We returned to Tel Aviv to reside in a beachfront Airbnb to relax, and enjoy balmy weather, and beach activities. I am now familiar enough with Tel Aviv to feel comfortable traversing the city. We each met with Israeli friends and colleagues during the week, and I renewed relationships with long, leisurely conversations intensively conducted in Israeli style: immersive in both complexity and intimacy. 

Walking along a waterfront is one of my favorite activities, whether it is Blackie’s Pasture back home or along Tel Aviv’s wide public beaches and walkways. You can see so many people who mix leisurely strolling or actively working out along miles of landscaped walkways just like Crissy Field in San Francisco, but with the Mediterranean Sea and Middle Eastern complexion.

We hooked up with Gina and Dan, who are the first Bay Area friends we have seen since we began our journey. They graciously invited us to join them on a private tour of the ANU (Diaspora) Museum and we had a fantastic guide who gave us an orientation and explanation of the exhibition highlights. The museum features each era of Jewish history imaginatively and engagingly.

We have already visited many sites and museums and can attest to the great enhancement knowledgeable guides and interesting interactive media and exhibit films are in Israel. Despite a COVID two-year hiatus in tourism, the touring experience has been enjoyable and educational. Well worth the effort and extra expense. In addition, the public transportation has been excellent; so, between buses, trains, and taxis we can get around, although our Israeli phones do not have internet coverage outside, so we sometimes have trouble getting a taxi or information. However, Israel is well set up for tourists.

Dan and I took a walk along the beach through Jaffa, which he knows much better than I do. So, we walked through some of the old city alleyways where only artists reside, and beautiful galleries and shops are tastefully ensconced in the ancient buildings. We also ambled through the Friday flea market where I spotted Israeli commemorative coins that brought me back in time to when I first visited Israel in 1970 and 1972-73. I also purchased a coin minted in a Ghetto in 1943 that was used by Jews who were destined for Holocaust “liquidation”. When I told the vendor that I am buying these coins to pass on to my family he gave me the traditional Jewish acknowledgment of three fingers to his lips with a kiss that signifies a mitzvah or “good deed”. We wished each other a good Shabbat and I had one of many fleeting moments of connection so common. Here one encounters the history of the Jewish people in so many ways.

So, our week culminated with a wonderful sunset walk on the beach and dinner in a Russian restaurant as a fitting conclusion to our first ten weeks in Israel and our departure for our next adventure in Greece.