Our first Israeli Adventures!

We ventured out of our bubble for the first time and went all the way north to the Jordan border to tour an amazing site- Beit She'an. We drove about 1.5 hours and went through some very interesting Arab towns on our way up- what a far cry from the world we are used to back home. Never did I think I would be standing near the shore of the Jordan river, but there we were.  The history of this location is extensive, and way more than I care to write (and you probably care to read).  I prefer to share this incredible site via the pictures, but included a little blurb from the tourism website below.

Taking Selfies like a BOSS!

Taken directly from the website, "Beit She’an was first settled way back in the Chalcolithic Period (some 5,000 to 6,000 years ago). The city has had many conquerors, among them the Egyptians some 3,500 years ago. A few hundred years later, the Philistines conquered it (it was they who fastened Saul’s body to the wall of Beit She’an after the famous battle on Mount Gilbo’a: 1 Samuel 31 .8 – 11). Beit She’an became part of the kingdoms of David and Solomon, and was eventually destroyed in a fire, apparently at the hands of the King of Assyria (in 732 BCE). Beit She’an was rebuilt as a Hellenistic city about 2,300 years ago, and was renamed Scythopolis (“City of the Scyths”). In the succeeding Roman period, it spread south, reaching the peak of its greatness in the fifth century, when it had 30,000 – 40,000 inhabitants. 

This was such an incredible sight to see- and if you ever come to Israel, must be on your list. Pictures really don't do it justice.  I felt so adventurous being on the border of Israel and Jordan, and weaving through little Arab towns to find this place.  I'm so lame.  Just don't come when its 90 degrees and 75% humidity, because that definitely meant we had to book it out of there a lot quicker than we hoped.  Since it was so hot, Ledoux and I clearly needed to buy some sweet new hats for the sun. #Anyexcusetoshop.  Im sure we paid way more than they were worth just to own an authentic Israeli sun hat (aka made in China).  We left sweating like pigs, but man was it worth it! We will be going back in the winter when its much cooler- the site is so large and spread out that we didn't even get to scratch the surface of exploring.

In other news, we have officially started planning our travel outside of Israel.  I made quite the bucket list for our little family of places we must see over the new few years- and our first few destinations have been booked!  Let me tell you, the highlight of living here is the fact that we are $200 RT away from destinations that I would have only dreamed to have visited- and I plan to take full advantage. I am not going to come back from Israel with a lot of money saved, but shit- we are going to come back with some amazing stories and adventures. We let Ledoux "choose" our Christmas trip this year.  We wrote out 6 choices, buried them in the sand, and had her dig until she found one.  After lots of sand digging, she pulled out Switzerland and Southern Germany- and I am so excited!  She doesn't quite get it, but hearing her say Swvitz-a-lund is kind of adorable. 

our first 6 choices for Christmas

Trip 1: Back home to Tucson (not a bucket list destination, but exciting to visit Target again!) We will be home all of November

Trip 2: The week before Christmas we will be heading to Switzerland and Germany to hit up all of the magical Christmas Markets! I am seriously giddy inside- the pictures of the Christmas markets are everything I have dreamt Christmas should be.  Snow, twinkle lights as far as you can see, hand-made treasures, and fresh baked yummies in the open markets. 

Trip 3: The end of January we head to Athens (you guys, the tickets RT per person were $119... are you freaking kidding me?!)  

Trip 4: In February, we will be headed someone super special but it hasn't been booked just yet (but it might include a visit to Disneyland in a place that isn't Cali or Florida!) ;)

And last but not least, I felt I needed to share the magic in a bottle I found last night. Ahh yes. If it looks like a Corona, and (kind of) tastes like a Corona, its Corona, right?  Don't steal my thunder people.  Now if I could find some tacos...

10 things I have learned in the last month...

Shalom from Israel friends!  This week we have officially been gone for one month- and time has FLOWN by!  I feel like so many things have happened in the past month- more transitions and hurdles then most people have in a year-heck, even years. I haven't been as consistent in writing as I had hoped to be (sorry!) but as things settle down I will get better!  Pinky promise!  For now, here are the things we have learned about life in Israel so far...

1.) Time and speed is suggested.  Have an appointment set for 1:00 pm?  Add the word "suggested" to that.  Because there ain't no one who cares about time out here (wow, was that the best-est english grammar sentence ever, or what?!)  Speed limit says 70? 90? Eff it- go as fast or as slow as you want.  Everyone else does.  It reminds me a bit of Mario Kart.  Its a go at your own pace, do your own thing, don't care about urgency kind of lifestyle. I love hate it. I love the chillax style of life, but sometimes they take it toooooooo far.  This will be further reflected in a little story in #3 below.

2.) Recycling is HUGE, trash cans are teeny.  Every corner has three bins- plastic recycling, paper recycling, and aluminum recycling.  Our actual trash can is the size of a large bathroom trash can (aka its small.)  Lee and I looked at each other and couldn't, for the life of us, figure out how that little thing would be enough to hold a week's worth of trash. Are we terrible people because we consume and throw away so much?  Then it occurred to us- when you recycle everything, there isn't much trash left over.  Our itsy bitty trash can is just right for the things we have left after we recycle. The other interesting thing on this topic is in regards to yard debris (leaves, tree clippings, grass, etc.)  Once a week, trucks come through and pick it all up- you just leave it outside your home.

Just takin' up the whole street

10 mins later- still there. Backing up traffic

3.) Piggy backing off of the above, I'd like to share a story that is so... Israel.  As I was leaving last week to take Ledoux to school, I turned down the street that heads towards the highway.  I made it about half down when I saw a huge landscape recycling truck that goes through and picks up landscaping debris.  He was taking up the entire street- the workers would put it into park, hop out, sweep up the debris, get back in the truck, drive a whopping 50 feet, and do it again with the next house.  I thought for sure once they saw me behind them they would move out of the way.  Nope.  They kept on their merry, debris collecting way.  So for the sake of time, I backed all the way down the street, and turned onto the next street.  I got about 3/4 of the way down this time and guess what? Yep. Another truck. Taking up the whole street.  Only this time there were cars in front of and behind me and we had no choice but to wait.  15 minutes later the truck made it to the end of the block so we could break free... but this is so indicative of the country.  No rush, no one is in a hurry, and no one really cares if you are.

4.) Cooking with gas.  We were surprised to find out last night, in the middle of making dinner, you don't have a gas line going to your stove that is fed from the gas company.  Want gas?  Go buy a tank.  So in the middle of making dinner the burners stopped working.  And thats how we figured out that its not gas like back home, but feeds off of containers like we use in our grills back home.  So we called the gas company and paid the extra 50 shekels to have a couple tanks delivered ASAP.  Fast forward one week, we finally got them. (After calling...again.)  Another prime example of no urgency.

5.) Meow! Cats are everywhere.  The un-official mascot of Israel.  When I say everywhere, I am not exaggerating. I promise I could look out my window right now and spot atleast one.  They roam the streets, the parks, the cafes... all over the place.  If you follow our Instagram (and instagram stories) you have seen the million cats of Israel.

6.) I miss my coffee pot.  Good luck finding a good old coffee maker.  Most people use an electric water boiler and instant coffee.  Or they have a full on espresso machine.  I priced the espresso machines- and as with everything in Israel, it is so expensive, I will survive off the disgusting instant coffee. And dream of Starbucks.  And coffee makers. And coffee creamer.  And pumpkin spice lattes, because if what I am seeing all over instagram is true- its that time of year again! Oh, and anything else related to coffee.  My mouth is legit watering.

7.) Customer service? Umm... whats that?  In the states, great customer service is expected.  Here, not so much.  We usually have to go find our waiter if we want refills or to order something, get our check, or ask a question.  We ordered Ledoux a chocolate milk last week as a little cafe, and it never came.  When we finally found our waiter, he said "we don't have that anymore."  No "I'm so sorry", "here is what we do have", etc.  This isn't limited to restaurants but also most stores- you can walk into a grocery store and the clerks are on their phones (while working).  Go to an appliance store and want to ask for a price?  Good luck hunting down someone to ask.  We have had a few instances where this wasn't the case, but for the most part- customer service has been pretty limited.  We also learned that tipping really doesn't exceed 10%- a waiter told us that anything more than that in Israel is too much.  (I thought it odd that the waiter told us that, but its his money, so whatevs!)

8.) Safety.  So many people freaked out when we moved here.  So many people made comments about the safety of Israel.  Those people are crazy.  I feel safer in Israel then in most places in the US, and WAY safer here then I did in London when we visited.  The presence of the Israeli Defense Forces is everywhere- we see them every day, everywhere we go. The security of this country is something the US and other countries could learn from.  Every time you drive into a parking garage, security guards check your car.   You go through metal detectors and have your purse/bag checked before entering stores.  The checks aren't invasive or intrusive in nature- they walk around your car, peek in the windows, some have little mirrors to check underneath.  I personally love that they do this. The IDF can be seen on every bus, train, cafe, and beach- and every citizen of Israel is required to serve for 2-3 years.  So when you think about it- everyone, everywhere- are trained Military personnel.  They are committed to the security of their country- which is pretty awesome.  The people of this country are proud to be Israeli- they work together to keep their country safe, and will protect it any cost.

I will have plenty more to say on this topic soon- I have been keeping the "american media" versions of news articles that I see pop up on MSN, CNN, FOX, etc. and am comparing them to what really happens out here.  The differences in reality vs. what you see/read is pretty distorted, my friends.  My eyes are really being opened to the ways in which the media chooses what you see, you believe, and you read back home- its pretty scary that we take things for face value without digging for what is true.

The Shuk Ha Carmel

Fresh Veggies everywhere

9.)  Materialistic things don't matter like they do back home.  There isn't an overwhelming "keeping up with the Jones" syndrome out here that exists like in the US.  I never thought I could live a month without Target, Gap, etc.  But guess what? I am still here! Even without the super cute new Gap fall line that just came out.  No one really cares about that stuff... and even if you do, theres no way to get most of it, so what's the point?!  I have the same 3 outfits on rotation- and there are days when I don't bother doing my hair and make up because the humidity will just melt it all off anyway.  Its pretty comforting knowing that its not about the newest bag, the cutest shoes, or the best hair- just come as you are.

10.) Its gorgeous out here.  If you have ever wanted to visit Israel- do it. Its incredible.  Its beautiful. even in the areas that aren't "beautiful", the culture and vibrance of the people is.  Its safe. Life is chill and slow paced. People care more about relationships than the crap you have. Stop letting your fears define what you do- and live life- and when you come visit, just make sure you come with someone that doesn't have anxiety with driving and parking :)