Israel Diary - Sunday

Ok, I wrote about my first (yes, that connotes that there were others) trip to the Kotel motzei Shabbos, which was certainly an amazing beginning to my way-too-short trip. On Sunday morning, I called a friend of mine from Baltimore to see what she was doing. She was on the way to the zoo with her family, who I also hadn't seen in quite a while. I told her I would meet them there. So I went down to the bus stop and waited and waited for a bus to come to take me to the zoo. It never came. I found out later that even though the sign said that the bus to the zoo came to that stop, it actually takes a slightly different route. Since my trip to the zoo had been cancelled, I decided to wander (something I do very well) to town. I stopped at the Takana (a place I got to know quite well) and, since it was still Chanukah, I decided to indulge in a real Israeli sufganiot, which I have never experienced before. I took a picture of them, at the special request of my former roommate turned blogger. After my indulgence, I had a sugar-induced energy-kick, and started heading my way up Yaffo. I meandered through Machane Yehuda and couldn't resist buying freshly made, warm pita. Since it was Sunday, the crowds weren't so crazy and I was able to actually walk through without getting trampled. I kept wandering down Yaffo and walked through the Ben Yehuda area and then called to check in on Ze'ev from Israel Perspectives, who was fortunately not working so hard that he couldn't handle a little distraction from me. We sat down, and he gave me the high-pressure speech about why I should live in Israel. I must say that he is very good at his job. While we were sitting in his office, a few students walked in and announced that they wanted to make aliyah and asked if Ze'ev could help them. They had been in Israel for a week or so and loved it so much that they decided to stay. Ze'ev provided them with a bevy of phone numbers and they left, very excited about their new plans and home. (My "Only in Israel" story for the day.) After that, Ze'ev and I walked back into town and parted ways so he could go home. I found my way back to my friends. After dinner, I decided to take another walk, and meandered my way up the other end of her street, heading towards Bayit Vagan and Hadassah Hospital. It was beautiful out, the fresh air something that I just can't find around here. After walking for over an hour, up and down the hill, I came back home, worn out, but really happy. Another day of my adventure over.