Israel - Day 3

 A couple of sleepless nights caught up to me. Even an early bedtime didn't make the 9:30 alarm effective. At least I'm well rested now?

11:00 wake up, make myself presentable and run down to grab breakfast before group activities which lasts until lunch. The hotel lunch is pretty good, and much the same as shabbat dinner had been. Breakfast, on the other hand, impressed me with the wide variety of cultured milk products. Cottage cheese, one type of yogurt, another, and another. I made a tasting test of these products and all but one got my seal of approval. The last was too sour in my opinion.

After lunch, I continued to explore Tiberius, which is much smaller than I had anticipated. Sun was beating down, so my water bottle proved invaluable.

Things finally started to open after the sun set and shabbat ended. I tried eating at a nice restaurant, called Big Ben, with the rest of the group. The waiter took everyone else's orders, ignoring me. Three subsequent attempts were also ignored. On my fifth try, he interrupted me, told me to wait, and left. Unfortunately, after seven minutes he hadn't returned, so I ended up leaving to find a place that would serve me.

The small shawarma shop that I ended up finding was amazing. Well, at least the sides were. Can't attest to the meat. In the end, I got a nice plate with a variety of salads and vegetables and a pita right from the grill. Incredible. Then, as I meandered around the boardwalk for a few hours, I tried watermelon ice cream for the first time. Let's just say that it was so tasty, that I went back for round two.

Israel - Day 2

Picking up from where Day 1 left off - still on the airplane. Sleep was mostly elusive, but that was no great surprise. The unexpectedly pleasant part was breakfast. Once again, I had the vegetarian option. This included a potato-based scramble with a variety of vegetables, a fruit cup with honeydew and cantaloupe, and a banana muffin. The service continued to be efficient and my request for an additional fruit cup was immediately fulfilled.

Surprises continued after landing with one of the smoothest border crossings I have ever experienced. One bus ride later, and we were in Tiberias, a small town with a shocking number of construction projects underway.

Shabbat dinner was delicious- the creamiest hummus and baba ghanoush that I ever tried were served. Vegetables were flavorful and fresh. Judging by the reactions of the meat eaters, those dishes were also cooked well.

Israel - Day 1

Traveling in a group has certain downsides. After waking up at 4:30 to meet the group by 5:40 at LaGuardia, we found out that there is a downside to being early- there was another hour before Air Canada would start to accept bags. So, we waited. And then we waited more- this time in the security line. When you aren't the one purchasing tickets, things like PreCheck don't happen unfortunately.

The first leg of the trip was a short hop Toronto Pearson. There we had the wonderful opportunity to wait for a few more hours. Another major downside to groups- people are surprisingly slow walkers. If you don't pay attention... Well, better pay attention.

Service was phenomenal on the second leg, the flight to TelAviv. Although I'm used to seeing business and first-class receiving amenity kits, us economy class folks were offered packs with a mask, sanitizer, and wipes. Classy touch, even if most people aren't too concerned by viruses anymore. As I wrote this, masks were still required by the Canadian government, which further helps me feel comfortable.

To live up to my reputation, I must discuss the dinner. I ordered the vegetarian option ahead of time, and received a lentil biryani, edamame salad, dinner roll, and apple cake. The biryani was well seasoned and had some vegetables, which is nice.

I'm writing this after spending quite a while trying to sleep-but I'm really not used to going to bed at 20:30, even if it is 3:30 at the destination. Since we've crossed a few time zones, I figure that the local time is about midnight, meaning that the first day is over.