Israel, The Finale

We were on our own during the day on our last day at the kibbutz. Our first stop was Akko.

To get into the city you walk through these underground tunnels that were built by the Templars before they were all murdered and stuff. 

Mirav: "They tunnels are so low even I have to duck!"

They had another one of those crazy markets. Akko is a big fishing town so they had all this fish that smelled terrible. Not on ice or anything, just in baskets. It made Mirav sick. 

Next stop was this weird bath house. There's an audio tour narrated by this creepy, slightly anti-semitic dude. It was supposed to be funny and informative, but mostly it was confusing and racist. 

Statues depicting the fat old dudes who used to hang out in here. 

I guess the ceiling was cool. 

Back through the tunnels to get out. We took the same picture again because I liked it. 

We went out to the harbor. There was trash everywhere and it smelled like fish.

Our next stop was Rosh HaNikra. Rosh HaNikra are underground grottos formed by the waves breaking under the rocks. This is the view from the parking lot. 

You have to take a cable car down the cliff to get to the grottos. 

Boom, grotto. 

The water was so nice and clear. It would have been a lot of fun to go in and swim if the waves wouldn't pummel you to death. 

Cool cave system they dug out to get to all the view points. Most of the pictures were dark and blurry. You had to be there, which I was. 

At the end of the tunnels you pop out onto the cliff side and are right on the water. Amazing views. 

We hung out for a bit enjoying the view. 

On the left is the gift shop and straight ahead you will see...Lebanon. That's the border and this is as close as I wanted to get. Looked like some shady business. 

The rest of the night was pretty uneventful. We had dinner with Orit and Rami, packed and slept. The next morning Tomer made us breakfast and we headed out. 

Mirav shlepping her bag out to the car. She bought a travel backpack for the trip. It was really nice but the shape was weird and I think it makes her look like a ninja turtle when she wears it. 

We drove back to Tel Aviv and dropped off the car and met Hila. We walked all over, went to the beach and the market again to pick up some gifts and Israeli tahina and Nutella. More about the tahina and Nutella later. For some reason I have no picture of the beach but three picture of us doing a shot later. 

Full shots

l'Chaim!

Empty shots. 

These are just half shots. They call them chasers and they are very popular in Israel. They need to be a thing here too. 

Group shot at dinner. 

Israel is an amazing country. If you are worried about going, don't be. I want to say thank you so much to all the family that made me feel so welcome. I had a great time and I can't wait to come back. 

Peace out Israel, London here we come!!!

The Misadventures of a Boy and His Bike

Since I am posting vacation pics, I will try to let you in on my daily goings on too. 

For those of you who know me, you know my bikes and I have a troubled past. Flat tires, broken derailleurs, bent wheels, stolen seats. Half the scars on me are bike related. One time I got thrown off and a bottle of hard cider broke in my backpack and leaked into my underwear on the way to work and made me smell like a bar all day. Bikes and I even separated briefly after a car hit me while I was riding one in college.

I was riding home today after a long day at work and a hard workout. Out of of nowhere, Pffffffff, flat tire. Tube exploded and ripped a hole in my tire. Got to walk my bike the rest of the way home. Bikes, I wish I could quit you. 

What's that? yes I would love a beer thank you. I do deserve one, that's kind of you to say. 

Israel Part 3

The next morning we all met back up for breakfast before heading out for adventuring. You'll have to forgive me because I'm not 100% sure where we were. I was just sitting in the back along for the ride. 

The Fam

We climbed up to the top of this tower to get some awesome views before breakfast. I believe it's a wildfire lookout. 

Amazing views. Israel is a beautiful country. 

Rami had a hurt foot so we left him at the bottom. Sorry Rami :(

Showing off my picture taking skills. They are second only to my witty blog post skills. 

Chilling and eating picnic style. Israeli breakfast is awesome. Humus, veggies, deli meat and like 12 kinds of cheese. They have these giant bagel pretzels too. Almost made me forget about pancakes, almost. 

Alf we trying to get some yogurt and the tub got stuck. Why are you helping me? Stop laughing!

Let's get a family picture! Eric, set up the camera on the car then run over. Kidding we're not going to leave a spot for you. Just stand there like an idiot. 

Attempt #2 was successful. Being next to the two smallest ladies in the pic makes me look like a giant. 

Mirav's crazy face. 

Mirav lookin all cute. 

Next stop was Golan Heights. I guess it used to be an army view point. It's mostly retired now. Just a place to go get some cool views. 

The UN was up there using the tourist binoculars that you have to put quarters into. I am not kidding. They were watching Syria. The border was right down the hill. 

We didn't leave Rami this time. 

Curse the dead sea!

Ladies buying some fruit. 

Next stop was the memorial for the 73 soldiers that died in a helicopter crash. This rock has a list of all the soldiers that died. Most of them were 18-20 years old. Very sad. 

The memorial was laid out in the shape of a helicopter. It was very well done. 

We stopped by Hila's Fiance's parents house to hang out for a bit. We were required to drink coffee and eat delicious desserts. Okay, you twisted my arm.  

Wall lizard came to say what's up. 

The next morning we got Tomer as a guide. Upon threat of his mother, he was a perfect gentleman and showed us all around. First stop was some kind of monastery famous for being the site of someone being beheaded or something.It was unclear, but had really cool views.  

Israel has no shortage of hills with amazing views. 

On our way out, suddenly a dog herding 50 goats!

Goats

On our way to Haifa to hit the beach. 

The gold dome at the bottom is some kind of temple. Man I am terrible at retaining that kind of info. Anyway, temple, then it's surrounded by an impecable garden all the way up the hill. From here you ca see most of Haifa and all the water surrounding. Hard to capture. 

Our faithful guide Tomer. 

Haifa, cool city. Lots of young people. I think there is a big university there. 

The beach. This might have been my favorite part. Got to relax on the sand, then splash around in the water. The water was so nice. 

Hila came back up from Tel Aviv that night to hang out with us. We headed out to a bar. I was lead to believe things were going to get crazy. We had one drink then everyone fell asleep. You guys are so wild. It was happy hour and Tomer wanted some food. Everything was buy one get one free but no one else was hungry so he got chicken and a burger and combined them into a Frankenstein sandwich. 

End day 8. Only two more days in Israel.