home sweet home (sort of)

We are finally in our house and our things arrived (mostly intact.) We have had a whole litany of problems but slowly the kinks are getting worked out or we are learning to deal. Our home is in Ashdod, the fifth largest city in Israel. It is on the Mediterranean Sea and has a huge port on the north end. I like the city a lot. It's big enough that there's plenty of nearby shopping and things to do but the streets are wider, there's more available parking and it's cleaner than Tel Aviv. There's a large population of Russian and French immigrants who aren't religious Jews, so there are many non-kosher items available -- pork, bacon, etc.. When it's not rush hour, it take Alfonso 35 minutes to get to Intel. Unfortunately there are only two roads that go into the city, the main one by the port and one at the south entrance. So the congestion at the intersection is insane just waiting to get into the city. Alfonso's shuttle ride takes over an hour. This was why we hadn't considered living in Ashdod originally. Since our other housing option was ..oh wait, we didn't have another option unless you consider waiting indefinitely at the hotel a viable choice (that would be NO!!!)

Anyhow, we have a nice home. It's a two story duplex. There are four bedrooms so we are ready for company whenever you are ready to come! The houses here are made of concrete and tile so it's a bit noisy and has quite an echo. Our home was used as a model home for this allotment so it was furnished to look "fancy" (I believe was the intent -- however the words "gaudy and tacky" come to mind.) The chandeliers and curtains with the crystals, black and white fringe would be better suited for a Vegas lounge than in home with two toddlers that merely look at the white couches to make them filthy. We have a beautiful garden and a small yard that is enclosed so the boys can run but not escape. The house is located at the very southern end of the city. At the end of our block, there's nothing but sand dunes (which the boys enjoy "sledding" down.) We are about 600 yards from the sea --a mere 8 minute walk to the beach. The walk home feels longer since I have to pull the wagon up hill to get back. We go to the beach quite a bit as the boys both love it. Dante calls it "El Mar" and reaches out his arm in this grand gesture as he somehow comprehends how vast and awesome it truly is. My new goal is to survive the next two years without getting skin cancer. There are two other American families from Intel with children on our street as well.

Masada and the Dead Sea
Masada is yet another set of ancient Roman ruins near the Dead Sea. This fortress/palace/city was built by King Herod as his winter retreat home. Because its location is so remote (in the middle of the desert) it was relatively uninhabited over the years and therefore well preserved. It was held by a group of Jews in the first century who killed themselves rather than be over taken by a Roman siege -- so it has a great symbolism to the Jewish people. The Israeli soldiers take an oath there that "Masada will not fall again." Alejandro was a little more interested in the ruins this time as he pretended to take a bath in the bathhouse and bought imaginary food from the ancient storerooms.
We stopped at the Dead Sea after our visit to Masada so it was way past nap time. The shore is 400 meters below sea level and the water is over 8 times saltier than the ocean. Alfonso and I both floated effortlessly but the kids couldn't be persuaded to try. It felt like walking into a pool of mineral oil. Not like water with grease on top, but the whole thing is like a vat of oil. It's supposed to be really healthy for your skin and people lather themselves with mud -- which Alejandro thought was hysterical. The salt crystallizes on the sea floor so it's painful to walk on your bare feet. Plus, the water is too salty for the kids to play. Dante got some his his mouth and tried to wipe the taste out with his hands which were covered with the salty water. Then Alejandro splashed it in his eyes and that was the end of our 20 minutes at the Dead Sea. Not a fun place for the kids even before naptime.
The drive offered yet another landscape -- a completely desolate, barren desert with windy roads. We could see camels wandering off in the distance and nothing else for miles. It was like out of a movie. There was one little spot by a gas station that Arab merchants had their wares for sale and camels all saddled up for the tourists. On the way there, we stopped for a photo and Alejandro got a ride around the parking lot. They normally take you out on half hour rides into the desert for an authentic experience but we just wanted to get to the Dead Sea. Dante was terrified of the camel for some reason and screamed like a banshee when we tried to get him to sit with his brother. On the drive home, we saw a few camels grazing on the side of the road, so Alfonso slowed down so we could get a picture. It's a good thing because there was a sharp curve in the road, and right as we came around the bend there was a camel right in the middle of the lane. Those creatures are so big, there wouldn't have been much left to our little car! A mile down the road, there was a sign warning about camels crossing.
Passover
We went to another family's home for their traditional Seder meal for Passover last night. They had their parents and some other friends as well. They said many blessings and prayers in Hebrew but would stop along the way to explain to us in English the meaning of the different parts. There were also many songs which Alejandro got upset that he didn't know the words too but Dante was happy to dance along with. We ate the different herbs and drank lots of wine. His co-worker's mother was from Turkey but spoke Ladino which is a very old form of Spanish. Way back in 1492, the Spaniards expelled the Muslims and Jews. Many of them settled in Turkey and Morocco but they kept the Spanish language even after all these centuaries. (We'll be lucky if our kids know how to speak Spanish.) Anyhow, at the end of the evening they sang a song in Ladino.

It starts "Un kavretiko ke lo merko mi padre por dos Levanim" which means "A goat that my father bought for two Levanim" and it goes through multiple verses with something happening to the last thing. So it ends like this:
"I vino el santo benditcho el i mato al Malah Hamavat ke degoyo al choet, ke degoyo ala vaka, ke bevio la aqua ke amota al fuego ke kemo al palo ke aharvo al perro ke moryo al gato ke komio al kavretiko ke lo merko me padre por dos Levanim"

(This is how it is written in Ladino -- my Spanish isn't really that bad!)
"The Blessed Holy One came and slaughtered the Angel of Death that slaughtered the butcher that slaughtered the cow that drank the water that put out the fire that was burning the stick that beat the dog that bit the cat that ate the goat that my father bought for two Levanim."

Groceries
Shopping here has been very challenging. An Israeli friend has offered to go with me to the store and help me out but our trip keeps getting delayed for one reason or another. I would say only about 10% of the items have English on the labels. Plus, the packaging is very different -- for example: tomato paste is in like a plastic pudding cup with a foil seal instead of a can. I'm an expert on tomato paste because we've bought it three times in attempt to get tomato sauce. Asking for help doesn't get you very far when people have limited English and my Hebrew is practically non-existent. Other things, we just haven't found yet whether the store is kosher or not. All the cheeses here are white -- no cheddar. We bought one cheese that was a darker yellow and it turned into a buttery consistency when left at room temperature and has absolutely no flavor. The foods are grouped differently so it's hard to even know where to look for things. (Flour and sugar are with the breads instead of with other baking items.) Nothing I cook tastes like it's supposed to. I'm sure over time and with a little help we'll get things figured out. Right now, meal time is a a bit frustrating. Alejandro and Dante are happy with chicken nuggets and hot dogs (made from chicken) respectively. They have daily arguments over which is better. It reminds me of those old "taste great/less filling" commercials where they just shout back and forth at each other. "Hot dog!" "Chicken nuggets!" "Hot dog!" "Chicken nuggets!" Alejandro came home from shopping with Alfonso and Dante looks at him and yells "Hot dog!" just to start a fight. It's a bit ridiculous.

Bamba
Bamba is like the Israeli national snack food. They are like cheese puffs except they are peanut butter flavored. The boys were first introduced at one of Alfonso's co-worker's home. They put out a huge bowl and both of the boys started scarfing it as fast as they could get it to their face. Eventually they slowed down so they could go play with the cat. Later, I told them it was time to go and I started to gather the diaper bag. I turn around and Dante has two fistfuls, while Alejandro had made a pouch out of his shirt and is dumping the remaining bamba into his shirt. I was absolutely mortified but our hosts just thought it was adorable. Of course, Israelis are so indulgent with children I'm not sure what behavior they would disapprove of. Alfonso and I aren't fans of the bamba. They have fruit flavored puffs as well but apparently no cheese flavored ones (that we have found yet anyhow.) We saw a Cheetos brand bag (with Chester the cheetah) and bought them -- only to discover they were flavored like sweet corn. The boys both like to sing La Bamba whenever they eat it.

love always,
debi