Shabbat Shalom Week three: Hitchhikers take a break in Netanya!

Some weeks have lots of twists and turns, and some just seem to fly by. This one flew by. Perhaps it’s because we did a bit less driving and stayed in one place for most of the week. Perhaps it’s the fact that we are living in two time zones, covering beach and kids in the morning and early afternoon, then doing student presentations, meetings, and monitoring our projects from afar, but things are non-stop, in a fun but fairly exhausting way. Without a doubt, the positives outweigh the negatives. 

Just for some perspective in case you forgot, our home base in Israel is Netanya, a medium sized city of 200,000 about 25 minutes north of Tel Aviv. It’s right on the coast, built up on a cliff. So, easy access to beaches, if you don’t mind climbing stairs (154, I think!) This is an attraction to say the least, and can keep the kids busy for hours. Of course, it is August, so the usual approach is to take them out early in the AM before the sun is straight overhead, lots of sunscreen and lots of time in the water. It’s very warm at this time of year, and perhaps another sign of climate change is the tides are much higher than when we first started coming here 10 years ago. The waves and wake are super fun for jumping in and can entertain anyone who likes to get splashed on; just make sure you have a buddy as some of the crashing waves can pull you along!

The week started on Sunday at the Jerusalem Zoo with Shlomo, Nadav and Aryeh. The zoo is very spread out and they have made ticket purchases on-line only, to monitor reservations and keep the place much less crowded than usual. Still, there were a lot of people, and the day was warm, in the low 30’s, so hydration and shade was important to be able to see the lions, gorillas, and especially the elephants.  Everyone enjoyed and despite Corona there were lots of families, although people appeared to be mindful of keeping near their own groups.  

Overall, it appears Israel’s population is adapting to the current wave of the pandemic. We walked along the pedestrian mall that makes up the center of Netanya, and there are lots of people in the streets. Due to the travel restrictions that have been imposed, there are probably a lot less tourists than normal, but by sunset the restaurants are packed on their terraces, with few people in doors, and people are enjoying the last days of freedom prior to the start of school which is September 1st. Or perhaps the freedom starts when the kids go back to school? A good question for debate. 

Back home, I understand there will be an election. (Don’t act so surprised). We registered for voting by mail this week, and hopefully the ballot will arrive and return on time. Watching the polls, it’s interesting to see the polarization: Jagmeet Singh is the most popular leader, yet his party is firmly third; Justin Trudeau is the incumbent who called the election to solidify a majority based on his Pandemic performance, and is slipping in the polls daily; no one seems to know Eric O’Toole and yet the Conservative party is now neck and neck in the polls with the Liberals. We won’t have the sidesplitting entertainment of a Trump-Biden debate (Trump made Don Rickles look like a pussycat), but I suspect there will be a few good stories in the political sphere over the next 3 weeks before the vote. 

So what else is there to do in Netanya? As I mentioned, the city center is a pedestrian mall with large fountains in the middle. One morning, the activity for Elisha, Ora and Adi was to play on the fountains with a few dozen other children. Then dry up and lunch on the beach. In the evening, there are street vendors and rides, bouncing equipment and even a motorized bike track which Elisha thought was the most fun thing he has ever done! So, yes, lots to do; yet as we walk into the house, Ora, age 4 yells “everyone wash their hands!!” and Elisha told me that 7 is the age you have to wear masks in stores, and since he is 7, he brings a mask with him whenever he goes out. The pandemic has definitely been an education for all and made kids grow up and see the world a little less innocently than before. 

But, there is nothing quite like a big bunch of cousins getting together, which is what is happening here this Shabbat; both our Israeli families are here in Netanya for Shabbat so we will have a lot of action. We spoke to Daniella, Tali and Ezra this morning and can think about having us all join together very soon!

We wish you a fun and rewarding Shabbat Shalom!

Barbara and Bruce 

Refuah Shelema to Rochel Ettel Bat Dobrusha

Happy Birthday to Wesley!

Welcome to Israel Rhona (and soon Haim)  

Shabbat August 20-21: The hitchhikers emerge from quarantine!

When we left off last week, we were hurling through space and touching down in Petach Tikvah, to spend Shabbat with Gila, Ariel, Elisha, Ora and Adi. To be honest, despite that last frenetic post, due to the frantic week, to just be able to relax with the little ones climbing all over us was positively refreshing. After months of relative isolation, made very bearable by all our great friends at home, just to hang with family was quite awesome. This will be the main highlight of the weeks that we will be spending here, and we have something to look forward to when we get home, which is to visit Daniella, Monty, Tali and Ezra in their new home in Cleveland. 

So, what went on? Well, shabbat was fun, with some COVID twists. The synagogue services were outdoors. We avoided crowded parks, opting to take the kids early in the day when there were not a lot of people. Sunday, we went to see Elan, Nomi and Co; they had a wedding and we babysat their two youngest, Aryeh 3.5 years and Eytan 3 months. Lots of fun; we decided to stay at their home in Efrat till Tuesday and then went back to our apartment in Netanya with Shoshana and Shlomo for the next few days. That was lots of fun; a balance of beach, walks, and then working on Canadian time in the late afternoons and evenings. We got to eat out at a beachside patio restaurant and get some sun and sand. The idea is, stay with those who you know are safe, and stay out of crowds. 

Meanwhile, in Israel, the numbers are climbing. In fact, they are as we speak at the same peak as they were exactly a year ago, when the country closed down for the Jewish Holidays. There were nearly 8000 new cases today and almost 600 in hospitals. But the relatively good news: of the 220 serious cases, only 18 are among the vaccinated. On top of that they take contact tracing and quarantine seriously here. There is an office of the ministry of health called Quarantine Exit that tracks all those who were infected or travelled to the country.  We learned all about their email address and had to follow up all of our paperwork to get the letter “ending” our quarantine and getting us GreenPasses. So even before Barbara and Bruce have the Quebec Vaccine Passport, we have the official Israeli GreenPass!

After an afternoon on the beach with Elan’s kids yesterday, we have welcomed Ariel and Gila to Netanya for a week holiday and went back to Efrat (with great herring and wine) for Shabbat this week. So more stories to come as we keep crisscrossing the country!

Wishing you a wonderful Shabbat shalom and a great last week before school starts!

Barbara and Bruce

Happy Birthday to Yayi!

Happy Birthday to Aiden!

Happy Birthday Hailey!

Happy Anniversary Mara and Andy!

Shabbat August 13-14: The hitchhiker’s guide to a rapid escape to Israel

Welcome travel fans! With apologies to Douglas Adams, I am thrilled to bring you a very quick (as it’s Shabbat soon) blow by blow account of why you are receiving this amazing Shabbat Shalom from Petach Tikvah on August 13, 2021! It may be a surprise to many of you, but we are in Israel to visit the family. The question is, when did we plan this trip and how did we pull it off?

So, the answer lies in a major geopolitical global pandemic, known to all of us a Corona-Virus. In general, going anywhere takes tremendous planning. For Israel that includes a special entry permit, COVID PCR test, Antibody blood tests, and good fortune. We planned a trip that would allow us to see all the Israeli grandchildren prior to school starting and then stay for the upcoming Jewish Holidays. That meant leaving August 25th; in order to do that we needed to apply for a permit at least 30 days in advance, which we did. The days passed and no permit. The Israeli press described hundreds if not thousands of people who were also applying to be reunited with loved ones for the holidays. Meanwhile, very unfortunately, Israel’s COVID case numbers have increased steadily (more on vaccine and the Delta variant next week when I have more time). This has made the Israeli ministry of health nervous about accepting so many newcomers and visitors (rightfully so). So, after 12 days of no response about our permits, we contacted Dov Lipman, a former Israel Member of Knesset who runs an organization that helps bring people together with their families who have emigrated to Israel (like our kids!)

Dov and Ariella from their organization suggested we apply from within Israel. Elan took on the challenge, filled out the paperwork, attached the huge dossier we prepared confirming vaccination, insurance, employment, shoe size and lots of other details and, a miracle happened. We had a permit in 24 hours! However, it came with a caveat: rules were changing and we might be unable to come if we waited too long. 

So, caught in a spell of excitement over the permit and fear over never using it, we looked at the available flights. From a financial point of view, a flight the next evening was the best option. This only meant packing, rearranging schedules, getting PCR tested (assuming it would be negative) and then actually getting on the plane. Exhausting to think about it, but, we barreled ahead (with the help of Biron’s Rapid PCR test, shout out to Linda L). We could not actually believe we got onto the plane; just the document check at Air Canada took 35 minutes!

But wait, the fun is only starting! Next Monday, all visitors to Israel will have a mandatory 7-day quarantine if your PCR is negative twice. However, this week, Canadians (but not Americans) can avoid that if they can prove antibodies from COVID (infection or vaccination). So, we arrived sleep-deprived, underwent the mandatory PCR test at the airport, then drove to a storefront doing antibody blood tests for COVID! More about that again next week, but it’s complicated and very expensive to do that in Canada, but for a very reasonable price we had an answer in time to have all our paperwork in order well before Shabbat. So, now, better rested and ready to see some of the kids, we have arrived in Petach Tikvah to spend time with Gila, Ariel, Elisha, Ora and Adi!

So, now you have detailed instructions on how to apply and get to Israel in under 48 hours. Good luck trying to duplicate that!

More stories, pictures and updates next week

We wish you an amazing and safe Shabbat Shalom!

Barbara and Bruce 

This warm Shabbat Shalom is in Honor of the upcoming Yahrzeit of our father and grandfather and great-grandfather, Sid, Shlomo Henoch ben Mordechai Chaim. His memory is a blessing to all and I can picture him smiling watching all the great-grandchildren run around!