Monday, 31 August 2015

This morning after breakfast I headed back home from Nahariya. I only stopped 3 times on the way home: at the southern highway 6 rest stop to pee, at Avdat to pee and buy a bottle of cold water, and at Uvda to pee again. I made it back home in about five and quarter hours.

In the evening, I did my grocery shopping at Shufersal, so I'm all stocked up again now.

Sunday, 30 August 2015

After breakfast this morning, I checked out the new mall here in Nahariya and then headed south to Haifa. I went downtown and then to the lower end of the famous Baha'i shrine. After taking a few photos, I drove on up to the top and took several more pics. Then I continued on to the University of Haifa. I had hoped to go up in Migdalia Eshkalon, the very tall building on campus that can be seen for miles in every direction, but the whole main building was closed since the Fall term has not yet started. I went down from Har Carmel on a small road that goes through a beautiful natural area and ends in Nesher. Then I drove back to Nahariya on highway 70.

I spent the rest of the day just relaxing at the Loberants.

Shabbat, 29 August 2015

This morning I drove all the way to Manara on the Northern Road, never more than a few kilometers from Lebanon and sometimes right next to the border.

Then I drove to Rosh Pinna and ate lunch there. Afterwards, I drove back to Nahariya. In the evening, I went to a short discussion followed by havdala (a ceremony marking the end of Shabbat) at Emet v'Shalom, our old synagogue in Nahariya.

Friday, 28 August 2015

After saying goodbye to Shimon and Patricia and leaving Tsfat this morning, I drove over to the Golan and up Har Bental. The views from up there are amazing, including into Syria. Then I visited a new volcanic park near there. After that, I drove on the furthest east road all the way to the southern end of the Golan, back north on the eastern shore of the Kinneret (the Sea of Galilee), across the Jordan River at the northern end of the Kinneret, and over to Karmiel, where I had spinach lasagna for lunch at Art de Coco.

After lunch, I drove up the Mediterranean coast all the way to Rosh HaNikra, right next to Lebanon. Finally I drove back down to Nahariya, where I'm staying with my friends, the Loberants. In the evening, we drove to a wonderful Kabbalat Shabbat on the beach a little south of Nahariya. The sun sank into the sea just as we were singing L'cha Dodi!

Thursday, 27 August 2015

Shimon (the former neighbor I'm staying with) and I enjoyed a lovely trip and visit to Tel Dan today. We came back the scenic route, down the east side of the Hula Valley, and then Shimon treated me to lunch at Café Café in Rosh Pinna.

This evening I laughed myself silly reading a bit from one of Shimon's books.. Very funny!

Wednesday, 26 August 2015

I mostly relaxed today, enjoying the lovely summer weather in Tsfat and visiting with my old neighbors.

In the afternoon I drove all the way down to the Golani Junction, just to see the progress they are making upgrading highways 85 and 65 to a freeway through hilly terrain. It's not an easy task, but they're getting it done, bit by bit.

Tuesday, 25 August 2015

I woke up very early this morning and got in a nice walk.

Just after 8:00 in the morning, I left the house and started my vacation by driving to the southern-most point in Israel (the border crossing to Egypt) and proceeding to drive the entire length of highway 90 all the way up to Metula, right next to the Lebanon border, taking a number of pictures along the way. Now I'm staying with my former next-door neighbors in Tsfat until Friday.