Thursday, April 28, 2011
...And We're Back! And A Quick Story About the Shuk
Hooray! After a few action packed weeks, our internet has been restored! We have lots of videos, pictures, and stories to tell from the last two weeks. For now, just a quick one:
Today at the Shuk, I got the following at one store:
Today at the Shuk, I got the following at one store:
- 8 tomatoes
- 6 big cucumbers (well, normal American size, big for Israeli standards)
- 3 small onions
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 orange bell pepper
Now, how much would you pay for all of this at, say, Von's or Ralph's? 10 bucks? Easily, if things weren't on sale. I didn't pay that.
I paid 13.80 NIS. Or, about $4.06.
I love the Shuk.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Back to Lunch, Back to Reality
Sarah went back to work today, so I was left to my own devices again for lunch. And as a preface: before you make assumptions about my eating habits shortly after learning of a friend's heart related death, Israeli bread is much smaller than American bread, so two sandwiches isn't so huge...they just look bigger because they have more stuff inside.
Sandwich Number 1, Rangit (sandwich number 1): Between the two pieces of bread, we have a shmear of labane cheese, green apple, tomato, parsley, and some Tivol chicken. You might think that the apple was the odd-man-out in this sandwich, but it provided a good dose of sweet and crunchy. Winner winner Tivol chicken dinner. Er, lunch.
Sandwich Number 2: A pita with hummus (which, when you put it in first, gives you a really nice surprise at the end), tomato & parsley (chopped and mixed with about a teaspoon of olive oil, a dash of salt, and a dash of garlic powder), mushrooms, and some Tivol beef kebob. Delicious.
Side: The rest of the sliced apple.
Yum with a side of "ee."
Actually, with a side of nana tea.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Technology Only Goes So Far
Anyone who knows me understands how I'm a big fan of technology. It makes the distance between places seem less. Video chat? Done. Even this evening, I was making dinner and Sarah's mom joined us, virtually, in the kitchen. Incredible.
Yet, sometimes, no matter the level of technology, 7000 miles away is still 7000 miles away.
My dear friend and fellow youth worker Justin Shabsis passed away Tuesday morning due to unforeseen heart complications. He was only a few years older than me.
Justin was one of the first people to reach out to me when I rejoined NFTY SoCal as an advisor in 2008. He was an incredibly kind man - someone who took his job as youth director seriously and with a great sense of how important and holy youth work is to so many. We worked together on my last NFTY SoCal event, Social Justice Kallah, which was hosted by Justin's youth group. Although the event had some challenges, Justin came through in the clutch like no one I have ever seen. He was professional, empathetic, and was an incredible leader.
I only have this one picture of Justin. While it may not be the most flattering picture, nor one that shows his infectious smile, it shows how willing he was to participate fully in whatever was asked of him. I wanted him to be stoic, to provide a perfect foundation for the reflection of his glasses. He obliged. And that's just who he was. When the SoCal board asked him to be a badass and bully participants as part of a program, he jumped right in. We talked about it later, and he explained how embarrassed he was for having to bully the NFTYites. I'm pretty sure he went up to nearly each participant after the program and apologized.
If I was in San Diego right now, I'd be in my car heading up to Los Angeles to be with my fellow advisors. Even though I'm no longer working with them, I still feel incredibly connected to them.
Instead, I'm 7000 miles away.
Yet, sometimes, no matter the level of technology, 7000 miles away is still 7000 miles away.
My dear friend and fellow youth worker Justin Shabsis passed away Tuesday morning due to unforeseen heart complications. He was only a few years older than me.
Justin was one of the first people to reach out to me when I rejoined NFTY SoCal as an advisor in 2008. He was an incredibly kind man - someone who took his job as youth director seriously and with a great sense of how important and holy youth work is to so many. We worked together on my last NFTY SoCal event, Social Justice Kallah, which was hosted by Justin's youth group. Although the event had some challenges, Justin came through in the clutch like no one I have ever seen. He was professional, empathetic, and was an incredible leader.
I only have this one picture of Justin. While it may not be the most flattering picture, nor one that shows his infectious smile, it shows how willing he was to participate fully in whatever was asked of him. I wanted him to be stoic, to provide a perfect foundation for the reflection of his glasses. He obliged. And that's just who he was. When the SoCal board asked him to be a badass and bully participants as part of a program, he jumped right in. We talked about it later, and he explained how embarrassed he was for having to bully the NFTYites. I'm pretty sure he went up to nearly each participant after the program and apologized.If I was in San Diego right now, I'd be in my car heading up to Los Angeles to be with my fellow advisors. Even though I'm no longer working with them, I still feel incredibly connected to them.
Instead, I'm 7000 miles away.
Video: Mashiv Haruach - You Cause the Wind to Shift
In the G'vurot prayer in the Amidah (the section also known as T'filah or Shmoneh Esrei, depending on what brand of Kool-Aid you drink), we say "mashiv haruach u'morid hagashem" during the winter months from Simchat Torah to Pesach. (Yes, there was a lot of linkatude in that last sentence, but in case you wanted a refresher on any of those topics, I wanted to give you some good starting places) The phrase translates to "You (i.e.: God) make the wind blow and the rain fall."
For the last week, we have had some incredible winds here in Jerusalem. I had to get some things from the grocery store, so I decided to go toward the German Colony (or in Hebrew, HaMoshava HaGermanit), since that was Sarah's hood for two months and I had not been there in years.
On my walk, I decided to get some make a short film of the winds entitled "Mashiv Haruach - You Cause the Wind to Shift."
Enjoy!
Note: this translation comes from the Reform Siddur Mishkan T'filah, whereas the previously mentioned translation comes from the Orthodox Koren Siddur.
For the last week, we have had some incredible winds here in Jerusalem. I had to get some things from the grocery store, so I decided to go toward the German Colony (or in Hebrew, HaMoshava HaGermanit), since that was Sarah's hood for two months and I had not been there in years.
On my walk, I decided to get some make a short film of the winds entitled "Mashiv Haruach - You Cause the Wind to Shift."
Enjoy!
Note: this translation comes from the Reform Siddur Mishkan T'filah, whereas the previously mentioned translation comes from the Orthodox Koren Siddur.
Monday, April 11, 2011
It's Awkward, and It's Delicious
Corn on pizza. Sounds weird, no? In Israel, it's pretty standard. That, and tuna. But we'll get to that another time.
Tonight, we didn't want to put too much effort into dinner, so we made a frozen pizza (which is 100000 times better than any American frozen pizza I've had...and trust me, I've had my fair share) and put some corn on it.
It was delicious.
Try corn on your next pizza. You won't regret it. But if you do, it wasn't my idea.
My Last Service at Congregation Beth Israel
My last day as Youth Director at Congregation Beth Israel was on Friday, April 1, 2011. I helped lead the service with readings written and delivered by youth group members and songs sung by me, Rachael North, and even more youth group members. It was a very emotional evening, but my text can only do so much to describe the evening. Below are the videos of the event. I hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoyed spending my last Shabbat with my CBI family.
And here is the text of my remarks from the service:
There’s an old joke. What does it mean when a rabbi takes his watch off? Absolutely nothing. It’s fitting that today, April 1, is my last day. Of course, the guy that tells bad jokes has his last day on April Fools’ Day. Trust me, though. My leaving CBI is something I have taken very seriously and with great humility.
I was not able to do my job without some very important people. Thank you Rabbi Satz for being an incredible mentor, teacher, sounding board, and friend. Your support of my work has inspired me to become a better person and, hopefully, a better rabbi. Thank you Cantor Bernstein, of whom I cannot look at. I could go into why, but we both know I’d never make it through the end of the first sentence, and I have a few more paragraphs to go. Just know you have my utmost gratitude. To Rabbi Berk, Lesley Mills, Aunt Bonnie, Chrissy, Ava, Rabbi Katz, the entire religious school staff, Tammy Vener and the Preschool staff, and all the CBI staff, thank you for giving me so many opportunities to thrive here. It has been such a pleasure working and playing with all of you. I can only hope that my future jobs are as wonderful as this has been. I was privileged to get up every day and be thrilled to get to work. Sorry, Charlie Sheen, but for the last three years, I was winning. To Jessica, Sarah, Adam, David, and all of my wonderful Youth staff, thank you for helping make every event successful. I could not have done it without you. To my family, especially my incredible wife Sarah, thank you for being there for me at all times. I cannot tell you how appreciative I am that you have helped work family events around this program’s crazy schedule.
About 7 years ago, I stood right here and gave my final d’var torah as a participant in BITY and NFTY. I quoted lines from “The Sunscreen Song,” such as, “Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Oh, never mind. You will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they’ve faded. But trust me, in 20 years, you’ll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can’t grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked. You are not as fat as you imagine.” How true. I never dreamed I could come back here and lead a group that had given me so much inspiration to be the kind of person I wanted to be.
But enough about me, let’s talk about you for a minute. I want to thank all of you, the parents and participants of J2, NOAR, and BITY. You are what make CBI Youth so incredible. I merely put some events together. I appreciate your patience as I learned the ropes and your gentle lessons when I made a mistake. At it’s core, youth group is about finding yourself, growing, sharing yourself, and exploring your Judaism with your best friends. And these are friends that will stay with you for the rest of your life. Trust me. I married someone I met in BITY. Youth group is a place where you can be yourself. Youth group is a place where, no matter who the advisor is, you get to have fun with your friends.
Three years ago, I had huge shoes to fill. Michelle had built up the CBI Youth program to something that was completely, dare I say, inconceivable. And when I started, I was scared. Would they still come? Would the fact that someone else was in that chair be a barrier to someone’s participation? Fortunately, the answer was a resounding yes and no. Yes, you still came, no, having someone else in the chair didn’t stop people from coming. So now that I’m going to rabbinical school, what do I want from you? Keep coming. Stay involved. If it’s not exactly how you want it, run for BITY board and change it. Keep dreaming. Keep innovating. Keep the ideas flowing.
You are all the future of Judaism. If you care about the survival of the Jewish people, get involved. Judaism is based in community. While it is no means the only community, it keeps the ruach of living Jewish going strong in a completely informal setting. That’s community. That’s Judaism. That’s you.
While I am thrilled to be beginning this new chapter of my life, the impact that you have had on me is something I will treasure for the rest of my life. For the last few weeks, I have been thinking of what final words to leave you with. One song kept coming up: the finale from the show “In The Heights.” So let me say to you all, “I can say goodbye to you smilin’, I found my island, I’ve been on it this whole time, I’m home.”
And as a final message to you, Danny Myers is going to help sing this Craig Taubman song, because let’s face it, there’s no way I’m getting through it. Listen to its message. Heed its call. Whether you are in the sanctuary, the youth lounge, flat on your back during broom ball, on a double decker bus going to unknown places, or just jumping around, you are always on holy ground.
And here is the text of my remarks from the service:
There’s an old joke. What does it mean when a rabbi takes his watch off? Absolutely nothing. It’s fitting that today, April 1, is my last day. Of course, the guy that tells bad jokes has his last day on April Fools’ Day. Trust me, though. My leaving CBI is something I have taken very seriously and with great humility.
I was not able to do my job without some very important people. Thank you Rabbi Satz for being an incredible mentor, teacher, sounding board, and friend. Your support of my work has inspired me to become a better person and, hopefully, a better rabbi. Thank you Cantor Bernstein, of whom I cannot look at. I could go into why, but we both know I’d never make it through the end of the first sentence, and I have a few more paragraphs to go. Just know you have my utmost gratitude. To Rabbi Berk, Lesley Mills, Aunt Bonnie, Chrissy, Ava, Rabbi Katz, the entire religious school staff, Tammy Vener and the Preschool staff, and all the CBI staff, thank you for giving me so many opportunities to thrive here. It has been such a pleasure working and playing with all of you. I can only hope that my future jobs are as wonderful as this has been. I was privileged to get up every day and be thrilled to get to work. Sorry, Charlie Sheen, but for the last three years, I was winning. To Jessica, Sarah, Adam, David, and all of my wonderful Youth staff, thank you for helping make every event successful. I could not have done it without you. To my family, especially my incredible wife Sarah, thank you for being there for me at all times. I cannot tell you how appreciative I am that you have helped work family events around this program’s crazy schedule.
About 7 years ago, I stood right here and gave my final d’var torah as a participant in BITY and NFTY. I quoted lines from “The Sunscreen Song,” such as, “Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Oh, never mind. You will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they’ve faded. But trust me, in 20 years, you’ll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can’t grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked. You are not as fat as you imagine.” How true. I never dreamed I could come back here and lead a group that had given me so much inspiration to be the kind of person I wanted to be.
But enough about me, let’s talk about you for a minute. I want to thank all of you, the parents and participants of J2, NOAR, and BITY. You are what make CBI Youth so incredible. I merely put some events together. I appreciate your patience as I learned the ropes and your gentle lessons when I made a mistake. At it’s core, youth group is about finding yourself, growing, sharing yourself, and exploring your Judaism with your best friends. And these are friends that will stay with you for the rest of your life. Trust me. I married someone I met in BITY. Youth group is a place where you can be yourself. Youth group is a place where, no matter who the advisor is, you get to have fun with your friends.
Three years ago, I had huge shoes to fill. Michelle had built up the CBI Youth program to something that was completely, dare I say, inconceivable. And when I started, I was scared. Would they still come? Would the fact that someone else was in that chair be a barrier to someone’s participation? Fortunately, the answer was a resounding yes and no. Yes, you still came, no, having someone else in the chair didn’t stop people from coming. So now that I’m going to rabbinical school, what do I want from you? Keep coming. Stay involved. If it’s not exactly how you want it, run for BITY board and change it. Keep dreaming. Keep innovating. Keep the ideas flowing.
You are all the future of Judaism. If you care about the survival of the Jewish people, get involved. Judaism is based in community. While it is no means the only community, it keeps the ruach of living Jewish going strong in a completely informal setting. That’s community. That’s Judaism. That’s you.
While I am thrilled to be beginning this new chapter of my life, the impact that you have had on me is something I will treasure for the rest of my life. For the last few weeks, I have been thinking of what final words to leave you with. One song kept coming up: the finale from the show “In The Heights.” So let me say to you all, “I can say goodbye to you smilin’, I found my island, I’ve been on it this whole time, I’m home.”
And as a final message to you, Danny Myers is going to help sing this Craig Taubman song, because let’s face it, there’s no way I’m getting through it. Listen to its message. Heed its call. Whether you are in the sanctuary, the youth lounge, flat on your back during broom ball, on a double decker bus going to unknown places, or just jumping around, you are always on holy ground.
Sunday, April 10, 2011
The Beginning of the Week
Here's another Israel fun fact: the work week goes from Sunday to Thursday. Some people do a half day on Friday, but everyone goes back to work on Sunday. And since Sarah works, she went back to work today.
Yesterday was our first Israeli Shabbat together. We went to HUC-JIR services in the morning and heard our friend Sara chant Torah beautifully. Then, we came home, had some lunch, watched some movies (Despicable Me and Sex & The City 2, one movie for each of us), had some dinner, watched a few more episodes leading to the finale of Big Love, and went to sleep. A very relaxing Shabbat if I may say so!
Today, we got up around 7 AM (a marvel at how late we slept considering our jetlag and relative lack of daily activity), I made Sarah breakfast, and off to work she went. I, on the other hand, stayed home and took care of some things here. I started my first load of laundry. Turns out, the laundry machines here are so small that it takes us two loads to do one week's worth of laundry. Considering we used to go about 2-3 weeks between loads in San Diego, this will be a huge paradigm shift for us. Also, as I mentioned in the video, we don't have a dryer, so everything gets hung up on the mirpeset (patio). While the laundry was going, I cleaned up the house a bit, swept the floors, put the dishes away, and had a lovely cup of coffee. I'll tell ya, I could get used to this whole "stay at home husband" thing! Don't worry, though, I won't get too used to it. :)
In terms of the weather, it has been very similar to San Diego: a little chilly, but mostly clear - sweatshirt and sunglasses weather. The wind, though, has been really gusting, and the way our apartment building is situated, whenever the wind gusts to a certain speed, we get a nice wind tunnel sound like out of a movie. Today is lovely, sunny, and clear.
I had lunch with my friend Yoav, who was our tour guide on the Birthright trip I led last summer, at a lovely little Israeli cafe (i.e.: the menu was hummus, schnitzel...and that's about it). If I remembered the name of the place, I would say where it was, but I'm sure we will be back there and I will take better notes.
One of the cooler things he pointed out was the new light rail system, which is starting up later this week. It's a new electric light rail that goes along Yafo Street, formerly the busiest bus route in Jerusalem. While there is a lot of controversy surrounding the new train, the most interesting thing I noticed about it is how quietly it moves. Yoav said that they are running it now, without passengers, so people can get used to the trains passing. This is so people don't get hit by the oncoming trains, which do have a bell, but other than that are incredibly quiet. He guesses that as soon as service really starts, there will be a lot of accidents with people who have been living here since 67 or earlier and are not used to having a train go through such a busy street. I'll keep you all posted.
This afternoon, I decided to venture out on my own, considering we needed some things at The Shuk and Supersol (i.e.: super market) and Sarah was at work. When I came home, Sarah and I made dinner, and we took in the wonderful sunset from our mirpeset while we folded the laundry from earlier in the day.
What a wonderful way to start the week!
Okay, you knew I wasn't going to finish this post without some delicious food porn and a more thorough description of dinner.
Main course: Bow-tie pasta with labane cheese & zatar, topped with tivol, red pepper and cauliflower (and mushrooms on mine)
Side: Israeli style salad of cucumber, tomato, carrot, garlic, salt, lemon juice, olive oil
Yesterday was our first Israeli Shabbat together. We went to HUC-JIR services in the morning and heard our friend Sara chant Torah beautifully. Then, we came home, had some lunch, watched some movies (Despicable Me and Sex & The City 2, one movie for each of us), had some dinner, watched a few more episodes leading to the finale of Big Love, and went to sleep. A very relaxing Shabbat if I may say so!
Today, we got up around 7 AM (a marvel at how late we slept considering our jetlag and relative lack of daily activity), I made Sarah breakfast, and off to work she went. I, on the other hand, stayed home and took care of some things here. I started my first load of laundry. Turns out, the laundry machines here are so small that it takes us two loads to do one week's worth of laundry. Considering we used to go about 2-3 weeks between loads in San Diego, this will be a huge paradigm shift for us. Also, as I mentioned in the video, we don't have a dryer, so everything gets hung up on the mirpeset (patio). While the laundry was going, I cleaned up the house a bit, swept the floors, put the dishes away, and had a lovely cup of coffee. I'll tell ya, I could get used to this whole "stay at home husband" thing! Don't worry, though, I won't get too used to it. :)
In terms of the weather, it has been very similar to San Diego: a little chilly, but mostly clear - sweatshirt and sunglasses weather. The wind, though, has been really gusting, and the way our apartment building is situated, whenever the wind gusts to a certain speed, we get a nice wind tunnel sound like out of a movie. Today is lovely, sunny, and clear.
I had lunch with my friend Yoav, who was our tour guide on the Birthright trip I led last summer, at a lovely little Israeli cafe (i.e.: the menu was hummus, schnitzel...and that's about it). If I remembered the name of the place, I would say where it was, but I'm sure we will be back there and I will take better notes.
One of the cooler things he pointed out was the new light rail system, which is starting up later this week. It's a new electric light rail that goes along Yafo Street, formerly the busiest bus route in Jerusalem. While there is a lot of controversy surrounding the new train, the most interesting thing I noticed about it is how quietly it moves. Yoav said that they are running it now, without passengers, so people can get used to the trains passing. This is so people don't get hit by the oncoming trains, which do have a bell, but other than that are incredibly quiet. He guesses that as soon as service really starts, there will be a lot of accidents with people who have been living here since 67 or earlier and are not used to having a train go through such a busy street. I'll keep you all posted.
This afternoon, I decided to venture out on my own, considering we needed some things at The Shuk and Supersol (i.e.: super market) and Sarah was at work. When I came home, Sarah and I made dinner, and we took in the wonderful sunset from our mirpeset while we folded the laundry from earlier in the day.
What a wonderful way to start the week!
Okay, you knew I wasn't going to finish this post without some delicious food porn and a more thorough description of dinner.
Main course: Bow-tie pasta with labane cheese & zatar, topped with tivol, red pepper and cauliflower (and mushrooms on mine)
Side: Israeli style salad of cucumber, tomato, carrot, garlic, salt, lemon juice, olive oil
Saturday, April 9, 2011
Our First Erev Shabbat in Jerusalem
We had our first Erev Shabbat in Jerusalem.
We met up with some friends on the corner of Karen Hayesod and Lincoln.
We were introduced to new people.
I was greeted with "is this THE Jeremy Gimbel? It's an honor to meet you."
We didn't know how to respond to that.
We walked over to Har El, the first Reform synagogue in Jerusalem.
We heard the Rabbi speak only in Hebrew.
We sang the Kabbalat Shabbat melodies.
We heard the siren announcing the arrival of Shabbat as we began singing Tzadik Katamar.
We sang with the Cantor, who used a 12 string guitar.
We sang melodies from ancient days and from Debbie Friedman.
We were the only people younger than 50, except for the Australian Bar Mitzvah boy.
We heard him chant the Kiddush with a combination of a New Jersey, Israeli, and Australian accent.
We welcomed Shabbat.
We saw what Jerusalem had made, and it was very good. And there was evening - the first Erev Shabbat.
We met up with some friends on the corner of Karen Hayesod and Lincoln.
We were introduced to new people.
I was greeted with "is this THE Jeremy Gimbel? It's an honor to meet you."
We didn't know how to respond to that.
We walked over to Har El, the first Reform synagogue in Jerusalem.
We heard the Rabbi speak only in Hebrew.
We sang the Kabbalat Shabbat melodies.
We heard the siren announcing the arrival of Shabbat as we began singing Tzadik Katamar.
We sang with the Cantor, who used a 12 string guitar.
We sang melodies from ancient days and from Debbie Friedman.
We were the only people younger than 50, except for the Australian Bar Mitzvah boy.
We heard him chant the Kiddush with a combination of a New Jersey, Israeli, and Australian accent.
We welcomed Shabbat.
We saw what Jerusalem had made, and it was very good. And there was evening - the first Erev Shabbat.
Friday, April 8, 2011
A Lovely Lunch
Today, Sarah and I made a lovely lunch of some produce we purchased yesterday at The Shuk.
I had a sandwich constructed the way they do falafel sandwiches: first I cut open the pita and put some hummus on the bottom, added in some fresh Israeli style salad (red peppers, carrots, cucumbers, olive oil and some salt...it's Israeli style because it's so finely chopped), then put in some vegetarian corn schnitzel, topped with some labane cheese (think soft cheese) and zatar (Israeli spice) and some more salad. I also had another schnitzel topped with labane cheese and the remaining salad.
If your mouth isn't watering looking at the picture of our amazing lunch, you should probably get your head tested. Because it was awesome.
Shabbat shalom!
We're Leaving on a Jet Plane: Conclusion
This is part 5 of a 5 part series of blog posts about Sarah and my physical journey to Israel.
Introduction
Virgin Atlantic from Los Angeles (LAX) to London (LHR)
Customs in London & Yotel Hotel Layover
El Al from London (LHR) to Tel Aviv (TLV)
Conclusion
__________________________________________
This was Sarah's umpteenth time making the journey to Israel, and this was trip number five for me. Yet, this was the first time we have made such a long journey together. While this journey took us just under 24 hours of real-time travel, it was the best experience I have had.
Highlights:
*Flying Virgin Atlantic - VA is an incredible airline. The people were friendly, the food was great, the service was fantastic, and the in-flight entertainment is unmatched. If I ever have the opportunity to fly through LHR again, I would absolutely choose VA. Also, the fact that the plane was more than half empty was pretty awesome. I wish I had gotten up, though, and checked out the inflight bar. I was just too tired. Maybe next time!
*Yotel - Probably the best travel upgrade we've ever made. The fact that it was so close to the terminals, pretty cheap, private, and a great space made the Yotel a perfect investment.
*Free bags - Never doubt the abilities of the left hand not talking to the right hand. Although we got a different answer on the phone from VA, we did not end up having to pay for our bags. And we also did not have to pay for our third bag on El Al. Win.
*Never having to share a row with someone else - We really lucked out by getting to spend both flights together in a row without anyone else. I think it allowed us to relax a bit more throughout this experience.
*Nearly stress-free - With the exception of the little hiccup in LA about the visa, our entire travel experience was nearly stress-free. Lines were not long, we never ran late (save the El Al flight which arrived 10 minutes late, but on a red-eye, what difference does 10 minutes really make?), food was decent, and we dealt with very nice people.
Challenges:
*While El Al inflight service is usually pretty good, it was pretty average on our flight. I have had better experiences on El Al before, but then again, it was a pretty short red-eye, so I shouldn't have expected too much.
*Visa. Our experience may have been anecdotal and other people may not have the same issue. Yet, it was worth noting. It's a good thing that Sarah had an Israeli passport and I had my acceptance letter, though!
We really had an easy travel experience. I would recommend doing these same flights to anyone else coming to Israel. While it was not as quick as the non-stop from LA, we arrived relaxed and pretty refreshed. I'm sure being able to take a shower half-way through had something to do with that! We do not yet know how we will fly back to the US in January, but if we were to do this experience in reverse, I don't think we would complain.
Introduction
Virgin Atlantic from Los Angeles (LAX) to London (LHR)
Customs in London & Yotel Hotel Layover
El Al from London (LHR) to Tel Aviv (TLV)
Conclusion
__________________________________________
This was Sarah's umpteenth time making the journey to Israel, and this was trip number five for me. Yet, this was the first time we have made such a long journey together. While this journey took us just under 24 hours of real-time travel, it was the best experience I have had.
Highlights:
*Flying Virgin Atlantic - VA is an incredible airline. The people were friendly, the food was great, the service was fantastic, and the in-flight entertainment is unmatched. If I ever have the opportunity to fly through LHR again, I would absolutely choose VA. Also, the fact that the plane was more than half empty was pretty awesome. I wish I had gotten up, though, and checked out the inflight bar. I was just too tired. Maybe next time!
*Yotel - Probably the best travel upgrade we've ever made. The fact that it was so close to the terminals, pretty cheap, private, and a great space made the Yotel a perfect investment.
*Free bags - Never doubt the abilities of the left hand not talking to the right hand. Although we got a different answer on the phone from VA, we did not end up having to pay for our bags. And we also did not have to pay for our third bag on El Al. Win.
*Never having to share a row with someone else - We really lucked out by getting to spend both flights together in a row without anyone else. I think it allowed us to relax a bit more throughout this experience.
*Nearly stress-free - With the exception of the little hiccup in LA about the visa, our entire travel experience was nearly stress-free. Lines were not long, we never ran late (save the El Al flight which arrived 10 minutes late, but on a red-eye, what difference does 10 minutes really make?), food was decent, and we dealt with very nice people.
Challenges:
*While El Al inflight service is usually pretty good, it was pretty average on our flight. I have had better experiences on El Al before, but then again, it was a pretty short red-eye, so I shouldn't have expected too much.
*Visa. Our experience may have been anecdotal and other people may not have the same issue. Yet, it was worth noting. It's a good thing that Sarah had an Israeli passport and I had my acceptance letter, though!
We really had an easy travel experience. I would recommend doing these same flights to anyone else coming to Israel. While it was not as quick as the non-stop from LA, we arrived relaxed and pretty refreshed. I'm sure being able to take a shower half-way through had something to do with that! We do not yet know how we will fly back to the US in January, but if we were to do this experience in reverse, I don't think we would complain.
We're Leaving on a Jet Plane: El Al from London (LHR) to Tel Aviv (TLV)
This is part 4 of a 5 part series of blog posts about Sarah and my physical journey to Israel.
Introduction
Virgin Atlantic from Los Angeles (LAX) to London (LHR)
Customs in London & Yotel Hotel Layover
El Al from London (LHR) to Tel Aviv (TLV)
Conclusion
__________________________________________
Since we had some issues when we checked in with Virgin Atlantic back in LA, we decided to give ourselves some extra time to check in with El Al. We actually were the first people in line and got to the check-in desk before the El Al staff had even shown up. Once the El Al staff showed up, we went through the standard El Al interrogation.
While the security woman had no issue with the fact that I did not yet have a student visa, she did take issue with me for one simple reason: I was starting school to be a Rabbi. "Why do you want to be a Rabbi?" she asked, with a tone that implied that only someone completely meshuganeh would actually want to be a Rabbi. I didn't mind, since I am used to people not completely understanding why anyone in their right mind would want to enter this field. It was just pretty amusing to get that question from an El Al security guard. She only asked Sarah a few questions, but she had a lot more for me. Clearly, she was not worried about us, she was more curious about my studies.
After she was done questioning us, we went up to check in. Although we did have to check our rolling bag, since we were in coach, they didn't charge us, even though it was our third checked bag. Score. Further, there was an equipment change, so instead of a 777 with 3-3-3 seating, we were on a 767 which seats people 2-3-2. Fortunately, we were able to get two seats together on a side. Double score.
We went through security (which went pretty fast) and decided to get some dinner. We ate at a restaurant called Giraffe. For airport food, it was fantastic. For British food, it was fantastic. The atmosphere was tropical with really nice wait staff. Sarah and I split a veggie burrito and a vegetable salad. Both were surprisingly delicious. Then, it was time to make our way to the gate.
El Al #318, London (Tue. Apr. 5, 10:30 PM) - Tel Aviv (Wed. Apr. 6, 5:20 AM)
4X-EAK, Boeing 767-300ER
Seat 56 A (window) & C (aisle)
LHR: Terminal 1, Depart 20m late
TLV: Terminal 3, Arrive 10m late
Duration: 4h40m
There were no announcements at the gate to start boarding. At one point, people just got up and started going on. Then, once we were onboard, there was an apology in Hebrew and English from the captain that the inbound plane had arrived late. Then, only in Hebrew, the inflight manager said something to the effect of "Get on, and get in a seat. The airport is about to close, and I don't want to think about what will happen if we don't get going." As soon as everyone was on and the door closed, she came on the overhead and said, again only in Hebrew, "We did it!"
Other than the difference in seating, the biggest difference between the 777 and the 767 is that the 767 does not have personal screens. Instead, there are strategically placed screens throughout the cabin. This wasn't a big deal for us, since we planned to sleep most of the flight. I actually fell asleep during take-off. I remember hearing the engines roar, and the next thing I knew, we were mid-flight. Sarah said they offered meal service, but I completely slept through it. Unlike Virgin Atlantic, which offered Sarah a wonderful vegetarian meal, El Al's vegetarian meal was some sliced fruit. That's it. The regular meal was a choice of pasta or a sandwich with some sides (salad, roll, dessert). When I woke up, it was only about two hours into the 4.75 hour flight, and the cabin lights were still on. Of course, shortly after I woke up, they turned off the lights, but I couldn't go back to sleep. I watched the inflight entertainment which wasn't horrible. The cool thing is that they had current Israeli news from that evening. They also had a program called "Good News," which showcased only happy, human interest stories from Israel. That was a nice touch!
We eventually landed in Israel, got our bags, had no issues going through customs, waited about 45 minutes for our shared ride van to leave, and made our way to our new home. What a trip.
Introduction
Virgin Atlantic from Los Angeles (LAX) to London (LHR)
Customs in London & Yotel Hotel Layover
El Al from London (LHR) to Tel Aviv (TLV)
Conclusion
__________________________________________
Since we had some issues when we checked in with Virgin Atlantic back in LA, we decided to give ourselves some extra time to check in with El Al. We actually were the first people in line and got to the check-in desk before the El Al staff had even shown up. Once the El Al staff showed up, we went through the standard El Al interrogation.
While the security woman had no issue with the fact that I did not yet have a student visa, she did take issue with me for one simple reason: I was starting school to be a Rabbi. "Why do you want to be a Rabbi?" she asked, with a tone that implied that only someone completely meshuganeh would actually want to be a Rabbi. I didn't mind, since I am used to people not completely understanding why anyone in their right mind would want to enter this field. It was just pretty amusing to get that question from an El Al security guard. She only asked Sarah a few questions, but she had a lot more for me. Clearly, she was not worried about us, she was more curious about my studies.
After she was done questioning us, we went up to check in. Although we did have to check our rolling bag, since we were in coach, they didn't charge us, even though it was our third checked bag. Score. Further, there was an equipment change, so instead of a 777 with 3-3-3 seating, we were on a 767 which seats people 2-3-2. Fortunately, we were able to get two seats together on a side. Double score.
We went through security (which went pretty fast) and decided to get some dinner. We ate at a restaurant called Giraffe. For airport food, it was fantastic. For British food, it was fantastic. The atmosphere was tropical with really nice wait staff. Sarah and I split a veggie burrito and a vegetable salad. Both were surprisingly delicious. Then, it was time to make our way to the gate.
El Al #318, London (Tue. Apr. 5, 10:30 PM) - Tel Aviv (Wed. Apr. 6, 5:20 AM)
4X-EAK, Boeing 767-300ER
Seat 56 A (window) & C (aisle)
LHR: Terminal 1, Depart 20m late
TLV: Terminal 3, Arrive 10m late
Duration: 4h40m
There were no announcements at the gate to start boarding. At one point, people just got up and started going on. Then, once we were onboard, there was an apology in Hebrew and English from the captain that the inbound plane had arrived late. Then, only in Hebrew, the inflight manager said something to the effect of "Get on, and get in a seat. The airport is about to close, and I don't want to think about what will happen if we don't get going." As soon as everyone was on and the door closed, she came on the overhead and said, again only in Hebrew, "We did it!"
Other than the difference in seating, the biggest difference between the 777 and the 767 is that the 767 does not have personal screens. Instead, there are strategically placed screens throughout the cabin. This wasn't a big deal for us, since we planned to sleep most of the flight. I actually fell asleep during take-off. I remember hearing the engines roar, and the next thing I knew, we were mid-flight. Sarah said they offered meal service, but I completely slept through it. Unlike Virgin Atlantic, which offered Sarah a wonderful vegetarian meal, El Al's vegetarian meal was some sliced fruit. That's it. The regular meal was a choice of pasta or a sandwich with some sides (salad, roll, dessert). When I woke up, it was only about two hours into the 4.75 hour flight, and the cabin lights were still on. Of course, shortly after I woke up, they turned off the lights, but I couldn't go back to sleep. I watched the inflight entertainment which wasn't horrible. The cool thing is that they had current Israeli news from that evening. They also had a program called "Good News," which showcased only happy, human interest stories from Israel. That was a nice touch!
We eventually landed in Israel, got our bags, had no issues going through customs, waited about 45 minutes for our shared ride van to leave, and made our way to our new home. What a trip.
We're Leaving on a Jet Plane: Customs in London & Yotel Hotel Layover
This is part 3 of a 5 part series of blog posts about Sarah and my physical journey to Israel.
Introduction
Virgin Atlantic from Los Angeles (LAX) to London (LHR)
Customs in London & Yotel Hotel Layover
El Al from London (LHR) to Tel Aviv (TLV)
Conclusion
__________________________________________
To say customs was a breeze in the UK would be an understatement. It was just incredibly easy. We walked off the plane through some hallways and into the customs area. Not surprisingly, the "Visitors/Non-citizen's" line was much shorter than the Citizen's line. When we walked up to the counter, I was completely prepared to get asked a full on "El Al" style interrogation, so I had the Yotel reservation ready in my pocket. Turns out, it was not necessary. The woman was very nice, asked us what we were doing in the UK, we mentioned the Yotel, she stamped our passports and we were on our way. It took us less than 5 minutes from the time we entered the customs hall until we were moving again. Not bad.
After taking a train between terminals and a short escalator ride, we were at the Yotel. It really is amazing how we walked a short while and suddenly, we felt like we were completely out of the airport, even though we were still at Heathrow.
We walked into the Yotel but were unable to use the automated check-in kiosk (it looked like an ATM) since we arrived about a half hour earlier than anticipated. Instead, we walked up to the desk and checked in. Since the Yotel only has about 20 rooms, it was not a long walk to our room.
The room was quaint, very small, but absolutely perfect for what we needed. We had wifi, a shower, a bed to relax on, power that accepted American plugs - everything we wanted to relax for a few hours. If we had wanted, there was 24/7 food room service available, but we were not hungry. Nevertheless, it was great to know it was there. And hey, for about $50, the room was an INCREDIBLE value and something we would do again in a heartbeat.
NOTE: to get a better idea of what our room looked like, check out the video posted on this previous post.
When it was time to get back to the airport to check in for our next flight, we took the train back to Terminal 1. The cultural difference between the US and the UK, even on something as simple as the train connecting the terminals was remarkable. For example, the voice over on the train felt much more calming in the UK. Also, we realized that people don't only drive on the left side, they also walk on the left side of the hallway.
We finally arrived at the terminal, we checked in with El Al, but that's for the next post.
Introduction
Virgin Atlantic from Los Angeles (LAX) to London (LHR)
Customs in London & Yotel Hotel Layover
El Al from London (LHR) to Tel Aviv (TLV)
Conclusion
__________________________________________
To say customs was a breeze in the UK would be an understatement. It was just incredibly easy. We walked off the plane through some hallways and into the customs area. Not surprisingly, the "Visitors/Non-citizen's" line was much shorter than the Citizen's line. When we walked up to the counter, I was completely prepared to get asked a full on "El Al" style interrogation, so I had the Yotel reservation ready in my pocket. Turns out, it was not necessary. The woman was very nice, asked us what we were doing in the UK, we mentioned the Yotel, she stamped our passports and we were on our way. It took us less than 5 minutes from the time we entered the customs hall until we were moving again. Not bad.
After taking a train between terminals and a short escalator ride, we were at the Yotel. It really is amazing how we walked a short while and suddenly, we felt like we were completely out of the airport, even though we were still at Heathrow.
We walked into the Yotel but were unable to use the automated check-in kiosk (it looked like an ATM) since we arrived about a half hour earlier than anticipated. Instead, we walked up to the desk and checked in. Since the Yotel only has about 20 rooms, it was not a long walk to our room.
The room was quaint, very small, but absolutely perfect for what we needed. We had wifi, a shower, a bed to relax on, power that accepted American plugs - everything we wanted to relax for a few hours. If we had wanted, there was 24/7 food room service available, but we were not hungry. Nevertheless, it was great to know it was there. And hey, for about $50, the room was an INCREDIBLE value and something we would do again in a heartbeat.
NOTE: to get a better idea of what our room looked like, check out the video posted on this previous post.
When it was time to get back to the airport to check in for our next flight, we took the train back to Terminal 1. The cultural difference between the US and the UK, even on something as simple as the train connecting the terminals was remarkable. For example, the voice over on the train felt much more calming in the UK. Also, we realized that people don't only drive on the left side, they also walk on the left side of the hallway.
We finally arrived at the terminal, we checked in with El Al, but that's for the next post.
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Our First Full Day
Before I begin, I should note that I will be finishing the 5-part series about our travel experience to Israel. As soon as those are ready, I will post them as well. Don't worry, I have some time!
Our first day in Israel involved landing, going through customs, getting to our apartment, climbing the three flights of stairs with all six of our bags to get to our apartment, unpacking, walking over to HUC for a short time, getting lunch, resting, before finally falling asleep at the jetlag induced hour of....7 PM. Yup. We crashed that early. I know, Sonia, as you're reading this, you're probably saying, "have I taught you kids nothing about sleep?!" Yes you have. And we didn't listen. However, we must have really needed that sleep, because when we woke up, it was 6 AM. Yup. we slept for 11 hours. And that felt great!
When we got up, we had big plans for the morning: HUC was having shacharit (morning services) and I wanted to go so I could see some friends, and we also wanted to leave our area around 11 AM to go to Machane Yehuda (the outdoor marketplace also known as "The Shuk"). Well, we were working on our computers and picking up around the house and before we knew it, it was almost 1 PM. Oh well. I imagine HUC will continue to have shacharit in the future!
We made our way to The Shuk and had an amazing experience. I'm sure Sarah's very used to this environment, and while I had only been there once with the SD/OC Birthright group last summer, I had never been there with the intention of stocking a kitchen. We smartly brought a "shuk cart" (in looking up "Shuk Cart," I found a great article about "Shuk Cart Elbow." A "shuk cart" is a rolling grocery basket) which ended up being very helpful as it is a 15 minute walk from our apartment. The Shuk was packed with people. The two busiest times to go to The Shuk are Thursdays and Fridays because this is when people buy food for Shabbat. While I tried to keep my head up and observe as much as I could, I was in charge of pushing the shuk cart this time, so I had an almost comical challenge of navigating the heavily populated pathways with an aging and worn down rolling basket.
Tip for next time: Don't bring a shuk cart on Thursday or Friday.
We got a whole host of Israeli foods and some basic kitchen staples including pita (though not hummus since we got a HUGE tub yesterday for about $3.50), red peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes (still on the vine, of course), the largest head of romaine I have ever seen (about from my wrist to my shoulder in length), mushrooms, some frozen veggie proteins (think Morning Star), Prigat juices, bananas, avocado, cauliflower, a bunch of nana (pronounced "Nah-nah" - it's an herb in the mint family - and at just over $.50 a bunch, what could be bad?!), cottage cheese, and since our apartment was missing one, a hot water kettle. All in all, a very successful trip. I have some additional thoughts about some of the foods I just mentioned and how they are different here, but I will save that for future posts.
When we returned, I continued working on editing the April 1 service (which I will also post when it's done), FaceTime chatted with my mom, Sarah rested, we had a light dinner, and stayed in for the night. The jet lag is still too intense for us to do anything substantial past the afternoon.
It was a great first full day in Jerusalem! I look forward to telling you much more about our future days (don't worry, there won't be posts every day :))
Our first day in Israel involved landing, going through customs, getting to our apartment, climbing the three flights of stairs with all six of our bags to get to our apartment, unpacking, walking over to HUC for a short time, getting lunch, resting, before finally falling asleep at the jetlag induced hour of....7 PM. Yup. We crashed that early. I know, Sonia, as you're reading this, you're probably saying, "have I taught you kids nothing about sleep?!" Yes you have. And we didn't listen. However, we must have really needed that sleep, because when we woke up, it was 6 AM. Yup. we slept for 11 hours. And that felt great!
When we got up, we had big plans for the morning: HUC was having shacharit (morning services) and I wanted to go so I could see some friends, and we also wanted to leave our area around 11 AM to go to Machane Yehuda (the outdoor marketplace also known as "The Shuk"). Well, we were working on our computers and picking up around the house and before we knew it, it was almost 1 PM. Oh well. I imagine HUC will continue to have shacharit in the future!
We made our way to The Shuk and had an amazing experience. I'm sure Sarah's very used to this environment, and while I had only been there once with the SD/OC Birthright group last summer, I had never been there with the intention of stocking a kitchen. We smartly brought a "shuk cart" (in looking up "Shuk Cart," I found a great article about "Shuk Cart Elbow." A "shuk cart" is a rolling grocery basket) which ended up being very helpful as it is a 15 minute walk from our apartment. The Shuk was packed with people. The two busiest times to go to The Shuk are Thursdays and Fridays because this is when people buy food for Shabbat. While I tried to keep my head up and observe as much as I could, I was in charge of pushing the shuk cart this time, so I had an almost comical challenge of navigating the heavily populated pathways with an aging and worn down rolling basket.
Tip for next time: Don't bring a shuk cart on Thursday or Friday.
We got a whole host of Israeli foods and some basic kitchen staples including pita (though not hummus since we got a HUGE tub yesterday for about $3.50), red peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes (still on the vine, of course), the largest head of romaine I have ever seen (about from my wrist to my shoulder in length), mushrooms, some frozen veggie proteins (think Morning Star), Prigat juices, bananas, avocado, cauliflower, a bunch of nana (pronounced "Nah-nah" - it's an herb in the mint family - and at just over $.50 a bunch, what could be bad?!), cottage cheese, and since our apartment was missing one, a hot water kettle. All in all, a very successful trip. I have some additional thoughts about some of the foods I just mentioned and how they are different here, but I will save that for future posts.
When we returned, I continued working on editing the April 1 service (which I will also post when it's done), FaceTime chatted with my mom, Sarah rested, we had a light dinner, and stayed in for the night. The jet lag is still too intense for us to do anything substantial past the afternoon.
It was a great first full day in Jerusalem! I look forward to telling you much more about our future days (don't worry, there won't be posts every day :))
We're Leaving on a Jet Plane: Virgin Atlantic from Los Angeles (LAX) to London (LHR)
This is part 2 of a 5 part series of blog posts about Sarah and my physical journey to Israel.
Introduction
Virgin Atlantic from Los Angeles (LAX) to London (LHR)
Customs in London & Yotel Hotel Layover
El Al from London (LHR) to Tel Aviv (TLV)
Conclusion
__________________________________________
Our first leg of the journey took us on Virgin Atlantic from LA to London. When we checked in, we had a bit of a snafu with the fact that I did not yet have a student visa and I was taking a one-way flight to Israel. Long story short, we worked it out and everything was fine. Even more on the plus side, they didn't charge us for our second bag because we were connecting to El Al, which allows two checked bags. Score! After an easy security process, we made our way to the gate.
Since we had some time, we decided to have some heavier snacks before the flight. No need to have a full dinner, since VA was serving us (and from what we had heard, their food was great).
Virgin Atlantic #24, Los Angeles (Mon. Apr. 4, 8:55 PM) - London (Tue. Apr. 5, 3:35 PM)
G-VMEG, Airbus 340-600, Mystic Maiden
Seat 32 H (aisle) & K (window)
LAX: Terminal 2, Depart 19 min late
LHR: Terminal 3, Arrive 9 min early
Duration: 9h10m
Once we got to our seats, the experience really began. The seats are really well designed with a tray table that can fold in half if you don't want a full table (e.g.: if you just want your beverage on the tray). The entertainment system controls, although a bit worn down, facilitated a cornucopia of movies, TV shows, and audio. It was the best in-flight entertainment system I've ever experienced.
After take-off, the lights came on, then turned back off, which was very strange. The inflight manager made her announcement which was actually very informative and useful. The part I thought was the best was how she praised her fellow staff members. Sign of good management: the manager shows the customer that she is behind and believes in her staff 100%. One of the things she mentioned was that there were only 161 passengers on our flight. While this may seem like a lot, the plane can hold up to 316 people, meaning that everyone had at least two seats to themselves. Some people jumped at this opportunity and, smartly, snagged an entire row of four, laying out across the entire row. Sarah and I, however, used this opportunity to switch rows, since our row didn't have a window.
I mentioned how we had heard so many wonderful things about VA's meal service. They did not disappoint. Strangely, they served Sarah's special vegetarian meal before they even did a beverage service. Odd timing aside, the food was incredible: delicious pasta with veggies in a cream sauce topped with parmesan, a spring mix salad, fruit, and a roll. My meal choice was between beef stew and chicken curry. While the British are not really known for curry, they are known for some real tough beef stew. I figured I would give the chicken a try. It was served with a salad of romaine, walnuts, and carrots with a papaya seed honey Dijon dressing, a roll, and a slice of cake. It wasn't the best food I had ever had in economy, but it was better than most.
During dinner, Sarah and I watched "The King's Speech." Great film, and I totally understand why it won best picture. After the movie, we went to sleep. Sarah went to the row in front of me and curled up on the two seats. I stayed where I was, but I must say that the eye mask and smock-style blanket they provided allowed me to get some of the best sleep I've had on a flight. Both Sarah and I got about 5 hours of sleep. For a 9 hour flight, I'd say that's pretty good!
When we woke up, they started breakfast service of an egg and cheese sandwiches with a cookie or muffin top, along with tea and coffee. I watched modern family (the flash mob episode) before landing. It's amazing how this show holds up.
After we landed, the manager thanked us again for flying Virgin Atlantic and mentioned again how proud she was of her cabin crew. Such a simple thing that goes such a long distance.
Next: Customs and the Yotel.
Introduction
Virgin Atlantic from Los Angeles (LAX) to London (LHR)
Customs in London & Yotel Hotel Layover
El Al from London (LHR) to Tel Aviv (TLV)
Conclusion
__________________________________________
Our first leg of the journey took us on Virgin Atlantic from LA to London. When we checked in, we had a bit of a snafu with the fact that I did not yet have a student visa and I was taking a one-way flight to Israel. Long story short, we worked it out and everything was fine. Even more on the plus side, they didn't charge us for our second bag because we were connecting to El Al, which allows two checked bags. Score! After an easy security process, we made our way to the gate.
Since we had some time, we decided to have some heavier snacks before the flight. No need to have a full dinner, since VA was serving us (and from what we had heard, their food was great).
Virgin Atlantic #24, Los Angeles (Mon. Apr. 4, 8:55 PM) - London (Tue. Apr. 5, 3:35 PM)
G-VMEG, Airbus 340-600, Mystic Maiden
Seat 32 H (aisle) & K (window)
LAX: Terminal 2, Depart 19 min late
LHR: Terminal 3, Arrive 9 min early
Duration: 9h10m
Once we got to our seats, the experience really began. The seats are really well designed with a tray table that can fold in half if you don't want a full table (e.g.: if you just want your beverage on the tray). The entertainment system controls, although a bit worn down, facilitated a cornucopia of movies, TV shows, and audio. It was the best in-flight entertainment system I've ever experienced.
After take-off, the lights came on, then turned back off, which was very strange. The inflight manager made her announcement which was actually very informative and useful. The part I thought was the best was how she praised her fellow staff members. Sign of good management: the manager shows the customer that she is behind and believes in her staff 100%. One of the things she mentioned was that there were only 161 passengers on our flight. While this may seem like a lot, the plane can hold up to 316 people, meaning that everyone had at least two seats to themselves. Some people jumped at this opportunity and, smartly, snagged an entire row of four, laying out across the entire row. Sarah and I, however, used this opportunity to switch rows, since our row didn't have a window.
I mentioned how we had heard so many wonderful things about VA's meal service. They did not disappoint. Strangely, they served Sarah's special vegetarian meal before they even did a beverage service. Odd timing aside, the food was incredible: delicious pasta with veggies in a cream sauce topped with parmesan, a spring mix salad, fruit, and a roll. My meal choice was between beef stew and chicken curry. While the British are not really known for curry, they are known for some real tough beef stew. I figured I would give the chicken a try. It was served with a salad of romaine, walnuts, and carrots with a papaya seed honey Dijon dressing, a roll, and a slice of cake. It wasn't the best food I had ever had in economy, but it was better than most.
During dinner, Sarah and I watched "The King's Speech." Great film, and I totally understand why it won best picture. After the movie, we went to sleep. Sarah went to the row in front of me and curled up on the two seats. I stayed where I was, but I must say that the eye mask and smock-style blanket they provided allowed me to get some of the best sleep I've had on a flight. Both Sarah and I got about 5 hours of sleep. For a 9 hour flight, I'd say that's pretty good!
When we woke up, they started breakfast service of an egg and cheese sandwiches with a cookie or muffin top, along with tea and coffee. I watched modern family (the flash mob episode) before landing. It's amazing how this show holds up.
After we landed, the manager thanked us again for flying Virgin Atlantic and mentioned again how proud she was of her cabin crew. Such a simple thing that goes such a long distance.
Next: Customs and the Yotel.
Sunday, April 3, 2011
We're Leaving on a Jet Plane: Introduction
This is part 1 of a 5 part series of blog posts about Sarah and my physical journey to Israel.
- Introduction
- Virgin Atlantic from Los Angeles (LAX) to London (LHR)
- Customs in London & Yotel Hotel Layover
- El Al from London (LHR) to Tel Aviv (TLV)
- Conclusion
__________________________________________
On April 4, Sarah and I will make our way to Israel for an incredible 14 month journey. She will be continuing her work at Hebrew University, while I will be starting my studies in Rabbinical school at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion.
We are so excited to be making this journey, yet these past few weeks have been pretty ridiculous. Between Sarah piloting her study and scanning for another, my finishing everything up at CBI, getting ready for the April 1 service, and, oh yeah, packing our entire lives into two storage containers and 6 suitcases, we were feeling pretty overwhelmed.
Everything reached an apex, though, on Friday night. I led an incredible service at CBI. I have never been more proud of a service experience I had created. But it was not just wonderful because of what I contributed. What made it special was that the whole community was there, both on the bimah and off, to share in this special moment of transition. In the next week or two, I will be posting videos and some texts from the service. It was really quite special. And boy, was it emotional!
For now, we are in LA, getting ready to go to my Best Man's wedding. Everything is packed. We are locked and loaded and ready to begin this incredible journey.
Since most of you know how much a travel nerd I am, I want you to share our travel experience. Over the next few posts, I will give you an insight into how we got from LA to Israel. Plus, if you come visit us (achem, COME VISIT US!), and you want to try this same travel experience, I would be happy to share how it was all booked (read: very inexpensively.).
There will be five posts total: 1) This introduction. If you're still reading, good job. 2) Our flight from LA to London on Virgin Atlantic. 3) Our layover in London, including going through customs, the airport, and staying at the Yotel. 4) Our flight from London to Tel Aviv. 5) Concluding travel thoughts.
Yes, I'm a nerd. No, I won't be offended if you don't read. But for those that want to join us on the journey, welcome!
Here we go.
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