nahariya we discovered that Rafi's backpack was all wet due to a waterbottle leak. Rafi was very annoyed, and kept feeling the backpack, as if to make sure it was still wet, or to see whether it had dried at all. After walking around aimlessly for a while, and getting some of the last food requirements, including our dinner for that night, we found a Shwarma place for a late lunch. It was 30 sheqalim each, more than the 15 sheqels each that we are accustomed to paying in Jerusalem, but it was well worth it. The stand was "serve yourself" style, so we were able not only to pile in exactly what and how much of whatever vegetables and spices we wanted, but we were also able to grab meze plates of some extra goodies. It was super yummy and delicious. Great to fill our bellies before a long 4 days of hiking.
After Shwarma, we went to find a cab to Achziv Beach on the Mediterranean, just a few kilometers north of Nahariya. (Notice how we use kilometers now instead of miles - whenever we are on the highway, Chelsey asks, "How many miles is "x" kilometers?") Cabs were not very plentiful, and were difficult to flag down. The first guy refused to drive us to Achziv, saying he had some sort of schedule to adhere to and didn't have time. The second guy stopped and made a heinously illegal traffic maneuver, and finally we were on our way. Considering the length of the drive, it was nice that he only charged 30 sheqels. He drove SOOOOO slowly, causing cars to honk. He had the WORST English of anyone who has tried to speak English to us before, and he wouldn't speak in Hebrew despite Rafi's attempts. Here's an example of his speach pattern: "Fifty. Years. Iran. I. Live. Have. Kids. Six. Five. Long. Time. Israel. My. New. House." He kept touching Rafi's hand (Rafi was in the passenger's seat). He was nice, but overly helpful. He wouldn't let us get out of the cab when we got to Achziv, trying hard to show us every possible option of where to stay for the night. It was getting late and we were urgent to get out quickly to set up camp. Everytime we said "Well Todah, here's a good place," he would respond with "Regah!" and kept driving. Finally we managed to escape and began backtracking to a spot we saw that was legal for camping.
The camping spot we chose for the night was a pay-to-camp spot right next to the Mediterranean. We caught the gatekeeper just as he was leaving for the evening. He told us the rates and we talked him down 20 sheqels. He drove us into the campsite and showed us where to set up our tent. Other than an overnight worker, we were the only ones at the campsite. It was beautiful, large, and had a bathroom right next to our spot. Since we arrived just as the sun was beginning to set, we quickly set up our tent, and arranged our sleeping bags, food, and supplies. It was good to get practice doing this quickly for the days we would be setting up camp after hiking for several hours.
Once the sun set, we relaxed and had dinner - the leftover beets and sufganiot (jelly donuts). Then we walked down to the water, onto some rocks that jutted out into the sea. We sat there on the rocks for a while, looking up at the sky and the waves, thinking about the journey ahead of us. The moon was nearly full, and we felt fortunate that it would be full or near-full to help light the nights during our trip. We returned to the tent, read Masque of the Red Death by Edgar Allan Poe (from an anthology of E.A.P stories previously downloaded onto the Nook specifically for this trip), read some our own books, and went to bed early to prepare for a 7:00 wakeup. Our feelings at this point, recorded by Chelsey. Chelsey: Comfortable, happy, excited, magical feeling, lucky, glad about the full moon. Rafi: Happy, nice camp area, fun exploring at rocks, good mood, talkative, like the full moon, a little nervous for the rest of the journey.
No comments:
Post a Comment