Dado Beach - Haifa, Israel

Got an intuitive hit today to do one last trip to the beach. We had seen that the weather for the next few days was cloudy (which usually means rain😞) so we decided to do one last quick trip to Dado beach. We had no idea if the buses were even running... they were... but almost empty.

After our quick trip to the beach... we did one last run to the grocery store. We were amazed at how full the shelves were AND how calm the people were. So nice to see after feeling so calm at the beach.


I'm so glad I trusted my instincts and we did one last field trip. Tonight's headlines say we are probably looking a complete country-wide lockdown in the next few days. It could be a week or longer. The Ministry of Health says that despite all the social distancing... the virus is continuing to spread. Thus, the need for desperate measures.


Update: March 17, 2020

So glad that we did the beach trip yesterday.... because that was really the last opportunity. 😎 Today it was rainy and sucky out. Plus, the Israel Ministry of Health published new restrictions. 😷 "The updated guidelines prohibit the public from visiting parks, playgrounds, the beach, pool, libraries, museums, nature reserves or other public spaces except with children in a family framework or with a pet."

Boy oh boy... people in Israel are mighty upset about the latest restrictions that came out tonight. They are mad as blazes at all the F@*%# idiots that didn't take the Corona Virus thing seriously and went to beach. 😳 Busted! But on the other hand, I think we all knew that the country-wide lockdown was imminent. Don't regret going at all.

Good Friends & Good Food

Had the most awesome visit with these two yesterday. ❤️ Steve & Ona Siporin, our dear sweet friends, from Logan, UT. While on the way from traveling in Northern Israel, they decided to hop off the train in Haifa and take Devon and I out for lunch. Such a wonderful visit. Great time catching up.

So this is what you get for lunch when your friends take you “out for hummus.” Wow. It was as wonderful to eat as it looks. Brand new experience for Devon & I. We loved it.

Me, failing miserably at trying to take a group photo with my short arms. I’m like a T-Rex. (Needed a selfie stick)

Obviously Steve Siporin has the knack for being able to take a great photo. I love this one he took of Devon and I.❤️ I love his caption: "Israel is good for romance and beauty! (And food!)" 

Voting in Israel

Devon and I voted today for the first time. The election held today is the 3rd one to determine who will be the Prime Minister of Israel. Let's hope that the third time is a charm.


We were happy to have friends accompany us where we needed to go to vote. It's a little scary voting in an election, when you don't speak/read the language.

Luckily, it was fairly straight forward. You get a blue envelope, go in the voting booth, and choose a card for the party you want, and place the envelope in a ballot box.

If you don't read Hebrew, Arabic, or Russian, you'd be totally clueless on WHO to vote for. Luckily, we knew enough to do our homework in advance and become familiar with all the different choices.

Having this many parties to choose from is so different than the way voting is done in the United States. Now we understand why it's hard for anyone running here to win by a landslide. Hence, this is why the "winning party" has to form a coalition with other parties.

Update:  This is pretty amazing. 😃 They actually came up with a way to make sure that the people quarantined, as a result of the Corona Virus, could still get out and vote today. Where else but in Israel?