First day: finding food

The flight over was excellent, especially considering it only took one virtual hour to get to Tel Aviv from Toronto. Ben Gurion International Airport is huge and so very modern, with not a single police officer or soldier in sight. The cab my friend Nilly had arranged was waiting for me and in what truly seemed like no time at all (the aftermath of the “virtual” flight?) I was at the apartment I rented.

The apartment is a bit more...“Spartan” shall we say than what the internet photos suggested, but the location is terrific so I am fine with it (but it immediately made me miss my own home so I Skyped Rafi to tell him).

After unpacking I truly needed a strong coffee so went to a lovely café a few doors down from the building (there are no Starbucks in Israel; many rumours as to why). I struggled with the Hebrew-only menu, but it turned out that the waitress was born in Edmonton so I managed alright.

From there I went to the mall to get a SIM card for my phone. Before you enter the mall, a security guard checks each and every person. I just hope it is that I look trustworthy, because the thoroughness of that check was pretty minimal. 

None of the three separate mobile phone retailers could figure out why my Backberry Torch was dead (I had to leave my beloved iPhone at home as no one knows how to unlock it) so I was unable to get a phone number but at least I got to practice my broken Hebrew by having to repeat the same instructions three times. (Only when I got back to the apartment did I remember one of the reasons I hated my old Torch: the battery dies randomly; you have to remove it and put it back in. Fixed now).

I also checked out a local gym, which I plan to join. The sales person was a lovely plump young woman; I think I like that gym! So far, I am full of good intentions.... (Craig, are you reading this??)

Buying groceries was interesting. Since I couldn’t immediately locate anyone born in Edmonton at the supermarket, I wandered  up and down the aisles truly perplexed. In addition to fresh vegies (which need no labels), I believe I bought various types of yoghurt and cheeses and deli items; I could only make out what these products might be from the pictures (made me miss the English/French labelling we have at home which I have always found annoying. No more). So much for trying to count Carbs.