So how does one begin to describe a city of such beauty?... Let's start with where I'm living. Our modest apartment (2 little bedrooms of 2 people each joined by a hall that serves as a kitchen, and a bathroom at the end) is situated at the top of a hill above the city of Eilat. Opposite the street are sandy desert hills and the end of "civilization". From the road you can look down and see the Red Sea in the distance. Beyond that you can see enormous mountains, most of which are on the Jordanian side of the border it all in makes me smile every morning.
Walking down the hill takes you past a number of Falafel shops, corner stores, and knick-knack vendors (though the walk back UP the hill does require a lot of motivation in the strong strong heat). At the bottom of the hill is "the city" of Eilat itself: the Red Sea / Gulf of Eilat with its beaches and boardwalk, the hotels, the bars and clubs, the mall, and so on and so forth... even a Biblical-themed amusement park!
While living in a beach town may sound wonderful, especially to someone like me who has never had the privilege, there are a couple of downsides to this paradise on earth. The beach / sand / sea are annoyingly rocky, so it makes it hard to walk without flip-flops. But the super clear and calm water mostly makes up for this, so we can let that one slide. The other negative is the difficulty of getting around in the heat and sun. There is only one bus to get between the city and our apartment, and it only comes once an hour. Otherwise the walk is a good 35-45 minutes. And again, the way down is doable... it's the way back up that's the killer!
Hebrew class is going well so far and I'm learning and increasing my vocabulary bit by bit. For those that didn't know, I'll be working in a hotel here, the King Solomon, and I get three meals a day free in the hotel... if I can get down there. For the meals for which I have made the trip, the food has been quite good... some combination of salad, hummus, rice, potatoes, and chicken in buffet forms. Today we even had falafel there! And possibly the best part is a little freezer with delicious lemon popsicles you can take for the road.
I don't actually start work till the 25th, but much is going on between now and then. Tomorrow being Memorial Day, there is a ceremony we're attending tonight, and then a cemetery visit in the morning. Tomorrow night starts the celebrations for Israel Independence Day which is Tuesday. My new (temporary) home turns a ripe old 62! Time to par-tay!
Speaking of p-ar-tee-ying, we have had one night out and it was quite the team. There appear to be a bevy of nice clubs and bars in the city, and after a couple of drinks in the room, we went to a bar called Park Avenue and then a nightclub called Radio, both of which were a good time. The music here is a good mix of Euro and American popular hits which I'm definitely digging. Another night also had us checking out one of the bars down on the beach called Golden Beach, and sitting on a couch in the sand sipping a beer is not the worst way to spend an evening!
Until next time, may all your seas be Red! Not that the Red Sea is actually red or anything. Cause it's not, if you were wondering. But I already knew that... I swear!
P.S. Sorry for the lack of quality pics, but again, no camera yet!
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