Monday, December 19, 2011

Day one Israel trip

Day one -flying to Tel Aviv

I try to make these things somewhat interesting but sometimes it just turns out like an online journal -which is what it is i guess :) we had a half day of school on Friday Dec 16th. I went to the doctor to show him the test results I got done on Monday. I went to the Hinduja hospital in Khar  which is a section of Mumbai near Bandra where I live. khar is very different than Bandra! Dirtier, lots of oxen everywhere :) but they have a beautiful, brand  new hospital there. Much more western looking than The one I went to on Monday h -it was filled to the gills with pushy Indian people! I like this doctor -he doesn't push meds. Quite a few of my lab numbers where abnormal but they  weren't so severe that he's going to load me with meds. My sjogrens markers were high - which is causing severe dry eyes and mouth. My eyes feel like sandpaper and I wake up Choking because my mouth is so dry. Sjogrens can be really awful where it damages the eyes etc. Mine isn't that bad - i'm going back in 6weeks for him to monitor it.

On Saturday I went running for 3 miles which is so sad considering my half marathon is in ONE month and I have NOT trained for it :(  I went home and packed then went for my body combat class! I love this class! It is mixed martial arts with loud upbeat American music. I also take body balance class which is tai chi, yoga and pilates. I am not very good at that one! Years of running have left me inflexible! But I give in my best!

I went to one of my favorite restaurants - Eat Around the Corner - to meet my friend Andrea. Then I ventured down to the craziness of Hill road to peruse the Christmas stalls. I'm really glad I decided to give myself a day in Mumbai before leaving on vacation -it would have been too stressful to leave the day school got out.

I went to bed around 8:30 because a school driver was going to pick me up at 2:20 am to take me to the airport. At 2:15 Darshan was out waiting for me -he's the driver that drives my morning bus. It's been a little cooler lately - like 80s in the mornings and Darshan was wearing a sweater!!  :) We picked up Gretchen and off we went. Gretchen is a student support teacher and is in her second year here. It is always amazing how busy the airport is at 3am. The good thing about India is all the stores And food places are open in the airport in the middle of the night. I had a sandwich at 4 am.  Bad thing about Indian airports? People pushing shoving all the time. Augh! It drives me insane! We are all boarding a plane To sit on for 7 hours - why are you pushing and shoving???!?? They also push and shove getting off a plane, in stores, on streets. I guess it is learned behavior from living in crowded spaces.

I watched 3 movies on the plane. One was with Steve Carrel and Ryan Gosling -Crazy Stupid Love I think. Funny. The I watched Contagion. Yikes! A little too realistic especially with there are Asian people on the plane with masks on!  The I watched Black Swan and that was just disturbing.

We flew Turkish air to Istanbul. The airport in Istanbul was really nice. We walked through the shops and I got some Turkish delight. And bought some Popeyes  chicken nuggets that were 9 Usd! This guy asked if I spoke English!! Then asked if I'd see if his wife was in the toilet. I've never been asked if I speak English! It is always assumed I do.

We were placed in the very last row of the next plane. One thing I do like about Indian airlines-they board from the front and back so it is quicker!

We were told so many horror stories about immigration here. I went up to the counter she asked how long I was staying, complied with my request to not have an Israeli stamp in my passport and I was literally through in 45seconds! People warned me not to bring my laptop.  Now I wish I would have-they didn't even ask if I had one.  Let's hope the land border crossings go as smoothly :)


Our hotel was the Leonardo Basel in Tel Aviv right next to the the Mediteranian Sea. It was an adorable hotel with a comfortable bed and hot water. We went for a walk by the sea and through the town. Everything and everyone is so nice. Families out on the streets, cute little cafes every block. Wonderful fruit stands where we got a great smoothy. Too bad we only get tonight here. I would like to explore more! 

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