The next day Ben took the day off and we went to the north to the Golan Heights to go hiking. The drive was beautiful, we passed Lake Kineret, definitely want to come back there. It was straight out of a photograph. I don't have any pictures of the drive but I will make sure to post them when I go back. We went to a place where we had to climb up a raging waterfall. The water felt amazing as we kept climbing. I asked Ben where the water was coming from and he told me to guess. So I said I wouldn't be surprised if there was a huge faucet at the top and he just laughed. When we finally got to the top, my prediction wasn't way off, the water was flying out of a HUGE pipe! Apparently the water is coming from the north from Mt Hermon, and goes through this pipe which creates a waterfall. From the bottom of the mountain no one would have guessed that! On the way down from the waterfall we found some ripe dates and we ate them, that was another exciting part of my day.
We stopped to eat at a restaurant near the place where we went rafting on the Jordan River during our Birthright trip. So many memories came flooding back! This time felt different though, because now I was a local just going up north and eating at a restaurant. Jet lag got to me on the way back and I passed out. I woke up and Ben was saying that we were going to go to the beach in Herzliya to go meet a friend of his. I wasn't going to argue with that! We still had our bathing suits on so we went swimming - the water felt amazing. We watched the sunset which was gorgeous. Will post pics on here or Picassa. Ben's friend came and we all hung out - I told them that they could speak Hebrew in front of me but they wouldn't. I felt bad because I know I was limiting them - more of a reason to learn quickly, right? We stayed on the beach for a few more hours, listened to some guitar music nearby and to the waves crashing into the sand - it couldn't have been a better end to a great day!
The next day, Ben had to work so I stayed home and just read and relaxed. I knew it was going to be an early day because Ben had invited me to come celebrate his niece's (Noa) month birthday at a restaurant in Tel Aviv, an invitation which I definitely accepted. Around noon his dad came home and gave me a sad look because I was sitting in the corner of the couch when he had come in. I didn't mind the solitude because I know that those were my last real few hours left that I wouldn't constantly be in someone's company. He told me that he was sending Ben home which made me laugh. About an hour later, I heard the key jingling and looked up and it was his mom and Alma (niece) that came home. His mom right away offered to make me lunch because she was making it for Alma. For some reason even though his mom barely speaks English I still somehow understand her, possibly through the sign language that people use when they can't communicate on the same level. We had lunch and then Ben came home shortly after and then everyone started getting ready for the party.
The party was in north TA, at the Port, a beautiful strip of restaurants and bars right on the water. Dream come true for an Arizonan or really just about anyone. We walked in and right away a waiter come up to us with a tray of little falafels and champagne! So fitting and quite possibly the best combination of awesomeness I have ever seen. Right away Ben started making his rounds with different sides of the family. As expected everyone thought I was his girlfriend. I was impressed that they were saying that in Hebrew and through their obvious gestures and some familiar words here and there I was able to figure that out. It was funny for me because it was so awkward but I don't really think it seemed to phaze him. There were about 50 peope there and an open bar, it really couldn't be better. Ben told me that he had a couple of Russian people that had married into the family so I had a chance to talk to them and they also asked me if I was his girlfriend and when I said no, started bombarding me with all these great things about him. When the party was coming to an end, everyone got an envelope and threw some money in there and then later on, Ben's dad took the bag out of the box with a slot in it and gave it to Keren, Ben's sister, because she threw the party. This is definitely something that should be implemented in the US, just saying! After everyone left, we went to go closer to the water and just watched the waves crash against the rocks. It was amazing. I finally turned around and saw the bright lights of TA and realized where I was!
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