Holy church, ducks and yogurt

Today was certainly a day of firsts for me which is still a bit surprising since I would hardly call myself a tourist in Israel anymore.

First, I couldn't fall back asleep after waking up at 4. It gave me time to read before I decided to wake up and hang the laundry on the line. I got to spend a little time with Efrat and Nitsan (who is so cute in her uniform) before they left for the day. I did manage to fall asleep around 9ish until 11.

The timing was good because Ido was up and about and wanted to know where Rebecca and I wanted to go today. We settled on Nazareth after some back and forth since it would be the easiest destination to reach from Givat Elah. Plus, I had never been there, though I hadn't really felt the urge to visit so much despite it being a huge holy place for Christians.

We got a ride down to Nahalal Junction and waited there for the bus. Ido's girlfriend, Sivan, met up with us there. The bus stop was full of rowdy teens who serenaded me with High School Musical songs. Yippee! Once in Nazareth, the bus driver dropped us off in the center of town. We met Ido's friends who used to work at the famous Falafel Golani in Afula and ventured out on their own in Nazareth. They fed me the perfect amount of pita, hummus and salads to keep me going, and then on we went to see some churches.

We followed the 'pilgrims' to the Church of the Anunciation. This is where the angel, Gabriel, told Mary she will have a son, Jesus. It is the largest church in the Middle East featuring a huge basilica, the ancient lower church and all sorts of art of the mother and child from all over the world. It was very cool and unlike the image I have in my mind of most large churches in Italy. It was more subdued, old but very artistic at the same time. We passed a teen tour of bored looking Christians listening to a tour guide talk and occasionally opening their bibles to appropriate passages. Reminded me of most Jewish teen tours...

After hanging out there and Ido making friends with an Arab family from Haifa, we went on to see the old shuk. It was nothing too terribly impressive, but it was an Arab shuk with its mix of touristy magnets (a foam image of the Last Supper cracked me up!), Middle Eastern tea sets, scarves, underwear and shoes. We wandered there for a while until we felt the falafel calling us.
The falafel was worth the wait. Though I thought my face was melting off, we sat outside and enjoyed very fresh falafel made by Ido's friends at their restaurant. Delicious! We continued to meander along the streets looking for treats and ended up passing up bakalava because the Israelis (Ido and Sivan) were sure the shopkeepers were trying to price-gouge the tourists (us).

We decided to head back to Givat Elah where we met up with Nitsan and Efrat. From there, the women went on to Kfar Baruch to visit Efrat's brother, Tali, and sister in law, Iris, and family at their Duck Farm. We got the full treatment. First Iris taught us about duck reproduction, and we looked at duck sperm under the microscope. I am pretty sure this is the first time I have ever written or spoken aloud the words, "duck sperm". We then saw the incubator where the eggs mature and two ducks poked out of their shells right before our eyes. It was soo cute!! Baby ducklings are just adorable and fuzzy and so much fun to hold. We hung out with the family for a while afterward and it was so lovely to sit near the pomegranate trees and feel the breeze on my face. This is what it's like to have a backyard (or a farm with a ton of space).

Nitsan had been telling us about this new yogurt phenomenon at Ramat Yishai, and we had to try it. Or at least I had to! They have one kind of yogurt and it's tart. But it's not watery like Pinkberry so it must be twice as fattening...Then, they put on as many toppings as you want and top it off with a mountain of more yogurt. I went a little nuts, of course, with the candy and the chocolate and the nuts, and I really enjoyed it. I would consider getting it again, but it's a bit too much for me. The gelato there looked amazing so I think I need to continue to branch out while in Israel. :-)

What a great day! I got to spend time with all the Carmels, albeit somewhat separately, but it was a wonderful end to my time with them. Tomorrow, I go to Jerusalem to check into my hotel and get ready for the next two weeks. Whoo hoo! I am not sure I am ready to get down to work, but it is the reason I am here so I need to get my head in the game.

Until 4 am tomorrow....